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Booooooorrrring....... to quote Mindy when she was 14....

Owners manuals are a drag, but surprisingly useful from time to time. But they are not known for their riveting prose, or their story line. Remember the Manual in "Beetlejuice?" "This reads like stereo instructions..."

I'll try to make a little sense here of those little icons on the dial or screen of your camera.

Every camera is a little different, so I'll stick to the basics,

First, is automatic. This assumes you have no brain, and are only barely capable of pressing one button. The camera does everything for you except aim. It determines whether you need flash, how to focus, what your exposure should be, whether your hands shake, and if you've had too much coffee.

Ok, yours might look a little different...

Automatic has some uses, particularly in those spur of the moment instances, where if you have to think, you will lose the moment, and the shot. But in most cases, I avoid automatic. But not coffee.

Second, and more useful is "P" or Program Automatic. We are slowly taking control over from the little computer in the camera. We can determine whether to use flash or not, and we can compensate for the overall brightness of the images. The camera wants to see an "18% Gray" image. The palm of your hand is a good approximation of the brightness of 18% gray. But what if you are shooting on a sunny day in a snow covered field? The camera will try to average the scene at 18% gray, making it look muddy. In this case, you can tell the camera to overexpose the image. The reverse is true for dark scenes.

Now we get to the icons, or little pictures on the wheel. The little face is "Portrait Mode", which adjusts the camera to blur out the background while keeping your subject in focus. Yes, the camera is still thinking for you, but you are telling it to think in a very specific way.

The little icon of the mountain does exactly the opposite of the portrait mode. It tries to get everything in the viewfinder in focus from the extreme foreground to the distance. It does this by making the aperture smaller, and increasing the ISO (sensitivity of the sensor).

The flower icon means "Macro" mode, or extreme closeup. It allows you to take very crisp images very close to your subjects.

The Sports icon tries to get clear images of things that happen very fast, like hockey or lacrosse.

I have to admit, I don't use those settings, except "P", but it is good to know what they do.

My goal for you, is to have you thinking for yourself, rather than depending on a thumbnail sized electronic brain do it. But while you are learning, play with these settings, see what they do and how they affect the images you take.

Next week, we'll play with "Depth of Field". I promise it will be riveting!

Focus: The Sniper Method

Welcome to sniper school.

Do you ever wonder why snipers can hit their target from so many yards away? Why are they so accurate? What is it that they do that makes them so good?

It is the very breath that they take and their control of it that helps them hold the gun steady, and allows them to hit their target.

So how does that relate to cameras and focus?

Most of us shake a bit. Some of us shake a lot. I will try here to show you how to shake less, and follow through in your photo shooting.

Look at how sharp the focus is. This image
was hand held, using the techniques in this tip.

Here is part 1.

Hold your hand out in front of you.

Take a deep breath. Hold it for about 5 seconds.

Now  let it out slowly. It should take about 10 seconds.

If you are like most people, your hand will almost stop shaking completely between 6 and 10 seconds.

When you prepare to release the shutter (take the picture), breathe exactly the way we just did it. Pick the camera up to your eye, deep breath, then let it out. Squeeze the button between 6 and 8.

Here is the hard part. DO NOT take the camera down from your eye until you are done exhaling. It is called "follow-through" and is just as important for the photographer as it is for the baseball player. Or the sniper.

Homework for tonight is to breathe deeply, and get used to the idea of breath control. Go take some photos. Inhale, exhale slowly, THEN take the camera down. It will take a while to get used to it, but your crystal clear images will be well worth it!

Next week, what all of those settings mean - or at least some of them...

The Photographers' Perspective

To quote Charles Lewis, Successful photographers are those who do what the unsuccessful photographers are unwilling to do. He was talking about money, but it just as well applies to the artistic nature of your images, starting with where you take the photo from, or in other words, your perspective.

Photo by Monroe Payne

First, get over the idea of standing up while you take the photograph. Go ahead, get uncomfortable. Squat down or lie down to get the Chihuahua's eye view of the roses. Get on a ladder and photograph a train from the Engineer's altitude. Your images will be remarkable, at least in part, because you did what NOBODY ELSE was willing to do - or at least they didn't think of it first.

Anyone can pick up a camera, aim it and release the shutter. You, however, are better than that.

Photo by Mindy Porter

When you choose another perspective, you are treating your viewer to a different point of view of a "thing". Children, in particular, really look great - and very different - when you photograph them at THEIR eye level. Take it another level down to cat's eye level. Charming little kitty becomes a predator, or a tiny puppy looks truly lost in the grass.

Now try moving up! Use a ladder! Take your photos from an upstairs window to get, again, that point of view that nobody else is willing to get. You might even climb up a lighthouse's stairs. Or a fire tower. Me? I'm trying to find a good used cherry picker - you know, like the cable companies use... I don't climb trees any more...

Another, slightly more difficult (and uncomfortable) perspective is "from the inside out".

Get inside a shrub, or closet, or for that matter, under a bed, and photograph "from the inside out". This is an exercise, folks. Play with it. Try all sorts of things, that involve a camera and discomfort, and you will be amazed.

Photo by Miles Lumbard

Photo by Richard Nagle

The next, and perhaps most uncomfortable thing to do is be patient. Eagles and Hummingbirds do NOT appear on request. Wait. Be patient. Be quiet. Your patience will be rewarded. Usually about 20 minutes AFTER you have decided that this is a stupid thing to do - but you decided to hang around for "just a couple minutes more..."

This June, I plan on being on the lake at 3AM to get a particular building illuminated by a bright full moon. Why? Because I have seen the image in my mind, and want to capture it. I will not be denied.

I promise, I will share the image as soon as I have it. You will be amazed.

Homework? Create an image from a unique perspective in your mind. Do whatever is necessary to make it real, and to capture it in your camera. Just remember, you MUST be uncomfortable when you take it. No pain, no art!

Next week, the secret of perfect focus.

All of the photos used are from IthacaStock.com contributors. Please visit their galleries on IthacaStock.com, Richard Nagle, Miles Lumbard, Mindy Porter and Monroe Payne

Also, please follow this blog for weekly tips, and by all means, visit our Facebook page, ithacastock.com.

Curves

Curves. I love curves. Roundnesses. Softnesses.

Curves are the most pleasing thing that they eye can see.

 

They lead, they entice, they draw you in and let you wonder what is around the next curve. We are trained to see straight lines, whether it be the shortest point from here to there, like an Interstate Highway out west, or the roof line of your house, or the lines in the sidewalk. The lines are there, but for the most part, are fairly uninteresting.

Curves, on the other hand, are like the back road through the trees, a garden path, the Blue Ridge Parkway, the softness of the female form, or even the rippling biceps of the muscle man. Curves are organic, which is why, I think, that we are so drawn to them as an element of art.

Straight lines have their place, but are very mechanical and organized.

Curves remind us of our humanity, and our natural being. So let's incorporate them into our images!

So where do we find curves? Just about everywhere that nature is involved. The sun, the moon, the shoreline of the lake, the road through the snow covered woods - but curves can be there without the "line" of the curve. This photo of the Ring of Brodgar is a case in point. The tops of the standing stones make a curve, drawing you into the image.

If you don't know, the Ring of Brodgar is Stonehenge's  biggest brother, measuring 138 meters across. You can find this, the largest Henge in the world on the mainland of the Orkney Islands, north of Scotland.

Curves are not only in nature and can be manufactured as well - and that is why the Opera House in Sydney, Australia is so celebrated. Manufactured curves on that scale are not so commonly found in architecture. Again, they lend an organic flavor to the building that is missing in most construction.

And here is the biggest curve I have photographed, leading your eye to the Space Shuttle on the launch pad.

So your homework, should you choose to accept it. is to find and photograph some curves. Don't limit yourself to curvy lines drawn in the sand. See the curves in everything, like these roses...

Life on the Diagonal

A photo is a two dimensional thing. It has height and it has width, but alas, no depth.

So how can you add a third dimension to the lowly photograph?

Ok, you can’t. But you can create the illusion of depth in your images with the use of diagonal lines. The most basic way to do this, by example, is by taking a photo of a house from the corner instead of straight on. Look at how you can tell that your subject, the house, has a real sense of depth.

But that is just a starting place.

Diagonals are everywhere - but sometimes they are so obvious that you have to look for them.  Consider the street you live on. Where are the diagonals? Look at the curbs and how the trail off into the distance? Diagonals!

The hallway at school. Photogenic? You may not think so - but look! Step to the side and you have created diagonals and perspective, and DEPTH. That's what we are looking for, that third dimension.

Diagonals don't stop there. Look at a line of trees, and how their trunks make a line. Look at any thing or scene that interests you. Move yourself until you find an angle that generates a diagonal leading you in to the photos!

Homework? Use the "Boom!" method from March 30, or use your camera and take photos of your own house or building, emphasizing the diagonal lines formed by the roof and the walls,  and notice how your position changes everything!

Next week, curves!

The Rule of Thirds

Art has rules, or at least guidelines….

Here is the “Rule of Thirds”, paraphrased. “Imagine a tic-tac-toe board, with your two horizontal and two vertical lines drawn on your image. The center of interest of an image should be at one of the four intersections of those tic-tac-toe lines.”

These rules aren’t spoken by some “sage of artiness” with no context. These rules work. What most people do NOT know, is WHY the rules work, and exactly what the intent of the rules is.

Take a look at any "snapshot". The subject is in the exact center, you see what it is, then go to the next picture. How fulfilling. (not…)

Compare that with the well composed image, with the center of interest being at one of the “third” intersections. Pay attention to where your eyes go. Do they explore the image? Do they look around to see what else they can find? Are your eyes and your interest drawn in to the image?

You see, THAT is the intent of the “Rule of Thirds”, to make your eyes explore, and your mind be interested.

You may have noticed, I don’t talk about “pictures”, rather “images”. You “take” pictures, you “create” images. A snapshot is a picture, Images are created, designed and planned. My goal for you, dear reader, is for you to begin to create beautiful, exciting, provoking images that your friends and colleagues will be very, very impressed with.

Homework? Find a photo you have taken that you feel is really good, and compare it to one where the subject is planted smack in the middle. Compare your photos paying attention to which image is more interesting. See?

Your Subject

A photo needs a subject, and people who look at the photo really ought to be able to tell what it is... No, I'm not trying to be insulting, but it's amazing how many images I see that have no identifiable subject.

When I was 12 (back in the dark ages) my family traveled around the country. It seemed that every rise we went over, every corner we went around and every change of weather, we had to stop, get out of the car, and take a photo.

When all of the slides finally got processed and we watched them, we were impressed by how many "photos of nothing" we had. Ok, so each "nothing" was a little different, but they were still "nothing", and definitely nothing we wanted to show to friends, because they were, after all, "nothing". See? This is a photo of "Nothing". Pretty nothing, but still, nothing.

Another issue with most of them was that the horizon or coast line was dead center in the image. So there was the additional question, is the subject supposed to be the land, or is it the sky? Or is it still, just "nothing"?

So this is step one. Identify your subject. Look through the viewfinder, and ask yourself, "What IS the subject?". If you can't INSTANTLY answer, recompose your image.

And don't be afraid of filling your frame with the subject. We photographers, until we realize that our clients expect it, try to hold back and not "get in their faces". Of course, this doesn't mean that you should be pushy or obnoxious, but it DOES mean that if you are being paid to do a job, you shouldn't be relegated to the background.

Later on in this series, we will cover ways to separate your subject from the background, and ways to clean up your background - but right now, you need to IDENTIFY exactly what your subject is.

 

It may be the children at play, the expression when the 2 year old gets their first dill pickle, the awesome sunset through the trees, the statue in the park with the birds ….doing what birds do. Or even Stonehenge's big BIG brother, The Ring of Brodgar on the Orkney Islands...

It doesn’t matter what you choose for the subject – but it DOES matter that your viewer can identify your subject. Next time, where should you put your new found subject?

Homework? Take photos in or around your home, and fill the frame with your subject. Be a little nuts about it. Make it IMPOSSIBLE to NOT know what your subject is.