Landscape/Cityscape Photos

Guest Speaker prep: Azul Ox Visuals

Part 1

1. What are the most time consuming events to shoot?
2. What got you into photography?
3. Where do you come up with the funds to buy your gear?
4. Do you have a particular role model for photography?
5. What pieces of gear are the most important to you?

 Part 2

     He said that knowing how to run a business is more important than taking a photography class. You can learn photography on your own but proper business practices need to be taught. Starting off, some of the difficulties you'll face is building up enough gear for every situation and getting your name out there. Some of the benefits of working as a pro photographer is that you have your own hours, you're your own boss, and you get to experience lots of different things. In photography, lighting is more important than the camera you have because lights allow you to make whatever mood you want in any situation, while cameras don't. He said networking is the most important thing since that's what gets you business. The quote he used was "Your network is your net worth." He suggested to advertise in things like local newspapers and to shoot for anyone and everyone.

Canon 6D versus T3i

1. A full frame camera has a bigger sensor compared to a crop sensor which results in better image quality and much better performance at high ISOs.

2. Five advantages of 6D over T3i:

• Better image quality
• Lower noise at high ISO
• Much larger sensor
• Better autofocus system.
• Better color depth

3. The 6D only has 11 auto focus points and on cross type points while the 5D MkIII has 41 cross type autofocus points which makes it much easier to focus on any given spot.

Light Basics and Vocabulary

Part 1

• Butterfly (Or Paramount) 

1. Paramount lighting produces a symmetrical, butterfly-like shadow beneath the subject's nose.

2. It's usually a feminine lighting pattern and it emphasizes high cheekbones and good skin, and it's usually used on women.

3. This lighting pattern uses four light sources.

Loop

1. It's just a minor variation of Paramount lighting. The shadow under the nose becomes a small loop on the shadow side of the face.

2. It's better for people with average, oval-shaped faces.

3. This lighting pattern uses four light sources.

Rembrandt

1. This lighting pattern creates a small, triangular highlight on the shadowed cheek of the subject.

2. It produces a more dramatic type of lighting.

3. This type of lighting uses four sources of light.

Split Lighting

1. The light causes only half of the face to be illuminated.

2. You can use it to narrow a wide face or nose, or to hide facial irregularities. Also, if you use it with no fill, it can be a highly dramatic lighting method.

3. This lighting pattern uses four light sources. 

Broad and Short

1. Broad is when the main light is illuminating the broad side of the face and the shadow from the nose is being cast onto the short side of the face. Short lighting is just the opposite. For short, the main light is coming from the short side of the subject and the broad side of the face is more in shadow. 

2. Short can be used to narrow the face and broad can be used to make a face look fuller.

3. This type of lighting uses one light source and a reflector. 

Part 2

Fill light - Fill light is used to lighten shadows. For example, a person's nose could cast a shadow on their face so you could use fill light to fill the shadow.

Key light (main light) -  The key light is the light that contributes the most to the photo, it basically sets the mood.

Hair light - An accent light used to typically light the top of the head.

Background light - The light that helps identify the background and separate it from the subject.

Shadowless - A style of lighting where the main light goes in front of the subject which creates an almost shadowless look.

Hard light - A light that produces strong high-lights and dark shadows, the light is also more dramatic.

Soft light - The opposite of hard light. Indirect, diffused, and bounced. Produces soft shadows and subtle highlights.

Grey card - A grey card used to get a light meter reading.

Reflector - Flat things that are usually white, silver, or gold that are used to redirect the rays from light sources.

Diffuser - A translucent item placed in front of a light source used to soften the light. It makes the highlights and shadows softer as well as other things.

Intensity (Strength, or how to set shutter speed and aperture's appropriate to portraits) - The strength of the light. They're usually measured in Foot Candles or Lux.

3:1 lighting ratio - A 3:1 lighting ratio is when the light discrepancy between two light sources is one and a half stops.

Part 3

Five Characteristics of Light

Direction: Where the light is coming from. Side, front, or behind.

Intensity: How bright the light source is.

Color: The color of the light. Red, blue, green, white, yellow, etc.

Contrast: Is the transition from the highlights to shadows subtle or sudden?

Hardness: What do the edges of the shadows look like

Virtual Copies and Snapshots

1. One
2. Whichever snapshot was applied last.
3. Press Command + '
4. You can export all of the images at once. 
5. Both the master and virtual copies are deleted.

Basic Color Corrected

Black and White

B&W Duotoned

Year in Photos: 2013

PART 1:

Photojournalism

Rules: Rhythm - There are many heads and flags which gives the photo some rhythm.

            Rule of Thirds - The main subject is in the bottom left quadrant rather than the center.

            Light - The light from the fire gives some more dramatic lighting.

Lighting: Sources - Torches, moon, street lamps.

                   Mix of artificial and natural.

                   The lighting makes the photo more dramatic and gives it a darker, more grim feeling.

To get this photo, the photographer had to get right into the action and up close. For the camera itself, he probably had to use a wide aperture, a high ISO, and a medium speed shutter speed.

                   

Photojournalism

Rules: Rule of Thirds - The subject is in the bottom right quadrant rather than the center.

            Simplicity - The shoes and blood are the only things in the photo, there's nothing else to pull your attention away from the main subject.

            Contrast - A normally peaceful place and object is turned into a symbol of the tolls of war.

Lighting: Source: It looks like the photographer just used the natural lighting from the sun during the day.

                  Natural Lighting

                  The lighting enhanced the photo since it helped you clearly see everything.

To get this photo, the photographer had to be in a tense area and had to look for something powerful that would translate well to a photo. With the camera, they probably used a low ISO, an average speed shutter speed, and a medium aperture.

Animals

Rules: Rule of Thirds - The moose is in the bottom right quadrant rather than the center.

            Simplicity - The background is very simple and there are no things to distract you from the moose.

Lighting: Source - It looks like the lighting in the photo came from the moon which reflected off the water.
                  Natural (??)
                  This lighting gave me a better feeling of the atmosphere and also gives the photo an ominous mood.

To get this photo the photographer probably had to wait a long time and very quiet, since too much noise could startle the animal and ruin the photo. In terms of the camera, he probably used a high ISO, a slower shutter speed, and a wide aperture. Possibly a tripod as well.

Urban

Rules: - Rhythm - The poles repeat and add some rhythm.

               Light - You can see the shadows and light creeping in from the outside.

             
Lighting: Source - It looks like the photographer used natural lighting with a longer exposure.
                  Natural
                  The lighting makes this photo interesting because of the vast contrast, there's places with dark shadows and others with bright light and it adds to the photo's feeling.

To get this photo the photographer probably had to look for abandoned things that could be interesting, and he had to find some way to make it look interesting. With the camera, I think he might have used a tripod, a medium ISO, a high aperture, and a slow shutter speed. 

Photojournalism

Rules: Balance - There are no empty areas in the photo, everything adds to the photo.

             Rule of Thirds - The main subjects are off center.

Lighting: Source - The only source of light seems to be the sun.
                  Natural
                  The lighting from the sun allows the dramatic shadows to be present which add to the grim feeling of the  photo.

To get this photo, the photographer had to put himself directly into a dangerous situation and had to stay with the action. With the camera, they probably used a low ISO, a medium aperture, and a fast shutter speed.

PART 2:

1. Photograph The Night Sky

2. 

3. A very sturdy tripod, camera with manual mode and the ability to shoot RAW. 

[Optional] - Remote trigger, lens with wide aperture.

4. You should look at a light pollution map, check the moon phase, learn the 500 rule, and decide whether or not you want star trails.

5.

• Shoot when the sky is as dark as possible.
• Shoot in an area with low light pollution.
• Shoot on nights of the new moon so that the stars are brighter.
• Use a smaller focal length lens.
• Use a high ISO.
• Use a very long exposure (20 sec.+)
• Focus on infinity, take a test shot, then adjust from there.

6. Use Lightroom for RAW file conversion, color correction, basic luminosity control, contrast, sharpening and noise reduction. You can either experiment until you like how it looks, or use the provided preset. Then, transfer the photo to Photoshop and use luminosity masking to make your stars really stand out. 

Flash Fact and Skills

PART 1:

Flash fact #1: Every flash photograph is two exposures in one

Flash fact #2: Flash exposure is not affected by shutter speed.

Flash fact #3: Flash illumination is dramatically affected by distance.

Flash fact #4: Your camera measures ambient light and flash illumination separately.

Flash fact #5: With automatic flash metering, the flash illumination is measured after the shutter button is pressed, and the flash output is adjusted accordingly.

Flash fact #6: Every SLR camera with a mechanical shutter has a maximum flash sync shutter speed

Flash fact #7: (Applicable to modern electronic cameras only) If you set your shutter speed faster than flash sync, or use Av mode with an aperture setting that requires a shutter speed faster than flash sync for proper exposure, the camera will automatically revert to flash sync speed when the shot is taken if a built-in or hotshoe-mounted flash is turned on.

PART 2:

1. Finish this sentence: The further your subject, the more powerful flash you need.

2. No, ambient light would be increased in a long exposure.

3. You can't expect your flash to work out of it's range.

4. 1/200

5. The guide number for a flash is a way of quantifying its maximum output in terms that a photographer can relate to aperture and distance.

6. The lighting is too harsh and flat. You can bounce the flash off of something, like a wall, to fix the problem.

7. It completely eliminates the chance of red eyes and it gives you more pleasing shadows.

PART 3: