Night Art Photography
I made some Photos in the last days – please tell me what you think:
It's one of the greatest tools available to photographers, it's easy to use, and yet it's among the least known and used abilities of a camera today. Pro photographers have used it for decades, but the amateur can use these same techniques without paying the professional price. It's called depth of field, and it's accessed through the use of the aperture.
The aperture, simply put, is the hole that light comes through in your camera. Light passes through the front of the lens, through a series of glass pieces, through a hole at the back of the lens, and into the camera. The aperture is the hole in the back of the lens, and you get to control this vital part of the camera, if you decide to want to bump up your pictures. You can place the camera on auto, and the camera will adjust its aperture, shutter and more to the situation it sees. By placing the camera in more manual modes, you take on powerful and personal control, and YOU get to decide what you want to create with your photographs.
An important factor here is lighting. Any photography relies heavily on the lighting that you are using, whether it be from the natural, ambient light around you, or artificial light, like a strobe or other flash unit. Especially while using natural light, it will be important to use a tripod to keep the camera steady while shooting. If you are shooting on a cloudy day, without much light, then the camera must compensate for less light by having a longer shutter speed, which it will do automatically in the mode I'll be explaining in a moment. A longer shutter speed means the camera won't be able to have a clearly focused picture without the use of the tripod.
Depth of field simply means the area of focus, or the area in the picture that is in focus might be a more accurate term. Photography is a two dimensional medium, having height and width, but it lacks depth, the third dimension. Your photography can create the illusion of that depth through a few easy camera settings. You may be asking yourself, why would I want to create the illusion of depth, and what is it good for? Part of the reason is to create a sense of emphasis. When you take a picture of a large area, with trees, birds, squirrels, people, rocks, etc, what is the thing or object that you are zeroing in on? Is there anything that you really want to emphasize to your viewer? If so, it's probably getting lost in the crowd of other things on the scene. The squirrels are so small you can barely see them, the people are walking their dogs, and the trees are swaying in the breeze. But what if you wanted to focus on the viewer on the flowers in the garden? When you create emphasis on an object, it strengthens your photo, and actually guides the eye of the viewer to that object. You could take pictures to create a story about that, as you can read in my article about photo stories. When you get in to take close-ups of the flowers is where the possibilities of great photography begin.
Emphasize the garden by focusing in on one or two flowers at a time. Grab a tripod, get down to eye level with them, and then get ready. Place your camera in a mode that allows you to change your aperture; the mode is usually called “A”, or “AV” on some models. Film cameras can allow these changes too, on SLR models. They require you to simply change the f-stop manually on the aperture ring. On your digital camera, use your selector buttons to change your aperture. You'll see on your digital camera, most likely, a letter f, with the number on the readout on either the monitor, or the info panel on the top of the camera, or perhaps both areas. The f means f-stop, which is the name commonly used to describe the number of the aperture setting. The best way to emphasize a flower is to have only that flower in focus, and to have the rest out of focus. Change your aperture to a really low number, such as 2.8, 4, or 5.6. When the lens is at a low number like this, the lens hole is wide open, but it is creating a small area or depth of field; basically an inch or two will be in focus. Focus your camera, and shoot. Now, look at the camera, and look at your pictures. The one or two flowers should be in focus, but do you see how the background is fuzzy and out of focus? This is what is called a “shallow depth of field”, and that comes from using a small number f-stop. That's because you've taken control of your camera, and changed the outcome! Because only the flower is in focus, and the rest is blurred out, you have guided your viewer to what YOU want to emphasize! You have used one of the most powerful tools available for a photographer to bring a new focus to your pictures. Try this with a lot of different scenes; look how the item is forced to really stand out for you because it's the only thing in focus.
Now, on the opposite end of the spectrum are the pictures that have the entire photograph in focus; such as a lighthouse standing out from the beach, with horseshoe crab shells in the immediate foreground. This is also done by changing the depth of field of your camera. Here, you again change your aperture, but this time place it on a high number like 16, 22, 28, etc. This is to create a large depth of field by using a small hole in the back of the lens. Again, you must use a tripod to keep the camera steady. Take a picture with something in the near foreground, such as a rock or the crab shells, and then compose your picture with a mountain or some other object some distance away, focus, and shoot. Remember to use the rule of thirds here for additional emphasis. As you'll see, both areas should be in focus, again showing the third dimension and creating the illusion of depth. This is a large depth of field.
It's a little known tool in the photographer's toolbox, but almost any camera made in the past four years will have some sort of ability to work with depth of field, whether they have a point and shoot or DSLR. Every photographer, of every level, has the ability, through practice, to create beautiful photographs that can rival those of the pros, by using the tools available with every camera. Use the strength of depth of field when you create the third dimension in your photographs, and add a new and incredibly
powerful personal dimension to your photography.
This post is number six of twenty one subjects that will help you focus when on your next journey and you wish to bring back a well rounded story of where you were. If you’re just going on vacation and only want pictures of yourself by the pool sipping boat drinks, then you can probably skip this one. These posts are not intent on telling you everything you need to do, step by step, to capture perfect, cookie-cutter pictures while traveling. Instead, they are intent on pointing out some vital elements to capture when on the road and ask thought provoking questions you may want to ask yourself. My hope is they help guide you to find your own means to better expressing what your travels have meant to you and present that in the best light possible.
How people socialize from region to region often seems something of a shock to the unsuspecting traveler, even in their own home country. City to city, the changes are less obvious. Block to block, they can be barely perceptible. But they are there. Humans are a social species and any time two or more of us get together there are behaviors and patterns, ways of communicating, ways of conveying thoughts and feelings about what’s important to each.
In broad terms, from a photographic standpoint when traveling, I take socializing to be any interactions that aren’t strictly business (even though business transactions often involve various types of socializing). And typically the types of interactions where people are trying to learning something from each other, unlike sports and other competitions. It’s the way cabbies waiting for a fare will stand around and chat. It’s the way police talk with vagrants in a park before moving them along. And kids at a movie theater yelling to friends or playing video games.
To really get a feel for socializing when traveling, it’s best to spend a day with no camera. Walk around and maybe see some of the tourist areas, but also spend time seated in a park away from the popular sites (we’ll have a post later that talks about hitting those ‘must see’ sites, but for now, leave them be). Go to a local cafe and just people watch. For some of us, this is one of the thrills of travel but for some, it’s a stretch to just sit and watch. But it’s important. Without a camera to grab, you’re more forced to witness, to see how others interact.
Do people mainly keep to themselves or is there a lot of interaction? Do young people talk to old people and do they do it different than when they talk to those in their own age group? Where do people tend to gather? Can you spot old friends and how they interact? And discern that from new acquaintances? Is there much physical contact during a conversation or are people more reserved? Loud or hushed? Smiles or serious?
Spending a day observing before grabbing your camera will answer these questions and more. If you can’t spend a whole day, maybe just an hour will do. It’ll give you a better idea of who the strangers are around you. Spending this day without a camera may also have another benefit. I’ve found people are often more likely to chat with you if you don’t have a camera. You may then learn more about how locals socialize with tourists. You may also make a friend who can lead you to other insights about the area you are visiting. And they’ll probably be ok with you taking their picture the next time you meet.
You say you aren’t traveling and have no photo to share in the comments section below? I say take a look at how those around you in your home town socialize and try photographing that first. Practice at home will sharpen your skill when you’re faced with a foreign country and culture. And by all means, please share any shots you have of what socializing means to you in the comment section.
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Previous articles in the Travel Photography Subjects series include Water, Old People, Young People, Religion and Sports. Be sure to subscribe to this site to receive the other 15 subjects as they are posted!
Additional Articles From “Networking”
- What do i have to specialize in ,in order to be a networking engineer?
- What are pros about social networking sites like Fbook and twitter for government agencies?
- What are some popular social networking sites?
- Whats is the next great social networking?
- Where can I find a template for a professional profile sheet, or networking sheet?
- Why are all these social networking sites getting Boring Nowadays?
- I’m interested in starting an online dating site or adult networking site and have a few questions?
- Is there a social networking site for people who like to cook?
- What is the best way to promote a business and social networking site designed for the real estate industry?
- Is there a social networking site for actors?
19 year old Phillip Duc is based in Melbourne, and has been shooting for about three years now. He says he’s inspired by cinema photography and culture, and adds: “- What really gets me going is serene, peaceful, tranquil and sometimes depressing environments. If i had to name a photographer it would be Ryan McGinley, because he lives life accordingly through his photographs.”
His work hasn’t been published anywhere yet as he just lately started promoting it. I have a feeling we will see more of it in the future.
At the moment he is working on a project called ‘Kinrid Spirits’: “- ‘kindrid spirits’ depicting the relation between humans and animals and how we have been corrupted by technology.”
Here’s some of his work:
Check out the rest of his work here.
from: Alyvias Blog
