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Resembling a mini Badlands National Park, the recent torrential rains in Southern Colorado produced deep erosional cuts in a land development near my home. Intrigued by the textures in the late afternoon sunlight, I photographed this scene with my trusty Voigtländer Ultron 40mm f/2.0 aspherical lens cranked down to f/22 for optimal depth of field in the foreground and sky. The resulting photo is deceptive. I captured this shot lying prone on the ground. The terrain’s actual relief is only a few feet above my vantage point.

I’ve been woefully absent from the photo blog scene, but on a positive note, I have lots of material to publish in the coming weeks! Stay tuned and thanks for stopping by.

Walter, Senegal Parrot

Meet Walter, a ten-month old Senegal Parrot. This gregarious tropical bird is very much at home in front of the camera. Here are some tips for setting up and photographing pet birds in your studio.

1. Turf – birds tend to be territorial and may not be so cooperative on their own turf when they are introduced to a new human (i.e. the photographer) and unfamiliar elements, such as photography equipment. At the owner’s recommendation, we photographed Walter in my studio, rather than his own home. Walter was docile in my studio environment; he accepted me as a new “flock” and didn’t perceive me as encroaching on his own territory. If you are a bird owner and photographer, shooting in your pet’s own domain shouldn’t ruffle your bird. Moving your feathered-friend to a studio setting will offer you greater lighting control.
2. Put your subject at ease – as any professional photographer will tell you, spending time getting to know your subject is an integral part of a successful shoot. I talked to Walter; got him accustom to my voice, movement and new surroundings before I snapped the first frame.
3. Lighting – my lighting set up is shown below. I opted for the clean, smooth lighting of a softbox for my main light, with a snoot fill to create nice rim lighting around Walter’s head and beak for better separation from the background. I used Rosco Strobist color filters — Roscosun ¼ Color Temperature Orange (CTO) — on my Canon Speedlites to convert the white flash to a warmer light (4500K). Because the parrot had relatively small surface area, I used a reflector to bounce light back onto his underside and legs. I used the gold reflective surface to harmonize with the CTO gels on the Speedlites.

Lighting set-up for Walter

4. Lens and settings – I opted for my trusty Canon 85mm f1.8. This inexpensive yet high-quality lens produces beautify sharp photos and lovely bokeh. This fast prime lens has superb optics with minimal distortion and is a great portrait lens. My subject to lens range was fairly tight, as I wanted to capture Walter’s feather detail. I shot with an aperture value of f4.5 for reasonable soft background and sharp subject, while still being able to shoot at a high shutter speed to freeze Walter’s motion. Walter’s movement was smooth and predictable, but smaller species may have a more constant flutter and twitchiness that may require an even fast shutter. My photos were shot at 1/200 sec at ISO 200.
5. Perch – I created an impromptu perch using a natural tree limb clamped to a light stand. The limb was about 5 feet in length, cantilevered out some distance to avoid having the stand in the frame. Use sandbag weights to make sure the perch is stable.

Happy shooting! Please comment and add any links to your bird photos.

Give me a high-five (in Walter’s case, high-four)

Walter doing his Groucho Marx impersonation

Gear used in this photo shoot:

• Canon 5D Mk II DLSR
• Canon 85mm f1.8 lens
• Canon 580 EX and EX II
• Impact Quikbox Softbox (24 x 24″)
• Speedlite Foldable Snoot
• Phottix Odin TTL Flash Trigger and Receiver
• Manfrotto 190XProB tripod with Kirk BH-3 Ball Head
• Really Right Stuff L-Plate

The Ultron is old-school: featuring an all-manual focus, but the smooth, well-dampened focus ring is accurate and easy to use. Despite the lack of auto focus, the Voigtländer Ultron 40mm SL-II has a built-in microchip that communicates with the aperture and shutter controls of the camera and works with the focus points in your AF viewfinder. Once you’ve dialed in the manual focus, the illuminated focus point and audible beep ensures a focused shot.

The perfect lighter weight, compact walk-around lens — great for landscapes, street photography, portraits and macro work.

I find this lens a perfect lighter weight, compact walk-around lens — great for landscapes, street photography, portraits and macro work. It’s not ideal for action shots due to manual focus. This lens replaces my inexpensive Canon 50mm f1.8. I think the 40mm is the perfect Goldilock lens length: more versatile than the 50mm (sometimes too long) or the wide 35mm (sometimes too short with more barrel distortion).

The Voigtländer Ultron 40mm bokeh (aesthetic quality of intentional out-of-focus image) is fair and at times disappointing. At 40mm, you’re not going to achieve the same creamy soft blurry background that a long lens produces. The 9-blade aperture makes for a round and pleasing aperture at most settings, but the nearly round polygonal bokeh shapes are—at times—layered, like an onion when observed at magnification. Given the terrific overall quality of the lens, this subtle irregularity can be overlooked by all but the most discriminating photographer.

The Voigtländer Ultron 40mm f2.0 SL-II is a fun lens and lightens the load on your DSLR camera. While the retail price is steep (around $500), the quality optics, impeccable build, and natural angle of view found in a 40mm standard lens (close to how one’s eye perceives objects) make the Voigtländer Ultron 40mm f2.0 a high-value addition to your prime lens collection. This review was performed on the Canon EF mount. Voigtländer offers a Nikon mount as well.

Common Postman (Heliconius melpomene)

I participated in a unique experience recently in the tropical conservatory at the Butterfly Pavilion, Westminster, CO. With tripods and cameras in hand, we photographers were allowed access to the tropical rainforest one hour before the doors opened to the public. The 7,200 square-foot tropical rainforest conservatory was filled with over a thousand free-flying tropical butterflies. The less-than-sunny weather turned out to be advantageous: the overcast sky created a giant soft box that produced even lighting and the previously rainy conditions had a calming effect on the awakening butterflies, and created an ideal portrait session with the little invertebrates.

I set my camera exposure for the available lighting, but used a Canon ring flash for fill light. The ring flash allowed me to get in close with my 100mm macro and it provided the right intensity of flash without producing harsh shadows.

My complete photography gear included:

• Canon 5D Mark II
• Canon 100mm f2.8L macro
• Canon MR-14EX TTL macro ring flash
• Manfrotto 190XPROB tripod
• Kirk BH-3 ball head with quick-release platform
• Really Right Stuff L-plate

White Morpho (Morpho polyphemus)

Owl Butterfly (Caligo sp.)

African Blue-banded Swallowtail (Papilio nireus)

Giant Emperor (Charaxes castor)

200 tropical plant species from around the world adorn the rainforest conservatory

If you’re in the Denver area, the Butterfly Pavilion is a must-see attraction for the whole family.

To quote one of my favorite early 20th century photographers, Henri Cartier-Bresson, “To photograph is to hold one’s breath, when all faculties converge to capture fleeting reality. It’s at that precise moment that mastering an image becomes a great physical and intellectual joy.” I’m sure Monsieur Bresson didn’t have aquarium photography in mind when expressed this sentiment, but the essence of his statement is true for even a highly controlled activity like photographing fish! Anyone who owns fish knows these aquatic animals possess unique personalities, are amusing to watch, and offer endless variety of color and form.

Here are five tips I discovered while making photos of my aquarium fish. These guidelines are intended for indoor home aquariums and not for large public aquariums—a topic for another blog post.

1. Clean your tank – For best results, I recommend you perform a thorough water change and carefully clean your tank’s glass and all tank accessories Dingy water and algae build up not only detracts from the beauty of your aquatic life, but even small amounts of algae on the tank glass can create contrast that will fool your autofocus, resulting in an out-of-focus subject.

Allow a couple of hours for your fish to stabilize in their newly cleaned environment. Some species may require more time to relax and assume their normal routine. Adding a small amount of aquarium salt is a stress-reducing tonic for your fish. It adds beneficial electrolytes and restores the bright hues of colorful tropical fish. A few fish cannot tolerate aquarium salt, so be sure to follow the advice of a knowledgeable aquatic pet store owner.

2. Use a fast lens – A prime or fixed-focal-length lens is an excellent choice when photographing aquarium flora and fauna. Prime lenses have large aperture openings (f2.8 or wider) and offer superb sharpness, minimal distortion and lack the annoying chromatic aberration that is common with zoom lenses. For my aquarium shots, I used the inexpensive Canon “thrifty-fifty,” the 50mm f1.8 prime lens. This is Canon’s most affordable prime lens (about $100), yet the clarity is comparable to professional lenses that are more than 10x the cost. Despite the cheap plastic body and noisy motor mechanism, you’ll be pleased with how sharp your subjects are against a soft depth-of-field backdrop. The 50mm prime is a must-have in any photographer’s camera bag.

Because prime lenses are a fixed-focal-length, you must place the camera lens at the precise location where your desired subject is in focus, give or take the focus adjustment you can obtain with the manual or auto-focus. The closest focusing distance for the 50mm f1.8 is about 20 inches (1.64 feet or 0.5 meters to be precise). The 50mm lens’s field of view is 40°. This means you’ll need to crop your subject for best framing and composition. The images shown here are tightly cropped, yet the clarity and detail are not diminished when displayed at full-size—again, thanks to the amazing sharpness of the 50mm lens.

3. Fast shutter, small aperture – Fish are fast little critters, so you’ll need a sturdy tripod and fast shutter speed to freeze the motion. My images are taken at 1/250 second or faster. At this speed, ambient light won’t be sufficient to light your subjects, so a flash is required (see Tip #4). For optimal depth of field, you’ll have to close down your aperture. The photos featured here were taken at f7.1 and f8.0 These settings will make the detail of your fish come alive while creating nice separation with a softer background. Experiment with different aperture settings for your desired depth of field.

4. Know your family (of angles) – Because you’re shooting with a fast shutter, you’ll need an external flash or strobe to illuminate your aquarium. Do not use your on-camera flash. On-camera flashes are too harsh due to the small light source—and more to the point, your results will be nothing short of 100% reflection from your aquarium glass! I recommend using an IR trigger to activate an external flash. Long flash cords are cumbersome and radio transmitters, while highly versatile, are pricey. The Wein Sync-Link Universal IR Flash Trigger is high quality and inexpensive (about $65). You can illuminate from the side of the aquarium (90° from your camera lens), from the top, or from a shallow angle to the front of the tank. These positions adhere to the family of angles rule in photography. The family of angles is the set of lighting angles (at a specific distance from the subject) that produce direct reflection. If your light source is positioned within the family of angles, you will produce direct reflection (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Lighting within the family of angles results in direct reflection

Conversely, a light source positioned outside the family of angles will never produce direct reflection, as seen by the camera lens (Figure 2).

Figure 2: Lighting outside the family of angles results in no reflection

I’ve not been successful in finding a formula to calculate the precise degrees for the family of angles, but the concept is intuitive and quickly proven as you locate your reflection-free sweet spot. For further reading on photography lighting, I highly recommend Light: Science & Magic by Fil Hunter, Steven Biver, and Paul Fuqua.

The 50mm f1.8 lens harvests a lot of light, so my flash power intensity was dialed back to ¼ power. I encourage you to experiment with different lighting angles, but remember the family of angles to avoid direct reflection.

By the way, your external flash won’t harm or spook your fish. They carry on about their fishy business unabated.

5. Patience, patience, patience – This rule is true of most photographic activity. You have to study your subject in its environment (even if your shooting an inanimate object). Study the actions and interactions of your fish. Then carefully move your tripod into position, once you have a composition in mind.

Move slowly and deliberately with your camera setup. Remember, fish can clearly see you and sudden motion can startle them and ruin your portrait opportunity. Ideally, shoot in a darkened room with the aquarium light on. This will provide enough light to focus on your subject while minimizing the fishes’ visual contact with you. Let the fish come into view, then use the autofocus (AF) points on your DSLR. By selecting a suitable AF point, you can shoot with autofocus while framing the subject. This prevents you from having to move the camera and maintains your focal length at the desired distance from your subject.

Happy shooting and please comment with links to your aquarium shots!

Gear used in this photo shoot:

• Canon 50D DLSR
• Canon 50mm f1.8 lens
• Wein Sync-Link Universal IR Flash Trigger
• Canon remote shutter release RS-80N3
• Vivitar power Zoom DF-383 AF Flash
• Manfrotto 190XProB tripod with 496RC2 head
• A cheap, no-name tripod suitable as a flash stand.

“Our snow was not only shaken from white wash buckets down the sky, it came shawling out of the ground and swam and drifted out of the arms and hands and bodies of the trees…” —Dylan Thomas, A Child’s Christmas in Wales

Saturday night’s heavy fog and snow, combined with low temperatures resulted in a wondrous phenomenon on Sunday morning. As the fog lifted in the early morning sun, a white-washed landscape came into focus. Frosty white ice called hard rime had formed when the water droplets in the fog froze to exposed surfaces, most notably our Ponderosa pines. By late morning, the frosty landscape had melted in the warm Colorado sunshine, expunged without a trace — save a few photos I had made during the early morning.

This self-portrait tutorial offers an alternative, do-it-yourself method when you don’t have an assistant to help you capture the shot. I’ve provided a list of the camera gear, plus step-by-step studio and camera setups.

The gear

• DSLR camera
• sturdy tripod
• speedlight flash (1 or more)
• light stands – for flash and focus target
• wireless flash trigger (IR or radio control) or flash cable
• optional light modifier (soft box or umbrella)
• optional reflector
• optional backdrop
• focus target (free download)

Studio setup
I used a basic 45° broad-lighting setup for the portrait above. This means my key (primary) light was positioned at a 45-degree angle to my face. My head was turned slightly away from the camera to illuminate the broad side of my face. In broad lighting, the subject’s nose is pointed away from the key light. I also used an overhead soft box with speedlight suspended from a boom to create a hair light. Hair lighting provides even illumination of the hair and shoulders for better separation between the subject and background. Finally, I positioned a reflector disc attached to a light stand opposite the key light to add some fill light on the shadowed side of my face and neck.

Attach your downloaded focus target to a light stand. This will allow you to create a sharp, well-framed photo by following the steps below:

1. Adjust the height of the focus target, so the center of the target matches the height of your eyes when standing in your desired pose.
2. With masking tape, mark on the stand where you want the bottom edge of the photo to cut off. Steps 1 and 2 help you frame your photo.
3. Mark a tape ‘X’ directly underneath the vertical pole of the stand.
4. Move the light stand out of the way and position yourself directly over the taped mark, such that your head is directly over the tape mark.
5. Get into your posed position. Note the position of your feet by taping off the location of your feet. (I wore an open-heal Klog shoe in the studio. This allowed me to slip my feet out of the shoe and mark the exact position of my feet). Steps 4 and 5 help to ensure that your photo is in focus.
6. Step out of position and move the focus target back into its marked position, so you can now focus the shot.

Camera setup
After you set up the focus target, perform the following camera setup:

1. Set your camera to manual focus.
2. Position your camera tripod and frame the shot with the focus target and tape mark on the stand.
3. Adjust your focus ring until the focus target is crisp.
4. Lock your tripod adjustments.
5. Camera settings: My self-portrait was shot fast (1/200s) to expose the speedlight as the primary light source. In flash photography, the shutter speed controls ambient light. By shooting fast, you can filter out the ambient light. This allowed me to achieve a pure black background. My ISO was set to 200 and the aperture to f/7.1. I used this aperture setting so that my depth of field would allow for some leeway in focus, if I was slightly off the tape mark. Experiment with your camera settings, based on your own lighting situation.
6. Move the focus target stand out of the camera’s field of view, prior to taking your self-portrait.
7. Set the drive mode to the 10-second delay. Press the shutter and get into position before the shot.



There is some trial and error involved before mastering this method, but it is effective and a relatively inexpensive technique. To learn about more sophisticated methods, have a look at the self-portrait episode of Digital Photography 1 on 1 from AdoramaTV. Happy shooting!

Measuring only 15mm across, this fossilized trilobite is over 400 million years old. The trilobite was a highly successful invertebrate, dominant in both numbers and variety of species. These ancient saltwater creatures swam and burrowed in the shallows and deep sea water for over 270 million years. This particular genius of trilobite, known as Calymene, is the distant relative of the present-day horseshoe crab. The Calymene had an effective defensive mechanism. When threatened, the Calymene would protect itself by coiling into a tight ball. The inside edge of the trilobite’s head (cephalon) had a groove that would form a tight seal with the creature’s tail (pygidium), a bit like a re-sealable plastic bag. The Calymene’s hard shell and protruding spines would protect its soft, vulnerable underbelly from predators.

I photographed this Calymene specimen using the tabletop set up shown below. The surface underneath the specimen is a piece of smooth bond paper. It’s amazing how the texture is visible in this photo!

My gear included:

• Two Bescor 125 LED lights with daylight balanced filters
• Light tent diffuser
• Canon 50D with EF 28-135mm zoom lens
• Canon EF 25mm extension tube II
• Manfrotto 190XProB tripod with 496RC2 head
• MacBook Pro running Helicon Remote and Focus

Have a look at my quick video tutorial for details on focus stacking workflow using Helicon Remote and Focus software: