Highly magnified ink drops also referred to as dots. They form each image pixel’s color. The resulting pixels (not visible here) are the building blocks of the image.

An inkjet printer reproduces an image’s square pixels by squirting tiny, round drops (also called dots or micro-dots) of ink onto paper from nozzles located in its printhead. The printhead moves over the paper horizontally, laying down multiple rows of dots at the same time. The number of rows is determined by the size of the printhead and varies from printer to printer.

Depending on settings you choose, the printhead will move in one direction only– coming back to its starting point each time– or it can lay down dots in both directions.  It can also (as you choose) chug along slowly (for more detail) or speed up to output a print more quickly. And most printers can do any combination of the above at your command.

Printer Resolution Is Measured In Dots-Per-Inch (dpi)

The number of dots laid down at the same time along a horizontal and vertical inch of paper indicates the resolution that you have selected and is measured in dots-per-inch (dpi). The color of each pixel is made by many dots being laid down on top of one another in rapid succession. The printer has to have at least three ink colors (Cyan, Magenta and Yellow) plus Black (abbreviated by the letter K) to create a color image.

NOTE: Do not confuse printer resolution with image resolution which is comprised of square pixels and measured in pixels-per-inch (ppi). Many photographers  refer to the number of pixels in an image as dpi which is not correct.

You may wonder how square pixels can be formed by round dots. Try this: take a pencil with a very sharp point and use a series of dots to outline a square. When you look at it from a distance, it looks square because the dots are so tiny that they look like a straight line. Printer dots can also be varied in size; large dots for shadows, smaller ones for highlights– all at the same time as the printhead moves over the paper.

A bug’s eye view of printer drops falling onto paper. Photo courtesy of Landa Digital Printing

Photo printers have multiple, user-selectable, dpi resolution settings. Generally speaking, on some Epson printers, settings of 720 x 720 dpi or 1440 x 720 dpi will reproduce each individual pixel sharply and its color accurately. When printer resolution is expressed as two different numbers, for example, 1440 x 720, the larger number is the horizontal number of dots-per-inch laid down and the smaller number indicates the dots-per-inch laid down vertically as the printhead moves across the paper. On a practical level, you need not be concerned about this as you will see next.

Printer Settings For Best Results

Inkjet printer manufacturers always tout their highest printer resolution as if it were some kind of Holy Grail. At this point you might be thinking: “I can’t find any numbered resolution settings on my printer” and you’d be right, because, depending on the paper type you select, the dpi values correspond to print menu settings that have names such as Draft, Standard, Normal, Photo, Best Photo, Fast Photo, Fine Photo or some other name.  And they are usually listed in the menu beginning with the lowest resolution. Some are not available with all paper types. The menu choices displayed are usually limited to higher-resolution settings when you use high-end papers. Don’t get glassy-eyed at this point; just follow along.

Each of these settings determines how many ink dots-per-inch are laid down that ultimately define the quality of each pixel– from a very low 320 to a supposedly-enhanced 5760 dpi or higher. The general rule is that the higher the dpi the better the tonal nuances of the image, its color quality and color blending. The lower the dpi, the more “grainy” the image is apt to look. But the following example may give you something to think about.

Papers can have a huge impact on image quality. Here’s a single dot of ink on plain paper. Photo Courtesy of Landa Digital Printing.

Recently, one of my neighbors wanted to re-paint his gray barn a traditional red. He put the first coat on but some gray still very faintly showed through in a few spots.  So he gave it a second coat and it looked perfect to me. But then he decided to give it an a third coat– “Just to make sure.”  Trust me, it didn’t look any better.

You only need enough printer resolution to get an image that looks good to you. And that means you should run a one-time test, using your favorite Red River papers, to print the same image at, say, around 8 x 10-inches using different settings and then comparing them. You’ll then know what works and what doesn’t. And once you do, it’ll save you a lot of time and a bundle of money on ink.

Printing at a dpi setting that’s too low will give you a lousy image. But printing at one too high will slow down the printing as more dots are needed to be laid down for each pixel and in some cases may even make your photo look somewhat blurry. And it will definitely use more ink, sometimes twice as much. So let your eyes be your guide and view the results at a normal viewing distance– not under a magnifying glass or, as some nit-pickers do, under a microscope.

The same color dot as on the previous image  but on a coated paper such as Red River photo paper. Photo Courtesy of Landa Digital Printing.

For most images, 720 dpi of printer resolution (usually the Photo setting) will be enough when printing a photo at an image resolution of 200-300 pixels-per-inch (ppi). On some images that contain subtle tonalities, 1440 might show those differences better but not always. In any case, my experience has been to steer clear of or super-high settings. Don’t be reluctant to try the “Hi Speed” option (named different things on different printers) which tells the printhead to lay down dots in each direction of its travel. Bi-directional printing  can speed up printing and still produce acceptable results. You be the judge.

Now here’s another point: If you make big prints, say 11×14 and larger, you will normally view them from further away. Therefore, your eyes cannot resolve as much fine detail as if they were viewed close up.  Which means, you can sometimes “get away” with using lower resolutions in both ppi and dpi. It might surprise you to learn that billboard photo art is usually printed at very low resolutions because that’s all that’s needed for the human eye to blend them into a perfect image at the longer distance from which they’re viewed.

Finally, outputting a quality print at any printer resolution setting depends on your printer firing those micro-dots of ink through each and every nozzle. So regularly run a nozzle check and do a cleaning cycle if some are clogged. In fact, if you do have a partial nozzle clog that you don’t have adequate time to clear, going to a higher dpi setting on your printer can sometimes temporarily solve the problem.

To sum it up

Using a high dpi setting on your inkjet printer (such as Fine or Superfine or whatever)cannot improve the basic quality of your image; only more pixels in the image can do that. If you try to enlarge your picture too much, pixels get bigger and bigger and begin to be noticed; a high dpi setting on your printer may just make them look better defined so you can see them at their worst. You must have enough pixels in your image to begin with and they must be close enough together so as not to degrade your resulting  image.

But that’s a whole topic of its own called called “image resolution” which we’ll explore at another time.

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Faro and Doris Caudill, homesteaders, Pie Town, New Mexico.

By Arthur H. Bleich—

On June 6, 1940 photographer Russell Lee drove into Pie Town, New Mexico, a scattering of frontier buildings straddling dusty Route 60 and perched a mile-and-a-half high on the Continental Divide .

The Magdalena News, published 65 miles away (and delivered  daily by motor stage) confirmed that “Mr. Lee of Dallas, Texas, is staying in Pie Town, taking pictures of most anything he can find. Mr. Lee is a photographer for the United States Department of Agriculture.”

Pie Town, New Mexico.

Working for the Farm Security Administration (FSA), Lee’s job was to photograph the government’s efforts to lift Americans out of the Great Depression. He’d been criss-crossing the country for four years shooting in rural areas, small towns and cities before arriving in Pie Town to document life there. The town’s name intrigued him. Residents explained that an early settler baked delicious pies as desserts for cowboys, who sometimes ate at his general store. In time, the crossroads where the store sat was called “the pie town.”

Dugout house of Faro Caudill, homesteader with Mt. Allegro in the background, Pie Town, New Mexico.

Born in Ottawa, IL, in 1903, Lee was 22 when he graduated from college with a degree in chemical engineering. He went to work as a chemist in a factory, but was restless. Luckily, an inheritance offered him freedom. He married painter Doris Emrick in 1927, quit his job soon after and became immersed in the art world. He tried painting, but it was not to be. “I realized that I couldn’t be a very good painter,” he conceded, “because I couldn’t draw very well.”

Garden adjacent to the dugout home of Jack Whinery, homesteader, Pie Town, New Mexico.

He and Doris summered at an artist’s colony in Woodstock, NY, and wintered in New York City. He found his medium of artistic expression in 1935 when he bought his first Contax 35mm camera amd threw himself into photography.  “I went to auctions where poor people were selling off all their household goods. I went to a local election and photographed it using the Contax and open flash… I tried my hand at a county fair. That spring I went down to Pennsylvania with some friends and photographed the bootleg coal miners, I was developing a social conscience at that time because people were so damned poor.”

Mrs. Caudill and her daughter in their dugout, Pie Town, New Mexico. The Caudills have one of the few radios in their neighborhood, and many farmers and their families visit the Caudills on winter nights to listen to music and news and play “Forty Two.”

That social conscience, coupled with an impressive portfolio landed him a job with the FSA, who was resettling farmers whose land had been ravaged by drought and dust storms. After shooting a trial project at a New Jersey housing project in 1936, Lee was invited to join a star-studded staff that included Dorothea Lange, Arthur Rothstein and Walker Evans. For the next six years he was on the road documenting life in 30 states. He eventually became the FSA’s most prolific photographer, shooting nearly a third of the agency’s 63,000 captioned images.

Mr. and Mrs. Jack Whinery and their five children in their dugout. Pie Town, New Mexico. Mr. Whinery had worked on farms in Texas for wages until homesteading one year ago. He arrived in Pie Town with thirty cents which he spent for nails to build his dugout. He donates his services as a preacher to the church.

On one trip, Lee covered the great floods of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, which had disrupted the lives of thousands of people who lived along their banks. Once an old lady asked him why he wanted to take her picture. Lee replied: “Lady, you’re having a hard time and a lot of people don’t think you’re having such a hard time. We want to show them that you’re a human being, a nice human being, but you’re having troubles.” She agreed and invited him to lunch. He had a folksy way with people that was unique.

Lee and Doris divorced in 1939. He then married Jean Smith, a newspaper reporter he’d met in New Orleans. She became a great asset to Lee—accompanying him on most of his assignments, writing short essays, captioning pictures and breaking the ice with subjects sometimes suspicious of the government’s motives.

Mrs. Bill Stagg with state quilt which she made, Pie Town, New Mexico.

The residents of Pie Town—about 200 families—were more curious than suspicious. They had been blown out of the dustbowls of Texas and Oklahoma and given one of the last opportunities in the country to homestead sparse but stunningly beautiful land in the west-central part of the state. They welcomed Lee’s efforts to show what they had accomplished in the face of bone-chilling winters, scorching summers and a scarcity of water.

Mr. Leatherman, homesteader, shooting hawks which have been carrying away his chickens.

The town had few amenities; no doctors, dentists, phones, electricity or running water. A short growing season meant many settlers couldn’t spare time to build proper houses; they lived in dugouts—cellars over which they threw a primitive roof. But they had built a post office, church, school, general store and a small hotel. Arriving for a three-week stay with the trunk of their 1938 Chevy chock full of cameras, film, flashbulbs and other photographic gear, Lee and Jean immediately rented all three of the hotel’s rooms, converting one into a darkroom for developing negatives.

Lee’s cameras of choice were 35mm, but he also used a 2 1/4 x 2 1/4 Super Ikonta B folding camera and a 4 x 5 view camera, which required a tripod. A 3 1/4 x 4 1/4 press camera fitted with a synchronized flash gun was a must for scenes that couldn’t be captured by available light on the slow (ASA/ISO 32) films of the day. He shot mostly in B&W but also captured some priceless images in color which was even slower (ASA/ISO 10).

The broom dance at the square dance. Pie Town, New Mexico. The extra girl or man dances around with a broom for a partner. Then drops broom loudly; everyone must change partners and the one left out in the exchange must then dance with the broom.

But he had not totally mastered flash technique and shot many of his images with flash on the camera, resulting in harsh lighting and heavy shadows. He was somewhat defensive when asked about that. “I have always believed in keeping my technique as simple as possible in the field,” he  would explain. “If I had begun to string wires for multiple flash exposures, I would have lost many important pictures.” But once Jean was along to help, he began to use more off-camera and multiple flashes with better results.

Though Lee was adept at documenting adversity, he also relished shooting the good times that hard times spawn—all-day church sings, picnics, dances, band concerts, holiday celebrations and even people having fun at bars and nightclubs. These images show the indomitable American spirit as folks all over the country began to recover and regain their self-esteem. But Pie Town was a sad exception; a long, dry spell withered crops and the town was in decline by the 1950s. Today, only a few buildings remain, one of which is the Daily Pie Café that still bakes tasty pies relished by tourists.

School children singing, Pie Town, New Mexico.

As World War II loomed, the FSA folded into the Office of War Information and one of Lee’s assignments was to document the relocation of West Coast Japanese-Americans to inland camps. In 1942, he was tapped by the Air Transport Command to do aerial photography throughout the world to provide American military pilots with visual briefing photos.

When the war ended, Lee shot a project for Department of the Interior on coal mining and worked on assignments for Fortune Magazine and major oil companies. He also documented the lives of Spanish-speaking people in the Southwest, covered the Kennedy-Johnson campaign for The New York Times and created a series of touching images of life in Italy during a summer there.

Jim Norris, homesteader, Pie Town, New Mexico.

Yet for all his achievements as a photographer, Lee had a great talent for teaching. For 13 years, beginning in 1949, he was an instructor and then director of the University of Missouri’s annual Photo Workshop. In 1965 he was invited to teach photography as a faculty member of the Art Department at the University of Texas at Austin, a post he held until he retired in 1973.

Russell Lee died of bone cancer in 1986, leaving behind a legacy of thousands of documentary images showing the heart of America and hundreds of dedicated students trained to carry on his vision.

RESOURCES:

Russell Lee’s entire body of work is viewable in the FSA/OWI files at: https://memory.loc.gov/ammem/fsowhome.html

All images are in the Public Domain and are downloadable  in a variety of resolutions at no charge.

All images and captions by Russell Lee.

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The post Russell Lee: New Mexico Homesteaders in Pie Town appeared first on Red River Paper Blog.

 Summer is upon us once again and here are some tips and product snippets to help you get back into the swing of things. See links to all at the end of this post  under Resources.

There’s a version of Steermouse available for almost and Mac OS, including the latest with the Apple M1 and M2 chips.

1. Let’s begin with Steermouse. It does only one thing, but does it exceedingly well. But first a bit of back story. In 1996, Microsoft introduced a computer mouse with brains, called, appropriately, the Intellimouse. It came in both PC and Mac versions along with software for both platforms. Alas, a few years later the Mac software updates were dropped, which opened the door for a bright bunch of Japanese computer engineers to develop their own utility software for Mac users that lets you freely customize buttons, wheels,  cursor speed and sensitivity and more. Many USB and wireless Bluetooth  mice in addition to the Intellimouse are supported.

Recently the Intellimouse itself was resurrected— you might say, by popular demand—with tracking improvements, better acceleration response and   lots more, not to speak of a reasonable price of about $40 to $50. (Make sure you get the Pro model and NOT any other version.) It’s better than any Apple mouse I’ve ever used and comes in two color choices (dark or light).

Steermouse interfaces smoothly with the Mac’s built-in Accessibility suite so, for example,  you can click on the mouse button you’ve designated, to allow you zoom in on any part of your screen— great for those with impaired vision. For this feature, just assign  Cmd+Opt+8 to any side (or other) programable button on your mouse and you’re set to go.  The amount of zoom is  adjusted by pressing the Control key and then scrolling. Once that’s set just press the mouse button you’ve selected for the zoom function— and then again— when you want to return to normal screen size.  This is only one of many other features that Steermouse offers.  There’s ‘s a  30-day free trial  to and, if you want to buy it—hold onto your hat— it’s only $20.

The new and improved Intellimouse can dance tro your tune using Steermouse.

2. Most zoom lenses give you larger apertures at wide-angle settings than at full telephoto. Just how much is engraved on the lens. If it says 1:2.8–4.5 the camera’s maximum aperture of f-2.8 at full wide will shift to f–4.5 as you move to the extreme telephoto setting. So if you’re shooting under low light or need a faster shutter speed, go wide.

3. It used to be that images shot off your TV screen looked like…well, not so good. But that’s all changed with improvements in screen resolution and other technical advances. Go ahead, give it a try. Just make sure there are no reflections on the screen from windows or lamps in the room and shoot away. If you’re in to sports photography, this is an excellent way to practice your timing.  Just remember that you cannot sell any of these images or you run the risk of serious legal entanglements.

4. Here’s how to figure out what resolution to scan at. The dpi to set for scanning equals the final image width divided by the original image width multiplied by the final ppi desired. So if you want to print a quality 8×10 inch enlargement from a 4 x 5 inch photo at 300 ppi, divide 8 (the final image width) by 4 (the current image width) which gives you 2. Then multiply 300 by 2 which equals 600—the dpi setting to use for scanning. Simple.

5. You’d be surprised at how different your prints can look depending on the paper type you choose. One of the best investments you can make is to buy one or more inexpensive Red River sample paper kits and try different kinds. Then, buy the papers you like best.

6. Want to make bigger prints on your desktop printer. Try this. Buy some paper that’s legal size, rather than letter size. Change the paper size on your printer from Letter to Legal and you’re set to go. While this change in the aspect ratio, might not seem like a big deal, it’s actually quite noticeable.  You can try it out first on plain paper to see the difference.

7. Unless your camera or lens has image stabilization built in, here’s the rule for getting shake-free images when using zoom lenses at telephoto settings. Use the focal length of the lens as your shutter speed. So if you are shooting with the 35mm equivalent of a 400mm lens, set your shutter speed to 1/400th second or faster. And speaking of built-in lens stabilization never use it when your camera is on a tripod or siting on a solid object Unless it can sense  camera motion it goes haywire and your images will suffer.

Set it on “P” and go from there.

8. Your camera has more options than you’ll ever use. You’d be surprised at how good your pictures will be if you just use the Program mode. You also won’t risk losing that once-in-a-lifetime shot while fiddling with settings. If you need more sophisticated settings, check the manual, as needed.8.

9. For those cameras that don’t have anti-shake built in, don’t despair. Here’s a trick very few know about. To drastically reduce camera shake, hang your camera over your neck in front of you. Then put your right arm through the neck strap and swing the strap over your right shoulder. The strap now crosses your back and ends up under your right armpit. Next adjust the  camera and strap so  the camera’s viewfinder is at eye level. Finally, pull it forward and, keeping the tension on it, being your eye to the viewfinder. Result? Rock-steady shots.

10. When doing long exposures with a DSLR camera on a tripod, don’t forget to cover the eyepiece or light will get in through it and usually put a blurry round circle right in the middle of your image. Now you know what that little eyepiece cap that came with your camera is for. Or just make your own or use a piece of  tape.

11. The worst pictures you can possibly make will be with the camera’s built-in flash. Unless you’re shooting “record” shots (your possessions for insurance purposes, for example), stash the flash. Start shooting with available light and you’ll begin to feel the magic. Outdoor portraits are especially gorgeous when lit by open shade.

About the size of a smartphone, it emits an amazing amount of light.

12. That said, there are several small, portable, battery operated lights that can take your images from the mundane to the magnificent. Lumecube makes a plethora of them in all price ranges. Why do you need this? Because you can put light accents just where you want them without the hassle of using flash or strobe wired to your camera. For example, adding back or side light to flowers outdoors, or using a Lumecube mounted to a small tripod to light objects and still lifes. They are rechargeable and give you two hours at 100% power and more at lesser brightnesses. And their color temperature can be adjusted to whatever you want.The Panel GO model would be a good start.

13. To make sure the colors you see on your monitor print out correctly, you must calibrate it from time to time so it accurately displays the actual colors in your image files. The printer uses that file and not your monitor for its output. Calibration assures that the monitor is displaying exactly the same colors that are in the file and that any changes you make to the image on your monitor will be made to the file which, in turn, will be reflected in your print-out. Datacolor’s Spyder X Pro will do the trick, you don’t need any fancier model. WSorks with PC or Mac.  (About $139 at Amazon and others).

Takes just a few minutes to calibrate your monitor and is very easy to use. You can also more sophisticated software— if and when you need it —that can be used with the same calibrator.

14. Move in. Most pictures have way too much extraneous junk in them. By taking a few giant steps forward, your pictures will become more dramatic and go from ho-hum to ooh-ah.

15. Start off with a good imaging program. Adobe Photoshop Elements will do almost everything Photoshop can without having to subscribe for a monthly fee. You can buy it at Adobe for $100 (and sometimes less when they have special pricing). But there are also more sophisticated Photoshop-compatible programs that require no subscription, and  are equal to (or some say, better than) Photoshop. One is Affinity Photo (about $70) that has a free trial period. The other is Gimp  (free). Check them out.

16. As a rule of thumb, never shoot less than a dozen pictures of a subject. Explore it from different angles, go for different poses, stay with it, trying with each new shot to make a better picture than the one before.

17. It’s been calculated that OEM inks cost next-to-nothing to produce but sell for thousands a gallon, making printer manufacturers a small fortune. If you print a lot, save a fortune of your own by trying some quality third party inks, like those made by Precision Colors.

Available in bulk or prefilled cartridges, These inks equal or exceed OEM quality and can save you a small fortune if you print a lot.

18. You may be a techie and love all the geeky stuff, but photography is still about making pictures that say something. The finest equipment is worthless if you can’t use it to express yourself. Take a workshop— most of our Red River Pros offer them. Watch at some tutorials and read a few books that emphasize the creative side. One of my favorites is The Passionate Photographer by Steve Simon (about $10.00, used, at Amazon).

19. Try new points of view. Get down and shoot up or up and shoot down. Tilt the camera to give your image some dynamic tension. Come in ultra close or shoot from really far away. Use ultra-wide angle lenses and learn to love the distortion. Finally, guess what? If you turn your camera 90-degrees to the left or right you can shoot exciting vertical images. Imagine that! And every camera comes with that feature. Use it!

20. Musicians repeat themselves. Not only do they repeat musical phrases bu tin repeating the phrases they repeat their body moves. So if you see a move you like,you can be sure that the same musical phrase with its companion move will come back. Just listen carefully, anticipate its arrival and start shooting before it gets there because by the time you see it in the viewfinder, the moment will have passed.

How could it be easier than this? If you only send a few large files now and then, WeTransfer is the way to go.

21. Your internet service provider may be shorting you to make more profits by compressing  images that you send as email attachments. So if you’re sending an image that’s “X” number of pixels, it may arrive 50% or more slashed in size. If you need to send large image files every so often and want them to stay large (so they can be printed at their destination, look into sending them via WeTransfer. You can send up to 2G of files free without any hassles of signing up. It’s far easier than using other services, which can be complicated if you don’t use them regularly.

RESOURCES:

Steermouse

Intellimouse PRO

Red River Paper Sample kits

Lumecube

Datacolor Spyder X Pro

Pricision Color Inks

Photoshop Elements

Affinity Photo

Gimp

The Passionate Photographer book

WeTransfer

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The post Tricks, Hacks, Super Apps and More appeared first on Red River Paper Blog.

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By Bill Frakes—

[All Images © Bill Frakes]

This is home. This is the rural West. This is Nebraska. My first home
and likely my last

The Nebraska Project is a collection of still photographs, written
stories and photographic essays. About a dozen years ago I decided
to pull all of the work together into one place. I’ve managed to do
that, and the response has been very gratifying with millions of onlineand print views. I spend several weeks a year building new pieces toadd to the project. Mine is a passion for place and a relationship to nature developed over a lifetime.

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With uncomplicated sight lines, and virtually no visual pollution you
can truly see forever on the plains and hills of the Cornhusker state.
There is an exotic component to the simple strength of the safety that envelops you here. An unimaginable volume of land that flows
endlessly and softly rolls into only sky.

It’s beautiful, untouched and inspiring country. An American Oasis.
It’s a tapestry of land harnessed to be bountiful. A place that helps
feed the world.It is the spacious skies. It is the amber waves of grain.
Of cattle on grass.

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Mother Nature makes you earn your fun here. Huge temperature
swings, vast differences in topography, a wind that is unrelenting. She made up for it with beautiful scenes, more miles of rivers than any other state, and vistas that stretch on to the far horizon.

When I was young I couldn’t wait to escape the place. I did physically for awhile—my career took me far and wide —I’ve traveled to significantly more than 100 countries but my heart never truly left and those feelings of home always pull me back, stronger all the time. I’ve consistently gone back to Nebraska to feed my heart and soul.

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I’ve studied with wonderful professors, been mentored by some of the best photographers of the 20th and 21st centuries, worked alongside tremendous colleagues, but the most important part of my educationcame from my Mother. She was a classroom teacher, an artist, and scholar. Among my earliest memories are lessons my mom taught me about shape, contrast, content, context and visual irony. She taught me to look more closely, to dig deeper and to work until I had exhausted all possibilities.

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I worked on the staffs of the Miami Herald and then Sports Illustrated for the better part of four decades. I’ve always done freelance assignments and have been published in 100’s of general interest publications and websites worldwide. Additionally I have directed music videos, short documentary films and produced advertising/commercial work for a wide range of international companies.

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Nebraska is rooted in an agerian way of life, with a relatively small
population living on large swaths of land, the state is home to a
population of men and women who work hard physically, whose lives are tethered to the whims of the weather. I’m currently working on a feature length documentary about a 6th generation cattle ranch in the Sandhills. I’ve spent six months on the film so far, and I’ll spend another about another six months finishing it.

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With a shooting schedule of over 300 days a year I have to maximize my time no matter what the project. To achieve that objective when printing, I can count on two Red River papers that I’ve found to give excellent results– Arctic Polar Luster, Polar Matte . The quality of these papers allows me to get consistent results. And when jobs call for other paper surfaces, Red River always has exactly the product I need to get the job done quickly and efficiently.

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What’s next? I am producing another gallery show,making lots of
prints, working on a book, editing in my archives, and deciding which major story to tackle in Nebraska next.

About The Author:

Bill Frakes is a Red River Pro and former Sports Illustrated staff photographer and has worked in more than 125 countries for a wide variety of editorial and advertising clients including Nike, Coca-Cola, Champion, Isleworth, Stryker, IBM, Nikon, Kodak and Reebok.

Editorially his work has appeared in virtually every major general interest publication in the world and he has received hundreds of national and international awards for his work.

Learn about the Nebraska Project:

View more images and videos about the Nebraska Project.

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The post Bill Frakes’ Nebraska: Wide Open Spaces, Classic Faces appeared first on Red River Paper Blog.

As a traveling concert photographer, I often document tours with the same artist over a period of days, months, and even years. I’m currently on the road with Luke Combs and, while there are unexpected moments to capture every night, the concerts tend to have the same visual look to them.

Photographically, it would be easy to fall into a rut and make similar images at every show. To combat this, I regularly challenge myself to come up with new ways to shoot the shows. One way I do that, is by using remote cameras.

Luke Combs is photographed using an overhead remote during his show in Lubbock, TX on December 6, 2019. Image © David Bergman.

Throughout my career, I’ve also covered a lot of sporting events and was a contributing photographer for Sports Illustrated magazine. Remotes are common in sports photography, so when I started touring, I brought that technology into the concert arena.

A remote is simply another camera and lens that you set up and trigger remotely – usually in addition to the other camera(s) you’re holding. There are two main reasons to use remotes. The first is that you can make images from places that a photographer wouldn’t normally be allowed.

For example, you often see photos from above the rim at a basketball game or inside the net at a hockey match. Obviously, it’s wouldn’t be possible or practical to put a person there, but a small camera can be mounted (with permission!) and then triggered remotely by the photographer when they want to take pictures.

Caption: Miami Heat player Dan Majerle is photographed using a backboard remote during a playoff game against the Orlando Magic in Miami, Florida in April 27, 1997. Image © David Bergman.

Another reason to use remotes is to be able to trigger multiple cameras at the same time. They can be set up so when the photographer takes a picture, all the cameras fire at the same time.

This can be beneficial at a big event when you want to have every angle covered, or even when you don’t know exactly where the best moment will take place. Multiple remotes give you coverage from many different angles.

Photographing sports and concerts isn’t really that different. On tour, I try to put remotes in a slightly different place each night. My favorite location is in the drum kit or underneath the drum riser with a wide angle lens.

 A Canon 1DX Mark II camera body and 24-70 2.8 lens is placed in Bon Jovi drummer Tico Torres’ drum kit during the band’s show in Columbus, OH on March 18, 2017. Image © David Bergman.

As the tour photographer, I’m able to stand on the stage during the show . However, I don’t want to be a distraction to the artist or the fans. Having a remote camera up there all night allows me to get pictures at anytime throughout the show. Also, people tend to act differently if they see a photographer standing in front of them, while they often forget about a remote camera.

Luke Combs is photographed using a stage remote during his concert in Hershey, PA on February 21, 2019. Image © David Bergman.

To set up a remote, you need a way to mount the camera and a way to trigger it from a distance. For mounting, I’ve used the Manfrotto super clamp and magic arm conbination, which allows me to attach the camera to something sturdy like a mic stand, and then position it where I want. If there’s room on the riser itself, I’ll use a Platypod floor plate with a ballhead on it and simply place the camera on top.

A stage remote is placed on a Platypod floor plate during a Luke Combs show in Fresno, CA on October 25, 2019. Image © David Bergman.

I’ve also put cameras in the tour’s lighting trusses overhead, and even used a 20-foot high tripod to get angles that wouldn’t be possible any other way.

Luke Combs is photographed from a remote camera in a lighting truss during his show in Boone, NC on September 4, 2021. Image © David Bergman.

To trigger my cameras, I exclusively use Pocket Wizard transceivers. They work over radio waves and have incredible distance. I’ve fired remotes during a show from a football field away using the Wizard’s “long range” mode. I set my exposure in full manual mode and guess my settings based on many years of experience.

Of course, I’m shooting RAW, so I’ve got a little bit of latitude if needed. I also use autofocus, and have found that the newest cameras like the Canon R5 are perfect for remotes. The R5 AF has full coverage of the entire frame, and the eye/head/face/body detection picks up my subject almost every time.

At the end of the day, remote camera are hit and miss. There are a lot of things that can go wrong and you never really know what you are going to get. But I shoot thousands of frames every show, and with lots of practice, I’ve found that I come away with unique images that I wouldn’t have be able to get otherwise.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

David Bergman is a New York based Canon Explorer of Light and Red River Paper Pro who specializes in action, music and portraiture.

As the official tour photographer for Luke Combs and Bon Jovi, he has documented bands on stage and on the road in more than 30 countries and shares his experience with photographers of all skill levels at his unique “Shoot From The Pit” live concert photography workshops.

With 13 Sports Illustrated covers to his credit he has photographed numerous Olympics, World Series, Super Bowls, NBA, and NCAA Championships. He is an engaging and passionate public speaker and hosts the weekly web series, “Ask David Bergman” on the Adorama YouTube channel.

TECH RESOURCES:

Manfrotto super clamp

Platypod floor plate with a ballhead

Pocket Wizard transceivers

LINKS TO DAVID BERGMAN:

Workshops: www.ShootFromThePit.com

Portfolio: www.DavidBergman.net

Instagram: www.Instagram.com/davidbergman

Ask David Bergman: askdavidbergman.com

BERGMAN ON RED RIVER PAPER:

“I love Aurora Natural 285 for my black and white images. It easily handles the gradients while holding detail from the digital grain. There is absolutely no surface reflection and the paper has a slight texture, which gives the image a subtle three dimensional effect.”

Subscribe to Red River Paper’s Newsletter for Great Deals! 

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The post ProTalk: David Bergman On Using Remote Cameras appeared first on Red River Paper Blog.

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

By Andrew R. Slaton—

I started calling creeks, “cricks” when Mike, a new-found Wyoming-born friend, accompanied me as I drove us around western part of the state when I first arrived here in 2005. Mike taught me everything, nearly; the topography, the flora and fauna—he would have hated me saying “flora and fauna.”

I could just imagine him thinking, “You sound like one of those smart people who spent a bunch of money to go to college to get brainwashed and come out with a load of debt.” Especially when I mangled the names of cricks. He named every crick we crossed, as well as the hidden ones you couldn’t see as we flew by them on the highway or dirt road as we explored together.

Knowing the drainages, and where they flow in the mountains is the key to unlocking the topography and being able to navigate properly. It’s also how you have conversations with locals. It can be your lifeline if lost; a source of food and water, and a way back to civilization, or at least a road, even if dirt.

We used to drive into Grand Teton National Park every few weeks together, just an hour and a half north of our little town. Mostly we were looking for bears, but what I didn’t realize is that he was also training the next generation. Not even sure he ever realized it or gave it a second thought, but he treated and recognized me as a son, passing his sensible western knowledge to me, in a directly patriarchal manner. He was hard on me, but on occasion showed me a soft side too. He was Wyoming through and through. Tough and prickly as a porcupine, yet soft and mushy as a high alpine meadow.

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Image © Andrew R. Slaton

It’s almost time to leave Wyoming and Ellen says every year the state feels more and more like home. We are quickly (re)building our photography business here, as well as in Naples, Florida. We have grown to love that place too, but it’s different for me.

These days we are hanging on to everything we can. Maybe that’s a reaction to all of the change and movement we’ve experienced over our time traveling. Or maybe it’s a realization that there are some constants, and we need to litter our lives with as many as possible, to try to offset the nomadic shifting between two states.

But let’s face it, even that we can’t control. We humans are grasping at the falling leaves. On occasion, we are granted permission to hold on for a moment to something truly important. We learn to be grateful for those moments. But they never last too long. That is the wilderness in which we live. Sometimes wilderness presents itself as a terrifying storm that we cannot yet see past, or the unexpected passing of a close friend.

**********

I’ve been thinking a lot about my attitude of ownership over places. It has become obvious to me that I am desperately trying to hold on to the feeling I had when I “discovered” them, like a drug addict chasing that initial bliss.

It is an apparition. It only exists in memory– in the fiery tantrums I ignite inside my own head. Repentance is the balm that cures the burns. Wilderness is a mirage, a state of mind. Repentance is the future.

**********

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

A blustery wind blows salty spray mist on my face and body, momentarily cooling me from the high, hot sun. My small, cheap kayak shudders as I push the water on the right back with force to propel myself forward. Then on the left. Back and forth.

It feels as if 30 lb. weights have been added to each of my arms. White caps break over the bow of my small craft. I question myself, “Why I am doing this?” “Why not?” I answer back. The deep water markers are visible ahead. Just past them, turquoise, clear waters cloak a fertile fishery.

Ellen and I talk all the time about our particular “happy places.” Mine is the mountains, hers is the sea. How we each feel completely at home and at peace in our respective ecosystems. The ocean is somewhat terrifying to me. I do not generally feel secure or at peace in it, especially now, as I am heading toward deep water in a tiny craft.

The immensity, the vastness of it. My insignificance, vulnerability. It’s scary, and I don’t like it. But my risk tolerance and sense of adventure have grown greater than my fears. I feel the pull to the deep in more ways than one right now.

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Image © Andrew R. Slaton

The sky lightens. On the horizon, light orange and pinks, but in photography terms, nothing to speak of. In some ways, photography has ruined me. Maybe spoiled is a better word. I have the immense privilege to experience immeasurable beauty on a day-to-day basis, and yet I find myself measuring the aesthetics more often than simply marveling at the light of the moment. That’s my photographic eye objectively judging the scene and its photo worthiness.

I’m close enough to the ocean to taste the salt in the air. The Everglades is a special place for me. I was only 19 when I set out on an epic solo adventure there that would set my life in a trajectory that I had always imagined. I brought 23 rolls of film, and filled every frame.

This is what my life has actually become. For me, photography was only ever a vehicle to get me there but I did fall in love with the medium along the way. In the past two years, I’ve fished more hours than I’ve spent shooting. I’m fairly certain that there is a deeper reason as to why I have lost myself in a hobby at this point in my journey. Though I’m not sure I’ve found the answer.

**********

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

Our life has been pretty uncertain for a while now. I think about our original goal when we set off in Hoss and Gertie nearly seven years ago. To live life to the fullest, and to see all of the national parks. We’ve certainly accomplished the former, but the latter… not quite. Things changed along the way. Two places, Western Wyoming and South Florida, have become far too magnetic for us to sacrifice enough time to see the rest. And for that, I have no regrets.

Deep ruts have formed in my psyche. Almost callused. The ebb and flow of our seasonal migration is now ingrained in our bodies and spirits. I don’t yet know the consequences of this lifestyle. It would be naive to think that there aren’t any negatives. I’m old enough to know that unbridled idealism is a sidewalk next to a road that leads to hell.

The life of adventure we’ve chosen for ourselves, brings with it gain and loss. The gain is obvious…wonder, adventure, newness, the joy of returning. But the loss is real too.

We will likely never be a real “locals” anywhere. We will almost certainly never have deep community, although with technology, we can have a slice of that pie, just never the whole thing. We will not have the rhythm of changing seasons– nor will our physical bodies know naturally when to slow down, and when to go hard.

**********

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

The Everglades have given me encounters with giant Burmese pythons, other various snakes, glimpses at alligators, amazingly unexpected orchids and bromeliads. I have no camera gear with me. This is my day off. I just finished leading a four day, intensive photo workshop in the area, and I’m drained.

It could be the exhaustion, but I’m feeling a pull in another direction lately. Nature photography, at this moment in time for me has lost some of its joy. The market is saturated with nature/ adventure photographers and I’ve never much liked being one in a crowd. It’s a sad admission, but it’s true. I always liked being unique, not least in my vocation, and these days, it feels like I’m just one of way-too-many out there. The economy has changed, and frankly, so have I. Will my passion for capturing the art of nature be resurrected or is there another path for me?

**********

Perhaps my full immersion into my hobby, fly fishing, is a cleansing. A kind of ritual baptism. I have grown too jaded toward nature and all the beauty around me. My senses need a renewing. So I step back momentarily from trying to document nature’s grandeur to participate in it. Perhaps after this interlude, I’ll emerge with a keener awareness.

**********

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

There is a storm brewing to the south, and I feel uneasy. But the call to the deep is stronger than my anxiety. This pull feels tidal, lunar. I slip into the calm water, knowing that the peace of this moment is short-lived. The storm is inevitable. It will not pass by this time. It is electric. It is terrifying. It is exhilarating. But it is our destiny.

How will we survive this storm? How will I survive the deep waters ahead? Life is one continual change after another. Weather, seasons, thoughts, passions, desires. Life, death, and change are inescapable. How we react to them is what matters. Sometimes we are drawn out to the deep. Not knowing why. Out past the markers, where the uncertainty and terror lives. I trust the last seven years has been adequate preparation.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Andrew Slaton is an award-winning photographer who has done assignments for more than 50 clients and specializes in lifestyle and outdoor images.

He is a Red River Pro who outputs his National Parks prints in limited editions of ten each, printed on archival Red River Papers with fade-resistant pigment inks.

Contact Information
Visit Andrew’s web site, view his work, order prints and learn about his upcoming workshops.

Catch Andrew and Ellen’s videos at their blog.

Subscribe to Red River Paper’s Newsletter for Great Deals! 

YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOMED BELOW

The post Thoughts on Wilderness and Repentance. Part 2 appeared first on Red River Paper Blog.

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

By  Andrew R. Slaton—

Ellen and I, along with our two dogs, have been experiencing change as the only real constant during the past seven years on our National Parks Odyssey and it never gets easier, really. Every set up and tear down, new obstacles confronted, financial gain or loss, relationship added with a new friend or subtracted by death of an old one– each has its challenges.

How we react, or better, how we respond is what we must come to terms with and ultimately determines how we grow. Admitting fault, not all of it, but our part, is the first step. We slowly become more human or perhaps, in some cases, less. It is not our natural tendency to take responsibility.

But I can say from experience that there is some joy among the thorns. I’ve learned much of this from my wife… wise beyond her years. Here are some thoughts as I look back over the last six months from the fall of 2022 to the present.

**********

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

I’m never really sure what kind of autumn colors we’ll get here in the Rockies. A lot of folks claim to have scientific knowledge or know of old wives tales that predict the intensity of colors each fall, but to me, they all seem to fall short like “end of the world” predictions. Perhaps whoever is reading this can point me in the right direction, if it exists.

This year the colors weren’t supposed to be any good. However, from where I sit currently, my eyes are soaked in the joy of yellow and orange hues that blend seamlessly into apple green. The quakies (Aspens that shimmer in the slightest breeze) blend with warm tones all around me. It is only the beginning.

**********

Grand Teton National Park has become our default fall location because the area contains some of the best autumnal visual compositions anywhere in the world. Granted, I haven’t been out east in the fall, or really anywhere else of note in the world except the Rockies, but these are the landscapes that speak loudest to me. So here we are.

The seasons are changing without concern if we’re ready for it or not. This change from summer to fall does it every time to me– takes me completely by surprise. “The summer just flew by,” says everyone, every year, since… forever.

**********

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

The floor of the trailer is colder and colder on my bare feet every successive morning when I awake before the sun. Fall is inching ever closer. It is our seventh year living on the road and the novelty of living in a trailer has fully worn off; we’ve settled in to an unconventional life of nomadism.

But the wonder and adventure of every new day, for me, is still very much alive. It takes new forms periodically, but it remains, perseveres. The grateful feelings I ‘m overwhelmed with cause tears to well up almost daily when I think about how I could not have imagined a better, more fulfilling life, with a more lovely and compatible partner.

Where does this kind of joy come from? Is it simply that I basically get to live a life in which I have the relative freedom to do what I desire? Is it because we are not living in a state of poverty anymore? I don’t think so. I have experienced times of want and plenty. I know what it’s like to work a despised job. I know how it feels to be deeply lonely. And I suspect I may experience some or all of those hardships again in this life.

**********

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

Today I’m in the Absaroka Mountains of Wyoming, within America’s first National Forest, the Shoshone. It is a place of contrast; idyllic mountain scenes intermingled with confusing, maze-like terrain, peaceful meadows, terrifying, unpredictable wildlife (wolves and grizzlies), with solitude and wilderness one moment, and droves of paddle boarding, backpacking, hunting humans the next.

I have “discovered” many favorite areas over my 25-plus years of exploring the west and, in more focused fashion, the Rockies. And characteristically, they are all eventually “discovered” by many more. Every time I return to visit, there’s less and less peace and solitude.

I’m well aware that I didn’t “discover” any of these places and that they don’t belong exclusively to me. Many more came before me, and plenty of folks likely had the same feelings I am wrestling with today.

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Image © Andrew R. Slaton

A few weeks ago, two good friends from our former life in Texas came visited our summer base camp here in the Rockies to do a little backpacking. I took them on a short 20-mile loop into one of my favorite areas of our home range. The last time I visited this picturesque wilderness lake, nestled in a high cirque, Ellen and I skinny dipped. There wasn’t a soul around except us and the pups.

This time every available tiny spot to camp in this fragile, alpine ecosystem was occupied. My long-building anger bubbled to the surface mostly directed at society and the recent “back-to-nature” social media-driven trend. I had to repent of this ill-will toward my fellow humans. But it didn’t make it feel any less real. There is change coming to these parts.

**********

“In nature there are neither rewards nor punishments, there are only consequences.” This is the first year I feel like an old man. I spent the first quarter of 2022 in Florida. Granted, I kayaked, caught snakes, and fished alongside alligators. But now that I’m back in my mountains, for some reason, this trip made me nervous. Perhaps it’s that I’m not in the shape I’d prefer just yet. Or maybe it’s that this area tends to be home to roaming grizzlies. Or it could be that I just got over Covid a few weeks ago, and I still don’t really feel myself?

**********

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

A slight spirit of melancholy touched me as I rose from slumber to awareness. It was just before 5am. My alarm would sound soon, but I wasn’t ready to face the day. So I punched it off, and rolled back into sleep.

Awakening several hours later with a completely different countenance, I was ready to face the mosquitos and sunshine, both already at my tent. The girls were ready for breakfast. After a very leisurely morning at camp, I decided to fish Wind River Lake and try for Yellowstone cutthroats. I spent two hours out there without even a bite. I blamed it on the super moon, and felt it was time to head for nearby Brooks Lake and try my luck there.

I stopped a few times on the way to snap a few decent images, but my ultimate destination was a short stretch of creek in an idyllic meadow just below the lake that I’d been wanting to fish for a few days now. I stopped the truck, and the girls and I climbed down the steep embankment to the slow, shallow waters.

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

The next three hours were gleefully spent catching rainbows in the stream and marveling at the view. I caught two decent ones, somewhere in the 14-16 inch range. The girls watched and helped will the fish onto my hooks. We had the creek all to ourselves, just me, my two dogs, and a lot of hungry fish.

When we arrived back at camp, it was nearly 7pm and dark clouds had begun to build out over the scenery before me. The kind of drama I love. I grabbed my camera, and headed a little down the hill from camp. The girls helped me capture some nice images for 20 minutes or so, until thunder struck and the wind began to build. We ran back up the hill to secure the camp. The storm was coming…

After finishing, we jumped into the truck, protected from the storm that had now reached camp; the 40 foot trees above us swayed like giant pool noodles against the swirling black sky. It was unsettling. I always forget to check for “widow-makers” when I choose my campsites.

But as is common in the mountains, the storm passed quickly without much more than some heavy droplets and some shaken nerves. The approach of a storm is (almost) always way more dramatic and terrifying than the actual storm. Or at least it lasts much longer. But it does always pass.

Image © Andrew R. Slaton

Over many years I have been struck by the beauty of nature and have always felt a powerful ally at my side that has kept a watchful eye over me when needed. So I think it fitting that I end this first part of my story by sharing my thoughts about that with you.

© Andrew R Slaton

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Andrew Slaton is an award-winning photographer who has done assignments for more than 50 clients and specializes in lifestyle and outdoor images.

He is a Red River Pro who outputs his National Parks prints in limited editions of ten each, printed on archival Red River Papers with fade-resistant pigment inks.

Contact Information
Visit Andrew’s web site, view his work, order prints and learn about his upcoming workshops.

Catch Andrew and Ellen’s videos at their blog.

Subscribe to Red River Paper’s Newsletter for Great Deals! 

YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOMED BELOW

The post Thoughts on Wilderness and Repentance. Part 1 appeared first on Red River Paper Blog.

Heather Marold Thomason, Butcher and Founder of Primal Supply Meats

By Chris Crisman, Red River Pro—

[All Images © Chris Crisman]—

A few years ago, I met with a producer in New York City, who told me about her friend who had quit designer work and wanted to be a butcher and move to Philadelphia. Up to that point, the image in my brain of a butcher was a bulbous man, probably bald, with a bloody white apron, standing in front of his shop with his arms crossed.

That’s what the archetype was. But Heather Marold Thomason turned out to be a different person. That was intriguing to me. I reached out to do a portrait of her and that spawned another shoot, and afterward I began to feel like, “there’s something more, here.”

Alice Graham, Executive-Director of the Back Bay Mission

I’m no stranger to hard work. “I was born and raised in the countryside near Titusville, Pennsylvania, during the 1980s and 1990s. Growing up, my father, Richard, was a steelworker and my mother, Karen, a self-employed dog groomer who ran her business out of our home.

We had three TV stations available to us via rotary antenna, and a washtub but no shower. We grew our own food, heated our home with the wood we cut ourselves, and we rarely asked for help. No jobs were off-limits in our home. The mantra in our house was always “just keep working.”

After I graduated from high school, I had my eyes set on becoming a doctor so I enrolled at the University of Pennsylvania on a pre-med track. I figured that it might be useful to know something about photography so I took an elective course in it that eventually changed the direction of my career.

Heidi& Renae Moneymaker, MovieStuntwomen

At first, influenced by my rural roots, I specialized in landscapes which expanded to environmental portraits. I tried to portray every subject with grace, strength and dignity. After my photo shoots with Heather, that “something more, here” feeling finally turned into a project.

We began to search for more women who are in careers that historically are male-dominated. I say “we” because I have a team in-house and had ideas that were pretty blue-collar, and I think that’s me thinking blue-collar jobs photograph pretty well and offices don’t photograph quite as well.

I thought, “Hey, this is interesting because it feels different to me, and it looks different to me— putting a big body of work together showing the opposite of what you’d normally expect but which is actually the wonderful reality.” This is essentially saying: Limits to careers should not be based on sex, gender, any sort of demographic, any sort of race, any sort of anything.

Magen Lowe, Correctional Officer

That was the start of the project. It was, again, about a curiosity about jobs that I’ve never done. I’ve done magazine editorial work for a long time, shooting all over the country. And a lot of it was about, “Oh, I want to photograph X. Anyone doing X?”

For example, I really love shrimp, and I wanted to see what it’s like to be on a shrimp boat. We ended up in a lobster boat. We ended up in a gold-mining operation for some of the original shoots. There were a lot of cool, blue-collar jobs at the get-go.

In the fall of 2016, we released an early version of the project and got a lot of feedback that suggested we reach out to more women in other careers. So we forged ahead and, in 2020 the project was released as a book.

Mindy Gabriel, Firefighter

What makes Women’s Work unique, I think, is that it’s just not a collection of portraits with a brief caption under each image. Right from the beginning, we wanted these women to be heard; after all, as the book’s subtitle says, these are “Stories From Pioneering Women Shaping Our Workforce.” And we wanted them to have a major role in telling their stories.

After the book was published we began to hear from parents who had purchased the book for their young daughters and who were interested re enforcing the ideas that the book stands for. We also heard from an elementary school in France that was using the book as a teaching aid in class­– both for girls and boys. I’m extremely grateful anytime this work can invite kids to dream without limits.

Danielle Perez, Comedian

I know some of you reading this might want to know about technical aspects. I was always a Canon shooter and a large portion of this book was shot on a pair of Canon 5Dr’s and a Dynalite Strobe kit. But in 2019 I migrated from the Canon ecosystem to Sony and from Dynalite to Profoto strobes, I’ve never been what you’d call a “gear head” and am far more interested in crafting dynamic and intricate compositions than discussing megapixels or the latest gear trends.

However, that said, there is one constant that we’ve embraced over many years—Red River paper. Our studio walls are covered with prints and our favorite stock is Aurora Natural 285 in 8×10 and 13-19 size. We also use it to print hand-bound portfolios which never cease to draw compliments from art directors and others.

Tiquicia Spence,NCO, U.S. Army

Now I’d like to take this opportunity to share my thoughts on what I’ve learned during my many years of commercial photography. Whether shooting on location or in the studio, the process should be an adventure of exploration.  To create a meaningful project I think you first have to allow yourself to be led by your curiosity. I do this because I love it but it can still be hard work at times.

In my experience, to sustain the passion necessary to see a body of work like this through, you must really be engaged with and committed to the concept and subject matter. When choosing a subject, don’t think about what you think people want to see. Instead, allow the camera to be your portal to immersing yourself into wherever your curiosity takes you. It’s from that place of authentic exploration that will yield the best work.

Lisa Calvo, Oyster Farmer

A big part of the Women’s Work project for me was motivated by my wish for my daughter to have an equal opportunity in life and I’m extremely grateful if this work can invite kids to dream without limits.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Chris Crisman is a Philadelphia-based photographer specializing in people and environments. He has done work for major clients including Merck Pharmaceuticals, Warner Bros. Records and Allstate Insurance.  His images have appeared in dozens of publications including Forbes, Business Week, American Photography, Field and Stream, Ladies Home Journal and Popular Science.

Chris Crisman’s web site is at: www.crismanphoto.com. He may be contacted at: chris [at] crismanphoto.com

Chris’ book, Women’s Work, is available at Amazon in hardcover (recommended) and electronic formats.

Subscribe to Red River Paper’s Newsletter for Great Deals! 

YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOMED BELOW

The post ProTalk: Chris Crisman’s ‘Women’s Work’ Project appeared first on Red River Paper Blog.

© Richard E. Baker

By Richard E. Baker—

I’ve been photographing professional boxing for more than 40 years and, if you can handle the violence, I heartily recommend attending a match to stretch your photographic skills. In this article I’m going to give you a few pointers to get you started and, like me, once you shoot a few matches, you may become hooked on the historic sport of prize fighting which has evolved over many centuries.

The most asked question I get is how to get started. In almost every town or city in America you can find a boxing gym, a place where lovers of the sport go to work out and train. There will usually be a sparring ring set up along with various training equipment that boxers use to build up their strength and agility. Find this place and introduce yourself to one of the trainers. (If you live in or near a university town, inquire if the college has a boxing team and then speak to the coach.) Explain that you’re a photographer and would like to shoot some boxing photos. Also tell them you’ll be happy to give him some prints of your take and ditto for the boxers you shoot.

© Richard E. Baker

Begin by shooting the fighters working out, getting their hands taped and so on. If they  ask why you’re taking the pictures, tell then you’re a photographer and have always been interested in doing shots of their sport. Then ask them some questions before you raise your camera. Where are they from? What got them interested in boxing? Once you establish rapport, tell them to ignore you, to just go on with their routine. Then shoot away.

If there are boxers sparring in the ring, saunter over there and see what you can get. The rest of this article contains suggestions on how to shoot at an actual boxing match and you should be able to transition easily into that once you’ve gone through basic boxing photo training at a gym or with a college team.

When I say “suggestions” I do not mean rules. Listening to self-proclaimed experts, including me, can give you a foundation for decent pictures but following anyone’s suggestions without deviation will stifle creativity. Never believe someone who says you cannot take a photograph for various reasons, just use you imagination and take it differently.

© Richard E. Baker

1: Research the sport. Learning about any sport is essential to good photography. This is especially true in boxing. Ignorance leads to many wasted opportunities. Boxers do more than stand there and try to hit one another. They use certain footwork, throw a verity of punches, and use various strategies for offense and for defense. Some boxers are aggressive and initiate blows while others are passive and prefer to counter-punch. Some are boxers and some are punchers. Knowing what each person is doing will help in your photographic decisions.

2: Lighting.  Do not worry about it. There is nothing you can do about the light. It is what it is so you must use your technical and creative ability. I constantly run across decent boxing photographers who claim you must use shutter speeds of 1/500 or faster and many like to shoot at 1/1,000 or faster because they want all the action stopped. These experts think a totally still action picture is the best kind. I seldom shoot faster than 1/250 and sometimes even 1/30 or slower.

© Richard E. Baker

I think it’s ridiculous to take an action shot that shows no action. How does that kind of action shot differ from one staged by two people standing still with their arms out? I want to see motion – faces, gloves, some body part slightly blurred. This is where knowing the sport comes in handy. If you want a fairly sharp picture and can only use a slow shutter speed, snap the shutter at the peak of action such at the end of a punch where the glove comes to a complete stop before being withdrawn the same way you might shoot a jumper in the air when he stops before coming down.

3: Access. People not into the sport of boxing do not realize that bouts take place fairly often, usually small events with fighters on the way up or even amateur and Golden Gloves fights. Being allowed to photograph from ringside is often easy. Fighters and promoters want pictures of their fights. A promoter will usually exchange your entrance for a few prints. Do a decent job and he will allow you in every time, even when he has a big fight.

© Richard E. Baker

4:. Photographer Positioning. Always get as close to the ring apron as possible. Often there will be rows of tables around the ring, especially in small shows. Judges, boxing officials, special guests, reporters, and high rollers use these tables. Usually photographers will have to sit behind the tables. Often you can squeeze between the tables where they abut. You never have to worry about this at major events. One side of the apron is left empty to be filled with standing photographers, often from around the world. Fifty or more photographers vie for the 10 or 12 spots. The rest must sit in the stands using telephotos and make out the best they can.

5: One at a Time.   Concentrate on one fighter at a time. Action happens quickly in a fight and trying to watch both fighters at the same time only leads to complications. I generally alternate rounds concentrating on one fighter and then the other, or I concentrate on the fighter throwing the most punches.

© Richard E. Baker

6: Fighter Side-by-Side Positioning. Now for the fun part. There are several tricks to get the best boxing shots. Shoot fighters side-by-side on a horizontal line. Since you will be usually shooting with a large aperture you will have limited depth-of-field. If the fighters are side-by-side in front of you they will both be in decent focus. You also have a chance of seeing both faces. If one fighter is behind the other on a lateral line only one will be in focus and only one face can be seen. (I take many pictures like this, anyway, especially if I am trying to capture a single expression.)

7: Shoot The Far Arm. Generally shoot the arm farthest from you. Sshooting the nearest arm of a fighter often blocks his face as well as his opponent’s. Also, avoid jabs. Jabs are straight punches from the leading arm. Because they are straight, they lack interest. From a compositional standpoint curves on people are generally more appealing than straight lines and these punches also block faces. Stick to the far arms and your shots will improve greatly. Shoot when bodies and legs are bent for the same compositional reasons.

© Richard E. Baker

8: Body Shots. Body shots and uppercuts are especially nice because they are thrown when a fighter’s legs and body are bent. Again this gives a nice curve to the shot and the faces are visible.

9: Patterns. Hitting the shutter at the right time is almost impossible without practice. In most cases, you must depress the shutter before the punch is thrown– not because the camera is too slow but because our reactions are too slow. To help with this problem start looking for patterns in the boxers. Most boxers fall into various patterns throughout a fight. The longer a fight goes the more they fall into these patterns. They might throw two left jabs followed by a right. Wait until the two lefts are thrown then, as soon as you see his right shoulder start to move hit the shutter. After any lefts are thrown look for rights because he can throw nothing else. Likewise, after he throws a right or two he must throw a left. You will get the hang of it fairly quickly.

© Richard E. Baker

10: Lens Variation. Boxing is one of the few sports that can be shot with just a 50mm lens. Even if you use some type of zoom lens you will find that you are shooting somewhere around the 50mm range anyway. Don’t be afraid to try something different. Some photographers consistently shoot full body shots while others shoot mostly from the waste up.

Because I am interested in expressions I crop pretty tightly. My shots are really portraits. I only shoot full body if I know someone is going to be knocked out and then I often do something I never see other photographers do – I shoot with a super-wide lens. If I know a boxer is coming close to being knocked out, I switch to this lens (or zoom out to the maximum) and take a chance that it will happen near me. If it does I get a great shot.

© Richard E. Baker

11: Late Rounds. As a fight progresses a fighter wears down. He gets bloodied, swells up, and covered with sweat. These are the shots you want. You want the muscles to ripple and glisten with moisture, the expression of defeat, survival or conquest on the face; and you especially want flying sweat. Nothing frames a punch like the darkness lit with sweat and water. The best time to get these shots is at the beginning of the final rounds because the corner will have doused the fighter with water to cool him down and he is sweating like a cold beer bottle in a warm room.

12: Choose The Right Paper. I have made hundreds of boxing prints on Red River’s San Gabriel SemiGloss Fiber paper (which has been replaced by Big Bend Baryta) because it shows the beauty of boxing better than any other paper I’ve ever used. The paper has a refined sheen and subtle texture that makes my fighters look as if they were painted by classical artists.

© Richard E. Baker

Now that I’ve shared the basics with you, I have a few more comments to make. Photographers who simply hold down the shutter release and take hundreds or even a thousand or more photos may get a decent shot but they are trying to do it through luck, not skill and, in many cases, the best shot is still missed. Learn to anticipate peak action— good sports photographers have been doing that for years and it shows in their work. A bonus that comes with this technique is that you don’t have to plow through hundreds or thousands of images after the event.

Finally, have fun. This is your chance to cut loose and enjoy the night. Celebrities, great and small, often attend fights. Here is your chance to get some amazing shots, and fighters, unlike many sports figures, are readily accessible and, contrary to their aggressive trade, extremely friendly.

RESOURCES:

Re River Big Bend Baryta inkjet paper.

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