JMG-Galleries - Jim M. Goldstein Photography

Heading For The Mountains

Jim — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 15:30:10 +0000

I’m off for an extended trip, two weeks to be exact. As a result the blog may be inactive for a bit. As I can I may blog remotely, but in a very limited fashion. Stay tuned for more photography.

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10 Essential Tips To Get Great Blue Angels Photos

Jim — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 03:02:29 +0000

This weekend is Fleet Week here in San Francisco and given numerous emails I’ve received about photographing the event I thought I would consolidate my tips to photographing the Blue Angels. Following these tips should put you on the fast track to walking away with some great photos.

Logistics - Be Prepared
In San Francisco that means get to the show very early. Parking is always a challenge and will test your patience. Don’t let the search for parking ruin your day. If you want to avoid that aggravation then take public transportation and/or park far away.

Bring a lunch or a snack. Get the nutrients and fluids you need in your system ahead of time so you can keep your eye on the show and not your bag of chips.

Finding an unobstructed view can be a challenge. Arriving early will not only enable you to find the best location possible but will give you the time to scout out various spots to set up.

Know Where Center-Point Is
Center-point is the physical location that all Blue Angels maneuvers are centered around. This is the mark they aim to criss cross over and navigate around. For Fleet Week here in San Francisco that point is in front of Aquatic Park. Knowing this location is critical if you plan to capture the Blue Angels Criss-Cross maneuver.

Location, Location, Location!
As with realestate location is everything. In San Francisco for Fleet Week there really isn’t a bad spot. I have taken photos of the Blue Angels from a variety of locations over the years including Aquatic Park, Fort Mason, Pier 39, Crissy Field, Angel Island, and around the Golden Gate Bridge. Depending on what type of photo you want, what background subjects you’d like to have and the amount of hiking or crowds you’ll have to deal with choose appropriately. Honestly there isn’t a bad spot.

Focal Length
It is possible to get great photos of the Blue Angels here in San Francisco with virtually any focal length. Most air show photographs that you’ll see are taken with longer focal lengths to zoom in on the planes. What focal length you’ll need for such shots depends on your location and the magnification factor of your dSLR. Its possible to get great tight photos using a focal length of anywhere from 200 to 400mm. Unless you’re very far away a longer focal length is over kill. In addition super long focal lengths make it challenging to track the planes. With that being said it is possible to get phenomenal photos of the Blue Angels with a shorter and even wide focal length. Shorter focal lengths enable you to capture not just the planes flying overhead, but the crowd around you.

Normal Autofocus or Servo Mode
You’ll have to experiment with this. For those that are unfamiliar with the difference… Autofocus requires you to half click the Shutter Release Button to focus on your subject. Servo enables you to focus your subject in or near the center point of the frame and as the subject moves closer or farther the camera automatically focuses for you. The upside to Servo is that you can pan with a subject with minimal work to keep it in focus… in theory. If for any reason your camera confuses your point of focus your camera will keep your subject, the plane(s), blurred. If this happens enough you’ll be ripping your hair out. To avoid this you can stick with the normal Autofocus and half click and shoot quickly as you pan. This can take some practice.

Capture the Action with a Fast Shutter Speed
Greater than 1/800 sec for slower maneuvers
Over 1/1200 sec for faster maneuvers
>1/2000 sec for speed demonstrations
To attain such fast shutter speeds you’ll need to pay attention to what ISO your camera is set to. 400 ISO is a good starting point, but if weather conditions are cloudy you may need to bump your ISO up.

Don’t Use A Polarizer
If you do minimize the polarization to get the fastest shutter speed possible and to minimize over darkening the sky.

Include Your Surroundings
Clouds add a heightened sense of … altitude. Landmarks and people provide a needed sense of scale.

Be Considerate
Fleet Week brings out tons of people. Sure you may cross paths with someone having a bad day, but its in your best interest to take the high road with most any confrontation. Remember that this is a family event and there will be many kids in attendance. If you’re in a location where you might obstruct the view of a child or shorter person do what you can to move and clear the way for them to see the show.

Have Fun
These tips should put you on track to get some great photos and have an even better time at the event.

If you take photos of this weekends Fleet Week airshow add a link in the comments. I’d love to see what you come away with.

Prints
Like the photos displayed here? My Blue Angels photos can be seen and purchased directly via my photo archive Blue Angels 2007 and Blue Angels 2006

Technorati Tags: Photography, Photo, Tip, Blue Angels, Fleet Week, airshow, San Francisco, California

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EXIF and Beyond: Orphan Works International Impact

Jim — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 07:17:36 +0000

The 21st episode of EXIF and Beyond has been released (duration 8 min. 53 sec.).

This is the 2nd of two special episodes of EXIF and Beyond discussing pending Orphan Works Legislation that will greatly impact photographers, internationally as well as domestically. Taking part in this episode to discuss the Orphan Works as it impacts International photographers is UK based professional photographer and principle of Pro-Imaging Nick Dunmur. For those unfamiliar with Pro-Imaging it is an international professional photographers community that has developed from the humble roots of a discussion list with members spanning over 30 countries. More of our discussion on Pro-Imaging will be forthcoming so stay tuned.

Download the latest episodes:
EXIF and Beyond: Orphan Works Panel Discussion

For the non-iTune listeners a streaming version of this podcast can be accessed here.

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Fleet Week and the Blue Angels This Weekend

Jim — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 06:56:56 +0000

Its that time of year again here in San Francisco. This weekend is Fleet Week and the Blue Angels will be performing from 3-4 PM on Saturday and Sunday. If you’re in the area and up for a challenging photo opportunity I recommend coming out to see the show. Event details can be found on at fleetweek.us. I had a great time photographing the event last year with the image below being the highlight.

Mentioned in Blue Angels, San Francisco Fleet Week 2007 - Part III

More Blue Angels photos from San Francisco’s 2007 Fleet Week

Technorati Tags: Blue Angels, Fleet Week, photography, stock photo

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The Maltese Falcon - Mega Yacht & Going With The Flow

Jim — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 17:48:42 +0000

This weekend I was meeting a friend on Treasure Island and while waiting a great photo opportunity presented itself. The largest privately owned sailboat the Maltese Falcon, owned by venture capitalist Tom Perkins, sailed past with the San Francisco skyline as a backdrop. Now while I focus on landscape and nature subjects I won’t hesitate to photograph an interesting event or news worthy subject. With that in mind if you plan to “go with the flow” in regard to photo opportunities its critical to always have your camera gear on hand.

Back to the Maltese Falcon… I’m not a mega-yacht tracker, but I did happen to see Tom Perkin’s interviewed on 60 Minutes sometime ago and he was very coy in talking about the cost of the boat. Not surprising given his vast wealth and the numerous charities that could benefit from money thrown at this boat he remained secretive on the specific cost to build it. He did eventually state the range in the interview of being between $150 million and $300 million.

Click to Enlarge

Click on for more photos…

Click to Enlarge

Technorati Tags: Tom Perkins, Maltese Falcon, yacht, sailing, clipper, San Francisco, photography, stock photo

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Buying Prints Photo Project: My 1st Print & Participant Roll Call

Jim — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 08:24:29 +0000

I am incredibly stoked that this week I received the first of my prints as part of my Photo Project, Buying Prints from Your Favorite Photographers, that is on going through November 2nd. My first print was from one of my long time favorite photographers Lane Hartwell. The print of Senator Barack Obama (see below) has long been one of my favorite photographs from her portfolio and is something I’m eager to get framed.

While I look around for my next print or book purchases I thought it might be a good idea to have project participants preemptively list their sites. If 1) you’re taking part to buy prints, books, etc as part of this project. and 2) if you are selling prints or printed products of you work; add your Name, Website Name & URL as a comment to this post.

I’ve been receiving interest from a variety of photographers and there are a few well known and not so well known names one might consider when looking around for quality photography print products:
Art Wolfe - he’s published over 60 books!
William Neill - who also has his Impressions of Light eBook on sale through 10/7
G Dan Mitchell - a dedicated California photographer and blogger
Dawn Armfield - a Yosemite based photographer soon to be on her way to New England
and of course many other photographs listed in my Blog Roll.

There’s no time like the present so make sure to take part. I look forward to reading everyone’s experiences.

Used with Permission from Lane Hartwell

Technorati Tags: photography, photo, project, print, Lane Hartwell, William Neill, Art Wolfe, Barack Obama

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James Nachtwey: “one wish to change the world”

Jim — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 07:22:23 +0000

Since I wrote Top 5 Photography Related Movies I’ve been an admirer of James Nachtwey. “War Photographer” in which he was the subject was deeply fascinating and inspiring. Shortly after I saw “War Photographer” he won the 2007 TEDPrize, a $100,000 prize for “one wish to change he world”.

“I’m working on a story that the world needs to know about.
I wish for you to help me break it, in a way that provides spectacular proof of the power of news photography in the digital age.” - James Nachtwey

As is noted on the TedPrize.org web site…
“James Nachtwey is preparing to reveal his photographs, which highlight a shocking and underreported global crisis. Over the past 18 months, the TED community have been working with James to gain access to locations he wished to photograph, and to prepare spectacular plans for unveiling these pictures.”

That date of the unveiling is 10.3.08. Stay tuned for it.

If you’re a blogger help spread the word

Technorati Tags: James Nachtwey, TED, Tedprize, photography

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Lupine Microcosm & The Law of Opposites

Jim — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 08:40:52 +0000

One thing I’ve trained myself to do over the years while out in the field is to look in the exact opposite direction of what I’m focused on photographing. I call this creative exercise “The Law of Opposites“. If I’m looking in front of me, I’ll check behind me. If I’m looking up, I’ll look down. If I’m looking left, I’ll look right. You get the idea. The reason for this exercise is to break free of tunnel vision. With almost absolute certainty I’ll find myself focused to the point of distraction on something widely recognizable such as an iconic landscape subject. When looking in the opposite direction you view the world with a blank slate so to speak; all your visual preconceptions are cleared from your mind and you thrust yourself into something new that your brain has to reprocess.

Almost always I’ll photograph my primary focus, but as I wait for lighting conditions to improve or after I’m done I’ll conduct this exercise. Not only does this keep my mind working, it also helps me become hyper aware of my surroundings. Granted this exercise doesn’t guarantee that you’ll capture an image more impressive than your primary subject, but it will certainly exercise your minds eye.

An example of the “Law of Opposites” creative exercise in action…
After locking in on fog clearing to reveal the Grand Teton mountains, I broke my focus to look at what was underfoot and under-tripod. Dew had collected on lupine leafs in the field I was standing and if you looked close enough you could see other lupine leaves in the dew drops. I swapped lenses and began photographing the lupine. Upon review later I found that my macro photos had turned out far better than my landscape images. A perfect example of the “Law of Opposites” helping me see something I’d likely have otherwise missed.

Technorati Tags: photography, macro, law of opposites, lupine, leaf, dew, stock photo

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EXIF and Beyond: Orphan Works Panel Discussion

Jim — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 04:52:02 +0000

The 20th episode of EXIF and Beyond has been released.

This episode of EXIF and Beyond features a panel discussion on Orphan Works with professional photographers Chase Jarvis, Dan Heller and John Harrington. With view points that span the spectrum from support to opposition of the Orphan Works legislation, it is my hope that the information and viewpoints with in this discussion help you form your opinions on the topic.

Referenced Articles:
Little Orphan Artworks - Lawrence Lessig Op-Ed in the New York Times
Orphan Works Act: Courts and Law - Dan Heller
Speed Links 5/6/08 Orphan Works Edition - John Harrington
Orphan Works 2008 - A Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing - John Harrington

Note that as of Friday September 26th, 2008 the Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act, S 2913, the Senate version of this legislation, has passed and has moved on to the House. Considering the recent passage of this bill in the U.S. Senate it is even more important that you listen to the full length of this podcast, educate yourself as best as you can and take action as you see fit by contacting your Congressional representative. Your call or email to your congressperson in the coming days could make the difference in whether the current form of this legislation is passed or not.

Download the latest episodes:
EXIF and Beyond: Orphan Works Panel Discussion

For the non-iTune listeners a streaming version of this podcast can be accessed here.

For this podcast episode rather than break up this discussion into multiple podcasts I’ve embedded chapters to easily navigate to areas of specific interest.

EXIF and Beyond Episode 20 Chapters
00:00:00 - Podcast Introduction
00:02:07 - Discussion Participant Introductions
00:05:55 - 4 Questions of this Discussion
00:07:11 - What is the Significance of the Orphan Works Legislation (OWL)?
00:07:25 - Chase: Significance of the OWL
00:09:00 - Dan: Significance of the OWL
00:10:48 - John: Significance of the OWL
00:13:14 - What are the Risks With OWL?
00:13:48 - Dan: Risks with OWL
00:19:09 - Chase: Risks with OWL
00:20:37 - John: Risks with OWL
00:21:45 - Is This Equitable Legislation?
00:22:16 - Dan: Is This Equitable Legislation?
00:24:54 - John & Dan: Is This Equitable Legislation?
00:32:14 - Chase: Is This Equitable Legislation?
00:34:50 - OWL Registries & Databases
00:35:36 - John: Registries & Databases
00:36:15 - Dan: Registries & Databases
00:39:07 - Dan & John: Registries & Databases
00:41:17 - Chase & Dan: Registries & Databases
00:42:50 - John & Dan: Registries & Databases
00:48:29 - Does The Lack of DB Technology Required Put Photographers at Greater Risk?
00:48:37 - Dan: Does The Lack of DB Technology Required Put Photographers at Greater Risk?
00:49:03 - John: Does The Lack of DB Technology Required Put Photographers at Greater Risk?
00:49:55 - Dan: Does The Lack of DB Technology Required Put Photographers at Greater Risk?
00:52:05 - Chase & Dan: Does The Lack of DB Technology Required Put Photographers at Greater Risk?
00:53:55 - Does Copyright Require A Broader Overhaul?
00:54:39 - Chase: Does Copyright Require A Broader Overhaul?
00:57:47 - “Reasonable Compensation” in the OWL
00:58:31 - Chase: “Reasonable Compensation” in the OWL
01:00:51 - John: “Reasonable Compensation” in the OWL
01:02:15 - Dan: “Reasonable Compensation” in the OWL
01:04:00 - Dan & John: “Reasonable Compensation” & Scope of Copyright
01:08:15 - Devaluation of Photography & Copyright
01:09:04 - Chase: Devaluation of Photography & Copyright
01:10:42 - Chase & Dan: Adapting to Changing Landscape of Copyright
01:15:19 - Group Thoughts: Change is Here Now - Creative Commons
01:16:11 - Dan: Thoughts on Photographers & Copyrights
01:19:23 - Dan & Chase: Forward Looking Benefit of OWL via DB
01:20:34 - Chase: Fear Driving Misinformation on OWL Positions
01:21:48 - John & Chase: Clarifying Positions on OWL
01:28:55 - Dan: Thoughts on Approaching Changes to OWL
01:31:36 - Chase & John: Crystalizing Not So Different Positions on OWL
01:33:07 - Chase: Orphan Works Legislation Benefits and Recommendations
01:38:20 - Dan: OWL Benefits and Recommendations
01:41:52 - John: OWL Benefits and Recommendations
01:46:01 - Thank You’s & Sign-Off

Technorati Tags: EXIF and Beyond, podcast, Orphan Works, Chase Jarvis, John Harrington, Dan Heller, Copyright, interview, Shawn Bentley Orphan Works Act, S 2913

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URGENT ACTION NEEDED: Orphan Works Passes Senate

Jim — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 17:08:45 +0000

I received the following message from the Stock Artists Alliance (SAA) this morning and wanted to be sure that all my subscribers were aware of this important issue:

SAA learned yesterday about an aggressive last-minute push by Congress to pass Orphan Works legislation. The Senate was “hot lining” the Orphan Works Bill (S2913) for a vote, and the House was expected to follow suit.

We’ve now learned that the Senate bill was passed.
We must immediately turn our attention to the House.

We need to stop the House Judiciary Committee from folding their own bill (HR5889) and moving to adopt the Senate version.

PLEASE EMAIL CONGRESS RIGHT AWAY.

The CapWiz site is set up to make this a very quick and easy process. A letter is prepared, and all you need to do is enter your contact information.

Send an email now

Technorati Tags: Orphan Works, Orphan Works Legislation, Copyright, Law, Congress, Senate, Bill, Legislation, SAA, Stock Artists Alliance

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