Digital Photography | Digital Photography Tutorials | Online Photography Courses | Ansel Adams Zone System | Photography

Kodachrome – death of a legend RIP

LesM — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 12:39:20 +0000

Hi Folks

Well, its finally happened. Kodachrome processing has hit the dirt and we see yet another 'end of an era' in film based photography.

Kodachrome was for many people simply the best 35mm film ever, period! I loved the stuff and still have, like many old timers, many images that show no degradation in colour or quality even after 30 years.

The downside of Kodachrome was the complex processing and time factor involved, and so for the majority of working pros this meant we had to use E6 based films such as Kodak Ektachrome, Fuji Provia etc for our commercial work. A pity but there it is, most clients didn't want to wait to get their images.

Another nail in the coffin for film based photography? Well, yes and no. Yes because we see yet another film disappear but no because the majority of film users used E6 and C41 (colour neg) based film and not Kodachrome. Also of course, the black and white film users weren't affected either.

Colour home processing for the real enthusiasts also meant that E6 and C41 was the film process of choice. Kodachrome simply could not be processed at home.

So, what do you film users reading this think? Let me know your views and how you see the demise of Kodachrome affecting film based photography in general.

Cheers

Les

Are you a photographer or merely a camera user?

LesM — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 12:55:15 +0000

Hi Folks

A couple of days ago I was delivering an interactive live talk to a group of around 60 people on the subject of 'How to be more creative'. The talk went really well and I received some great feedback from the enthusiastic audience. After the talk I was approached by a guy who wanted to know if I could teach him digital photography – but of course – and he then went on to tell me he had bought a new digital compact and that it did all sorts of neat stuff and he needed to know what these neat things meant. I listened patiently whilst at the same time thinking to myself "Is this a potential photographer or just a camera user?"

I assured him that I could very easily teach him about photography and how to be a photographer but to learn about his new camera, which I had no experience of, he would need to read the instruction manual. As usual the advice to read the manual wasn't what he wanted to hear but after I explained to him that I could certainly teach him the skills and techniques to be a photographer and that those skills did not rely specifically on the camera being used he seemed to appreciate my point of view.

This encounter, which isn't that unusual for me, does highlight the difference between someone who wants to really be a photographer (amateur or pro), and who learns about 'Photography', and those who think that by buying a new feature packed digital camera that they will suddenly be a photographer.

Now the question I want to ask you is: which are you? Do you study photography and constantly improve your skills and techniques in order to become a better photographer (with whichever camera you currently own), or do you constantly buy the latest feature rich camera in the hope that it will somehow produce the amazing work of the pros?

Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts…

Cheers

Les

What happened to camera viewfinders?

LesM — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 10:46:25 +0000

Hi Folks

Have you noticed that the majority of 'happy snapper' cameras no longer have viewfinders? Have you also noticed that good camera holding technique, which should be one of the first skills taught to DSLR users, seems to have also disappeared? It is really weird to me, a pro of over 25 years and a workshop tutor, to see people aiming their cameras with their arms outstretched rather than with the camera pressed close to their faces.

How can people holding their cameras like that possibly hope to obtain a sharp picture? What happened to holding the camera as steady as possible? The answer of course lies in the latest technology.

With the introduction of image stabilisation into cameras a few years ago some bright spark at the manufacturers came up with the notion that it wasn't necessary to have camera viewfinders any more. The technology would correct the fuzzy image resulting from camera shake produced by holding the camera at arms length. Genius! Or is it?

Of course, producing cameras without the additional expense of incorporating a viewfinder is also somewhat less expensive for the makers and so costs are down and profits are up. Sceptic? Me!?

It has always been obvious to me and many other serious photographers that camera manufacturers care little about 'photography' but care more about selling cameras to people who know nothing about photography and probably don't want to. All these millions of consumers want is to be able to do is record their activities, no matter how poor the resulting picture is, without having to learn new skills.

The serious photographer market is much smaller than the mass consumer one and always suffers as a result of 'innovation' (read 'nail in the coffin') in the consumer market. How long will it be I wonder until the essential camera viewfinder is removed from serious DSLR cameras to be replaced by the 'hold the camera at arms length while the image stabilisation tries to correct this basic mistake' technology. Once this happens we might see a new breed of camera; gone will be the DSLR to be replaced by the ALBP model (Arms Length Blurry Photo).

The reality is, and this is very sad to have to say, camera manufacturers rely upon the lack of knowledge and skill of the consumer market. Knowing that the average consumer knows virtually nothing about photography allows the manufacturers to be arrogant enough to dictate the features incorporated into their cameras rather than provide those features the end users really need. Innovation or simply cost cutting? You decide.

Cheers

Les

What Controls Perspective?

LesM — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 21:53:20 +0000

Hi Folks One thing that many people seem confused about when learning photography, especially how lenses are used, is the subject of perspective. The term 'perspective' gets bandied about so much when discussing how to use lenses and the various visual effects lenses produce that the correct use of the term seems to have gotten lost. What is perspective? Perspective is the impression of depth created by distance. This impression of depth can take various forms: lines receding, tonal values becoming lighter with distance, similar objects having different relative sizes due to distance (known as 'scale'), and they each contribute to our perception of perspective. However, our brain can cause problems here since it can easily be fooled by visual information. Check out the following video for an example… Now for the important point… What Controls Perspective? Perspective is controlled by one thing only -viewpoint! Your chosen viewpoint determines all of the relationships between the objects in the scene. Change your viewpoint even a little and all of the relationships (and hence perspective) change. Lenses do not change the perspective in the scene; they may create optical distortion which can change your perception of the original perspective.

Cheers

Les

Want regular updates? Then please opt-in! Please also leave a comment about this article, thanks.

Photoshop tutorials – Get rid of USM halos

LesM — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 12:54:58 +0000

Hi Folks

Sometimes the Photoshop USM filter leaves light or dark halos along edges of the subject. I have prepared a little video to show you a neat and easy method of removing them to make your image better.

Chaos or controlled abstract

LesM — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 15:37:00 +0000

Creating images that take the viewer ‘within’ a subject, such as this image, can provide a fascinating new experience. The majority of people simply don’t have the observation skills needed to see the finer details of a subject and it can be quite a revelation to them when you present them with only a part of a common subject. However, even when working with only a small area of a subject, all the principles of good design and composition still apply. It could be argued that these visual skills are even more important since it is much more difficult to ‘arrange’ the subject when only dealing with a small part of it. Don’t allow your ‘abstracts’ to be simply an image of chaos, apply some visual order to make your images work.

Design elements – Repetition

LesM — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 12:15:00 +0000

Understanding the design elements of image management is useful when hunting for new subjects to photograph because it gives you ideas of what to look for as you seek new things. One of the most powerful design elements is repetition. Repetition can apply to lines, shapes, colours, complete objects, in fact anything in the scene that repeats.
The image shown is a study in repetition. There is repetition of the curved lines creating visual movement. This is dynamically contrasted by the repetition of the diagonal straight edges. Note also that the repeating items are similar but not exactly the same which adds more interest to the image, i.e. each curved part is different, the straight parts vary in number and the ¡negative spaces’ vary in shape.
Repetition is a useful tool when creating semi-abstract images from every day subjects as this image shows.
Q: What is the subject of this image and what is creating the ‘starburst’ effect on the highlights (no filter used)?

The ‘Near – Far’ Effect

LesM — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 11:11:00 +0000

The ‘Near – Far’ effect was explored extensively by Ansel Adams using the camera movements of a large format camera to create or exaggerate the sense of depth in a scene. Adams coined the phrase ‘near – far’ to describe the visual result of the technique. The ‘near – far’ effect is created by having a prominent foreground object dominating the lower half of the image with some form of visual line leading you towards the background of the scene. This can be clearly seen in this example, the lines of sunflowers take you into the ‘depth’ of the scene.
With 35mm cameras the ‘near – far’ effect is easily produced by using a wide-angle lens. Since wide-angle lenses make closer objects look bigger than distant objects, positioning yourself close to an interesting object automatically creates the ‘near – far’ effect. Make sure you adjust the depth of field to include the background in the area of sharpness.
The ‘near – far’ effect is one of the most powerful techniques for creating a sense of depth in your images so why not explore the visual possibilities of ‘near – far’ the next time you go out with your camera! Have Fun!
Q: How do you obtain sufficient depth of field for the ‘near – far’ effect?

Scale and Space

LesM — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 16:50:00 +0000

Scale is used to help define the size relationships between the elements of an image. A sense of scale goes a long way to adding to the feeling of space in a scene. In this beach scene, clearly a semi-abstract design, the inclusion of the single human figure walking across the sand allows you to immediately appreciate the amount of space included in the image. Without this point of reference it would be very difficult to perceive just how much of the beach had been used to form this design oriented image.
Q: Why is the water so blue?

PhotoTalk Gallery Now Open!

LesM — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 16:45:00 +0000

OK, here we go! Let’s enter into a virtual photo gallery, that’s us in the gallery now, and chew the fat about photography. Mind you, try not to stick ice-cream covered fingers all over the image like this little lady is doing!