Kachoozie Stock Images

Make sure to get the full view –

Make sure to get in a way where you can get a full view of the sunset. One good way to do this would be to position yourself on a high point.  Or another good tip is to take the shot of the sun reflecting off of the water, as it is going down.  Try to catch the sunset in different, creative ways.

Take multiple shots –

Another great tip is, don’t stop shooting.  Take multiple shots.  This will enable you to get the most results out of that shot.  You never know what you might just get!

Don’t forget about the clouds –

Clouds add a variety of things to sunset pics.  They add color, dimension and make the picture just pop!

Off Center Shots –

Don’t think that all sunset pics need to be centered.  Shot off center or take from a different angle. This will make for creating different effects.

Multiple Exposure Settings -

Try shooting the same pictures at different exposures.  This way you can adjust it if it is under or overexposed.

Zoom In-

Take along a telephoto lens when shooting sunsets in order to make the sun larger and your pictures more stunning.

In Conclusion -

Sunset photos are a great to take. However, they can be challenging as well. Use the above tips, and you’ll be sure to get great results.

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(I wanted to call this article “Flashing Like a Pro,” but people might get the wrong idea.)

In my opinion, one of the things which distinguishes an amateur photographer from a professional photographer is one’s ability to use a strobe light (professionals refer to all types of flashes – even the one built into the camera – as strobes).

A strobe light is not just for shooting in low-light situations. In many cases, the worst thing you could do is use a strobe in low-light situations.

Many people just put their camera on automatic and shoot away, letting the camera make all the choices for them.  They have no idea why the flash is going off or why it’s not.  Or why the image is all washed out or why it’s too dark.  All of this stems from a lack of understanding of how to use the on-camera flash and strobes in general.

If you’ve ever used a professional-grade DSLR, you may have noticed that there is no built-in flash.

There is a reason for that: it’s rare that professionals want the light coming from that angle.

When the on-camera flash goes off, it illuminates the subject from the same point of view as your lens.  The end result is a very flat and unflattering image.  The light is stark and flattens the facial features and erases depth.

By not having the on-camera flash, professionals can use a separate strobe and place it any where they like, thus creating depth, drama, and a more interesting lighting setup.

The secret to getting striking, professional images with a strobe is one, have a mastery of shutter speed and aperture, two, knowing when to use a strobe light, and three, understanding the effects of light from different angles and the effects they have on the subject.

SHUTTER SPEED AND APERTURE

Shutter speed, aperture, ISO, and the law of reciprocity are terms you know like the back of your hand.  If you’re not quite clear of what these terms are, how they influence exposure, or how to change them, I suggest an evening at the library.  There are so many wonderful books about photography to fill you in.  A college textbook for intro to photography is also a good resource.

Don’t just google it.  Reading a page in Wikipedia isn’t going to cut it.  It may define it, but it won’t give you a grasp of it.

WHEN TO USE A STROBE & THE EFFECTS ON THE IMAGE

I lumped these last two together because they have an effect on each other.  And the learning process is very similar.

Knowing when to use a strobe light comes with time, experience, and looking at lots and lots of images (yours and the pro’s).  Make it a habit to go to Borders or your favorite book store for a few hours every week.  Look through magazines and photography books and see what the pros are doing.  Some of my favorite publications are GQ, Vanity Fair, Clear, and American Photo because of their innovative photography.

There are a myriad of publications on flash photography.  My favorite resource is Half.com.  Make it a point to be actively reading and looking at new information on photography.  Learn new skills and techniques.  And for Heaven’s sakes, don’t put your camera on auto and expect your images to improve.

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Gert Wagner, a commercial photographer, has put together a series of apps for the iPhone and iPad which skip all the theory behind photography and get right to the point: how he did it.

Photo Craft covers all sorts of topics including being action and adventure photography, people, landscapes, light, and symbols.

Gert has quite an impressive client list including British Petroleum, BMW, Marlboro, and Mobil Oil.

PHOTO CRAFT 1 ($3.99)

Photo Craft 1 takes a look at adventure and action photography.  This app is 57 pages of action images Gert has taken on assignment across the globe and a description of the challenges he faced and the solutions he arrived at.  Many times, the answer was the use of very simple photography techniques.   He shoots a wide spectrum of sports including surfing, sailing, driving, riding, flying and bullfighting. The techniques he uses are applicable to most sports and action scenarios.

Gert describes how to achieve these effects with little equipment and a tight budget.  This app has 37 images to inspire both professional and amateur alike.

The contents of the app are:

• introduction
• a battered camera
• sea
• windjammer
• surfing
• catamaran
• land
• cars
• other
• air
• planes and stunts
• techniques

CUSTOMER REVIEWS

Since this app was released this week, there are no customer reviews yet.

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I love iPhone Apps, however, few things can kill more time. Being an avid believer in productivity and in making my life simpler and more efficient, I thought it would beneficial to comprise a list of time-saving, productivity-amplifying, and just plain useful photography iPhone applications. Here’s what I found.

PHOTOGRAPHER’S CONTRACT MAKER ($2.99)

Go paperless with the Photographer’s Contract Maker. Create, edit, sign, and email legally binding contracts right from your iPhone. Need to send out a bid? Client asked you for a statement of work? Now you can email it to them in minutes, regardless of where you are.

Comes with four sample contracts to get you started:

• Photo shoot contract
• Model release
• Copyright Release
• Work for Hire (for outsourcing work to contractors)

Edit and change your information at any time. The Photographer’s Contact Maker automatically puts your business information in every contract, which you can edit at any time.

HELIOS SUN POSITION CALCULATOR ($29.99)

Don’t let the high price scare you away. Helios Sun Position Calculator graphically represents the position of the sun at any time of the day at any location in the world.

View the position of the sun in four modes:

1.  Helios Meter View is a graphical representation of the sun’s predicted position, showing the position, length, and angle of the shadows cast.

2. Clinometer View shows the relative position of the sun based on your elevation, which has a effet on the angle of the sun.

3.  Helios Data View displays numerical information regarding the sun’s position, which can be emailed within the program.

4. Sky Map View charts the path of the sun and a graphical representation of the angle of the shadows from your location.

JPGeo ($0.99)

JPGeo geotags all of your images, so you know the exact location of every photo you took. JPGeo logs your location every 30 seconds.

This app is great when you need the precise location of the shot for travel photography as well as when you upload to Google Earth and Google Maps. A big time saver when you need to know exactly where you were when you took an image.

SHOOT AND PROOF ($1.99)

Shoot and Proof is the only iPhone App to produce legally valid images.

The photos taken with Shoot and Proof are timestamped, Geo-tagged, watermarked, encrypted, sent to a secure server, and legally achieved. This provides the proof as to who shot the image, where, and when it was taken. Only you have access to the archived images and the saved information. Protect yourself from image thieves!

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In ten days, I’m off to Europe for a much needed and overdue vacation. Although, to be honest, it isn’t going to be all play and no work. I’m planning on doing lots and lots of shooting. Who knows, that money-making shot is out there waiting for me

It’s been several years since I went on a trip with the specific intention of shooting for a stock library or a personal project, and I’ll admit it, I’m a little rusty. I’m not 100% sure what I need to take and what I don’t. So here’s what I’m planning on taking, and when I get back, I’ll let you know how I fared.

ONE CAMERA BODY

Although I’ve been debating over whether or not I should bring along two camera bodies – one digital and one film – I’ve almost firmly decided on taking just the digital. As much as I love film, it just isn’t practical, especially on such a long trip where space is an issue. Although I do have plenty of film in the fridge, by the time I factor in the cost of developing and my opportunity cost in scanning all the negatives, I don’t think my ROI is worth it.

EXTRA CAMERA BATTERY AND CHARGER

One thing that I never leave home without – even if it’s a family outing – is an extra camera battery and battery charger. My camera battery died once and I was left without either and I learned my lesson well. I’m passing this on to you so you won’t have to learn it the hard (and embarrassing) way.

TWO LENSES

I’ve decided upon the 10mm fish-eye and the 28-105mm, giving me a nice local length range. If I had a 200-400mm lens, I would bring that, as well. But since I don’t, it’s not coming.

FLASH, RECHARGEABLE BATTERIES, & CHARGER

One flash (Nikon SB 800) and 10 rechargeable batteries. The strobe takes 5 batteries, so I should be good with 10. I can recharge the used batteries at night while I sleep.

COMPACT FLASH CARDS

Because I’m not bringing my laptop with me (because of weight and theft issues – yes, I know, I’m a little anal retentive), which I feel alright about. I’m just taking every single compact flash card I’ve got plus I’m swinging by Costco to get a few more. Ideally, I’d like to take 50 GB of memory with me.

CAMERA BAG

I’m actually still on the fence about which camera bag I’m taking – the backpack, which is a little large and cumbersome, the shoulder bag, which I dislike because it’s, well, a shoulder bag, or the messenger bag with a camera insert. I’m leaning towards the later because it’s not so big and has adjustable straps which can take the weight off my shoulders and lower back.

MODEL AND PROPERTY RELEASES

I’m taking a long a stack of model releases for the times I see that handsome Swede sunning himself by the lake and want to use it for stock. Every recognizable person in the photograph must sign a model release in order to sell the image on any stock photography site. There is a handy app for the iPad that allows you to create a model release, and have the person sign right on the iPad, and an email copy is sent to the photographer along with a copy to the model, it is a pretty handy app.

Property releases are a little trickier. Dogs, cars, and private homes all require property releases, as well as some public spaces. Better safe than sorry.

SHOT LIST

Since I know exactly what countries and cities I’ll be visiting, I’m going to comprise a detailed shot list of things I want to shoot. Most of the places I’ll be visiting are iconic, such as London, and the last thing I want to do is photograph what already has been photographed. If a stock photography library already has a fish-eye shot of Big Ben, I’m not going to duplicate it, but find a gap or interesting perspective which has not already been shot and accepted into the library.

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Digital Camera, TIPS Part 3
a three part series
by Heather Shimmin

PART THREE: POST-PRODUCTION

The final stage in the digital imaging process is post-production, the stuff that happens after the photo shoot. This entails editing, touch-up, and storage of all these precious images.

EDIT, EDIT, EDIT

If location, location, location are the three rules of real estate, then edit, edit, edit are the three rules of post-production. You don’t not have to save and print every picture you take. You must go through your images with a sharp, critical eye. This becomes an even more important issue when you invite friends over for a slide show. Honey, no one wants to sit through 1,000 images of your family vacation to Disneyland, no matter how cute your kids are.

PHOTO EDITING AND TOUCH-UP

Few images come out perfect straight from the digital camera,. They may need to be color corrected (especially if you ignored my bit on white balance) or have a zit taken off your teenage daughter’s face because it’s so embarrassing. Sooner or later, you’ll have to invest both your time and your money into some sort of photo editing software. The pros use Adobe Photoshop, but there are many other less-complicated options. Adobe Elements gets the best reviews followed by Corel Paint Shop Pro. Google’s Picassa has limited editing tools but is great for storing and sharing your images.

FILE STORAGE AND ORGANIZATION

All of these Disneyland photos have got to go some place, but before you shove them into a file folder you’ll never find again, you have to do a few things:

Rename the files. Batch renaming is simple and automated. You should give the files a name which you can easily identify with at a later time (like tomorrow or two years from now). Don’t leave the default IMG_998 as the file name because this type of file name is useless.
Fill out the meta data as completely as possible. Meta data has so many uses and is very valuable yet no one bothers to do it. There are fields for keywords, location, copyright, photographer, all of which assist in file searching both on your computer and the web.
Create a file system and stick to it, whether that be by location, date, or subject matter, it’s up to you. I do it by subject matter – people, places, things – and then subfolders by shoot description or project. There are also software programs out there to help you like Lightroom and Aperture.
Backup your files. Buy an external hard drive and backup your files frequently. I do it every Sunday. My hard drive has failed twice and I lost a lot of images because I didn’t back them up.
Digital photography is both a blessing and a curse. You no longer have the cost of film, allowing you to shoot many more images that you normally would. The curse is that you now have many more images than you normally would. By preparing yourself in pre-production, you arm yourself with the tools to take better images in production and gain a better understanding of what you can do technically to have color balanced shots, correct exposure, and use the right settings to capture the lead guitarist on stage, rather than having a blurred, unrecognizable blob. You can bring a critical eye to your images and organize them in a way in which they can be found at a later time and share the best of your images with those around you.

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Digital Camera TIPS Part 2
a three part series
by Heather Shimmin

PART TWO: PRODUCTION

Now that you’re more comfortable understanding the controls and functions of your digital camera (having read the manual and prepared yourself for the photo shoot) you can now focus on the production, or photo shoot.

Digital cameras differ from film in that you now have to tell the camera what type of “film” you are using. Are you shooting outside? Are you in a low-light situation? What is the light source? These were decisions you made with your selection of film, whether you knew it or not. Now you have to answer all of these questions and tell the camera what settings to use. Cameras are smart but not infallible. Automatic mode does not always work. You need to have an understanding of film speed, light source, and color balance in order to get the most out of your digital camera.

Film Speed

Film Speed, also referred to as ISO, tells the camera the type of lighting situation you will be shooting in. Low ISOs such as 100 or 200, require more light for a correct exposure. Use low numbers when shooting in lots of light, like at the beach in full sun. The higher the ISO the less amount of light required for a correct exposure. Use an ISO of 800 or 1600 when shooting in low-light situations like a rock concert. Keep in mind, the when using an ISO of 800 or higher (this varies depending on the camera) the more noise appears in your image.

BRACKETING

Bracketing is when you shoot several frames in sequence each with a slightly different exposure. This helps you dial in a correct exposure when shooting it difficult lighting situations, such as snow scenes, indoor lighting, and nighttime shots. Most cameras have a bracketing mode and automatically make an exposure adjustment for you. This is a wonderfully useful tool.

White Balance

White balance is an adjustment made to correct colors, especially neutrals, under different lighting scenarios. Light is not universal. Every type of light photographs differently because light burns at different temperatures which record differently on film. Daylight (sunshine and strobes) are the cleanest. Tungsten, indoor, and incandescent lights have a orange tint to them. You’ve probably noticed your indoor images are orange when the flash doesn’t go off. Fluorescents are typically green, and shade is a cool blue. Every time you change light sources – sunlight to lamp light – you need to manually change the white balance. Again, automatic mode is not always the best.

File Formats

Always shoot using your camera’s largest file size setting. You can always resize later to a smaller size but you can’t do the reverse, saving it as a larger file later. RAW is the very best file format. It is the equivalent to a film negative. You can make changes later on your computer and still have the capability to go back to the original. They are large files, but well worth it. Once you start shooting in RAW, you’ll never go back. It is superior to any other file type.

The standard default setting in most cameras is jpeg. This is unfortunate because jpeg is the worst possible file format. Jpeg is a compressed file. The camera (or the computer) throws out information in order to compress the image and keep the file size down. Compression is information lost. And every time you save a .jpg file you lose information. NEVER use jpeg. If that is your only in-camera option, after downloading your images re-save them immediately as a TIFF, PSD, or PNG file, all universally read file types.

Next, we’ll take a look at what to do with all of those images and how to keep your files organized.

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DIGITAL CAMERA TIPS Part 1
a three part series
by Heather Shimmin

PART ONE: PRE-PRODUCTION

This is the first of three articles on tips and techniques to help you learn more about your digital camera, understand it better, and ultimately take better images. I’ve broken down this vast topic into the three phases of the photographic process: pre-production, production, and post-production.

THE PRE-PRODUCTION INTRODUCTION

Pre-production is the term professional photographers use for the time spent in preparation before a shoot. Whether that be a day or a month, the more prepared you are for the shoot, the better your chances of it being successful. Pre-production is more than a simple checklist of items to put into your camera bag. It is also entails research and brainstorming, but that’s a different topic altogether. For now, let’s just focus on techniques rather than concepts.

KNOW YOUR EQUIPMENT

The most important bit of advice I can give is read the manual and get to know your equipment. Every digital camera is different, each with slight variations and nuances. There are an ocean of settings and buttons on your camera, which can make navigation difficult when sailing these vaguely familiar waters. Understanding what buttons do what, which settings are best for certain situations, and knowing why you want to use shutter-priority over aperture-priority will dramatically reduce your frustrations when shooting and actually let you focus on the fun part – taking photos. I actually take my manual with me on every shoot for reference in case I need to remind myself how to record a voice memo or stitch together a panoramic image, things I do only occasionally. Your images will not improve if you are constantly fumbling with your camera or are too lazy to take it off automatic mode.

KEEP THE Digital Camera CLEAN

Cleaning and maintenance is vital with any camera. Always keep your camera in a case and never leave it in a hot car. Extreme hot and cold temperatures can damage your camera and ruin the battery life. If you have an SLR, clean the sensor (NEVER use compressed air) before every shoot. This will remove the tiny specs of dust and dirt on the CCD which appear as grey spots on your images, which are not only annoying but time consuming to remove later in Photoshop.

HAVE A SPARE BATTERY

Before every shoot, charge the battery. You also should have an extra battery in case the other runs out of juice, gets wet, or malfunctions. Don’t get stuck with a dead battery and no backup.

BUY A SECOND MEMORY CARD

After every shoot, you should download your memory card to your computer. This frees up space on the card and makes editing and organizing less overwhelming (I’ll talk more about this is part three). With memory cards so ridiculously cheap nowadays, you have no excuse for not having more than one. As with batteries, so it is with memory cards – never leave for a shoot without a backup. Cards get full and sometimes misbehave, leaving you in a pickle with a camera and no “film.” I have had more than one occasion where the camera could not read or write to my memory card. The only remedy is to reformat and erase all the data on the card. This is not uncommon.

Being prepared is 90% of shooting. When you are familiar with your equipment, have a spare battery and memory card, you can spend your energies really focusing at the task at hand – capturing the moment.

BEFORE YOU LEAVE FOR A SHOOT CHECKLIST

Camera (duh)
Camera bag
Clean sensor (SLRs) and viewing screen
Charged battery + spare
Extra memory card
Manual

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DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY SECRETS
by Heather Shimmin

With all of the photo editing software out there, people readily assume that any problem – from poor exposure to bad composition – can be fixed later in Photoshop. This mindset is the downfall of many photographers and amateurs alike. You have to have a good image to start with before you turn it into a great image later in Photoshop. (When I say Photoshop I really mean any photo editing software. Photoshop is the industry standard and has become a universal term, such as kleenex or xerox.) The secret to digital photography is to do as much adjusting and tweaking in the camera, as opposed to on the computer, as possible.

TECHNICAL SETTINGS & SHOOTING MODES

The camera has settings other than Program or Automatic. There is a reason for this. Your camera isn’t perfect. It can’t read your mind or decide the best setting for every situation. You need to understand the different shooting modes and when to use them. For example, when you’re at the Tour de France standing on the side lines and you spot the peleton in the distance, what settings should your camera be on? Well, I’ll tell you. It’s not automatic. ISO is set to 100 because it’s sunny out and you have a lot of light. WB (white balance) is set to the little sunshine icon because you are using daylight. Shooting mode is on shutter-priority with a number higher than 500 because you want to freeze the action, giving you a crisp image. If, however, you want the peleton to be a streak passing you by, then you would choose aperture-priority and set it to a number less than 30. You also would put the shutter release on continuous, so images are taken one right after the other as to not miss the action. You only get a ten second window here. Now, can your automatic setting do that? If you’re wondering, the answer is no.

COMPOSITION

Now that you’ve got your technical settings dialed in, you can focus on composition. Not even the most expensive camera can compensate for poor composition. The main subject is not always centered. The best angle is not always where you happen to be standing. Three things which you can do to compose your images better are follow the rule of thirds, change your position to the subject matter, and get closer to the action.

The rule of thirds, is not set it stone, but it is a good rule of thumb. The rule of thirds, states that an image can be divided into vertical and horizontal thirds by two equidistant horizontal and vertical lines, creating a grid of nine equal sections. In this image, I placed the baseball player in the left third of the image and the horizon in the bottom third.The spacial relationship between you and your subject should be evaluated. Either you or your subject matter (when possible) should change positions to each other. Usually, it’s the photographer that has to change position. Drop to your knees, stand on a chair, lay on your stomach. Try multiple angles. Rarely is the angle you happen to be standing in the best or the most interesting one.

Stepping closer and becoming more intimate with the subject matter is another technique which will help your composition. Getting up close and personal creates interest and really focuses on what you think is alluring about your subject matter. If the man’s belt buckle is what caught your interest, why not focus in on it? What are you shooting the man head to foot?

By taking your camera off of autopilot and taking the time to compose your images, you will see a dramatic difference in the quality and interest of your photography.

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