Good Farming AND good Cooking...

One of my most favorite websites (tmelive.com) includes a “daily critique” feature that uses a recently taken photography, and utilizing the “language of  design”, discusses the strengths and merits of an image.  Occasionally, they demonstrate ways to reinterpret or “improve” that image with possible editing enhancements and techniques.  I’ve learned a tremendous amount though these lessons and examples.

This same website started a new feature earlier this year called EditMyImage.  It’s basically a user-driven discussion group where someone posts an image of their own, and then the other uses download it, and edit it anyway they want, and re-post the result.  The original person then chooses the edit they like best and declares a “winner”.  This winner then restarts the process by posting a new image of their own.

The two images here show the current photo being worked on.  The first, full-color image (above )was the contributor’s original, and the second, altered image (left) is the edited version I created and have submitted for consideration.  In addition to converting to a sepia-toned background, I used a fair amount of "digital gardening" and clone-stamping to simplify the image and reduce what I thought was distracting clutter.

I think the EditMyImage forum is an excellent way to not only hone your own post-processing skills, but it let’s you see how others respond to the identical image.  You realize quickly how many different ways there are to reinterpret and add uniqueness to an image.   If you have several photography friends, or are a member of a photography club, suggest using this activity as a learning tool--it will give you a lot of enjoyment and learning, and it will make you a better photographer.  After all, photography isn’t just pressing the shutter and creating captures.  That part of the process is obviously important, and arguably the MOST important part, but photography also includes whatever post processing (we used to call developing) techniques you choose to apply to your captures.   

I think of the capture component as “farming”, and the post-production component as “cooking”.  You need both good farming AND good cooking to create a great meal.  A good capture AND good post-processing will give you something you'll be proud of, and proud of sharing. 

Feel free to contact me at CostaMesaPhotography@gmail.com or check out my website gallery at http://costamesaphotography.com/

Don't be Stingy with Keywords

Photo organizing is a chore.  It’s probably the least favorite part of the photographer’s workflow, but arguably one of the most important.  It’s important because of the need to be able to retrieve images at a later date—and that need drives the importance (and the benefits) of good organization.

How many times have you gone to look for an image but forgot exactly where you were when you shot it, or even when you shot it, and unfortunately the subject was not something you used as a keyword…so you just start scrolling through images hoping to stumble upon it. 

My recommendation to you, and it’s from personal experience, is to use keywords as part of your organizing, and don’t be stingy with them.  Most photo organizing software allows you to “tag” images with keywords that can later be used as criteria for finding images.  It’s tempting to keep keywords at a minimum, but I’ve learned that the more key words you use, the greater your chances of finding a particular image later.  Don’t write paragraphs and be so specific with keywords that you’re describing details of a single image, but rather use enough keywords so that your searches will narrow down to retrieve a group of  50-100 images that would include the one you’re looking for.

Think of keywords along the lines of who, what, when, where, and why (the “5-Ws”).  If you do that, you will greatly increase your chances of finding what you want, quickly.  I was recently looking for this image of a tractor that I shot.  Only because I remembered where I took the image, was it relatively easy to find—but memory is not a good system when you have as many images as I do.  Had I used more keywords at the time of downloading, I would have been able to quickly find the image, spending less time searching, and more time on the project that I was working on.

So I would encourage that you make it a priority in your workflow to tag your images with keywords immediately after downloading.  I've had really good success now using the “5-Ws”—if you have another system that you’re using and getting good results from, drop me a line and share how it's working.

Feel free to contact me at CostaMesaPhotography@gmail.com or check out my website gallery at http://costamesaphotography.com/

(metadata for this image 1/250 sec at f/8 ISO 200, focal length 28mm)

Why I like HDR

For all that’s been written about High Dynamic Range (HDR), it still carries a stigma among some photography “purists” who believe it to be an unnatural manipulation.  I won’t try to convince you otherwise, but what I will do is tell you that it’s a tool that I’m glad to have discovered, and in certain situations it’s about the only way to capture what’s in my mind’s eye.

Take for example this sculpture that I was admiring in the Allan Houser Sculpture Garden outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico.  I was there last month and enjoyed touring the gardens and was in awe of the talents of this amazing artist.  This particular sculpture spoke to me yet it was obvious that the lighting conditions were not favorable for capturing what I was feeling in a single exposure.

The clouds were amazing, and the deep blue sky provided the perfect backdrop for the sculpture and a beautiful color pairing for the red desert rock.  The problem was that the sky and clouds were very bright compared to the relatively dark bronze of the Indian sculpture.  The details and subtle colors of the sculpture could only be captured by opening up the lens, but that action would further blow out the sky (not to mention shallow my depth of field, which I didn't want).  It was quite clear to me that this was a capture that would depend on using HDR techniques to convey everything I was after.

I use Photomatix for my HDR processing.  I prefer it to Photoshop, just a personal preference.  I also prefer to have my HDR images appear within the range of realism.  Some people enjoy creating wild, exaggerated, surrealistic imagery—I haven’t developed an appreciation for that sort of artistic expression.  If someone looks at one of my pictures and asks if it’s an HDR, then I feel like I’ve failed.  If instead, they look at my pictures and “ooh” and “ahh”, then I feel like I’ve succeeded in not over-processing. 

Here I was able to capture the full dynamic range of the subject matter in my composition, and convey the complete idea that was in my mind’s eye. This is the reason that I like HDR, and it's why I feel that it's a tool worth having in your repertoire.

Feel free to contact me at CostaMesaPhotography@gmail.com or check out my website gallery at http://costamesaphotography.com/

(metadata for the contributing images 1/250 sec at f/8 (the overexposed). 1/500 at f/11 (the underexposed), 1/350 at f/9.5 (normal—what the meter wanted), and ISO 200, focal length 18mm)

Don't Leave Home Without It!

I’ve taken to heart the advice I've seen many photographers give to always have a camera with you.  That said, I don’t ALWAYS have a camera with me, and even when I do, it’s not always my Nikon.  But I've made a concerted effort recently to carrying around my “point and shoot” camera--especially on those occasions where my activity is not purposely photography-oriented.

Such was the case this week as I was taking a walk along the river trail near my house.  It’s easy to carry the camera in my hand all the while I’m speed-walking.  If I find something interesting, I stop and shoot it.  It gives me a great feeling to know that I’m getting fresh air AND getting a few shots off here and there.

I wish that I had taken this advice a bit earlier, because it was during a similar walk last week that I spotted a coyote—a big one!  I had a great vantage point, and the coyote was looking back at me…what a great shot that would have been.  Oh well, live and learn.

If you don’t have a camera with you at all times, consider getting a small point-and-shoot camera to keep in your car, bike bag, etc… you’ll be glad you did.

Feel free to contact me at CostaMesaPhotography@gmail.com or check out my website gallery at http://costamesaphotography.com/

(metadata 1/200 sec at f/4. and ISO 100, focal length 24mm)

Are You a Nervous or Anxious Photographer?

I was anxious before my trip to New Mexico.  I wasn’t concerned about the flight, family, or the typically important things people worry about when travelling.  No, I was nervous about balloons!  Yes, really.  I wasn’t going up in one, I was simply going to take pictures of them…but nervous?!

I’ll never forget a similar feeling of nervous anxiety I had moments before officiating my first boys under-16 soccer match.  My mentor, a former FIFA referee, who was there to assist me along the touchline, told me that if I was excited, that was a good sign, and meant that I was ready.  In the early days of my referee training, this same mentor emphasized the importance of reading, and re-reading the Laws of the Game.  This, he said, will set the foundation for everything you’ll see out there on the field, give you confidence, and will prepare you to act decisively in the moment when the need arises.  

So let’s see… nervous excitement would be a good thing—meant I was ready, right?  But wait a minute, I haven’t touched my camera’s manual in months…do I know my equipment inside and out, ready to act decisively in the moment, when the need arises?  I want to say yes.  But truth be told, many of us learn enough about our equipment to get it out of the box, and the learning often stops there.  Experimentation and trial-and-error typically become our only learning method after that.

(Note to self:  find manual, read manual)

The other factor explaining my nerves was the pressure I was putting on myself to capture some amazing images. I had high expectations of myself—but wasn’t sure that I would live up to them.  I’ve watched a lot of video interviews of professional photographers (Silber Studios has some great ones), and there are two common messages of advice these photographers give:  1) take a lot of pictures, and 2) research your destination before going there.

To point number one, you may have hear that practice makes perfect.  Not true.  PERFECT practice makes perfect.  If you practice bad habits, you just ingrain bad habits into your workflow.  Taking pictures is the culmination of the visioning, techniques, and thought process that goes into the capture.  If you’re not working to expand your visioning or techniques, then you might not be advancing your photography.  It’s the practicing of the new learning that’s important.  When the pros say to keep taking pictures, they assume you’re interjecting learning into that process.

To point number two, researching a destination is more than determining where you’re going to stay and what you plan to eat.  Have you ever heard that luck is where preparation meets opportunity?  I like “happy accidents” as much as the next guy, and serendipity can play a part in your getting that amazing image.    But it’s the planning that sets us apart.  Professional photographers say that the difference between them and us is not that they take better images than you and me, but that they do it on a greater frequency.  It’s their planning and preparation that often makes the difference.  Would you go on a trip and not take an umbrella?  Ok, me too.

So, you want to be better, and more confident, then be a continuous learner and a practitioner of that learning.  Then couple that with planning and preparation prior to your photoshoots.  You’ll be amazed with how much better you’ll feel, and your friends/clients will be amazed at your results.

Feel free to contact me at CostaMesaPhotography@gmail.com or check out my website gallery at http://costamesaphotography.com/

(metadata 1/90 sec at f/4.8and ISO 200, focal length 13mm)

40th International Balloon Fiesta

My visit to New Mexico included some great photographic opportunities including Old Town, Casa Rondena Winery, Villanueva, and Houser Sculpture Gardens.  But nothing quite says Albuquerque like the internationally renowned Balloon Fiesta.  Having grown up in Albuquerque, it was easy to take this spectacle for granted.  My first photoshoot of the balloons was in 1976, using Kodacolor film and my Pentax Spotmatic F.  A lot has changed since then.

Since the first “Balloon Fiesta” in 1972, which included only 13 balloons, the event quickly outgrew its original venue, and after moving several times has settled on a 360 acre venue (launch field alone is 80 acres) called Balloon Fiesta Park.  This year’s event featured over 700 balloons, and remains the only major balloon event where the spectators are allowed on the grounds with the balloons and their pilots and crews.  You can literally touch the balloon gondolas and feel the heat, and the roar, of the propane burners.  It’s hard to describe the combination of excitement and amazement, and the pictures barely do justice to the feeling of being there.  That’s why over 100,000 people pack the venue to be part of the action each day of the week-long event.  The attendance reported for the last day’s mass ascension was estimated at 130,000.

Feel free to contact me at CostaMesaPhotography@gmail.com or check out my website gallery at http://costamesaphotography.com/

(metadata 1/500 sec at f/5.3 and ISO 200, focal length 80mm)

Houser Sculpture Garden

Allan Houser was a prolific sculpter whose work can be found throughout the southwest, and on display from Washington D.C., to the Japanese Royal Collection in Tokyo.  I visited the Houser Sculpture Gardens during my visit to New Mexico last week.  The gardens, and the foundry used to duplicate the many works of art, is located south of Santa Fe, near Madrid, along what is referred to as the “Turquoise Trail”.  A short dirt road winds it’s way up to the visitor’s center, which is a modest building on the edge of an amazing garden of sculptures.

What we learned about Allan Houser, who died in 1994 of cancer, was that he was born in 1914 in Oklahoma to parents who were members of the Chiricahua Apache tribe.  Many members of the tribe moved to New Mexico to join the Mescalero Apache reservation, but it wasn’t until 1934 that Allan was enrolled in the Painting School at the Santa Fe Indian School.  After leaving New Mexico for some period of time, it wasn’t until 1962 that the family returned to Santa Fe when Allan jointed the faculty of the newly created Institute of American Arts.  It was from this time period through his death in 1994 that Allan’s artistic output blossomed.

This was an inspiring place.  It was hard not to feel connect to the deep emotions that the artist must have had when creating the many unique and incredible scuptures.  They call New Mexico the Land of Enchantment, and if you visit here, you'll begin to see why.

Feel free to contact me at CostaMesaPhotography@gmail.com or check out my website gallery at http://costamesaphotography.com/

(metadata 1/500 sec at f/5.6 and ISO 200, focal length 70mm)