February 26th, 2010 Rob Sheppard
A friend of mine is a pilot and was frustrated by photographing clouds. He could never get the color right.
I gave him some ideas, something he might try for color in clouds, and thought my readers would be interested in this, too. While he was talking about clouds, the techniques here work for any situation where color is off. I will give this for Photoshop and Lightroom/Camera Raw. The key to doing this is to understand that you are using a control that works to make neutral tones neutral, i.e., whites, grays and blacks without color casts. You do need to have an idea of where the neutral tones are in a photo (parts of clouds are typically neutral, to use my friend’s example), but this does not have to be precise. You simply click on whatever you think should be neutral and keep clicking new spots until the photo looks good. If some of your clicks look bad, so what? Just click somewhere else. Here are the steps:
Photoshop and Photoshop Elements:
1. Open a Levels adjustment layer over your photo.
2. Click on the middle eyedropper of the three eyedroppers in Levels in order to select it.
3. Move your cursor onto the photo (the cursor will look like an eyedropper).
4. Click with the bottom of the eyedropper on parts of the photo that should be neutral (the middle eyedropper is for taking color casts out of neutral tones — you can click on white, gray or black sorts of tones).
5. Keep clicking until you are close, but a little over-adjusted.
6. Use Layer Opacity to control how strong the layer is applied.
Lightroom and Camera Raw:
1. Click on the White Balance eyedropper (in the toolbar at top with Camera Raw, in Basic in Develop in Lightroom).
2. Uncheck auto dismiss (in toolbar in Lightroom below photo)
3. Move your cursor onto the photo — it will be an eyedropper.
4. Click with the bottom of the eyedropper on parts of the photo that should be neutral (the WB eyedropper is for taking color casts out of neutral tones such as white, gray and black).
5. Keep clicking until you get what you want.
6. Tweak adjustment if needed with Temperature and Tint adjustment sliders.
Posted in Digital Photo Techniques, Lightroom, Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, Photoshop techniques | Comments Off
February 24th, 2010 Rob Sheppard
I just returned from the Photo Marketing Association show, PMA, in Anaheim, California. This is a big annual trade show for the photo industry where new products are shown and sometimes even introduced for the first time. Overall, PMA 2010 wasn’t a place of stunning blockbuster stuff. The international industry event, Photokina, is in September and I get the impression that camera manufacturers are waiting for it to announce big stuff. Canon wasn’t even there and Nikon only showed some compact digital cameras and point-and-shoots.
However, there were some interesting things. Sony is continuing their “sweep pan” technologies, now in a very small, pocket, waterproof camera, the DSC-TX5. With sweep panoramic, you set the camera to do that, then push the shutter release and sweep across the scene. It shoots images at 9 fps to build a panoramic, in camera. It also has an in-camera HDR feature. This could be a good addition to anyone’s gadget bag to allow easy panoramics and have underwater capabilities. Oh, and it shoots HD video, too!
Video, by the way, is in almost every new camera now, and mostly HD video. There were even a couple of audio companies exhibiting with microphones for this purpose.
There is a very interesting trend among manufacturers to have colorful cameras, and evidently, they are quite popular with younger people. All manufacturers have things like red, blue, white cameras for compacts and point-and-shoots, but Pentax has white, blue and red models of their entry-level DSLR, the K-x, besides the usual black.
Olympus seems to be doing very well with their really compact Pen series of cameras. These have decent sized sensors (using the Four Thirds format) and interchangeable lenses, yet are not much bigger than a Canon G11. I got a first hand look at the new E-PL1 and all of its accessories. You could put a selection of lenses and a couple of bodies, plus some accessories, in a bag that otherwise would barely hold a full-35mm-size DSLR. Olympus also showed their compact audio recorders (using memory cards for recording). These have a lot of potential for video shooters. Audio from most digital cameras is not that great, so a lot of photographers are getting an audio recorder to capture better sound then use that sound in editing.
This category of small digital cameras with interchangeable lenses is starting to heat up. These are not DSLRs. As I noted, you could get a complete system in a bag that would barely hold a Nikon D3. Panasonic started it and their models were heavily promoted in their booth. Both Panasonic and Olympus use the Micro Four Thirds format which uses a standard size Four Thirds sensor. Sony announced their ideas for making this type of camera using the APS-C size sensor, but the cameras are only concept models so far. Samsung introduced their own unique compact digital cameras with interchangeable lenses. I like the Panasonic and Olympus models because they use a consistent lens standard. You can use lenses from either brand on their cameras, plus adapters are available to fit nearly any brand on them. This is doubtful for Sony or Samsung. It will be interesting to see how Canon and Nikon respond to this market.
Casio is continuing to build high-speed video into their cameras for slow motion playback. The EX-G1 is a waterproof camera that will shoot 120 fps video (1/4 speed slow motion) and has intervalvometer shooting (time-lapse) built-in.
Tokina showed some sweet lenses, including a constant aperture 16-50mm f/2.8 lens. A lot of photographers don’t understand the problem of a variable aperture zoom lens — it loses light as it is zoomed, meaning you are forced to use a slower shutter speed. This f/2.8 lens is also fast and would make a good standard lens for an APS-C format DSLR. I also saw their 80-400mm that is quite compact and includes a wheel to rotate a polarizing filter when the lens hood is attached. I might get one for my Canon (I need that focal length). This is for Canon and Nikon mounts.
LensBaby is celebrating their 6th birthday and showed some cool new products. I really like the fish-eye lens and the Control Freak lens for the optimum in adjustments. They were also showing a great slideshow of wonderful images shot with their lenses. Using a LensBaby lens takes some practice to really use it well.
LowePro has new backpacks in their Pro Trekker line — all weather packs in a variety of sizes. Also in bags, Think Tank has some really attractive shoulder bags that look to be very convenient for field use to make your lenses more accessible. In addition, they don’t scream “camera bag.” And Tamrac showed their new Evolution packs that can be quickly changed for its straps to support them as backpack, shoulder, or sling bags. These are very attractive bags, with access from both sides and the front. They have the camera partition part of the bag at the bottom and an open section of the bag at the top for a camera or a jacket and a lunch, for example. Tamrac also has a strange tripod based on tent-poles in the way it folds up or extends when you release them — I can’t see using it for a camera, but as a compact, lightweight support for a flash, I think it would be great.
ACDSee continues to be the fastest browser. I think I will start using it for my laptop. Lightroom does not give me the same benefits there, and being able to download images in the field then look at them very quickly is a good benefit.
That’s a quick summary of PMA and what stands out for me, anyway.
Posted in Equipment thoughts | Comments Off
February 17th, 2010 Rob Sheppard
I am in Reno, Nevada, right now at the NANPA Annual Summit. NANPA is the North American Nature Photography Association. And this blog is a plug for this organization. I have been a member for many years now, starting in my capacity as editor of Outdoor Photographer magazine. I have also been on the NANPA Foundation Board which handles non-profit fundraising for certain education projects, including education grants, refuge blind building and Summit programs for college and high school youth.
NANPA is a wonderful organization. You can learn more about it at NANPA.org. If you are interested in nature photography at all, I would suggest you check it out. The organization has been a terrific experience for me personally. I have gained a lot of friends who share the same ideals and interests that I have, friends from across the country. I love going to the Summit if for nothing else, meeting new people and rekindling friendships.
The Summit is much more, too. It brings in a lot of great speakers, some of the top nature photographers in the world. At this summit, folks like Phil Borges, George Lepp, Staffan Widstrand, Joel Sartore, Piotr Nasrecki are all giving keynote speeches. In addition, there are multiple breakout sessions every day on all sorts of topics from video for nature photographers (which I am doing with Ian Shive) to using nature photography to cure nature deficit disorder to making the journey from amateur to pro to the art of butterfly photography and much more. There is also a trade show where you can see and handle all sorts of gear appropriate to nature photography.
NANPA is also worth supporting for the things it does for nature photography, including promoting ethical practices in the field, offering insurance for photographers, sponsoring a major nature photography competition, sponsoring regional nature photography programs and so on.
Check it out and keep it in mind if you want to develop as a nature photographer.
Posted in Workshops and Classes, nature photography | Comments Off
February 10th, 2010 Rob Sheppard
I was just contacted by Clay Bolt and Niall Benvie about a very interesting project they have started. I have known Niall, a UK photographer, for a while from some things he had done for us at Outdoor Photographer. I think they have a very ambitious, yet also very important project. It might be something you might be interested in, too. At the least, check out their website, http://niallbenvie.churchilljohnson.co.uk/blog/?p=4028, for some ideas on a unique approach to photographing the natural world and getting it known.
Here’s what Clay told me:
Meet Your Neighbours is about reconnecting people with the common wildlife in their communities through the medium of photography. This will be done by giving each subject the celebrity treatment – photographing it in a backlit white field studio- then putting this work out in public places such as shopping malls, hospitals and on the street. The central message is “biodiversity begins at home.” For many, most people, these familiar species are their first, sometimes only contact with wild nature and as such are especially important as sources of inspiration and perspective. Yet they are normally over-looked and undervalued. This is why we photograph them in such a stylised way, where the subject is an individual, a character, rather than merely a member of an eco-system.
We are seeking photographers - especially those beyond the US and Europe -who will partner with their local conservation NGOs in this effort. It doesn’t matter whether they are professional or recreational photographers ; they need only believe in the project’s ethos and have good relations with the conservation community already.
Posted in Nature, nature photography | Comments Off
February 8th, 2010 Rob Sheppard
I am not sure of all of the deep psychological reasons but there is no question that I get bored by certain types of photos, even my own. But I think I am not alone. The public will often get bored of seeing the same old types of nature photos, even if the photos are pretty shots. Such images then become just a part of the ever present visual “noise” that assaults us every day, stuff that we start getting immune to. That’s not a good place for our photographs.
I have to tell a story. Years ago, I worked for a production group that did photography and video production. We were owned by a large company. A friend in the group and I did PR portraits for the company. I enjoyed doing it as it kept me in contact with lots of interesting people in the company. However, I tended to get bored by the same sort of photos. Now honestly, PR photos should have a standard look and should not change. But I got bored and would change the light. Not enough to really affect the portraits, but enough that the images were not consistent. But that was me.
I am still that way. I get restless when I am in a location that I have photographed before or I have seen photographs from that area before. That, unfortunately because of my work at Outdoor Photographer over the years, means just about everywhere!
But that is not such a bad thing. It forces me to look for images that go beyond the typical photos of the area, to find images that are special to me and take me new places with the location. In today’s world of constant bombardment of visuals, that really allows my photos to be a bit different, to stand out. That also means that I tend to avoid the standard “beauty” shots of locations, which is not always good, because sometimes I would like them. Still, I prefer to find new ways of looking at a location. It is more satisfying to me.
You might not be as extreme as I am in this area, but I would suggest that sometimes it is worth sitting down at a location and just looking before you start taking pictures. I often do that. Find out what is really there visually and how you relate to it, not simply how you can capture another pretty picture of the location that will be forgotten quickly.
The two photos seen here are from the Eastern Sierras of California (where I have a workshop scheduled this June with the GAPW). The first is in the Alabama Hills looking toward Mt. Whitney. The second is in the Ancient Bristlecone Forest by Big Pine.
Posted in Digital Photo Techniques, landscape photography, nature photography | Comments Off
February 4th, 2010 Rob Sheppard
When I was editor of Outdoor Photographer magazine, it amazed me how often folks would write in with suggestions for articles about places far away from their homes. And as I have done classes at BetterPhoto.com, I am still surprised at how often people say that they don’t live in areas where there are good opportunities for nature photography. I have also found that in workshops, a lot of people want to know where is the best place to go.
I know this may seem a little flip, but it is the truth: my favorite place to photograph is wherever I am. I have been to locations in nearly every state and a few foreign locations, too. I have yet to find any place where there is not some sort of interesting and good opportunities for nature photography. The photo at the top of this entry is from Castro Crest in the Santa Monica Mountains. This is less than an hour away from me. Now lest you think I am in some amazing location, I live in the Los Angeles area and nearly half of the time to get to this location is through LA freeways. In addition, this location is within 10 miles of millions of people. Yet whenever I have been to this spot, I have never seen another photographer other than friends who came with me.
I suppose that the old saying, “The grass is greener on the other side of the fence”, didn’t become popular because people always appreciated where they were. A dear friend of mine has some wonderful opportunities to photograph stunning scenes of nature near his house, yet he is always searching for another place to photograph far away from home. Now there are wonderful places that are worth the travel. I am glad I get to go to a lot of interesting places around the country. But I can’t do that all the time. Yet nature and photography are too important to me to wait until my next “big trip.”
I have found so many locations around LA that I enjoy visiting for nature photography. But one thing that has become very important to me is a personal project — photographing the chaparral of Southern California, especially in the Santa Monica Mountains (which, it seems, is not well known anywhere, even in LA — “Santa Monica has mountains” — no, they don’t, but there are mountains to the north and west that have this name). I have mentioned a bit about this before. The chaparral is a wonderful ecosystem once you get to know it. It is a very important part of the natural history of Southern California, covering nearly 15% of the non-built land. It is not so dramatic as Yosemite, it doesn’t have the big trees of Sequoia, it has no bold waterfalls or big rivers. But it is close (it is throughout Southern California), interesting and worth getting to know. Admittedly, the Santa Monica Mountains do have mountains (up to about 3,000 feet), but without tall trees and not a lot of water, these soft-green mountains are often ignored by folks.
Everywhere there are areas like this, areas that you can “adopt” as your own. As you really get to know that area, you will learn more about your camera technique, you will discover cool things about the nature of your region, you can photograph throughout the year, and you can even build up a body of significant work that you cannot get in any other way. For me, the chaparral project started as a way to better know and understand a natural system in my state. Now it has truly become a love affair. That is a big deal, actually, because I grew up in the East and Midwest where thick forests were the native ecosystems that I loved most. Not that I will ever forget the forests, but I do love the chaparral now, too. As Stephen Stills wrote in a song popularized by the Rolling Stones, “And if you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with.”
Here are more chaparral photos.
Posted in Nature, Workshops and Classes, landscape photography, nature photography | 1 Comment »
February 2nd, 2010 Rob Sheppard
I get a lot of questions about where I might be in the coming year, so this long blog includes all of my programs so far. This list is on my website, www.robsheppardphoto.com, which has become more of my reference site.
February 13, 2010
Digital Black-and-White Photography
We will be exploring working with black-and-white as well as how to best convert color to black-and-white.
Paul’s Photo
Los Angeles (Torrence), CA
February 17-19, 2010
Video for Photographers
This is a breakout session during the NANPA annual conference.
NANPA Summit
Reno, NV
March 20, 2010
Extended Range Photography
We will be exploring how to get more range of tones and details from scenes. This will include HDR as well as special processing techniques such as double-processing RAW.
Paul’s Photo
Los Angeles (Torrance), CA
March 29-April 2, 2010
The Magic of Flowers — From Landscapes to Close-Ups
Macro and close-ups with California’s native flowers
Light Photographic Workshops
Los Osos, CA
April 10, 2010
Magic of Digital Landscape Photography
I have a new book coming out this spring, the Magic of Digital Landscape Photography. This program will complement the book and offer tips and suggestions for better landscape photography.
Paul’s Photo
Los Angeles (Torrance), CA
April 22-25, 2010
Florida Birding and Foto Fest
St. Augustine puts together a wonderful event of lots of workshops and classes related to nature photography as well as bird watching.
St. Augustine, FL
June 23-27, 2010
Eastern Sierras Mountain Wildflowers
The Eastern Sierras have spectacular wildflowers in June. This winter should be good as the area is getting lots of snow.
Great American Photography Workshops
Bishop or Mammoth Lakes, CA
September 8-12, 2010
The Nature of Cape Cod (after the tourists are gone)
Cape Cod is a wonderful landscape location. In the summer, it is overrun with tourists. This is a great time to be there.
Great American Photography Workshops
Cape Cod, MA
November 17-21, 2010
Exploring Chincoteague Island (with Jim Clark)
Great American Photography Workshops
Chincoteague Island, VA
Posted in Workshops and Classes | Comments Off
A friend of mine is a pilot and was frustrated by photographing clouds. He could never get the color right.
