Equipment / Photo Tips — No comments
09
Jun 10

Keeping Your Balance

When I switched from film to digital, I had to get a lot more tech savvy. With film, I was limited by the chemistry of the film. With digital, I’m not sure there are limits. One place where that is most evident is with White Balance. With film, you had two choices, daylight or tungsten. Digitally, you have about half a dozen presets, but in post processing, you get nearly unlimited adjustments.

There is an incredible amount of differing opinions out there about white balance. Some folks say to set your camera on auto and forget it, others say never rely on auto WB. You’ll also hear people say that if you shoot RAW format, you don’t need to be concerned about WB when you’re shooting since you can adjust it in post-processing. Whether you adjust the WB when you’re shooting or in post-processing, the WB is adjusted based on pre-determined criteria that may or may not be representative of the actual field conditions. So what’s a body to do?

I started doing some experimenting when I found that many of my photos had a color cast no matter what WB setting I picked, in camera or post-processing. I found that I was spending an inordinate amount of time trying to correct the image to what I thought I remembered it looked like or at least something decent. As I researched the problem, I found that there are lots of WB gizmos and gadgets out there. For every one of them there are those that love them and those that hate them—both with justifiable reasons. And of course, they come with price tags. For me, money is an object, and simplicity and durability in the field are essential. I finally decided on the WhiBal card. It’s inexpensive ($20 plus the cost of any non-essential accessories you get), it’s light, durable, and very easy to use.

When I began testing it, I was surprised at the results. I experimented with the card in various conditions and the results have been impressive. I now use the WhiBal card to provide a reliable neutral gray under any lighting conditions. I’ve also been amazed at how inaccurate my memory of the lighting conditions really is. Clearly the brain filters what we see—or what we think we see. I’ve found the WB card to be a useful tool, especially under difficult light.

Enjoy

Frank

Uncategorized — 1 comment
24
May 10

Remajestification

Now there’s a tongue twister. I’m not adding any photos to this blog since I don’t want to detract from this inspired article. Take a moment to enjoy it.

Frank

Photo Tips — 3 comments
22
May 10

Just Add Water

With the cool, wet spring that we’ve had in Colorado, it’s been hard to take photos without getting wet. While that may not be the most pleasant experience for the photographer, it’s great for the photograph. There is something about water that we find irresistable.

 

A quiet lakeside sunrise at Steamboat Lake State Park, CO

Being creatures born of a water planet, we are made of water—about 70%, actually. The fact that we have legs and lungs instead of fins and gills is a quirk of evolution. Even though we are land lubbers, somewhere in our ancestral memories, we retain a primal affinity for water. In the 21st Century we’ve cast a sheen of culture over that affinity, but we’ve never forgotten water. We are still attracted to water. 

Dewdrops add interest to a wild geranium

So it’s not surprising that we find an added attraction to photos containing water. Whether the water is crashing ocean waves, a serene mountain lake, a thundering waterfall, or just a single drop, water, in any of its myriad forms, results in a primal connection that goes deeper than the subconscious. 

Will adding water to your images make them irresistable? Not necessarily, but it certainly isn’t going to hurt. Add some water to your images and see if there isn’t a little added attraction.  

Enjoy,  

Frank

Photo Tips — 3 comments
15
May 10

Enjoy the Storm

If you live in Colorado, particularly the Front Range, Mother Nature has born out my description of spring as a knock down, drag out battle between winter and summer. The past week has been very cool (some would say cold) with plenty of rain and snow. Up here at 8500 feet, we’ve had about a foot of snow over the past three days, although the accumulation hasn’t been more that about 8 inches.
 
But the point of this post isn’t just for me whine about the weather. Actually, I want to praise the weather. For most folks, stormy weather is a pain in the posterior. But for a nature photographer, it is like getting a white Christmas. Storms make for some of the best photographs. Well, not the heart of the storm, but when it’s breaking up it often provides an interesting mix of clouds and clear skies. The light can change rapidly and dramatically, providing some really exciting opportunities for great photos.

Shreds of fog drift through the pines

Fog-diffused sunlight saturates colors

I got out for sunrise this morning as yesterday’s storm was breaking up. Everything was wet from the rain and snow. During the night, most of the water drops froze on everything. The cold temps also left low clouds and fog lingering in the valleys. So the sunrise was a mix of glowing fog, clear skies, dense gray fog, frozen water drops and thawed water drops. Needless to say, I spent much of the morning cold and wet, but as you can see, it was worth it.

Raindrops on grass are always good subjects

The fog provides soft diffused light that makes most colors glow with their own light. The water drops on the grass and pine needles offer great macro opportunities. And the constantly changing light offers many different facets of the same scene.

If you want dramatic photos, head out into the “not-so-nice” weather as a storm is breaking up and you may be rewarded with some surprising photos. Another advantage is that most normal people are still in bed, so the wildlife is out more and they seem to be a little more active right after a storm.

Enjoy

Frank

Equipment — No comments
13
May 10

Is There More in Your Camera Than Your Image?

There is a rumor going around that spring is here, but you’d never know it looking at the 6 inches of new fallen snow here in Conifer. But for those of you fortunate enough to really have spring, you’re probably thinking more and more about getting out at taking photos. And you may notice, particularly in clear blue skies, you see little dark, fuzzy spots on your photos. Chances are, you have dust on your sensor. If you have a point-and-shoot camera, about the only thing you can do is have it professionally cleaned. If you’re using a DSLR, you have some options for cleaning your sensor. You may have your camera professionally cleaned for $50-$75, plus shipping, plus being without your camera for umpteen days.

Sensor dust

Or you can do it yourself. Admittedly, this can be a scary process the first time you do it. Sensors are delicate and can be easily damaged. I’ll admit that the first time I cleaned my sensor, I was scared silly. Tools are now available that make this process a little easier and more effective.

I’ll give a brief run through of the various cleaning steps here. For detailed step-by-step instruction on the cleaning process, I’ve add a couple of links at the bottom this blog.

There are five steps in sensor cleaning:

check for dust on sensor,

in-camera cleaning,

air cleaning,

brush cleaning,

swab cleaning.

Check for Dust on Sensor. This is the most important step. Check and see if your sensor needs cleaning before you do anything else. The easiest way to check your sensor is to take a baseline photograph. Use a lens that you’ve just cleaned to ensure that you’re not photographing dust on your lens. You want to see only the dust on the sensor. Set your camera to f22 and focused on infinity, then photograph a clear blue sky or any uniformly colored (except gray) smooth surface. Download the photo and look at it at 100% magnification. If you see little fuzzy spots on the photo, you have dust on your sensor.

In-camera Cleaning. This step utilizes a sensor cleaning function that many manufacturers are building into their cameras. Check your owner’s manual for instructions on how to activate this function.

DISCLAIMER. If you choose to continue, you do so at your own risk. Please realize that I cannot accept any responsibility for any damage done to your camera.

Air Cleaning. The next step involves exposing the sensor so you can clean it. Read your owner’s manual to find out how to raise the mirror to expose the sensor. Follow the directions exactly.

In this step, you will be blowing a jet of air across the sensor to remove dust. DO NOT USE CANNED AIR OF ANY KIND. The chemicals in many types of canned air can damage your camera.

Brush Cleaning. If the air cleaning did not remove the dust, the next step is to use a brush to remove the dust. This is the part where I get a little nervous. Don’t use just any brush for this step. The brush must be absolutely clean. Any dust or oils (including oils from your fingers) on the brush will be transferred to the sensor, making a bigger mess than you started out with. One of the most popular sensor cleaning brushes is the Arctic Butterfly. It’s not cheap, but considering the cost of professional cleaning, I think it’s a good investment. In most instances, this will get the job done.

Swab Cleaning.  This is the scariest step because you are actually touching the sensor with a cleaning swab. If the brush doesn’t remove the dust, the dust is “welded” to the sensor. To remove this “stuck” dust, you need to use a specially treated, lint-free swab to remove the dust.

Detailed Instructions. Here are some links to sites that give good, detailed instructions that I used to help me my first time. I highly recommend that you READ THEM THOROUGHLY before you try cleaning your sensor on your own. It is important that you use the proper equipment and technique.

http://www.cleaningdigitalcameras.com/index.html

http://www.bythom.com/cleaning.htm

There are, no doubt, other sites that also provide excellent cleaning information. Don’t hesitate to read them. You cannot have too much information before you tackle this job on your own.

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29
Apr 10

Springtime in the Rockies

Spring time brings idyllic visions of verdant meadows redolent with wildflowers and butterflies skipping along warm breezes while flutes and harps play in the background. It’s a nice image, but it isn’t springtime in the Rockies. In the high country spring resembles a battlefield between summer and winter with the pounding canon crescendo of the 1812 Overture hammering in the background.

Summer strikes a blow with a sunny 70 degree day. Winter retaliates during the night, sending temperatures plummeting to 20 degrees followed by 6 inches of snow that literally drop kicks summer into next week. That’s what happened last week while I was shooting the pasque flowers. Winter struck back with 8 inches of heavy, wet snow that sat on the flowers like concrete. The early bloomers were mashed flat. The few that found shelter under trees found themselves to be the only available browse for hungry deer.

The beginning of a 70 degree day in the foothills.

It's a good day to be a pasque flower.

Fear not, summer will strike back with its own blast of sunny warmth. Winter is doomed to lose this battle. And the pasque flowers, they’ll also be back. The early bloomers are lost, but those that sprout later will benefit from the moisture provided by the snow that crushed their over-anxious brethren.

This was the next day.

Winter is making another attempt to hold off summer a little longer today. But it is a much weaker effort—only a light dusting of snow that the sun quickly melted during a brief appearance before the clouds closed in again.

The high country is, by its very nature, dramatic. And the changing seasons match the landscape with their own drama. Whether you’re a photographer, artists, poet or just a nature lover, this is a glorious time to be in the high country.

Enjoy

Frank

Uncategorized — 1 comment
22
Apr 10

Happy Almost-Belated Earth Day

I have to hang my head in shame. The day is almost over and I had totally forgotten that it is Earth Day. A friend sent me an email gently reminding me of my oversight. (Thanks, Terri). Here is the best excuse I could come up with for my shamefully poor memory.

I was ‘celebrating’ Earth Day because I was too busy actually communing with the earth. I was rolling around on the newly rain-washed earth photographing the earth’s new crop of pasque flowers, not only in spite of, but because of the rain.  I wound up with some nice shots of water drops on pasque flowers. Between my excitement over the images I’d created and trying to dry out, I completely forgot it was Earth Day.

My deepest apologies to all of you and especially to Mother Earth. So here is my belated Earth Day to all of you from someone who was really getting down to earth.

Rain-jeweled pasque flower

 

Enjoy.

Frank

Great Places / Photo Tips — No comments
21
Apr 10

Pasque Flowers on Mt. Falcon

Spring is slowly creeping into the high country. The snow is mostly melted and one of spring’s harbingers has made its appearance in the foothills west of Denver. The Pasque Flowers are beginning to bloom at Mt. Falcon Park. There are a lot of buds showing above the damp ground, but only a few are opening up, so far. As you can see in these shots that I took this morning, the blossoms aren’t fully opened, yet.

Pasque Flower and pine cone

The Pasque Flowers at Mt. Falcon don’t usually get as tall as some at lower elevations, so photographing them takes a little extra effort. I like to get very low, meaning that I was lying on my belly in the pine needles and mud to get down to their level. That makes it easier to throw the background out of focus.

I also like to use extension tubes to allow me to get in really close to the blossoms. Whatever lens you use, you will most likely want to get in as close as you can since these flowers are not very big.

Pasque Flower blossoms just starting to open

With the unsettled weather that we’re having this week, this is an excellent time to photograph wildflowers. The clouds and hazy light provide a nice, soft illumination that really brings out the subtle color variations in flower petals. If we’re lucky, we might even get some morning dew or a few raindrops to add a bit of sparkle to the flowers.

Enjoy.

Frank

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18
Apr 10

Casting a Long Shadow

The blue shadow of Mt. Evans is projected into the sky by the rising sun.

When conditions are just right, you can see more than just fuzzy pink to blue-gray line demarcating the earth’s shadow (see How Big Can A Shadow Be?, April 13, 2010). You need dry, clear air, a tall mountain peak with a lower elevation, clear horizon. This combination of conditions does exist in many places. One of the best places is along Colorado’s Front Range. In this particular photo just west of Denver, the mountain peak is 14,264-ft high Mt. Evans.  Twenty five crow-flying-miles directly to the east, the Great Plains wash up against the base of the Front Range at an elevation of less than 6,000 feet.

When the rising sun breaks the much lower eastern horizon, the curvature of the earth actually allows the sun to hit the peak before it hits the lower elevations to the east. The result is that the shadow of Mt. Evans is projected in to the western sky, while Denver, 25 miles to the east on the low-lying plains is still in darkness.

And if you look really, really close, and squint your eyes just right, you might even see my shadow on top Mt. Evans’ shadow way out there in the western sky.

Enjoy

Frank

Great Places / Photo Tips — 1 comment
13
Apr 10

How big can a shadow be?

This is one of my favorite examples of the earth's shadow taken at a very dramatic location, Grand Teton National Park.

There’s an interesting phenomenon that most of us have seen, but probably didn’t realize what we were looking at. It happens right before sunrise (for the early birds) and right after sunset (for normal people). A band of pink, transitioning quickly into blue, appears above the opposite horizon. It can be very intense, but usually is fairly subtle. This transition from pink to blue is actually the edge of the earth’s shadow be projected through the atmosphere. The blue is in shadow while the pink is in sunlight.

The earth’s shadow is best seen when the skies are clear. Typically, photographers find clear sky sunrises and sunsets to be rather dull. Clouds make the sky much more interesting. In the arid west, clear skies are more the norm than the exception. So this earth’s shadow is one way to add a little drama to an otherwise uninspiring clear-sky sunrise/set.

Keep an eye out for the earth’s shadow the next time you watch a sunset—and impress your friends with a little natural trivia.

Next time I’ll show you an smaller, albeit unusual, shadow of the earth.

Enjoy

Frank

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