February 2014 Photo Tips

January 31, 2014  •  Leave a Comment

Here is another review of some of my older images that I liked. I then analyzed them looking for why and how they worked for me. You should do this too on your images.

  1. What do you do on a dull gray day with haze, fog or mist? Add a tint. This is easy to do in Lightroom by adjusting the White Balance (WB) with the temperature slider towards yellow to add warmth or the tint slider towards magenta. WB can be adjusted the same way in Camera RAW in Photoshop, or you can add an adjustment layer to modify the hue/ saturation, add a tint to Black & White, or pick a color for the Photo Filter or choose a warming or cooling filter among other choices.  Golden Gate HazeGolden Gate Haze __
  2. It is hard to expose for the Landscape and the Moon. This African scene from the shores of the Zambezi River works however with the orange harvest moon and the darker tree with the darker grassy hill. However typically to expose properly for both as well as to maintain the size of the moon your mind sees, it is best to shoot each separately. Use a telephoto lens to zoom into the moon and just expose for the moon alone and then zoom out and shoot a wide angle scene to include the moon.  Afterwards in Photoshop, just exchange for the larger and properly exposed moon. Moon rise on the Banks of the ZambeziMoon rise on the Banks of the Zambezi Moonrise and sunset over Saguaro cactusMoonrise and sunset over Saguaro cactus
  3. What do you do with back lit scenes too distant to use fill flash? Create a silhouette. In aperture priority, use – 1 to – 2 exposure compensation to allow the silhouette to go completely black. You can still adjust the black point afterwards as well. You do need a clearly recognizable figure for a silhouette to work well. Sunrise FishingSunrise Fishing Walk in the ParkWalk in the ParkSilhouette in Black and White along a river bed and pond.
  4. Photography of glassware has special lighting requirements to add the black or white line to the edge of the glass. First you need to be in a darkened room to avoid reflections on glass. White Line: Against black, add white foam core to the edges of the scene with black foam core or other background directly behind the glass. Light only the white edges. This can also be done by using a white sheet or translucent material as the white and then lighting it from behind. Black Line: is the reverse. Just light the white foam core or the translucent material behind the glass with the light (or just use a softbox as your white panel). Add black material to the edges or just the absence of light to these areas will create the black line. Romeo and JulietRomeo and JulietGlassware against black with reflections and flowers Orchid nectorOrchid nectorOrchids in pastel glassware on white with reflections and black line.
  5. Reflections will be crisp if you use plexiglass – black, white or mirrored. Reflections enhance the dimension of a still life. If you just use glass over white or black paper, there will be a double line in the reflection, due to the refraction by the thickness of the glass.  Pear AntiquePear AntiquePears lined up in a row with reflections on black and painterly texture.

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