Photography tips from Douglas Williams

architectual photography class

2012-01-22T17:36:00.000-08:00

Our Langara architectural photography class
provides opportunities to shoot some good
looking interiors.

Photographing architecture

2012-01-12T14:58:00.000-08:00

I scouted the scene out 10 days ago so
I'd know when the sun would hit both
sides of the hotel. It only lit the east side
for a few minutes. Architectural photography
is mostly about light, composition and
patience, with a lot of emphasis on patience.
When the sun came out again, I was ready, in
the right place at the right time.
Ten minutes of waiting made a big difference
in how much sun was on the near wall. And in
a few more minutes that wall was in shadow.
To keep the vertical lines straight up and down
I moved back and kept the camera level, shot
vertically, then cropped off the bottom which
only showed the shadow on Georgia St.

link to my profile with AGE Fotostock

2012-01-04T14:57:00.000-08:00

This is a link to my profile page on AGE Fotostock.
You can see more than 3000 of my images on AGE.

DOUGLAS WILLIAMS

Photography courses Vancouver

2011-12-30T11:07:00.001-08:00

I have a new set of basic photography courses
coming up at three Vancouver Community
Centres. You can take the course at False Creek,
Kits or Dunbar. Check out their web sites
or call to register.

shooting self portraits

2011-12-27T23:33:00.000-08:00

Some photographers shoot themselves almost
exclusive of other kinds of photography.
Check out Cindy Sherman. Francesca Woodman.
You can be a subject who means more than
you think. My photo agency, AGE Fotostock
thought my self portrait was suitable for their
Inspiration collection. I used one light on the
background. And the self-timer.

working with a series

2011-12-14T13:09:00.000-08:00

I decided to try another series of photos
of the willow trees at Jericho Park.
It's an interesting way to shoot, with
more in mind than just one good shot.
Here I wanted five to fit together.

Rennie Collection Gallery

2011-12-08T23:10:00.000-08:00

I got to shoot in this gallery for a guide book
coming out soon: the Wallpaper City Guide
for Vancouver.
Where to focus on a shot like this? First,
use an f stop like f16 or f 11 and use a tripod.
There's not a lot of light in there for f 16.
And I want to use a low ISO to minimize noise.
Can't do that without a tripod.
Then to maximize what's in focus, make your
point of focus about a third of the way into
the space of the photo. That's on the third picture
in from the right. Everything is sharp.

architectural photo triptych

2011-11-29T15:22:00.000-08:00

Sometimes three images together may
be stronger than just one.

HDR in architectural photography

2011-11-27T17:59:00.000-08:00

Using HDR - high dynamic range - in Photoshop is
not difficult. You keep the aperture constant and take
at least 5 shots of the same subject - using a tripod - varying
the shutter speed.
Then you combine the five shots so that
the bright areas and the dark areas are all
exposed correctly. Here is a shot of the new hall
at VanDusen garden. Without the HDR, the exterior
and interior light levels would be too far apart.

interiors photography vancouver

2011-11-12T17:00:00.001-08:00

To shoot an interior,
1. keep the camera level.
2. use a long shutter speed and medium aperture.
3. use a wide angle lens
4. add a bit of light, as here where I used two
250 watt lights to brighten up the scene which
would have been too contrasty without them.
However, you want the room to look as if it's
only lit by the lights in the room. So your added
lights cannot be too bright.

architectural photography Vancouver

2011-11-04T13:19:00.000-07:00

Like most architectural photographers, I really
like shooting at dusk. Then there is enough light
left in the sky to see the building and you can
see inside it too. The contrast of sky and interior
light is always attractive.

architectural photography Vancouver

2011-10-24T23:32:00.000-07:00

I got to shoot with my students from Langara
at the Vancouver Fairmont Pacific Rim.
We shot in the large two storey suite.
That chandelier is worth more than 50 of
my cars.

photography lessons in Vancouver

2011-09-25T15:22:00.000-07:00

I met a great young couple from Colorado and we
had a couple of lessons on Granville Island.

If you are a visitor from out of town, I can show you
how to use your camera better in some part of the city
you'd like to visit.

Here's what my most recent students had to say:

"Your lessons were very helpful -- you were great at explaining things, and we liked that you provided so much hands-on experience, allowing us to take and review various pictures and to make adjustments to get the image just right. It is great to know what all the buttons and settings on our camera do, after years of just using the "auto" function and hoping for the best.

We spent the weekend exploring the Kitsilano area and taking pictures at the parks/beaches there -- it was so helfpul to know exactly what to change on the camera to get the image we wanted.

It also helped that you were a nice guy and easy to be around - it would be tough to take these lessons from someone who was barking orders at us all day! It is quite obvious that you love your work, had a thorough photography education, and have a great eye for your art."

- Luke and Megan from Denver

aerial photography

2011-09-04T20:40:00.000-07:00

This is one type of shooting that I have not
done very often but would love to do again
and often. It would be best to have an open
window so next time I'm flying in a Beaver
I'm going to try to get the front seat and
get the little window open. From the back seat
I got some decent shots but the curving glass
reflects light from inside so I had to be careful
to avoid those reflections. And as the plane vibrates a lot,
I did not want to touch the camera to the window.
I used a high shutter speed like 1/500 sec to deal
with the plane's movement and the vibration. You don't
need a lot of depth of field as everything down
below is very far. So f 5.6 or 8 would do.
The worst problem is that the window was
a bit dusty so the dirt softens the image
as you shoot through the glass. Grab that
front seat next time.

photographing abstracts

2011-08-17T18:21:00.000-07:00

To some extent we see something abstract in
every photo: line, shape, texture, form, pattern.
Every photo is about finding the right balance
of all these factors and using light and shadow.
One of my favourite places to photograph
nature subjects is on Hornby Island where the
rocks have some terrific shapes and lines and
patterns. The more you think about not labeling the
subject as a rock, and just thinking about those
elements of composition, the stronger those
photos will be. It's not just a rock. After a lot
of practice this way of seeing becomes intuitive.

architectural photography Vancouver

2011-07-28T12:28:00.000-07:00

I waited 10 days for the sun to come
out in the morning to shoot this terrace
at the Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel.
I could have shot last week in cloudy
weather, but that would not produce
the best shot. Other than waiting for
the sun, the important things about shooting
architecture are keeping the buildings
vertical and finding a great compostion
where lines, textures, shapes and colour
all work and the balance feels right.
The right place at the right time and
a lot of patience are required.

architectural photography at Langara College, Vancouver

2011-07-25T10:34:00.000-07:00

I am teaching architectural photography at
Langara College, Sept 22 to Dec 8, 2011.
Get a lot of practice shooting the exteriors
and interiors of some excellent buildings.
Register at Continuing Studies, Langara College.
http://www.langara.bc.ca/continuing-studies/
programs-and-courses/programs/photography/index.html

Panorama photography Vancouver

2011-07-07T17:11:00.000-07:00

Creating a panorama is pretty easy in Photoshop.
Make three images, vertically. Overlap them by
50%. Keep the camera level. Use a tripod if possible.
Merge the shots in Photoshop and voila: a
panorama that used to be made only by expensive
special cameras or by a lot of work in darkroom
or computer.

architectural photography Vancouver

2011-06-26T11:04:00.000-07:00

Shoot at twilight for those interiors which
look dark during the day and have big bright
windows. You could shoot during the day
and combine your exposures and do some
work in photoshop. But just shooting at twilight
can save you all that trouble. Just wait for the
outside light to fall to a level near that of
the interior light.

What to shoot on overcast days

2011-06-22T20:16:00.000-07:00

On cloudy or overcast days good subjects
are waterfalls and forests. On a sunny day
the water on the waterfall would be burned
out by the bright sun and the rocks would be
too dark. Similarly, the shadows would be
dark in the forest and there would be pockets
of burned out highlights from the bright sun.
So go for a hike on a cloudy day and shoot
a lot in the woods.

zoom and turn

2011-05-30T19:45:00.000-07:00

I learned this from Freeman Patterson's book,
Photo Impressionism and the Subjective Image.
Freeman is probably one of the best photography
teachers anywhere and his several instructional
books are terrific.
You hold the zoom steady and rotate the camera
90 degrees while doing a two second exposure.
Simple and fun. You may have to underexpose a
bit.

shooting video on the Panasonic GH2

2011-05-15T10:16:00.001-07:00

I just had a one to one lesson with a person who
had a new Panasonic GH2 camera. The camera
can shoot HD video and what's amazing is that
it has a feature which acts like a teleconverter, that is,
a camera lens designed to be fitted in front of a standard
lens to increase its effective focal length. A teleconverter
gives you a longer lens length but it also diminishes
the picture quality and it requires that you open
the aperture more. With the GH2, however, in the
extra teleconverter mode, there is no loss of light or
distortion of the image. It's like having a 5 times longer
lens, so the 40 mm becomes over 200 mm.
What will cameras do next?

abstract photos

2011-05-08T17:26:00.000-07:00

zoom and turn

2011-05-08T17:20:00.000-07:00

I went out in the rain with an umbrella and made
some photos of my street. Sometimes it's fun to
turn the camera or zoom or do both at the same time
while shooting colourful subjects like cherry trees.
Use a long exposure of 1/2 second or 1 or 2 seconds.
Underexpose a stop, that is, use your +/- button and
put in -1 to make the pic a bit darker.

framing the photo

2011-04-23T22:06:00.000-07:00

Look for a natural frame for your photo.
It creates the feeling of depth as you look
past the frame to your main subject.
The idea is to turn this two dimensional
image into a three dimensional one.

Photography lessons Vancouver

2011-04-10T15:55:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure of teaching Tamara Taggart today.
She has a new Canon SLR and wanted to learn
to use the basic functions such as aperture, shutter
speed, ISO, white balance, fill flash, exposure compensation
etc. In a two hour lesson we practiced those and a few
more technical functions as well as considering a bit
about shooting in window light and with flash.
In just two to three hours you can be introduced to
the dozen or 15 most important functions on your camera.
Many of the other functions are not really needed much
or at least not until you've practiced a lot. The one to one
lesson is way more fun than reading your thick manual.

shooting stained glass using metering mode

2011-04-05T20:25:00.000-07:00

Here's a subject where using the metering mode
helps. As the window was surrounded by the
black area of the dark church (I cropped it off)
the camera's meter thinks it should give you an
average exposure based on both the dark area and
the light window. So the exposure will be too bright.
Choose the spot meter mode and meter on the bright
window area for a more accurate reading of the light
that you actually want to photograph.

Photographic composition: Colour and shape

2011-03-02T09:52:00.000-08:00

I sometimes teach composition skills and
always refer to Freeman Patterson's excellent
books on design in photography especially
Photographing the World Around You.
He would say that the more we practice the
using the basic elements of composition - line,
shape, colour,texture, pattern, etc. - the stronger
our photos will be.
Here's a shot about colour and shape from
a shop window. You can sometimes put your
lens right on the glass to prevent reflections.

Photography Classes Vancouver

2011-02-12T09:18:00.000-08:00

Two women from Quesnel found me on line and
hired me for three hours of photography teaching
on Granville Island. We walked around and practiced
using fill flash, window light portraits, adjusting
white balance, and made a few abstracts.
There's a lot of colour and activity on Granville
Island and even on a rainy day, there are enough
photo opportunities outside and inside.
Here's a shot of camera movement and zoom on
a light.

architectural photography course at Langara College, Vancouver

2011-02-03T22:44:00.000-08:00

If you want to learn to photograph architecture,
inside and outside, sign up for the architectural
photography course at Langara College, coming
in May, 2011. I'll be teaching the course for 12
Thursday evenings, 6:30-9:30 until July 21.

architectural photography Vancouver

2011-01-25T17:24:00.000-08:00

Keep those vertical lines straight. If you are far
away from a building you can shoot it with a long
telephoto and it will look vertical. Of course, if you are
close to it, the building will seem to keystone, ie, tip
backwards. Sometimes that's ok but normally we like a
straight building. Some correction can be done in the
filter in photoshop for correcting camera distortion.
For an interior, you want to keep the camera at
a height that keeps the verticals straight, so keep it
about half way between floor and ceiling if possible.

corporate photography vancouver

2011-01-13T11:34:00.000-08:00

This group shot at a corporate celebration
had a busy floor and a busy background.
Photoshop improved it. Use the clone tool
to take out distracting elements and use the
burn tool to darken the background and
foreground.

stock photography Vancouver, BC

2011-01-03T10:53:00.000-08:00

I was photographing buildings when I
spotted this young woman studying in
front of one of my buildings. I hesitated
to interrupt her work but I went back
and asked if I could photograph her.
She was more than happy to oblige.
I sent her the pics by e mail. Most people
don't mind being photographed if you ask
nicely and send them copies. It does take
a bit of nerve to ask a stranger but with
practice, it gets easier.

shooting in the dark and the rain

2010-12-29T10:41:00.000-08:00

You can keep your camera dry under awnings
and in doorways as you photograph the
street scene at night. The wet streets add
a lot of colour. Shoot at dusk to keep a bit of
colour in the sky.

Photography tips

2010-12-22T23:36:00.000-08:00

Use a very long telephoto to flatten the image.
The buildings look two dimensional as they are
pulled close together by the 400mm lens.
You don't need the whole skyline. Just a part
of it might do.

architectural photographer Vancouver

2010-12-15T16:42:00.000-08:00

Shoot your night shots before it's actually
night. That's about a half hour after sunset
when the brightness inside the building
is about the same as that of the darkening
sky. The colour contrast is always attractive
and you can see the outline of the building.
A few minutes later when the sky is black,
it's too late.

portrait photography Vancouver

2010-12-06T21:36:00.000-08:00

Find fill light reflected by a building.
My subject was back lit by a cloud filtered
sun and needed fill light on his face. I put
him next to a white building which was
reflecting a lot of light into his face. And
I turned on my flash too, which puts light in
his eyes.

stock photography Vancouver

2010-11-25T17:58:00.000-08:00

Don't forget to overexpose your
snow shots. The meter thinks
the world is gray so will close down
the aperture too much or choose
a shutter speed that is too fast.
Take control and tell your meter
you're the boss. Use the exposure
compensation button and dial in
+1 for a brighter shot. Who wants
gray snow?

Photo classes Vancouver

2010-11-21T16:39:00.001-08:00

At my photo class on Granville Island
Hugh Davies took this very good photo
of me on my bike. 1/8 second with panning.
More classes in basic digital photography start
in January and again in February and March
at several community centres in Vancouver.
Check out west side centres on the city
site: http://vancouver.ca/parks/cc/

Globe and Mail photo tips

2010-11-17T22:11:00.000-08:00

check out the Globe and Mail's photo tips.
It's very good with tips from the paper's
photojournalists.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/multimedia/camera-club/how-to/

Framing a subject

2010-11-17T10:35:00.000-08:00

Use a frame within the frame. Shoot past some

objects to provide a frame for the main subject.

I just opened a group of framed photos on my flickr

site.http://www.flickr.com/photos/65064014@N00/

stock photography Vancouver

2010-11-09T10:02:00.000-08:00

How to use a wide angle lens:
Get very close to something so you have
a large foreground subject. Use a small
aperture like f16 to make sure everything
is in focus from near to far.
Museum of Anthropology at UBC,
Vancouver.

stock photography Vancouver, BC

2010-11-02T16:36:00.000-07:00

I like to find a nice S curve. It creates
a graceful line that leads the eye into
the picture and gives it depth. This
shot was from the Cambie Bridge with
a short telephoto lens, which compresses
the space and eliminates distracting elements.
The image was marketed in the USA for
publishing by AGE Fotostock, Barcelona.

Photo tips: using back light

2010-10-24T19:13:00.000-07:00

I shot this sculpture, The Drop, by
Inges Idee, at the Vancouver Convention
Centre. At first, I want to get it all in.
Then I want to explore it with the
wide angle lens, getting up very close
and making it loom. And instead of using
the frontal mid day light, I went on the
shadow side and shot it from there.
It's now about the shape and the strong
back light shows shape very well.

Composition and light

2010-10-22T09:41:00.000-07:00

Timing is everything. I happened to be in
a place which I'd thought about when the light was
terrific. I made a dozen shots trying to find a
perfect arrangement of people in front of
the building. It helps to get out and see a place
at different times so you can predict when it
will look its most dramatic because of the light.
The Georgia Straight liked it too and published it.

Photo tip: lines and shapes

2010-10-08T10:28:00.000-07:00

I was attracted by the lines formed by
the buildings and the triangular shapes
in this composition. I was shooting
with a short telephoto lens. Notice
how that brings the buildings close together.
With a long lens we get to see in a way that
our eyes cannot. I also like the textures of
the different buildings in Gastown, Vancouver.

Exposing for the sky

2010-09-20T18:53:00.000-07:00

If you want to have dark cliffs
and the right exposure for the sky
just use the sunny 16 rule. Your meter
might be looking at the dark cliffs and
if you expose for the cliffs the sky will
burn out. So at ISO 100, use 1/125 sec
at f16 or its equivalent and the sky will
be well exposed. That's the standard
exposure for a sunlit scene. I lightened
the cliffs a bit in photoshop but they
could look good in black too.

Photography classes Vancouver

2010-09-07T19:26:00.000-07:00

I'm giving basic digital photography classes
at several Vancouver community centres this
fall: Kerrisdale, Dunbar, Mount Pleasant,
False Creek, West Point Grey and Creekside.
There are a coupleof classes in shooting in low
light and at night.
Just google the centre closest to you and see
if and when the class is happening. Or contact
me at dwphoto@shaw.ca

Vancouver portrait photographer

2010-09-01T10:49:00.000-07:00

Make use of the warm side lighting
just before sunset. In this shot, the
warmth is further enhanced by the
colour of the Alberta fields. And it
helps to have a model who knows how
to keep changing poses.

Interiors photographer Vancouver

2010-08-13T10:36:00.000-07:00

It was difficult to light this bedroom at
the Olympic Village because of the reflective
painting and the reflections in the window
and hardly anywhere to put a light.
The best I could do was bounce the light
off the closed curtains and wall on the right.
Perhaps a more compact, very soft light
could have been rented for this.

Architectural photography Vancouver

2010-08-05T11:13:00.000-07:00

For several years, I've made images of
architectural details in Vancouver.
It's a long term project. I get on my bike
when the light is good and pedal around
the city.
I usually use a long lens to look for
details of buildings.
Farmboy Fine Arts features some of those
images this month.

http://farmboyfinearts.com/featuredcollections/default.aspx?FeaturedImageSetId=1458880

Private photography lessons in Vancouver

2010-08-03T19:24:00.000-07:00

I've been asked often to give photo lessons to
individuals or small groups. That makes
a good Christmas, birthday or wedding
present to someone you know who wants
to learn how to use their camera and how
to see composition and light. You can learn
at your own pace and on your own schedule.

Stock photos Tofino, West Coast, BC

2010-07-27T22:24:00.000-07:00

There are lots of photo opportunities
on the West Coast. For sunset pictures, I like
a strong silhouette and I prefer to wait until the
sun has gone down. And in Photoshop, I darken
the too bright image, increasethe yellow a bit and
add some saturation for that sky colour.

stock photography Vancouver, BC

2010-07-05T12:49:00.000-07:00

An image I shot a couple of years
ago at the Orpheum was just used
in advertising in Germany.
Another was just used in a book in
India. You never know where and
when a picture might be useful.
A good filing system is a big help.

Photographing in the forest

2010-06-29T09:57:00.000-07:00

Shooting in the forest is best left to an overcast
day when the light is not so contrasty. On a
sunny day the patches of bright light are too
bright and the shadows are too dark. The camera
can't deal with that contrast so easily. But on an
overcast day the light is more even. And if
you bring a tripod, you can get long exposures
so that a waterfall will have a milky blur.

Interiors photographer Vancouver

2010-06-17T20:19:00.000-07:00

In a small room it's not too hard to
light it up just bouncing your flash
off the white ceiling. This interior
is at the Vancouver Olympic Village.

landscape photography Vancouver, BC

2010-06-10T23:14:00.000-07:00

Shooting landscapes that stand out is
not so hard provided you have great
light, an interesting subject, a good eye
for composition and you're in the right
place at the right time. Point and shoot.
Nothing to it.

night photography in my July photo course

2010-05-26T20:50:00.000-07:00

I'm offering a travel photography course
at False Creek Community Centre, three
evenings, July 5, 6, 7. We'll go to the
convention centre and shoot at twilight.
And do some long exposures with other
subjects. And use flash with long exposures.

Photography classes Vancouver

2010-05-20T11:36:00.000-07:00

I teach basic photography at the
False Creek Community Centre
on Granville Island. New classes
almost every month. In the first
week of July I have a three evening
travel photography class. In the fall
I'll also have classes at the West Point
Grey community centre.

I also give people one to one lessons.

If we had more time than the nine
hours of my course, I'd get students
to learn composition by shooting
black and white. I think it helps to
see line, texture, shape, form, pattern
and the other elements of composition.
Colour is great but it's so powerful, it
overwhelms a photo and a good photo
needs those other elements.
Learning to see is what photography is
all about. It takes a lot of practice
after the short course is over.

portrait photographer Vancouver

2010-05-10T11:37:00.000-07:00

I shoot publicity photos for United Players
and headshots for actors and executives.
I always shoot way more than I think I
need. Just turning the model a bit
or coming in closer or the way she smiles
can make the shot. Just keep the model
moving and changing the angle a bit
and tell her what you need. Shoot lots.

Jeesus Saves

2010-04-29T20:05:00.000-07:00

You may not see this the next day.
And the light may not be this good.
So it's good to carry your camera.

architectural photography Vancouver

2010-04-23T22:50:00.000-07:00

Photographing buildings means going back
to them when the light is better. Usually
two or three trips is normal. If you live near
a building you like then just keep shooting it
in different light, different seasons, in the
morning, in the evening.

Cancer Connections Exhibition Vancouver

2010-04-20T13:31:00.000-07:00

One way to improve your own photography
is to go and see photo exhibitions. A very
good one is on now until May 2 in downtown
Vancouver. You can see hundreds of excellent
portraits by photographers, amateur and
professional. The portraits are of Canadians
who have lived with cancer.
And an even better way to work on your portraits
would be to submit a photo to this and other shows.
That's mine at top right. It is a portrait of
Yayoi Hirano, a dancer in Vancouver.

architectural photography Vancouver

2010-04-15T22:40:00.000-07:00

Shooting interiors can take a lot of equipment for lighting.
A few tips can make it better. Use a tripod. Use a level.
Use a wide angle lens. Show two walls. Close the blinds
a bit on a bright day to cut down the outside light or
shoot at dusk when it's darker outside. Add some light
so the furniture is not too dark.

Travel photography in Vancouver

2010-04-04T10:02:00.000-07:00

I'm giving a talk to the Burnaby photo club
on travel photography. As I don't actually
travel much any more, I'm taking the approach
that if you don't practice shooting at home
your travel photos may not be as good as
they could be.
Here's a shot from Nepal of some dyes in a
box on a street. I could have shot the whole
street and the vendor. I could have shot it
showing a lot of the street behind it. I could
have shot it with horizontal and vertical lines.
But having a lot of practice at home, I knew that
this photo was about colour and that diagonals
are more powerful than verticals and horizontals.
An architect friend bought a print, saying that the
image looks architectural. I guess shooting
buildings must have helped me too.

Photography tips: Shooting blind

2010-03-28T09:41:00.000-07:00

At the Canadian pavilion in Vancouver I was standing in line
just next to these people. I liked the flag, gloves and the
woman's clothing. She seemed to represent new Canadians,
and a lovely patriotism. I thought I should ask her for her
photo.
But then I thought the picture would lack the spontaneity
that this one has. I just put my lens on wide angle, guessed
where the frame should be and shot half a dozen times with
the camera hanging down on my chest. She didn't realize
she was being photographed and I think the picture is better
for it. But I do now regret that I did not get her contact info,
show her the pic and send it to her.

Photography tips: f stops, shutter speeds, raw format, iso...why bother?

2010-03-16T15:01:00.000-07:00

I teach basic photography. I try to get people to see why they should learn
about aperture, shutter speed, ISO and file sizes.
I think after the course, many students just go back
to shooting on auto or program because it seems easier.

But if you just let the camera control aperture, shutter speed and iso,
you may be missing out on better photos. And if you can shoot in RAW
and don't, you may be losing out in picture quality.

If you want to blow the shot up as I did here, it would be good to start
with a RAW file, that is a bigger file than jpeg and one that does not lose
pixels when you manipulate it.

If you are using a telephoto as I did here, you should make sure the
shutter speed is faster than the lens length or you'll have a blurry shot.

And if you want to put that background forest out of focus, you need
to choose a fairly wide aperture, like f 5.6 to give you a shallow depth of
field.

That's not all that difficult.

And it's not hard to increase the contrast, improve the colour and
use the crop tool in your image editing.

Would you do your job on auto or program?

Photography tips: Night photography, Vectorial Elevation, Vancouver, BC

2010-02-21T08:21:00.001-08:00

Use a long exposure for the lights, say several seconds.
The flash will illuminate the person in front of you but
will not go further. Have the subject hold still if
you want an image without a ghost. If you do want a ghost
then after the flash fires, have them leave the scene as
the camera exposure continues to record the background where
they used to be standing.

Photography tips: value serendipity

2010-02-18T00:08:00.000-08:00

I was shooting for some corporate work and I noticed the
shadows of people passing by the decorated fence.
I took about 40 shots, trying to get interesting compositions
and gestures from the passersby. I think I would not
have noticed this on a different day or a different time of
day. Or last year. I like serendipity. And the more you practice
just looking out for happy accidents, the more they seem to happen.

Photo tip: Night photography, Vectorial Elevation, Vancouver, BC

2010-02-15T21:48:00.000-08:00

Shooting the lights is great fun. I know you can get some kind of picture with your point and shoot camera at the highest iso setting and balancing the little thing on the edge of the bridge
but I'm thinking I could make some money out there by renting tripods. I like to have a non-noisy picture that is sharp and that means using a steady tripod, not one of those pathetic little wobbly things. If it's worth the trouble to go out at night with your camera, it's worth doing
it right. Invest in a good tripod.

Photo tip: keeping it simple

2010-02-09T09:50:00.000-08:00

The most important part of a picture is the frame.
We don't need everything in the picture. Usually, less
is more. The more we think about line, shape, colour, texture
and the other elements of visual design,
and take the label off the subject (as Freeman Patterson
says in his excellent books on photography) the stronger
our pictures become. Does it matter what this is?
It's an interesting photo because of its strong colour, shape and
lines. That's enough.

Photo tip: less is more

2010-01-28T23:56:00.000-08:00

We don't need to see the whole building.
It's more interesting to see the lines of part of
the facade. I like the play of light on the vertical lines.
Do we have to know what it is?

Photo tip: shooting stock photos

2010-01-24T15:32:00.000-08:00

Another stock photo sold in Germany by AGE Fotostock.
Sometimes just shooting whatever is nearby and
right under your nose is a good idea. My daughter
had her dance outfit on, and my studio was set up
so I had her jump and do other poses. I got a lot
of photos in a short time and it didn't cost me a dime,
but only some time.

Photo tip: Photographing the garbage

2010-01-08T18:15:00.001-08:00

I was walking my dog in the alley and spotted a box full of
computer circuit boards by a dumpster. I took them home
and went to work with my lights and macro lens. Yes,
photography is easy. Just push the button. But it's still about
selecting what to show and how to show it. It was fun
and it represents my photographic push-ups, keeping my eyes
in shape for the next photo.

Photo tip: motion blur

2009-12-18T23:13:00.000-08:00

Sometimes the light is so low that even at a high
ISO of 1600, you can't get enough light to get a steady
shot with your long lens. So just use the opportunity
to shoot at low shutter speeds to get motion blur.
It was quite dim in the Orpheum so I thought, why not
show the motion of the musicians and instruments?
Take lots of shots. Many don't work.

slow shutter speeds for dance

2009-12-18T22:02:00.000-08:00

Sometimes the light is so low that even a high ISO of 1600 will not give you a fast enough
shutter speed to freeze the action or get a sharp shot. So just go with the low light
and shoot at a slow speed like 1/4 second. Keep shooting lots as you probably won't
like more than a few. Once in a while you get some good ones.

Photo tip: long term projects

2009-12-11T16:36:00.000-08:00

It is a good practice to find a series of photos, something that

will get you out shooting more than once or twice.

I like to shoot the public art that is part of the Vancouver

Biennale. There are lots of locations and types of art

and it will take a while to wait for the good weather, but

it's good to have an ongoing project. You could shoot the

tree in your back yard in all seasons. That could be a project

for several years.

photography interiors

2009-11-25T19:33:00.000-08:00

Shoot an interior at dusk. Wait until

the light from the sky fades down to

the same intensity as the interior lights.

Use a tripod. Take lots of shots.

Photographing interiors

2009-11-25T19:30:00.000-08:00

In shooting an interior, try some shots with a person moving

and shoot at a slow speed like 1/4 second. It adds a little interest to the

room.

abstract with boats

2009-10-29T23:08:00.000-07:00

Use a long lens to make abstract photos,

Eliminate anything that distracts.

No dock, no water, only the lines and colour

of the overturned boats. Keep it simple.

Whistler Sliding Centre

2009-10-15T18:42:00.000-07:00

If the subject is very fast, even 1/180 second is not fast enough to

freeze the action. Just keep experimenting.

Richmond Olympic Oval

2009-10-15T18:38:00.000-07:00

Set your shutter speed at a slow speed and keep shooting until

you get the amount of blur you want. It depends upon the speed

of the subject. Try 1/15 and 1/8 to start.

Vancouver headshot photographer

2009-09-15T20:46:00.000-07:00

try getting really close.

stock photographer Vancouver

2009-09-07T13:37:00.000-07:00

I shoot a lot of stock photos for AGE Fotostock,

so I'm always looking around for possible subjects.

I was passing a cemetery on Pender Island and

I noticed the sun angling through the trees, creating

shafts of light falling on the crosses. I used spot

metering on the crosses and darkened the photos a bit

in Photoshop so that the crosses really stand out.

Like Galen Rowell, I try to follow the light

and sometimes you find something good there.

I also thought of Ansel Adams' classic photo of

Hernandez. I think the more I store those old

references away, the more helpful the masters are

in inspiring my own shots.

hiking in Yoho

2009-08-15T12:47:00.001-07:00

sometimes the sun doesn't shine but
clouds can look dramatic.

Less is more

2009-07-24T15:00:00.000-07:00

Get very close to an object with the wide angle lens.

Fill the frame up with it and notice

the exaggerated perspective. Don't put so much

in your wide angle pictures.

Vancouver stock photos

2009-07-07T23:56:00.000-07:00

Shooting at dusk is a lot of fun. There's nobody around to bother you and the parking is free.

shooting at dusk

2009-06-26T23:34:00.000-07:00

Wait until the sun goes down. Wait longer until the sky goes darker.

Shoot for 15 minutes. Go home before it's dark. Oh, and use a tripod.

Please.

portraits in window light

2009-06-10T20:03:00.000-07:00

Shooting a window light portrait is easy. Put your subject a foot away from the window. It makes a soft directional light. You might need a higher ISO such as 400 or 800. Get close with your telephoto. Bounce your flash off the wall on the left so that it fills in the shadow. Or use a reflector. Or try with no fill but the shadow side will be fairly dark, for a more sombre portrait.

shooting at dusk

2009-05-27T23:44:00.000-07:00

Get a tripod. Wait until after sunset. Wait a bit longer.

When the light in the sky is as bright as the light

in the building, shoot lots. Keep that tripod steady

because exposures might be at least a second or two.

shooting in low light, with flash and without

2009-05-27T09:57:00.000-07:00

I wanted to balance the dim light of the art

with the flash, which is so much more powerful.

To capture the art, I needed ISO 1600, and a wide angle lens

at the widest aperture to get the light and

so I could hand hold at the low shutter speed of 1/4 second.

I took some shots with no flash.

And with the flash shots, I bounced the flash off the ceiling so

it was not so bright that it would burn out the background art.

Depth of Field

2009-05-04T16:51:00.000-07:00

If you want to make sure the background is sharp

or make sure it is out of focus, you need to understand

depth of field. That's determined by the aperture, as

well as the lens length, and the proximity to the subject.

This is the basic grammar of photography.

I always spend a lot of time in a workshop showing

how f4 looks a lot different from f16.

You can control what's in focus and what is not.

Don't just shoot on auto mode.

lighting products... like chocolates

2009-04-28T22:18:00.000-07:00

It's pretty easy lighting a small product.

Get your light source over and slightly behind

the subject. This emphasizes the shape.

Then add a reflector in front to fill in the

shadow. You can put it right up close

just outside the frame. I just used a sheet of paper

as a reflector here.

Using your telephoto

2009-04-21T23:17:00.000-07:00

A long telephoto is a lot of fun.

It compresses the space and flattens

the picture. It's a way to see that

we cannot do with our eyes.

2009-04-07T20:38:00.000-07:00

Use a floor and a high angle for a simple headshot.

headshot photography Vancouver

2009-04-07T20:34:00.000-07:00

use natural frame for composition

2009-04-07T13:22:00.000-07:00

Pan Blur

2009-04-01T13:30:00.000-07:00

I always get students to appreciate what slow

shutter speeds can do. I ask them to shoot me

on my bike at various shutter speeds, such as
1/4 second, 1/8 second, 1/15 second. With

digital, you can practice all you want until you

get it right. I learned with slides and that cost

me lots of bad pictures. The idea is to get the

subject at least partially sharp, while blurring

the backgound to show speed. Just use your Tv

or S setting to set the speed,set the exposure

compensation to -1 and follow through as the

action passes. Keep the background simple

and give the subject some space in the frame

to move into. It took about 20 shots of my

dog to get this one. The delete button is my

friend.

2009-03-11T13:28:00.000-07:00

changing the background

2009-03-11T13:23:00.000-07:00

United Players had to drop out the Vancouver beach

from the background of my shot

and put in an Oxford water scene.