Photography Down The Years

When you see videos of the early developers of photography, it’s pretty funny especially in light of photography today. In those old movies, to get a picture, the camera was as big as a computer is today. The photographer had to put his head under a sheet and hold up a huge tripod which exploded with smoke and fumes to make the flash.

Today photography could not be more different. In the movies, we used to be astonished when spies had cameras in their watches or the soles of their shoes. But now it is common for almost everyone to have a camera in their phone and to be able to pull it out and snap a photo virtually anywhere.

Let’s fill in a few gaps. We can go back to the origins of the language to find that the word “photography” began in the Greek times and it literally means “drawing with light. But the actual science of photography did not really take off until the 1800’s in this country when a fellow by the name of John Hershel applied the words “photography”, “positives” and “negatives” to the task of producing pictures. We had “negatives” of our photos from then until the dawn of digital photography in the last few years.

For most of us, though, the company Eastman Kodak is probably the one we associate most with the early developments of photography. And it was the early pioneer of photography, George Eastman that made the first advancements on the primitive methods being used until his work in 1839. A little trivia? Eastman made the name “Kodak” up because he wanted his company name to begin with a “K”.

The developments began to come along pretty routinely as photography began to mature and become more sophisticated. Color photography was developed in 1861 by a scientist named James Clark Maxwell. Up until then all photographs were black and white or monochrome. Color photography was a huge leap forward but it really did not start to move into the public arena until two brothers named Lumière in 1907 invented the color plate.

Over the decades to follow, photography moved forward steadily and moved out of the world of science and then journalism and into each of our homes. But the revolution that has turned photography into what we know it to be today occurred in 1981 when Sony invented the first camera that worked without film. The digital age was upon us.

It was Kodak that again got the lead on the marketplace by getting the first digital camera out on the market in 1990 when they developed the Kodak DCS 100. As with all technology, early digital cameras were large (by today’s standards) and much more expensive than we are used to now.

Innovation in the field of photography has continued to march almost as fast as people could keep up. When digital cameras were offered that gave us a port to be able to download them to our computers, the internet explosion of imagery was fueled.

Further development coming virtually every year since 1990 included the rapid and phenomenal expansion of memory in digital cameras along with the concept of swappable storage drives. This changed the way people took pictures because now the number of pictures someone could take was virtually limitless. The expansion of memory also gave developers the ability to add video capture to the same devices as were used for photography so that virtually anyone could become a cameraman with that tiny camera that could by this time fit in their shirt pocket. Much of the fun of internet sites like YouTube can be attributed to the ability of the average citizen to take video anywhere, anytime and at no cost to them.

The photography and video industry has had to do a lot of adjusting to learn how to service this market that was changing at speeds unimaginable by George Eastman a century before. The affordable availability of quality color printers that enabled people to print their photographs at home was a boon to the amateur camera buff but a blow to the photography industry.

But to their credit, the industry has kept up. But we can be sure that the developments are just getting underway. Who knows what new technical wizardry is ahead for the photography world. It is sure to be a fun ride, no matter what the future holds.

Natural Wildlife Photography

Photography has been around for more than a century and our topics will never cease. There is portrait, landscape, wedding, and wildlife photography just to name a few. One of the most rewarding styles of photography centers on wildlife. It may take you several hours before finding the perfect picture and capturing it, but the reward is more than worth the wait.

Wildlife photography is perhaps the most difficult in the profession. You have to have the time, inclination, and of course the camera. Most wildlife shots are captured using a telephoto lens because the animal will not walk near you. Every once in a while you will be able to capture the fox, elk, bear or other animal as it comes through the woods in your path, however most of the time they are yards away and elusive.

Wildlife photography doesn’t wait for you to happen a long and snap a photo. You need to immerse yourself in the site you choose your camera at the ready, and set for the light of the day. Most automatic cameras work great on the preset for those who are just learning to take wildlife photographs. Photography has always been about the moment and the best photographers can catch the moment with a speed and agility of the animal they are capturing.

Start with small subjects when you begin your foray into wildlife photography. Practice on your pet. Let them roam naturally and see if you can capture the wild and crazy moments on film without the photograph ending up blurry. All great photographers have studied and practiced. They also use more than one shot. Making sure your camera has a quick shutter speed will help you take more than one shot as your move with the animal. When you have the subject in your site you need to follow it while focusing and then quickly snap as many pictures as you can before they move out of site. This technique is known as panning. Rather than the subject coming to you, you follow the subject.

When you have mastered your pets you can begin to explore the outdoor world of wildlife photography. Some of your subjects will be standing still and this is another practice technique. Be aware of the lighting and placement while trying not to disturb the animal. It is most easy to get a squirrel when they are intent on eating or foraging for food. If you stay silent and walk carefully you can often get pretty close.

If you are choosing a larger subject such as a deer or bear you will want to stay far enough away to get the shot, and not draw attention to yourself. Bears are dangerous creatures, but they can be photographed if you use common sense and don’t tread upon their territory. Wildlife photography and thus the photographers have a code of ethics when attaining the perfect shots. You will want to follow these ethics for your safety and the animals.

Wildlife photography is a waiting game for the perfect picture to sprint across your viewfinder. It takes patience and a lot of practice, but the reward of having a family member or friend go, “ where did you get that photograph? I have got to have one,” will sweeten the deal.

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Tips For Underwater Photography

Underwater photography brings the underwater world to the surface. Some wonder wheat swimming in the ocean is like, but the don’t wish to learn how to dive. Underwater photographers have taken it upon themselves to bring the underwater world to those who don’t wish to dive or never had the chance. While all photography is an art the underwater world needs special skills to bring the highest quality alive.

Unlike wildlife photography the underwater world needs to be viewed up close. That is to say the marine life needs to be photographed closely. This is because of the water. The water refracts images often distorting them so the closer you are to your subject the less water you have between you an the subject. Underwater photography requires a great deal of patience. You subject may swim quickly by like the shark, whale or dolphin, or they may hide with in the coral popping out only when danger is not felt. Water holds particles, most usually living organisms called plankton because these particles often float by while you are trying to take a picture you can loose contrast and sharpness of the image.

Marine life uses the premise of hiding more than speed or survival of the fittest. This means you will often find your subject camouflaged rather than out in the open. You have to seek your subject with determination, without startling the subject. The underwater world demands respect. You don’t want to touch the living organisms and therefore you must learn to move with the current while trying to attain the perfect shot. A lot of marine life will die if you touch it, especially coral so having a hobby of underwater photography requires you to follow the rules, a code of ethics.

Underwater flash or more typically called a strobe can help you gain the light you need to take a perfect photo. It is essential to have a flash with an underwater camera. It will help you bring other colors rather than red and orange into the picture. The strobe only needs to be medium sized, any larger and it can hinder your photo taking experience.

Composition is also very important. You will follow the same rule you did in regular photography; however, you still need to have an upward angle on the subject. This goes back to the camouflage technique of most marine species. They tend to melt into their hideouts or in some cases; their bodies are designed to hide in the water when swimming like sharks. When you are trying to get a clear shot when the subject blends into the background can be difficult and creates a challenge.

When dealing with underwater photography as a hobby you will need to hone your photography skills on land first. Once you take great pictures on land you can move into the harder version of the underwater world, where some rules you’ve used no longer apply and attaining the best picture takes patience as well as skill. Underwater photography brings the marine life to the surface alleviating some of the unknown. If you find you are just starting to have an interest in underwater photography you will want to seek a professional underwater photography class to teach you some of the important techniques as well as practice.

How To Use Lenses In Photography

Just having a camera is not going to get you the best pictures. Most of us who take photos are amateurs in the art world, but with the right equipment our photography can be elevated to a new height. Lenses are important especially when you settle on a medium you will train in. Most photographers choose one area of photography to specialize in. There are many types of lenses, the standard 35- 80mm, telephoto, and panoramic lenses.

Most cameras have a 35- 80 mm lens, even the point and shoot type. Often when you purchase a camera casing they will sell you the standard lens with it. All lenses are interchangeable. You do have to stick with the same brand of lenses as your camera and make sure the diameter is the same. The diameter of most lenses is the same as long as you keep to the same brand. The 35- 80 mm lens tells you the extent of reach. While you can take photographs several miles away with a standard lens you will not have the distinction of features in the print that you need. The standard lens is great for close up shots, such as flowers, spider webs, people, and pets. To gain more defined picture miles away you need a larger lens.

There are many telephoto lenses in photography. One is the 75- 300 mm lens. While this is not as massive as other telephoto lenses you may see a professional walking around with it is a great step up for mountain and wildlife photography when your quarry is some distance away. When you begin to move from the 35mm into something larger it is best to have a stabilizer with the lens. A stabilizer will help you hold the camera steady for clear shots even if your hand moves a little bit. When you move into the world of the telephoto lens you can by accessories to help with angles and light.

Photography in the world of panorama is another way to take spectacular landscape photos. The panoramic lens allows you to widen the photograph, especially with a digital camera. If there is a mountain range or glacier that you wish to get the whole picture without pasting them together in Photoshop the panoramic lens is the best way to go. I’m sure you have seen landscapes with a panoramic view and wished you could have that option. Even with film cameras you could have a panoramic lens to widen the photograph.

All three lenses are just the icebergs on the use of lenses in photography. Whether you are an amateur photographer or a budding professional you will want to maximize your photo taking skills. The next equipment you may want to purchase to help you with the larger lenses would be a tripod to stabilize the camera even more. Tripods are pretty simple and lightweight pieces of equipment and work great for portrait photography. All mediums in photography require moderate to top of the line camera equipment to produce a photograph with quality. Photography also relies on the photographer’s skill and eye. Lenses are just a small part of the photography world when you start to study the art. If you have any questions on lenses the best places to find answers are your local photography shop.

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Stylish Wedding Pictures

Your wedding album will be one of the most precious memories of this big day that you will have. But have you ever noticed how so many of those “professional” pictures are all the same from wedding album to wedding album? In fact, one thing that jumps out about the wedding photographer is that for a little while on the wedding day, everything halts and it’s all about him.

You know the drill. The ceremony is exciting and fun and full of joy, some tears and plenty of meaning as the bride and groom kiss and become one family. Then it’s all over and everybody files out to go to the reception to dance, have cake and celebrate this union. But wait, the whole proceeding has to grind to a halt while the photographer stages the wedding party for as long as an hour or more to “recreate” the ceremony and make those perfect wedding photos. Meanwhile the reception may be getting underway and many of the guests that the bride or the groom or others in the family want to hug and share the joy with may have to go because they just can’t wait out a fussy photographer.

Somehow this complete disruption to the day has become accepted as just part of what the wedding day is all about. And the worst part about it is that the photographs, while nice and well staged, look like a bunch of mannequins being arranged for a store window. The joy and fun of the ceremony is over. For decades to come everybody will say they are beautiful and meaningful but if you look closely the wedding party looks nervous, uncomfortable, bored and like they wish they were somewhere else.

Well maybe its time to throw that tradition out and put some creativity into how the wedding photos and the wedding photographer works in your wedding. By finding a photographer who will put together some wedding pictures that have some style, some creativity and some sense of inventiveness, you will have that wedding album that really is full of memories worth remembering.

To get that kind of photographer, you are going to have to start early. You have to find that maverick photographer that “gets it” that the wedding is about the people, not the gowns and the hall and that his photographs must shout out “this was a wonderful day and we celebrated this union.”

You may have to look outside of the conventional “wedding photographers” listing in the phone book. An artistic photographer may be more appropriate. But be patient and find one that is just as professional as any photographer in that yellow pages but can bring some creativity and investment of getting to know this wedding party to the job of taking your important wedding pictures.

That wedding photographer should become as much a part of the wedding party as the groomsmen. After all, if he is going to capture the personality of this couple, he will have to get to know you. Spend some informal time with him and share those fun memories of when you met, those special times while you dated and certainly those very special places where important moments in your relationship took place.

Armed with that kind of creative individual in charge of your wedding photographs, you will look forward with great anticipation to what he comes up with. Many of the best shots will be created before the wedding, at some of those special places and he can Photoshop them to blend them with wedding day moments.

Above all that wedding photographer will understand that he is there to serve this wedding and capture those special moments as they occur. Sure, you may “pose” for a picture from time to time but this whole business of bringing the wedding day to a grinding halt to take stilted pictures of bored wedding party members will go out with the trash. The outcome will be wedding pictures with style, with life and a lot of love in them to reflect the love that was exchanged in those vows and the love of family and friends as they enjoyed this magical day with you.

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How To Video Like Scorsese

When your passion and perhaps your livelihood is the creation of quality videos for people’s events, you probably have some heroes. Martin Scorsese is somewhat of an icon because he is known for his stylistic videography in his movies. Now, you don’t necessary need as much style as a Scorsese gets in movies that win him academy awards. But such professionals who are both precise and very good at their work and creative in how they get their shots are an inspiration to the rest of us.

So how can you go about becoming your own version of “Scorsese” in reaching higher standards of professionalism in the video you do for your customers or friends? Well, sometimes you just have to go back to basics

When you go on a shoot, think of yourself like you are going on an assignment into a war zone. Of course, hopefully, nobody will be firing guns at you. But like a battle, you have to be totally prepared going in. There is no calling “cut” if you are filming your son’s first baseball game. You will get it or not on the first take so your equipment has to be ready and you have to be ready. So think through some of your pre-shoot preparations for the big day.

Inspect, clean, repair and test your equipment the night before. Make sure you have any support materials such as batteries, lights for your flash or if you use a lamp to accentuate indoor shots. And think through the various ways your equipment may have to support you and how you can support it?

What if something needs electricity but is too far from the outlet? Bring extension cords. What if you need more electricity then plugs are handy? Bring power strips. What if have extension cords where people will walk? Bring duct tape. What if you have to get that duct tape up fast? Bring a good knife or cutting blade. It pays to play these situations out in your mind and be prepared as you go to battle.

Framing a shot so it looks good in the final cut takes some talent and skill to get what you want where you need it to happen. If the scene is very active, like a sporting event, you need to be able to move, set, shoot and break down and do it again and again all day long.

That means your equipment has to be light and self contained but you need to be armed to swap things out on your feet. A well prepared supplies bag that you can get into, swap out a lens, a battery or other needs on the fly is essential to being that mobile. And you have to know your equipment so well that you can literally lock and load in seconds so important shots don’t leave you behind. Some practice with your camera, tripod, lights, supply bags and anything else you have to have for such mobility will pay off big time during the shoot.

You may have cringed when you saw the word tripod but get used to it. Don’t cut corners on this “accessory”. The tripod should be as flexible as your body so you can drop it for a ground shot and have it up and set quickly each time you need to reposition. But despite the “bother” this might cause, the tripod alone may make your shots 100% more professional.

Knowing your gear and being prepared are the two top commandments of producing high quality professional video. It may not make you a “Scorsese”, but it will take you a long way in that direction in the improvement you will see in your work.

Tips On Photography Lighting

Photography requires a few skills to make your prints look professional. One part of making a print professional is lighting. Lighting in photography takes a little planning and understanding of a few techniques. You best subject or object might not turn out that way if the proper light does not help to laminate the area. Below are a few tips on using light for photography.

First you must decide if you will use artificial or sunlight. If you are using sunlight you will rely on the Kelvin scale to determine the temperature of light and therefore the color of light. The color of light is important to maintaining the colors you see around you. For instance the warmer the light the redder the light will be, thus you may need to pick the time you will go out and shoot photographs. Outdoor lighting offers so many different times to take pictures depending on your need.

Next a photographer needs to understand the sun’s color scale. Pictures tend to lead the viewer towards certain feelings; often softer colors evoke more emotion. So understanding the suns impact on the colors will help you find the correct time of day. The sun evokes blue hues in the morning hours, while closer to noon you will find more neutral colors. The neutral colors can take away some of the definition you want in your print. Knowing how you want to shot the picture will also help you determine when you wish to take the shot.

When using natural light you will need to work with the angle and direction of the sunlight. If the sunlight is broad and diffused you will have softer shadows while the more narrow the light is focused the more shadow you can create. Often at noon when the sun is in mid arc you lose definition of the subject. The subject could look grainy. This is why shadow is used; the shadows can give you more quality to the print if used correctly. This adds to the beauty of your pictures.

You can also modify sunlight through certain techniques. Modifying sunlight when taking portraits outdoors requires the use of a background. You may wish for a breath taking landscape that will provide more composition to the photo. You may need to block the sun if it interferes with you or your subject’s sight. You might also bring in a white surface to fill the shadows. Landscape photography requires less work than usually natural light for portraits. In fact using natural sunlight for landscape photography without modifications can yield you a better photograph.

Landscape photography uses nature to provide the light and shadows. This is why you need to understand the light scale and temperature. Time is the most important aspect of using sunlight. To understand natural lighting you need to understand the affects the sun will have at certain times of the day. For instance if you are in a thickly vegetative forest the sunlight will have difficulty streaming in unless it is over head. You will have natural shadows in the forest and remember you can move around your subject to find the best angle with the sun.

Photography is an art that requires techniques and practice. Lighting is a major part of photography, especially when you are using natural light. Sunlight can bring plenty of shadows or take them away depending on the time of day. Knowing the best time to take a photograph depends on the sun’s angle. Photography is an interesting hobby and profession when practiced properly will give you plenty of prints for your home and others.

Whether you are a professional or a novice photographer, you want to produce some exquisite pictures with the proper lighting. With this in mind, choose your lighting according to your needs and the needs of your subject or object. Your pictures will be delightful with brightness when you use the best lighting situation.

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