Photography - Capturing The Underwater World

Underwater photography is growing every year, those who go diving wish to bring the diving world visible to those who do not dive. We have always been fascinated with the oceans and bays of the world as an unknown world. Bringing vacation pictures home to your friends or selling them as professionals has been a time honored tradition and now we can bring the underwater world home through the use of digital photography.

There are many types of underwater cameras. You have the highly expensive professional cameras and the one time slightly effective versions. Knowing which camera will work for you is very important. Part of finding the right camera may lie with in the housing you wish to purchase. Underwater photography requires you to protect your camera from the harmful affects of water so you will have to purchase housing with seals to eliminate the water. The housing you find may fit the camera you have. In fact, most companies will sell the housing for the cameras you have. If you find you, need a better camera for the underwater world you will need to look at packages. These packages will include the housing.

Let us look at the 35mm cameras. Most of these cameras are just point and shoot. If they were meant for underwater chances are they have at least a mild filter to correct for the lack of color underwater. These cameras will not filter out the particles you find floating along in the water on a poor visible day. Usually they are limited to less than 100 feet. I would not use this type for anything below 80 feet. You would not want to loose pictures because the housing failed under pressure. While this is not common, it is a concern for most photographers.

The more professional cameras are larger with a huge lens to let light in as well as have filters to help bring clarity to any photograph. Typically, these cameras require you to have a deep-set hobby in underwater photography, as the expense is high. Digital cameras are the best way to take underwater photographs because you can make sure you have the desired affects before leaving the seen. Of course, most underwater life will not hang around for a second shot, but coral reefs and the animals that inhabit them may remain.

Most underwater cameras will also have a flash. It is best to take an underwater photography course before delving to far in your hobby. Sometimes the flash will help you with the photographs, but other times it will wash the subject out and ruin the print. You can also use underwater cameras when you are snorkeling. Some flashes are built in to the camera while others are external. The external flashes can be a stick with a little light bulb on top.

When storing your underwater camera and flash you usually want to store them without the batteries as the batteries can die quickly. This is mostly for the cameras that use double AA batteries. Underwater photography is a great world to take home with you especially if you are on a dive vacation. Underwater photography requires a few more skills than regular photography due to the lighting conditions, but once you understand them you will be bring home great pictures every time.

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Which Is Best - Digital Or Print Photography?

In the past, you simply did not have to make a choice between any other photography methods than film. Everyone had a film camera and everyone either learned to develop their own film or took it to their local processor. Now, you do have a choice and many people who are used to film wonder, which is better. Today we have film cameras and digital cameras. Here are the pros and cons to using both digital and print photography.

The Pros of Digital Digital cameras are great for most people. Perhaps the best thing about a digital camera is that you have instant access to the pictures you have taken. When you use a digital camera, you can immediately see the picture that you just took and determine whether or not you need to re-shoot that particular subject. In addition, when you take digital pictures, you can easily download the prints to your computer. You can store your pictures, enhance them and print them on your printer. In addition, digital prints make for easy storage. You can shoot thousands of digital pictures and store them on a couple of disk. Compare that to the boxes of printed pictures that you probably have in your home.

The Cons of Digital There are many cons of using digital as well. For example, digital pictures are easily lost. If you are like most people, you probably download the pictures to your computer and never do anything else with them. If you do not back up your digital pictures to disk, all it takes is for your computer to crash one time and you have potentially lost hundreds of valuable pictures. Many people feel that digital pictures do not have the same look and feel as film prints. For this reason, most professional photographers still prefer to use film, instead of digital. Digital pictures can also become pricey if you print them out at home. A good quality printer paper, plus colored printer cartridges for your printer can add up quickly. .

The Pros of Film As mentioned earlier, many professional photographers still prefer to use film to digital. If you take pictures for hobby, you can adjust your film camera to get the exact look that you want. This is not always the case with digital pictures. Some people prefer to use a film camera, so it forces them to have their pictures developed right away. Rather than leaving your memories on a disk, you have to have your print pictures printed. You will always have them in your hand to look at.

The Cons of Film It seems that film cameras are losing popularity. Film is not as convenient as digital. He must wait to have pictures developed before you can look at them down is also expensive and having pictures processed, adds extra expense. In addition, when you use film, you must have everything on your roll of film printed out. You do not have the ability to scroll through and delete bad pictures on the spot as you do when you use digital.

When considering film over digital, one is really no better than the other. The choice has more to do with your personal preferences than anything else does. If you are considering buying a new camera, look at both film and digital to determine which ones are right for your use. I have three digital cameras, a 35mm camera and a standard film camera. If I had to choose, I would choose the digital because of the option to view pictures right away. This way you know if you are capturing the image the way you intended too. I have been caught to many times with fuzzy pictures, missing heads and so on. Another thing is with a digital camera, if you need glasses, you will still be in focus, where as with a 35 mm focus camera, you might have a surprise, fuzzy pictures, and you may never find another opportunity like that again.

Where To Go To Learn Photography From The Best

Whether you are looking for the right path for your budding student photographer in your family or looking on how to jump-start your own photography career, the right school can make all the difference. There is no question that photography is an outstanding career path with many different directions that someone skilled with a camera might go.

The diversity of careers in photography is truly amazing. From the base talent in photography and a solid understanding of new and emerging technologies, the sky is the limit for a talented photographer with a solid education under his or her belt. That is because photography is both an art form and a solid technical skill. So the same school might produce an award-winning artist, a successful wedding photographer, a fashion photographer, a police investigator taking pictures of crime scenes, or a crack newspaper photographer.

So the question emerges as to what kind of photography school to pick for yourself or the student in your family that wants the best education possible. How you pick any school is very much influenced by both how you approach education in general and what your objectives are.

Some would advocate that you look to get into the finest artistic photography schools in the country. If you wish to go down that path, then for sure the Brooks Institute of photography or one of the elite east coast schools of artistic photography is a noble ambition. But there are three drawbacks to trying to attend such schools. First is, of course, the potential cost. Any elite school is going to charge elite prices. And if you are like most of us, you want to get the most education for your money. So doing some caparison shopping for a school is in order.

The second drawback is getting admitted. Most of the top-flight schools have waiting lists and tough entry requirements that may make that ambition more demanding than is necessary. But the most meaningful drawback is that these schools may not be the right choice for the career you or the photography student in your life may wish to pursue. So a good general set of guidelines on how to evaluate a wide variety of photography schools is in order. The guidelines might include…

. What kind of photography is right for the student? A program geared toward artistic photography that will result in pieces hanging in a modern art museum will have a very different approach than a program to train forensic photographers. Your student may not know right away what field they want to go into. If so, getting started at a generic school such as a photography emphasis at the local junior college may be the right choice until the career path becomes clearer.

. Is it a legitimate school? You want to avoid schools that are run from the internet or that you read about on the back of a matchbook. A legitimate school will produce a recognized degree that will be well respected in the industry and will help the student get jobs.

. What is available locally? Why go out of town or out of state if you have good local schools? Many state universities, junior colleges and local tech schools have find programs.

. How diverse and up to date is the program? Will your student get exposed to the newest of technology in the field of photography? Will they get trained in how to service many different types of photography assignments?

. How does the program’s job placement rating look? What percentage of graduates from this program get jobs? How well respected is this school by businesses who employ photographers?

These are solid evaluation criteria. And if you apply these standards to a couple dozen of the finest schools both locally and nationally, before long a short list of good schools will emerge. From there, some site visits and interviews with teachers and graduates will narrow things down. And you will be glad you “did your homework” to find the kind of photography school that will take you or the student in your life to the next level of success in their love of photography.

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How To Use Filters In Photography

Filters have two different meanings depending on how long you have had photography as a hobby. Most of us today think as filters as an option with Photoshop. This is not the case. Before the invention of computers and things like Photoshop we had small glass discs to create the filtered affect. There are many options with filters you can blur a picture, sharpen the picture, and even block out the UV rays. Filters are often used to correct a problem or make a picture look a little different.

Lets talk about filters that blur a photograph. When you are taking a picture of a waterfall at the bottom where the water rises in a cloud you can add a filter to create the cloud in the picture. Cameras don’t always see what the eye sees. In some cases it can have a high resolution to depict the actual water drops rather than the cloud, so adding a filter to your lens can help create the effect your eye sees.

Other filters such as the UV protector guard against the harsh rays. Along with the UV filter you should have a polarizer. The polarizer is used in photography when you are taking a shot into direct sunlight or other light. It will help balance out the photograph so that you don’t get the washed out look. Other filters can give you the washed out effect if you feel your photography would speak more. The filters in Photoshop are not as wide as the filters you can actually buy for your camera, but they can have some of the same effects that you are after.

Have you ever wanted to create a star effect when taking pictures of light filtering through the trees? You can create a star effect with any photograph by using a star effect filter. This filter allows light to pass through a series of thin lines etched into the filter letting the light streak outward in a star shape.

Some filters actually help you create a depth of field or focal point. The fog/ mist filter is one of these. The fog/ mist filter allows for a glow or flare of light in the photograph. Photography is filled with much skill and equipment. Having filters to help create the perfect professional photograph will enhance your fun with your hobby. Lets look at a few more filters.

There are color correcting lenses. If the sky is too blue for the photograph you can choose a filter that will tamp down the blue to a less bright state. If you are into underwater photography you might have filters that allow for the underwater colors. The color spectrum does not have a great range under water. A lot of things will look red even though they are not. It is easy to bring about the original color of underwater life when you use special filters for color correction.

The use of filters in photography not only allows you to have special effects in a photograph to create something new and different, but it can help enhance the shot by adding color or dampening the natural effects of light. Photography has many types of equipment that require skill and knowledge making it a wonderful hobby or profession. If you need a hobby, photography allows you to be creative.

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Techniques For Cat Photography

Every cat is proud of his or her friendly feline. Cats make perfect subjects in which to photograph. You can catch your cat and a variety of interesting and fun poses when you know how to take pictures of your cat. If you are interested in photographing your cat, here are some tips to help you get the best shots.

Catch your Cat Napping Nothing looks quite as relaxing as a cat taking a nap. Cats do sleep a lot, so if you take a picture of your cat napping, you have plenty of opportunity. The best time to take a picture of your cat is to catch it when it is asleep. You can take close-ups of your cat either as it sleeps, or gently wake your cat up for a relaxed look. For a nice shot of your cat, try gently rubbing your cat’s belly right when you want to snap a picture. This will encourage your cat to roll over on its back.

Natural Sunlight When you think of a sleeping cat, where do most cats enjoy sleeping? You can usually find a cat napping in the sun. If you have a window that gets full or filtered sunlight during the day, then try to open the curtains or blinds to encourage cap napping. As soon as you see your cat sit in the sun, try to take a few pictures. When the sunlight is good, try a few shots without using your flash. This will give your picture a nice natural glowing effect. In addition, natural light often works best anyway because if you use a bright flash, your cat will usually close his or her eyes or the eyes could end up looking red.

Forget Posing and Planning Cats are much for posing. You cannot really ask that a cat stay and sit. When you take pictures of your cat, you should always have your camera on hand for candid shots. Look at your cat during the day and determine your cat’s schedule and favorite places. Work around your cat and you will get better pictures. Try to be spontaneous, and above all stay patient. It may take several tries to get a couple of great shots, but posing your cat rarely works.

I have tried to get my three cats to pose and let me take a picture, but even though they sleep together, play together, they cannot stand or in this sit next to each without someone starting something. If I had three people to help and set back out of the picture, it might work. As you can see, cat’s needs to do what cats do and take your pictures that way.

Get Help Another good tip for taking pictures of your cat is to get help. You can get great pictures of playful cats and kittens by having someone help you wiggle a string, the throw a ball or call the cat’s name. It is very difficult to try to play with your cat and take pictures at the same time. Your pictures will turn out much better if you get someone to help you. In addition, if you are trying to get a picture of your cat looking directly at your camera, have someone stand above you can call the cat's name, or make a noise that will prompt the cat to look directly above your head.

If you are a patient and willing, you can get some excellent shots of your cat. Cats are so fun to take pictures of because you never know what they will do. Keep your camera handy and ready to go as soon as your cat springs into action. Cat’s normal activity seems to make us smile and laugh, their antics always may wonderful pictures. Pictures of kittens playing from birth on also make for some great pictures. If you have the camera, you will never miss the perfect picture.

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The Photography Road Trip

Taking your love of photography on the road is one of the really exciting assignments a photographer can get. Whether you are going out into nature to photograph a great sunrise, a phenomenal river or to capture some other wonder of nature or if you are going to an urban area to get photos that tell the story of a people, the safari nature of the trip is the same.

Safari is a good name for such a trip because like that hunter going into the deep jungle to bag big game, you are going to the unknown to get that perfect photograph. Your preparations have to be expert. Your discipline on the road must be focused. But above all, your determination to get what you came for must be relentless as you hunt the prize you want to bag, not with a gun but with your camera.

One mistake to avoid is over packing for your adventure. It’s easy to do because you may have the urge to bring everything in your studio “just in case”. First of all, if you have every piece of photography equipment you own with you, the likelihood that something will get broken or stolen is pretty good. So you have to know how to strip down your travel gear to just what you have to have to get the job done.

But how do you know that if this experience is new to you? One way is to do a few “dry runs”. Just as you went out and did practice photographs when you were learning your craft, take one or two test trips to the next town. Do these without the pressure of a deadline or a deliverable that you have to complete. An overnighter to take pictures at the zoo in the nearest big city will surface what is needed and what is not. Then repeat the exercise to take photographs out in the country where you may have to backpack your equipment in. You will find out pretty fast what “stuff” is worth the extra weight and what needs to stay home.

Your photography safari is a business trip to you and you have a mission. But your mission is about more than just going somewhere to get a snapshot. Just as every picture has personality and soul, the more you become part of the environment where you are traveling, the better your “eye” will be to capture the perfect photo.

Yes, you must stay focused on the purpose of the trip and stay on schedule. But don’t forget to enjoy the trip. If you are going to take a picture of a natural wonder, like Mount Rushmore, for example, spending time visiting with others going to that sight or talking to locals may surface some locations and secrets about the site that other photographers would not get if they just came, snapped a photo and left. Use the “down time” to charm the other travelers and let them charm you. Not only will your picture be a hundred times better, you will have a lot more fun.

Finally, as you reach your destination, your preparations need to pay off and you need to let them pay off. Here is where focus and the eye on the prize is crucial. It is so easy, especially when traveling, to become obsessed with the equipment, with the set up and with your settings.

Do all of that before you leave, or in the hotel room the night before. On location, the session is about your subject, not your equipment. Your equipment is there to serve you. Don’t worry about it. Trust yourself that you did a good job getting ready. You have quality equipment and you have prepared the lenses, checked the batteries and done all the right things. It all will work when it needs to work.

Now you keep your eye on the prize. Your expert eyes are needed to judge the lighting, the angle and every aspect of the shot to determine if it tells the story that you know this photograph has to tell. Here is where the artist in you works beautifully with the photographer to produce a photo that you will genuinely be proud of. And if you obey your disciplines and get that shot, it will be a photography safari that comes home having “bagged the big one” to add to your trophy room for sure.

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Using Artificial Light In Photography

Photography is art. Individuals will spend hours in museums and galleries analyzing a person’s photographs for the meaning. Like painting photographs have a message, sometimes it will evoke sadness, happiness, a carefree attitude, and thought. There are many techniques a budding photographer will learn to evoke the emotions they desire. One such technique is using artificial lighting. Artificial lighting is not always as fun and easy as sunlight, but you can use it to create some wonderful photographs once you know how.

Indoor lighting is often fluorescent and tungsten bulbs. Tungsten bulbs are used by professional photographers, as “hot lights” because of the high temperature they produce. In photography it is important to understand the temperature scale in relation to the colors they will produce. A hot light will produce more red and reduce the blue. Firelight and candle light though not artificial can be used in doors to create shadows and depth.

When using indoor lights, specifically artificial light you will need to understand exposure. When you have less light it will take longer to expose the film to capture a photograph. Part of exposure is the angle. Lets talk about taking pictures in a museum. For instance I was in a museum with minerals behind glass and a woman made the statement if she took the picture nothing would come from it. This is not true. First in a darker room where you have direct light on the object you will not want to use the flash. The flash will bounce the light back at the picture. The next step is to get as close to the glass as possible. The third consideration is the angle. Taking the picture head on of the object will bounce the light and shadows about. You will need to angle the camera to the side or up from the ground to attain the photograph. If you do not have glass in the way the angle will still be important, especially when taking portraits. Shooting any subject head on is likely to create shadows and take away from the print. The best angle for shooting portraits is often up into the face.

When shooting faces or other objects you usually want a three dimensional contrast. You will need to search for the planes and contours of the subject, especially in portrait photography. The planes and contours will help you determine the angle you will shoot the subject from. The shadows will often provide the three dimensional contrast if you find the correct planes and angle to shoot from. This helps with pictures that you want to stand-alone.

Artificial lighting needs to be moveable. Just turning on your home lights will not give you the desired affect. Instead it can wash out the subject, place the light at the wrong angle, or create too much shadow in one area. You need to have lights set up on tripods to change the angle to suit your needs. Rooms are small which is one reason over head lights can either be too powerful or not direct enough. Following lighting tips will increase your photography skills. Most amateur photographers find taking a class on lighting and having a few books on the subject will help them learn proper lighting techniques. The reason for classes is to provide feedback. You may be happy with the shot, but suggestions can help you make the shot perfect in the future.

Artificial lighting has advantages over outdoor or natural lighting, but sometimes the picture turns out better with natural light. It might be a matter of preference or the desire of a client or subject for that matter. You never have artificial lighting outside for the most part; you usually rely on your camera flash to help with the picture quality. When you choose your lighting, look for the best lighting situation to enhance your subject and make your picture as natural as possible.

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Photography School Selection

There are many places you can learn photography, but what is the right place for you? Sure there are online schools and courses, but they won’t give you the hands on information you need. You need other students and the teacher’s eye to become a better photographer. The online classes do have their uses for instance giving you the basic information to study. It can be difficult to choose the right school. Some require recommendation while others are apart of colleges.

The information you wish to glean from a photography class will make part of the decision for you. For instance in a college setting that does not specialize in photography will offer the basic levels, but may not offer you an internship with a professional photographer in your field. If you are looking for photography as a hobby these basic level classes will often give you the information you need to produce pictures you can be proud of.

Specialized schools as with any others will allow for more information on a specific topic. Most specialized schools will allow you to work with a professional to learn the specifics of your profession as well as expand your knowledge. This helps you learn quicker and learn more about the techniques used in photography while having hands on experience.

The best way to choose a photography school is to decide what you want from your photography. Once you have decided that you can move on to finding out how to apply. Some photography schools are part of a studio and allow for anyone to sign up for a class. Other schools require you to attend a college or university first for basic photography and intern before you go on to the specialized school.

Searching online will lead you to the schools available in your area and across the country. You will be able to find the application as well as descriptions of every class they offer. The sites will also list the qualifications you have to attend the school and what classes you will need to take to become a photographer. Although the experience you receive from a classroom is better, online classes teach you what you need to know.

Some classes that you will need to will be in lighting, composition, and other basics. Depending on your field you will then need to branch out in studying ways to capture the subject. Like portrait photography you will need to understand angles, light, balances, and how to elicit the reactions you need from the subject. Digital photography is the new way to take photographs and there are a few different techniques to learn from the older manual cameras.

Photography schools can help you become more adapt at taking photographs. You may decide you need a little help to step up from being the point and shoot type to a more complicated camera or you might decide there is a career for you. There are many types of schools for you and online sources will help you find it. Online photography classes can be helpful for you learning techniques, but you will still want other people to help you find your eye for art. If you have worked with manual cameras in the past chances are you will want to take a digital photography course when you switch.

To touch on one more type of school we need to delve into underwater photography. Most colleges and other photography schools associated with studios do not specialize in underwater photography. It is often best to seek out a dive school for a basic course. You might decide to delve further and find an underwater photography school. Underwater photography has always been a unique and interesting hobby or profession. Seeing the results of your work is like nothing else one can imagine. When you look at the color and the amazing views, you will understand underwater photography more.

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A Guide To Forensic Photography

As the crowd pushes closer around the crime scene and yellow tape gets strung around the place of murder, theft or other forms of violence, little white chalk people get drawn around a corpse and its contortions there from the sidelines with a bag and lighting equipment comes the often unsung hero of our Articles. He or she is an important part of every investigation, with their sharp eye for detail and the patience of Job in the hustle and bustle that never fails to happen as the newest crime gets tagged, bagged and labeled. I am talking about the Forensics Photographer.

Aside from taking fingerprints, dusting the crime scene and bagging evidence carefully to bring to the forensics lab and later the Court room, Photos are an important part of every crime investigation and later as evidence in Court.

Forensics Photography is a fantastic Tool to collect and catalog Data as well. Sometimes a sweep of the surroundings with the Camera logs in Images which would otherwise would have been overlooked or forgotten. The Person in the third row of the onlookers. That broken piece of glass in the shadow. Our busy Patrol Officer might have not noticed it, but our Camera Lens has picked it up.

One of the most important things in Forensic Photography is the sharpness of the Image. It has to be sharp as a well honed blade. Any fuzziness, pixilation or shake and it is as useless to the Court and the Investigators as an Eagle with pinkeye. The entire case rests on Forensic Photography and any flaw however sight, could cost a case to be lost.

Never, ever disturb the crime scene. The first round of photos has to be taken before anything has been touched, removed or altered. It is the freeze frame of the Crime Scene. The closest you will come to having been there during the crime. So make sure you plan the photo before you take it. Later if you must small adjustments, like the adding of a measuring tool to show distance is permissible, but not during the first go over.

Make sure you get a complete set of shoots. Those should include a close-up, a mid range and a wide angle. The Angel is very important as well. If you use the wrong point of view you may easily undo the best shoot by misrepresenting the relationship of distance to the object etc. Remember, your photo has to show exactly what is set out before you.

You need to record everything in writing. Mark out specific items, but never mark on the photo it-self. For that it is wise to use an overlay that you can remove as is needed. Transparency paper is used for that purpose. Make sure you lighting and exposure is set correctly. There are a lot of extremely good literature available that can teach you how to set your exposure for which light, background and scenario. This helps take the perfect pictures needed.

Lastly but not least. Photos can be messed up easily if your equipment is not in tip top shape. Make sure that your lens is clean at all times of dust. No smutches etc. I know it seems to be a topic that should not even have to be mentioned, but often it is the small things we overlook. After all the entire point of forensic photography is to capture those small seemingly mute points that are often overlooked.

A suggest you make your-self a check list and place even the most common sense items on your list. Batteries, Film, dust free equipment, tripod, removing the lens cap. You can think of it, write it down. You will be surprised sometimes how easily even the best professional forensic Photographer can make a simple mistake that could have been prevented by a check list. Remember the victim is counting on you too.