[Photography] What to do When the Light’s Down Low

The post What to do When the Light’s Down Low appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Kevin Landwer-Johan.

Cameras create images using reflected light. When there’s not much light reflecting off your subject, the camera is challenged. You need to learn the methods of controlling your camera when you are photographing in low light situations.

© Kevin Landwer-Johan

Our cameras and our eyes ‘see’ in different ways. When the light is low, our eyes often do not see color so vividly. When we are photographing in low light we can make adjustments to our camera exposure settings. This enables them to make photos our eyes never see naturally.

Light streaks from passing vehicle lights or blurred movement of flames in a fire are never things our eyes see naturally. These are only the result of using a slow shutter speed on your camera.

Opening up your lens aperture will produce a shallow depth of field beyond what your eyes will see. Doing this allows more light to affect the sensor and can produce some surreal results in low light.

© Kevin Landwer-Johan

Setting your ISO very high, especially on newer cameras, makes it possible to take photographs in near darkness.

Visualize the look you want

Starting out with an idea in your mind about with the look and feel you want your photo to have makes it easier to achieve. This will lead to more creative development in your photography.

© Kevin Landwer-Johan

Starting out this may be a challenge for some, but it is a great thing to learn as it pushes you to learn how to use your camera more flexibly.

Consider if you want a sharp image, or if you want to embrace the blur of slow shutter speed if there’s movement in your subject. Think about how a wide aperture setting will affect how much of your photo is in focus. Is this the look you want?

How do I know which settings to adjust?

I can give you some guidelines but you will only truly know through experimenting with the settings yourself. I can’t tell you the precise settings to use because every situation you will photograph contains many variables.

© Kevin Landwer-Johan

You could set your camera to Program Mode on Auto ISO and let the camera make choices for you. Alternatively, choose one of the night scene modes your camera may have.

Both these options are very helpful when you first begin to experiment with low light photography. Both, however, will produce rather generic looking results.

Automatic settings are best when you use them to get you started and then analyze the EXIF data they contain. Having in mind the way you want your photo to look means you can then study the aperture, shutter speed and ISO information contained in the EXIF.

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Once you have done this, switch your camera to Manual Mode using the same three exposure settings. Now adjust the ones you think will begin to give your desired effect. Continue to make small adjustments, one at a time, tweaking them until you are happy with what you see.

As you practice this and become more familiar with your camera settings and lighting conditions you will no longer need to use an auto mode to help get you started.

© Kevin Landwer-Johan

In this photo I was aiming to have my subjects relatively sharp. The lens I used on my Nikon D800 was the 35mm f1.4. The ISO was set to 4000, aperture to f/1.4 and the shutter speed was for 1/10th of a second. I did not use a flash.

© Kevin Landwer-Johan

An 8 second exposure time was used in this photo to allow for some motion blur in the people and the fire. My ISO was set at 1600 and my aperture was f/7.1

The varying amount of light from the flames meant I had to carefully watch my exposure settings and adjust them as necessary.

Adding an external light

Flash and LED light added to a scene when the light is low will influence your photograph. You need to control these lights carefully to be able to obtain the most natural looking results.

Too much extra light will cause unsightly shadows and possibly harsh highlights. With not enough additional light, you may not be able to see the effect at all. Again, when you are first starting out, experimentation is the key.

© Kevin Landwer-Johan

Test the various flash settings to determine which one will give you the best look. Try TTL or auto settings first. Depending on your camera and flash these settings in any situation the results will be better or worse.

If you are not satisfied, switch your flash to Manual Mode. Start with the power set to half and take a photo. Adjust the setting higher or lower and gradually taking a series of photos until you are happy with the result you see on your monitor.

Create RAW files and post process them

Low light being challenging, you will obtain the best results only after some post-processing. Camera technology continues to improve, but is not yet ideal, especially when the light is low.

© Kevin Landwer-Johan

Making RAW images allows you greater flexibility to post process and retain a higher quality. Most commonly you will want to reduce the amount of digital noise which occurs at higher ISO settings.

Color and contrast can both become flat and dull at higher ISO settings. Boosting contrast and saturation will make your photo look crisper.

Keep focused

Many cameras will struggle to autofocus in low light conditions. The lens may search for some time before it finds a focus point. Even then, it may not choose the point you want it to focus on if your camera is set to multi-point focus. In more extreme circumstances it may not be able to focus at all.

© Kevin Landwer-Johan

Manually focusing may be the best option. But this is also more challenging in low light. Using an external light source, like a flashlight, aimed at the area of your composition you wish to focus on can help. Once your lens is focused turn your flashlight off if you do not want it to affect your exposure.

Conclusion

Practice and experimentation will lead to the best results. The more you photograph in low light the more familiar you will become with the variables different settings will produce.

Start with easy subjects when you have ample time. Learning to take great photos in low light is not something that will happen overnight.

The post What to do When the Light’s Down Low appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Kevin Landwer-Johan.

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[Photography] 25 Practical Photography Projects for the New Year

The post 25 Practical Photography Projects for the New Year appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Mat Coker.

So many photographers become stale in their pursuit of photography. Perhaps your hard drive overflows with tens of thousands of photos, yet somehow your photography seems to have become stagnant?

A new year is upon you and with this fresh beginning comes a chance to renew your love of photography. Perhaps there is no better way to do this than with practical photography projects.

Here are 25 practical photography projects to get you started!

I use Lightroom to bring the chaos of my overflowing hard drives under control. Photos are sorted into folders waiting to be flagged, tagged, starred, and colored! Once this is done, projects become much easier to accomplish.

Projects based on photos you’ve already taken

Many projects can be accomplished based on photos you have already taken. Photography isn’t merely about snapping more and more photos. Therefore, it’s important to look back at our earlier work and draw it together in some sort of coherent project.

1. Study your old photos

You might be surprised by what you find when you sift through your old photos. It’s the perfect way to measure your improvement and growth as a photographer. Take as long as you wish to work on this project.

When you focus on your current difficulties or look ahead at all the skills you’re struggling to learn, it can seem like you’re never going to get there. But when you look back on where you’ve come from you can see how much you’ve truly grown.

Set goals for the future, but always look back to see how you’ve grown.

2. Create a collection

As you study your old work, you may notice patterns in all those photos. Perhaps you’ll see enough of a pattern to create a collection of photos. As you sort through your old photos, try to create collections based on subjects, themes, people or locations.

Sifting back through old pictures, I noticed I had quite a collection of photos of my kids playing in the window and curtains.

3. Print your collection

Studying your old work and creating collections are big projects in themselves. Once you’ve completed them, your next project should be taking time to appreciate your work by printing it.

4. Hang your collection

Raise your hand if you’ve already got stacks of photos stored away in albums and boxes? A perfect project for you is to find a place in your home or studio to display your printed collection. Maybe you know a small business owner or hotel manager who would appreciate displaying your collection for a while.

5. Invite other photographers to join you

All of these projects become ten times better when you work on them with other photographers.

Help each other narrow down your collections. Gain insight from others as to what should be printed and why.

You could even host a gallery evening together. Invite other photographers and friends to come and enjoy your photos along with some coffee or wine. Why not approach a local cafe or winery to host your event?

I volunteer as a photographer for Habitat for Humanity. I follow the house build from the first shovel going into the ground to the keys of the finished house being handed to the family. In the midst of running my photography business, I have this exciting photography project throughout the year.

Photos you’ve always dreamed of

So much for all those photos you’ve already taken, how about the photos you’ve always dreamed of taking? Let’s look at 20 more projects that will keep you busy exploring new things.

6. A childhood project you never completed

Maybe you had dreams and ideas for photos when you first got your camera but didn’t have the know-how to pull them off. Now that you’ve developed your creativity and skill, you should tackle one of those old ideas.

7. A half-finished project that needs completion

Look around for a half-finished project. There is nothing more discouraging than half-finished work reminding you how incapable you are. Even if you’ve lost your inspiration for that project; get it done! Sometimes tackling a project and finishing it off will inspire you to something bigger.

8. Learn a new skill

Perhaps your project won’t be a collection of photos or a new body of work but learning a new skill. DPS has plenty of books, courses and tips to help you learn something new. You can even document your learning journey through photos on social media or your website.

Many of the volunteers with Habitat for Humanity do not know how to build houses. But by the end of the day, they’ve learned some new skill and feel happy with their accomplishments.

Projects that take all year

It’s worth considering how long you would like your project to be. You may even wish to tackle a number of smaller projects that feed into one larger project over the year. Here are several more projects that can last a week, month, or year!

9. Start a photography website

Whether you want a place to display your photos, write tutorials, or document your journey as a photographer, a website is a great place to get started. Find something with nice templates if you don’t want to fuss over the details, or use a highly customizable website if you want to stretch your creativity.

10. Something uncomfortable

When we talk about getting better as a photographer we often mean learning about technology or refining our technique. Those are important, and why not add growing as a person?

Try a type of photography that will take you out of your comfort zone. If you’re uncomfortable with people then try portrait or street photography. If you’re lazy, get out hiking and try landscape photography.

As a person who is very introverted, I try to take on photography projects that involve people. This helps me break out of my shell and be more social. My wife notices that I’m far less withdrawn than I was a couple of years ago. Photography isn’t just about expanding your portfolio, it’s also about growing as a person.

11. 365 project

A 365 project usually means taking a picture a day for a whole year. You can use it as a way to document your life, explore a theme, or follow a subject.

• The first 365 days of your child’s life
• 365 days in the life of your dog/cat
• 365 unique plant types
• 365 landscapes, documenting the seasons
• 365 streets in a big city like New York

Don’t become anxious if you miss a day. The spirit of this project is to establish a collection over the course of a year. 300 photos, or even 100, is better than 0.

12. 52-week project

If the 365 project sounds too much for you, try a less intense version. Take 52 weekly photos over the course of a year.

• 52 portraits of strangers
• 52 food dishes
• 52 photos of roses
• 52 pasta dishes

13. A theme

Explore a theme on your own time and on your own terms.

It could be something warm and positive such as childhood or love.

It could be something confrontational such as violence or pollution.

This project is perfect for inquisitive explorer types.

Expressing a theme in a photograph can be difficult. In this photo, I wanted to capture the idea of the difficult and messy work that volunteers do. I captured the muddy boots climbing up the scaffolding with people working in the background.

14. The seasons

Document the seasons throughout the year. You may consider traveling for this project. Hop on a plane 4 times a year to photograph the seasons in a climate different to yours. This project is perfect for people who travel a lot anyhow.

15. A person a day/week

Photograph a person (family, friend, stranger) daily or weekly. This might mean photographing one person over and over throughout the year or finding a new person each day or week. A perfect project for the social butterfly!

When I photograph a group of people over a long period of time, I try to mix things up every time I photograph them. Sometimes I’ll limit myself to certain angles, like this low angle photo.

Projects that take a month

16. 30-day project

Similar to the 365 or 52-week project, but this one only lasts a month.

17. A color

Choose a color to photograph for one month. Then choose another color each month and make this project last the whole year.

18. Document a charity

Find a charity that you can volunteer to photograph. You’ll expand your experience, build your portfolio and help them with their photography needs.

I began with a desire to photograph a house build. Then I discovered a charity who I could volunteer with. When you volunteer your time as a photographer, make sure it’s something you’re excited to get involved in and a worthy cause.

19. One camera, one lens

Choose one camera body and one lens to use for a month. Don’t touch anything else. Constraints like this can really help your creativity and photography to grow.

20. Camera phone

Perhaps that one camera/one lens is your phone! Treat your phone as a serious camera and you can take great photos with it. Through practice, you can learn to be just as creative with your phone as you are with your DSLR and 70-200mm lens.

21. Black and white for a month

Limit yourself to black and white photography in order to grow your vision and creativity. Set your digital camera to photograph in black and white in order to help train your eye.

In my mind, some moments are made for black and white. I know when I lift the camera to my eye that the photo will be black and white.

22. One subject

Find one subject to photograph for a month. Push yourself to take a different sort of photo than you did the day before. This will exercise your creativity and leave you craving the next month’s project.

23. Teach photography to a newbie

Your own understanding and ability grow when you teach what you know (or think you know) to somebody else. Your ideas and techniques become more deeply ingrained in yourself when you can learn to explain them simply to another person.

You’ll both grow as photographers. They may even push you to learn new things just so that you can explain it to them!

Projects that take a day

24. Day in the life of…

Photograph a person, place or thing for a whole day. Maybe your kids, the sun, your dog or a garden.

25. Self-portraits

Break out beyond the selfie and take some interesting portraits of yourself.

• Street photographers can photograph their reflection in buildings
• Portrait photographer can experience themselves as the subject
• Landscape photographers can work themselves into the photo

Choose one

Pick one of these projects that suits where you are on your photography journey. You can easily choose a variety of shorter projects that you can weave together into a larger project over the course of the year.

Please share with me which photography project you plan to work on this year.

The post 25 Practical Photography Projects for the New Year appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Mat Coker.

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[Photography] Gear Review: Lensbaby Sol 45 Field Test

The post Gear Review: Lensbaby Sol 45 Field Test appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Suzi Pratt.

Lensbaby has always been a niche company, offering lenses that help photographers put a creative, untraditional spin on their images. This year, the Portland, Oregon based company released the Lensbaby Sol 45. At $200, this is their least expensive lens yet, making it an attractive way for photographers to enter the creative effects world of Lensbaby. We got to test out this new lens and found it to be great for unlocking new creative angles. Read on for more thoughts on the lens and our ultimate recommendation.

Lens specs

Design

Announced on August 7, the Lensbaby Sol 45 is a fixed 45mm f/3.5 lens with an unusual lens design. Relatively compact at just 5 ounces, this lens looks normal until you twist the front to unlock it. When in the unlocked position, this lens can bend in just about every direction. It does this via its “bokeh blades” that rest on the lens hinges. When unlocked, these blades can be moved around to alter the quality of bokeh or image blur.  The result is an image with textured bokeh and custom edge blurs that can’t be achieved with “normal” lenses. It’s a very specific creative look that may or may not appeal to you.

Build

Despite being one of Lensbaby’s cheapest lens, Sol 45 feels very well built. The exterior is mostly metal and has a solid feel in your hands. Perhaps the only thing to note is that the lens’ moving parts could potentially get stuck or broken, so it’s important to keep the lens in a locked position.

Compatibility

The Lensbaby Sol 45 is a full-frame lens, but it can also work on crop-sensor cameras. Currently, the lens is available for Canon EF, Nikon F, Sony A and Sony E, Pentax K, and Fujifilm X mounts. For Micro Four Thirds cameras, the Sol 22 is available with an equivalent focal length of 45mm. For this article, Sol 45 was used with the full-frame Sony A7rIII.

The shooting experience

Besides its unusual design, Lensbaby Sol 45 is also a manual focus lens (as are all other Lensbaby products). This means that in addition to manually altering the bokeh blades, you also have to manually set your focus point. Depending on your subject, getting a tack sharp image can be challenging. If your camera has manual focus peaking, this can greatly help with correctly setting your focus, so take advantage of it!

Fun for closeup shots

The lens has a minimum focusing distance of about 1.1 feet. This means you can get pretty close to a photo subject and isolate it with a nice bokeh background. Even though most photographers likely use this lens for still photos, it also made for creative video shots.

Lots of moving parts

I used the Lensbaby Sol 45 on a Sony A7rIII. As someone who rarely uses manual focus, shooting with this lens took some getting used to. For one, it’s a process just to set the bokeh blades since you have a wide range of positions to lock them in. After setting the bokeh, you then have to tinker with the front element of the lens to set your focus point. With focus peaking enabled, it was a breeze to shoot with this lens. But if I didn’t have focus peaking, I could see this shooting experience getting frustrating very quickly. In general, this lens isn’t the best choice if you’re shooting a moving subject or need to capture your shot quickly.

Should you get this lens?

The Lensbaby effect is a specific, very unique look that won’t suit every taste. It also shouldn’t necessarily be applied to every photo, so it’s very much a specialty lens. But what’s great about having a unique look is that it may appeal to you in surprising ways. Although it took a while to get used to handling the lens, I eventually found it to be a delight for viewing the world from a very different perspective. It became a novelty that unlocked a creative side of my brain that I hadn’t used before. Sometimes, this is what creatives need if they’re stuck in a rut or simply need a new form of inspiration.

Bottom line

If you’ve been curious about Lensbaby products, Sol 45 is a great lens to get started with. It has a low price point, and the lens itself is very compact and easy to travel with. While untraditional in many ways, this lens is great for offering you a new perspective on photo subjects if that’s something you’re seeking.

 

Have you used the Lansbay Sol 45? If so we’d love to hear your thoughts and see you images in the comments below.

The post Gear Review: Lensbaby Sol 45 Field Test appeared first on Digital Photography School. It was authored by Suzi Pratt.

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