While you’re here, don’t forget to visit my full website, too!

www.Through Karen’s Eyes.com

 

Zen and the Art of Improving Your Skills Through Fear

My fear is helping to improve my photography.

Say what, now?

(Stay with me here, because there’s an incredible time-lapse video waiting for you near the end, but no cheating! You can’t jump ahead!)

I started writing new articles several times in the last few weeks, about several different topics. They’re still in draft form and will eventually make it to this blog. But I decided to switch gears today because I learned something about myself recently, through reflection, something that many people already know about themselves, but I guess it took some tough self-evaluation for me to realize it only recently: I’d often been afraid to try new things with my photography. Why? I’m not sure but maybe because so many other photographers are sooooo much better at many different aspects of photography than I am. So, why did that stop me from trying new things until recently? I’ll try to explain, and maybe my experiences will help you improve your own skills with a camera, as well as in other parts of your life. My “grand revelation” took place after several unrelated incidents, and this is one of them:

• A few months ago I was offered the opportunity to assist on a photo shoot with a world-renowned National Geographic Traveler photographer who happened to have a scheduled shoot not far from me. His local assistant was unable to make it that day and the shoot couldn’t be rescheduled. He knew other photographers in the area, but some were unavailable and others didn’t have experience with radio remotes called Pocket Wizards, in this case the series made for Nikon cameras and speedlights (strobes), which I use. Now, I didn’t own this Pocket Wizard system at the time (I do now) but I knew in general how to use them because I’d already planned to get them in the near future and so I’d already researched, watched videos, and finally borrowed a friend’s Nikon system and learned how to use them, although certainly not as well as if I’d already owned them. Anyway, this famous photographer had publicly announced his need for an assistant for a job that was only a few days away, and anyone interested should contact him and provide their credentials. I jumped on it. He’d remembered me from a few of his seminars and presentations I’d attended up and down the East Coast, from New England to North Carolina. He knew I was a Nikon shooter and lived not far from him. He knew I was experienced and personable. He knew enough of my work to know I’d be a good assistant. But then….  I lost the job. Why? He asked if I was experienced with this system because he needed someone who knew it “like the back of your hand” because, as he put it, it wasn’t a glamorous job and the client was on a tight schedule and he needed someone who could move and react quickly, without hesitation, and with no learning curve whatsoever. When he learned that I wasn’t as experienced with Pocket Wizards as he needed an assistant to be, he said he was very sorry and would have loved to work with me, but not knowing the system thoroughly was a deal-breaker. I got it. I did. And I was devastated. This was a grand opportunity for me – for anyone! I mean, this guy travels all over the world, all the time, and is published practically everywhere. Not just his phenomenal images, but he’s written many books and has published articles in top photography magazines, is an editor or contributing editor for many of them, and even had his own television show for a long time! And little ol’ me came thisclose to being his on-the-shoot assistant!

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  Stepping out of my comfort zone helped me to improve my overall skills.
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The reason for this back-story? I’d put off buying the Pocket Wizard system because, as primarily a nature photographer, I’d done little studio work involving creative lighting and remote triggering and adjusting, and I had little need to learn it at the time (I didn’t have a need for it when I did portrait shoots, but now that I have the system, I don’t know how I did without it!). Ok, to be totally truthful, the subject of lighting also intimidated me, and that scared me enough to pretend I didn’t need to know all that much about it. Wrong-o! There’s a lot to know about light and lighting if you want to make the best images, of any subject, that you can. There’s so much to know, that if you Google the subject you won’t believe how many hits you’ll get. But I’m actually happy (kinda sorta) about losing the job, in retrospect, because it’s forced me to step out of my comfort zone and learn new techniques – not just about studio and other lighting, but other techniques as well, which had the effect of starting to improve my overall skills as a photographer. This lesson – stepping out of our comfort zone – applies to almost anything in life. Self-improvement doesn’t come without a price, but it’s a price usually worth paying. (Yessss! She finally got to the point of this article!)

You see, I was intimidated by the great photographers who have flash and lighting nailed. I mean, they know it “like the back of their hand,” a phrase I’ll now attribute to losing that great opportunity to work with a renowned photographer (and a nice, funny guy, to boot!), and it forced me to self-teach this old dog new “tricks.” Flash had intimidated me for the longest time. It still does to a degree but the more I use it, work with it, learn about it, experiment with it, the more comfortable I get with it. This goes for anything new we try, right? And guess what? Being able to manipulate light hasn’t just improved my flash skills, but it’s actually opened a new world for me: product photography! Will I be hired by The Coca-Cola Company or Nike, Inc. anytime soon? Not a chance! But I don’t care. It’s all about building my self-confidence, my skill set, and finding new ways to explore the world and share it. I started experimenting with lighting in different ways, one time placing a strobe underneath a glass table, putting a translucent reflector on top of the table, placing a glass of liquid onto the reflector, adding a black backdrop, and moving my light stands around, trying all kinds of different ways to light the subject. I’d change the location of the strobes, change their power output, bounce them off a wall or ceiling, shoot through an umbrella, bounce through another umbrella, and so on. You can see a couple examples above and below. I made mistakes, learned from them, made more mistakes, learned from those as well, and will continue to happily make mistakes along the way, and learn from every one of them. Will these practice images ever be published? Oh my, no! They’re technically flawed on so many levels. But the more I experiment, the more knowledgeable and skilled I’ll become, and – here’s the best part! – the better images I’ll make, all because I forced myself to overcome my fear and intimidation and made myself learn how to do something I’d never really done before and was afraid to try.

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Self-improvement doesn’t come without a price, but that price is usually worth paying.
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Here’s another one: have you seen time-lapse videos? I have. Lots of them. Some good ones. Some great ones, like “Finding Oregon,” by Uncage The Soul Productions, below. I’ve seen cool images of circular star trails and wondered for so long “how do they do that”? Well after much research, trying out different ways of make circular star trail stills, making some into my first time-lapse videos, I’m soon ready to start making videos of beautiful scenes in nature. Will my star trails image above win any awards? Not a chance. It was my first-ever attempt, shot from my patio, facing woods that my house backs up to. Many mistakes were made along the way, as there’s lots to know, lots to remember, and lots to forget. But I had fun doing it! It will take a long, long time and much trial-and-error, to accomplish things I want to do, but since I’ve started taking baby steps to improve my knowledge and skill set, it’s become easier to try new things, and I’m loving the journey!

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Don’t let fear stop you from trying new things!
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It’s easy to hold a camera to your eye and press the shutter release. What’s not so easy is to learn new ways of making images – the keepers, the ones you’ll be proud of, the ones you’ll want to frame and give away as gifts, and the ones you’ll want to send to everyone you know, whether by email, Facebook, Flickr, Google, or what have you.

I’ll end this article by giving a shout-out to a wonderful photographer I’ve recently started corresponding with, to whom I was introduced by a mutual friend – who herself is an amazing and well-known photographer who leads wildlife safaris in Africa and other beautiful places. The safari photographer’s name is Piper Mackay. A link to her site can also be found on my website’s tab called Great Sites. The photographer I’m giving the shout-out to also has a link on my Great Sites page. Her name is Anne McKinnell. She was among the first to inspire me to start taking baby steps out of my comfort zone toward making life changes that I’ve wanted to make but have been afraid to. It’s still a work-in-progress, but the point is, I’m making progress! Anne’s story is for anyone who is at a crossroads, in any aspect of their life; it doesn’t have to be about photography, nor do you have to be a photographer to appreciate her story, and if you visit her site (and Piper’s) you’ll have the added pleasure of viewing some magnificent, leave-you-speechless images. Anne made a decision to change her life and follow her passion (hers as a photographer; yours can be something else that you’re passionate about and wish you could do full time if possible). Her life didn’t change by chance or luck, but by courage, determination and sacrifice. Read about Anne and follow her adventures throughout North America. If she doesn’t inspire you to think about what you truly want to do with your life, no one will. Don’t forget to visit Piper’s site as well. You may find yourself saving your pennies and signing up to take one of her famous African safaris!

Thanks for making it to the end of this article (brevity was  never my strong suit, as anyone who knows me can tell you!). The take-away I hope I leave you with is: don’t let fear stop you from trying new things!

Don’t forget about the upcoming workshop at the beautiful Antelope Canyons in Arizona at the end of May! There’s still space available, and this is a Troy Kevin Shinn workshop you don’t want to miss (and Troy will be assisted by… yours truly!

Meanwhile, keep on shooting!

ANNOUNCING: Awesome Photography Workshop at Antelope Canyons!

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Do you want an unforgettable, fun, and inspirational photographic experience, and even learn a thing or three? Then join us at Troy Kevin Shinn’s Antelope Canyons workshop in Arizona. He’ll be assisted by… yours truly!  

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WHERE: Lower and Upper Antelope Canyons in Page, Arizona.

WHEN: May 29, 2012, 7:00 pm until June 1, 2012, approx. 9:00 am. SIGN UP SOON, AS SPACE IS LIMITED AND IS FILLING QUICKLY!

WORKSHOP FEE: $650.00 per person ($1,250.00 per couple).  This workshop is limited to 10 people, with a minimum of 5.

Fee includes the workshop, printed photos  as described below, entrance fees, and transportation to and from Upper Antelope canyon. Participants are responsible for all other costs including, for example, transportation other than Upper Antelope canyon, plus air fare and other means of getting to and from the workshop, food, and accommodations.

DEPOSIT: A 50% deposit is due upon sign-up, and the balance is due 30 days prior to the workshop. Itinerary is subject to change without notice (due to weather conditions or other unforeseeable factors). All fees are non-refundable.

PREREQUISITES: Participants must know basic photography, including a working knowledge of ISO, shutter speed and aperture, how to adjust them as well as how to adjust other camera settings, and must know how to operate their own camera. Participants must be in reasonably good health as there is a good amount of walking, some climbing up and down, and everyone must be able to carry their gear during these walks and climbs. Tripods are highly recommended, as is a cable or remote shutter release. Other gear recommendations will be provided in a package that you will receive prior to the workshop.

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A package containing more details about the workshop, including preparation, what to bring, accommodations, and more, will be provided upon receipt of 50% deposit.

The workshop includes 7 hours photographing in Lower Antelope canyon (and entry fees), and 5 hours in Upper Antelope canyon (and entry fees). Participants must provide their own hotel and transportation while in town; transportation is only provided for Upper Antelope Canyon.

A side trip to the famous Horseshoe Overlook will be made on the last morning of the workshop (weather permitting).

Participants will learn Troy’s high-level techniques for photographing the Canyons and the desert (SLR cameras). They will also receive a signed Fine Art print from Troy’s Fine Art collection (participant’s choice of selected images).

Attendees will also enjoy a guided history tour of Upper Antelope Canyon with an authentic Navajo Chief (weather permitting). Attendees will have the opportunity to roam the canyons and photograph them for 7 hours in Lower Antelope on Wednesday, and for 5 hours in Upper Antelope on Thursday. Throughout the workshop, Troy and I will be at your disposal for questions and guidance.

Finally, the package also includes an album containing fun memories of the workshop, which will include some of Troy’s fine prints as well as select photos that Troy and I will take of participants throughout the workshop.

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I WANT TO GO! You can sign up one of 3 ways:

• If you have a Facebook account, click here.
• Email Troy at llornikon@yahoo.com
• Email Karen at Karen@ThroughKarensEyes.com

Please make checks payable to Troy Kevin Shinn.

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But wait! There’s more! Can’t make this particular workshop? No worries… Just stay tuned for announcements about the following upcoming workshops, with more to come:

• Grand Tetons Fall Colors in Jackson, Wyoming: October 1-4, 2012 (I’m unable to make this one, but was at the last one; it’s a great workshop!)
• Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks, southern Utah: November 4-9, 2012 (I’ll be there; join me!)
• The exciting and festive Carnivale in Venice, Italy: February 6-12, 2013 (I’ll be there; join me!)

(Don’t have a Facebook account? Announcements will also be made here on my website/blog, as well as on my Google + page. Subscribe to this blog to stay in the loop!)

Holiday Photos (Quick: Make me slimmer!)

The holiday season’s here, New Year’s plans are being made, and you know you’re going to be in pictures. Lots of them. You’ve heard that cameras “add ten pounds,” right? Well, kinda, sorta, not really. In fact, no, they don’t. The camera is just a tool. It’s not trying to take an unflattering picture of you. It just records what is picked up by the lens via the light that enters through it. The ONLY time a camera adds ten pounds to your weight is when you’re holding a ten-pound camera! Smile.

Are you a little shy in front of a camera? Are you afraid of “camera bloat”? These tips may help: 

• If you’re caught in an unflattering pose, that’s what’s recorded. Here are some posing tips:

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• To help reduce the “double chin” effect: When posing, push your head forward as far as you can, comfortably. Practice this in front of a mirror. Do it several times until you stop feeling like you’re doing the chicken dance.  It feels strange at first, but when you see its effect of “slimming” your neck/chin area, you’ll love it! You too, guys! You can also wear a scarf or turtleneck, or place your hands in a flattering position, framing your neck.

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• If you have a wider face or body, you can angle your body away from the camera, including your face, and if you want, turn your face slightly back toward the camera so that it’s st

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• Suck in that gut – but not too much! You know the drill: stomach in, shoulders back, chest out. Again, don’t overdo the “chest out” or “stomach in” parts. It will look, uh, like this:

• Don’t face the sun; it will make you squint and will show every line and wrinkle. Let the photographer figure out how to light you if you’re backlit. He or she will likely use a low-powered flash to bring you out of the shadows you, while maintaining a good balance with the ambient (natural or available) light.

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• Don’t let your arms hang so that they touch any part of your body, which includes crossing your arms in front of you. That will help control upper-arm flab. Find something to do with your hands (your photographer can guide you here), or place your arms slightly away from your body to reduce any flab.

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• Side lighting, hair lighting, and using reflectors or deflectors to add subtle shadows to problem areas or redirect light to pleasing areas, can be helpful. Use of lighting to cast subtle shadows on your neck can appear slimming. Photography is all about light, in so many ways.

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• If you feel that your nose is larger than you’d like, I can recommend a good plastic surgeon. Kidding! For these situations, I never take 90-degree profile shots. The face (or camera) should be angled so that your nose doesn’t protrude past your cheek line. This will give the illusion of “decreasing” its size.

• If it’s a full-body shot, stand with one leg slightly ahead of the other, with the forward leg’s foot pointed toward the camera and your weight on your back foot.

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• Wear darker solids and avoid large prints that will draw attention to your shape. If you like stripes, do I need to say it? Vertical!

• When you look at yourself in the mirror, you’re not seeing yourself as everyone else sees you. You’re seeing – wait for it! – a mirror image! It’s true! Look at a photo of yourself, then look at yourself in the mirror. See? The photo is how others see you, not what you see in the mirror. You’re just not used to that look in the photo because you see yourself “flipped horizontally” on a daily basis.  So, cut yourself some slack – you’re beautiful! (Yes, men, “beautiful” applies to you, too!)

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• If the wrong lens is used, particularly wide-angle lenses used close to you, that’s bad for your figure (unless it’s a spoof – then it can be funny!).  It’s better if a medium telephoto lens is used farther away from you. Telephotos have the effect of “compressing” what’s in the frame, depending on how far the subject is, which also helps with the “slimifying effect.” I do most of my formal portrait work with a 105 mm lens. It gives me enough working space so that I’m not “in your face,” it doesn’t distort you, and it gives a nice, soft background if I adjust the camera’s settings properly.

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• Don’t let anyone “shoot up” at you from below. That will make you look down at the camera, pushing down your neck and chin area. Don’t let yourself be photographed from too high either, because it can make you look like you have disproportionately short legs. The most flattering angle for portraits is when the camera is at eye level. Your eyes.

• Lighting – a very important subject. Harsh lighting is unflattering, especially for women and children. I try not to use flash at all when I’m shooting portraits, unless I want catch lights in the eyes. If I do use flash, I’ll do it in a way to minimize any unflattering areas and/or to maximize your best features. A harsh strobe firing in your face is also bad for skin tones, and is the main culprit of red-eye, blotchy skin and deep-looking wrinkles. A flash is often needed, though, for example, if you are back-lit (you’re outdoors and the sun is behind you, putting you in shadow). In those situations,  a low-powered “fill flash” is called for, to softly illuminate you while keeping the background exposed well and in balance with how you’re lit. A note about soft light vs. harsh light – harsher light can be flattering on men – it can give them a more “chiseled, tough-guy” look. Combine that with a bleach bypass (a possible topic for another time), and you may have a magazine-worthy shot! (Side note for photographers taking your picture: If your camera has the red-eye reduction feature, don’t use it! That’s the main reason for closed eyes, premature subject movement and blurry shots; many people don’t realize that the red-eye reduction feature means that there are two sets of flashes being fired: a pre-flash meant to reduce the size of your pupil, followed by the main flash. Too often, people start moving after the pre-flash is fired, believing that the photo was taken. So either caution them to remain still until all flashes are fired, or turn off the feature. Unless you’re using an off-camera flash that is held, placed or mounted above and away from the lens, or if you bounce the light (another topic for a later time), you’re probably going to get red-eye anyway, which is easily fixable in many post-processing applications (e.g., Photoshop, Lightroom, Elements, and many others). One more trick to avoid or reduce red-eye: if you’re being photographed indoors, turn on every light. That alone will help to reduce the size of your pupil, and then maybe a flash won’t even be needed, or if it is, its power can be reduced.

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• My Number One tip to bring out your Best You: Be confident! A twinkle in your eye, a genuine smile on your face, a confident expression – these are things that make people notice you – this is what makes you beautiful. They’ll notice you, not your body shape. To go along with this tip, give some thought to what you believe is your best feature. Emphasis on “what you believe” – Some people may say you have great legs, but if you don’t think so, or if you really love your eyes, upper arms or hair, then those are the features to be showcased, no matter how many people like your legs. Why? It’s the confidence thing.

Now go get ready for your best-ever holiday photos!

***Happy Holidays to all my wonderful readers,
Happy New Year, and keep on shooting!***

[Next time: I’ll start answering questions sent in by email through my website and blog – great questions, and I’ll give you great answers!]

And now for something different…

I recently visited Jackson Hole, Wyoming and the Grand Tetons area with a small group of wonderful photographers, to photograph the peak fall colors of the Grand Tetons. It was one of the best photographic trips I’ve taken, even though there are soooooo  many more places I plan to go, both in the USA and in other countries. But I digress. The “something different” in this article’s title is that we (the other photographers and I) decided to have fun painting with light using strong flashlights at 4:30 A.M. – yes, I said A.M., as in waaay before dawn! – to “paint light” where we wanted it, being careful not to overdo it, keeping a balance between what was lit with our flashlights and what was caught in the light drop-off, all done in pitch dark! Here’s an example (no this wasn’t “Photoshop’d!”):

Using flashlights to add light to the trees and reflections, we were careful to maintain a balance with the areas not directly lit.

How it was done: Using tripods, we composed our frames the way we wanted. We used flashlights to light the trees first so that we could focus. We manually set our exposure settings (listed below). There is no formula for painting with light; there are many variables, so practice, practice, practice when you try it – and I hope you do try it; it’s fun!  Once you’re composed and focused, as far as how much to “paint” with your flashlight, that’s where trial-and-error comes in. This particular  image was a 30-second exposure, and during the exposure, a flashlight was used to paint up and down the trees, using less light on the background trees to be sure to not over-paint them, in order to maintain a good balance of light. Normally you would want to keep the ISO (if your camera allows you to control it) as low as possible when you’re shooting on a tripod, but in this case, we had to experiment with combinations of ISO and shutter speed (our focus was for the most part set at infinity). The settings used in this photo were: f/8 at 30″, ISO 8000 (my camera can handle high ISO without problem; your mileage may vary. There are many good noise-reduction programs and plugins if your image needs it). The point is to try different settings, paint with more or less light, try different ISOs, and so on. You need a long enough exposure to allow you time to paint with the flashlight, but not so long that you’ll introduce too much noise (grain) or unwanted ambient light  into your image, especially in the dark areas. And use a cable shutter release or your camera’s self-timer!  This photo was taken at around 4:30 am, long before natural light started showing itself. As the sky grew lighter, I reduced my ISO, taking care to still be able to maintain the shutter speed I wanted (30 seconds, to give me time to paint), and the desired aperture.

This is only one example of what painting with light can do. Go out and experiment, whether it’s before dawn or after sunset. It’s fun!

Below is a happy accident: During one of my long (30-seconds) exposures, a stranger walked into my frame with his flashlight (it was still dark outside, so he used his flashlight to light his way, but he didn’t see us since it was still dark, and his light didn’t pick us up at the time, so naturally he didn’t realize he was walking into our photos!). This was the funky result:

Sometimes the unexpected can be very cool!

I’ll end today’s article with a slideshow of some of my favorite photos from the Grand Tetons. Enjoy, and keep on shooting!

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Photographer’s block? Join the club!

Like a writer, photographers can get stuck. Snapshots are easy; I’m talking about planning an image or series or bringing home “something different” from your vacation. Let’s say you’re traveling to a beautiful location you’ve been to before, and have taken 3,217 photos of the same landscapes, people and places. You feel that your images are getting stale. You want to bring home something different, special, unique. Not the same old, same old. But you’re stuck for ideas. What to do? You’re not alone, my friend. It’s happened to me, to every photographer I know, and I have no doubt it’s happened to the top guns in this field as well. They’ve learned to accept it and then overcome it, and I’m going to give you some tips that have helped to overcome my own Photo Block, as I call it. There are plenty of other ways to refresh your creativity, but these may give you a jumping-off point. Ready? Grab paper; you might want to take notes (Oh right, you can just print this!).

• First, never delete any but the most obvious unusable photos or those that you have far too many versions of the same composition. Why? Because what you may not like today, you may love next month or next year. Our current mood often dictates whether we think a photo is keepable or not. You may later decide that the photo you almost trashed might look great if you convert it to black and white, sepia, maybe crop it to a more simple composition, remove some unnecessary objects, or maybe you’ll use a portion of it to combine with another photo (a composite). When your creativity is at its best, the sky’s the limit. On a similar note: never, ever delete an image from your camera based only on what you see on that teeny weenie LCD screen (again, unless it’s obviously out of focus or you only caught the flying hawk’s tail feathers). Viewing the same photo on your computer later on may give you an entirely different opinion. You may like a certain detail instead of the entire frame. You may decide that you like the out-of-focus aspect because it lends a mysterious or ethereal look. This is another reason I recommend carrying 2-3 memory cards with you. Better to run out of time than memory!
  

• Ok, back to overcoming Photo Block: Now that you’ve saved your images somewhere (and I highly recommend saving copies to multiple places besides just your hard drive. External drives are more affordable than ever. There are many cloud services. Even CDs work – not DVDs, but that’s also a topic for another article. Redundancy is your best friend.). Take a walk down memory lane and review those old photos from a long time ago. Analyze them and decide what you might have done to improve them, or decide what made it a good photo. Learn from all if it. Also, when reviewing older photos, you may see them differently this time, feel differently about them. They can give you new ideas. Maybe you’ll go back to that location and photograph at a different time of day (for different light) or a during different season, or at a different angle (higher, lower, or from a different spot). Try a different lens next time: if you shot it originally with a 50mm, try a wide-angle, telephoto, and/or macro (extreme close up) lens. Each lens provides vastly different results. Try moving closer to your subject, further away, and rotating your camera to the vertical orientation, or an angle. Change your white balance, aperture, shutter speed and/or ISO (or if your camera doesn’t offer these options, try different Scene Modes). If you’re shooting RAW (another topic for a later article), you can convert multiple copies of your RAW images in a different fashion, such as black and white, a different white balance or color temperature, different hues, add grain for character, and so on. A side note: If you intend to make a “black and white” photo (which is technically a “gray-scale” photo but “black and white” has become an accepted term), don’t use the grayscale/black&white mode in your camera. Always shoot in color, and at the maximum resolution if shooting in JPG format or, preferably, shoot in RAW, which can be made grayscale during the conversion process or later, in post-processing. JPGs can be duplicated and made grayscale easily as well, and there are several ways to do it, which is a topic I’ll try to remember to write about later. Some people like to (in Photoshop) use the Image\Mode\Grayscale method. I highly recommend NOT using this method, even if you convert the image back to RGB. There are many better, more controlled methods that produce more appealing results.
  

• Look at others’ photos. Study the masters. Check out photography websites. I’ve been inspired by many. Don’t try to copy their work, but try to grasp the message they’re making with each image. Look at the big picture, then the details. Look at the lighting, the angle from which the photo was taken, the subjects in the frame, decide how you might like it more or less if you made the image yourself, and so on. Is the photo too “busy” or is it just right? Keep your images simple. If I were to ask you why you made a particular image, I would hope you could answer in only one or two sentences. If you go on and on (the way I often do in my writing!), it tells me that you don’t really know. When you analyze and critique your images after a shoot, decide if that 5^th tree at the edge of the frame adds to the story you’re trying to tell, or detracts from it. What other elements are unnecessary, in relation to the reason you made the image? Are there any distracting bright spots that draw the eye away from your subject? If so, can they be cropped out or otherwise removed with post-processing tools? Or are they part of the image’s appeal? If you see something that stands out because it’s red, photograph it! Red subjects and complementary elements and colors can add great appeal!

• Read photography magazines like Outdoor Photographer, Popular Photography, Shutterbug, and many others. They contain wonderful articles, how-to’s, and tips, not to mention fantastic photographs made by professionals, beginners, and everyone in between. You can learn as much from “good” photos as from “bad.”

• Always have a camera with you, whether it’s an SLR, a compact or point-and-shoot, or your camera phone. You never know when something will catch your eye. For example, while driving home from work one evening, I was watching the sun set, and I couldn’t take my eyes from the beauty of the fast-changing colors (which is hard to do while driving!). I saw a small group of trees, pulled over, and framed this shot with my iPhone. Always have a camera with you.

• Another way I get out of my creative slump is to give myself assignments. Sometimes I’ll mount only a macro lens and I’ll go to a local park or elsewhere, even just around the house, and photograph only macro (extreme close-up) subjects. Many compact cameras/point-and-shoots have a macro mode, usually indicated by an icon of a flower. Read your manual for more information. Another assignment I gave myself was to walk around my house and photograph everyday items in a way that would make them look unique or unusual. Below was one result. It was all done in-camera other than minor post-processing such as a bit of dodging and burning (creative darkening and lightening of certain portions), and I applied a filter in Photoshop, plus a digital framing effect. But the main look, the “swipe,” was achieved by moving the camera up or down during a relatively long exposure (in this case it was probably about 1/10″ – 1/10th of a second – I’d have to check the metadata to confirm). This image was submitted to a photography contest and earned First Place. 
  

  A bottle of wine and a glass sitting on my kitchen counter, backlit by a floor lamp that looks likes 3 vertical softboxes enclosed in wicker. An ordinary subject photographed to look anything but! Changing things up can help recharge your creative energy!

• Go out shooting with a photographer friend, and ask questions! If he/she is really a friend, the questions will be welcome and the answers helpful. If you don’t know a photographer, join a local camera club or meetup, attend a workshop or seminar, or… contact me! There are also hundreds of illustrated and well-written books by seasoned photographers. Go to your nearest Barnes & Noble, or check out Amazon.com or other sources. What? You want me to recommend some books? Well, since you asked, I do have a few favorites that I cut my own teeth with. This is a short list, and if I’m leaving any out (well, of course I am!) it’s not because I don’t recommend them; it may be that I haven’t read them yet, or because there are just too many great books to list, or any of a number of other reasons. Here are a few, in no particular order (I own and have read all of these wonderful books, and many more, and have met two of these fine people and extraordinary photographers):

1. By Bryan Peterson: Learning to See Creatively: Design, Color & Composition in Photography (Updated ed.)
2. By Bryan Peterson: Understanding Exposure (3rd ed. – and he just released a new version – highly recommended!)
3. By Joe McNally: The Moment It Clicks: Photography secrets from one of the world’s greatest shooters
4. By John Shaw: Landscape Photography
5. By John Shaw: Nature Photography Field Guide
6. By Ansel Adams: The Camera

These tips will hopefully reopen your creative eye. The best way, though, is to practice, practice, practice!

As always, don’t hesitate to contact me at Karen@ThroughKarensEyes.com with any questions at all. And thanks to all of you who have! Happy shooting!

Man, I must’ve been bizzzzzy!

MMMMMMM, CATNIP GOOOOOD!!!

To my loyal readers, my apologies for letting so much time go by without hearing from me. It’s been a long and wacky summer, fall and winter, and now it’s spring. Where does the time go? Besides living life, being a mom, going hiking and photographing, taking trips here and there, I’ve just been so caught up in so many things that  something just had to give. To my followers (and I thank and am grateful for each and every one of you!), I will start writing and posting fun things again very soon. Keep the faith! Spring is here! Fresh beginnings! New life! And I’m back in town and here to stay.   Cheers, and stay tuned!

Fall colors & waterfalls

Well, it had been a while, but I finally made the trek to upstate Pennsylvania last weekend. I went to Ricketts Glen State Park and just caught the end of the peak autumn colors before they started fading. Climbing the steep trails with my heavy gear and tripod was sooooo worth it to me. I hope you enjoy the images.

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Details, details, details…

You know those beautiful landscapes and seascapes we love to photograph? They can be grand, magnificent, and awe-inspiring. I’m like most nature photographers who love the broad, grand views and vistas around us.

But I also pay attention to details that are often missed – details that can be pretty cool photos in and of themselves.

When I photograph people, besides the whole person I also like to isolate story-telling parts of the person. For example, I did a shoot of volunteer firefighters demonstrating some of their training exercises. Before the shoot started, I talked with each of them casually, to establish a rapport, a comfort level, and to get to know them as individuals, even if only a little bit. When I know a person beyond the “total stranger” stage, I can make a more intimate portrait. For example, the brave Captain below isn’t much of a talker, at least not with me during the shoot. But unbeknownst to him, I saw something in him, something that said to me “This man is deep. He has a lot on his mind. He doesn’t suffer fools. He commands and deserves respect.” I could be wrong, since I never had contact with again him since the shoot, but those are the perceptions I had of him that day, from observing his demeanor. I knew I had to find a way to photograph him in a way that wouldn’t make him feel self-conscious. I needed to catch him off-guard so that I could try to bring out the essence I felt he had inside of him. Whether I was successful or not, I don’t know. But this photo told a story, even if only to me. Same with the photos beneath it.

And here’s one more example, to tie in my last blog entry about looking all around you. In this photo, I had finished spending a few hours in a wildlife sanctuary in New England, and was heading out for a much-needed bite to eat. As I walked the path leading out of the park, I looked down and something red caught my eye near the small creek. When I sat on the ground for a closer look, I saw the bubbles, shapes and patterns, and I photographed it. No, it doesn’t “tell a story,” but it was interesting enough to me to want to take the picture and see what happens. Maybe you like it, maybe not. But the worst picture is the one that you don’t take, right?

There’s so much more to photography than aiming a camera and pressing the shutter release. It’s sort of like “take time to smell the roses.” Take time to look around, to really see, and if you’re not sure if it would make a good photograph, take it anyway – especially if you’re using a digital camera. What have you got to lose? The Delete button works!

Happy shooting!

Look behind you! (Made ya look!)

(Made ya look!)

Ok, seriously, it’s one of the mantras I drill into people’s heads when I’m helping them learn how to make great images: Always look behind you. And to the left. And to the right. And up and down. Starting to see where I’m going here? Grin. Learn from my mistakes: I’ve missed a number of wonderful (or interesting, or funny, or unusual) compositions because I stayed in one place, one position, and took many frames of the same or similar subjects. Once I got into the habit of turning in all directions, I was treated to many wonderful and unexpected scenes.

If you have more than one lens, try the same composition with other lens(es). You’ll see a totally different perspective. If you have a camera with one lens and a zoom, try the same scene at the closest and farthest ends of the zoom. At the closer end you may catch details you might have missed before. At the farther end, you may tell the story more effectively by showing more of the environment around your subject. Move closer to your subject physically, if you can. Then move further away. Work the scene! Turn your camera to the portrait (vertical) orientation instead of the typical landscape (horizontal) orientation. Even hold your camera at an angle! You don’t have to “settle” for what you see the moment you put your eye to the viewfinder or LCD. Make it work for you. Make magic!