How Time Flies

I can't believe that this year is almost over.  I have met wonderful new people and taken so many great photos throughout this year.  I think what has been the most fun for me (besides photography) is the meeting of the new people.  I do not look at these individuals as clients where I am there to do a job for them.  I like to get to know them, what are their likes and dislikes, so as to complement their style into the photos.  This, at least for me, makes for a better photograph.

This coming Saturday I am conducting a photo shoot for some local models.  This is a free for all where I can get models and other photographers to meet each other then go out and take some pics.  I know what I am capable of doing when it comes to photographer, but for me it is so much more enjoyable to help other photographers learn about different styles.  It is also a good way to network these individuals.  They say that the best advertisement is by word of mouth.  So I need to be on my "A" game with these upcoming photographers and models so they know that I can help them.

I have added a photo below to show one of my recent photo shoots.  It is of the daughter and her mom after seeing this photo is asking me to take her High School Senior Photos this coming year.  Until next time, keep on practicing.

To Know or Not To Know

I have done a couple of maternity photo shoots in the past and recently I was given the pleasure to do another one which was by far one of my best maternity photo shoots to date.  I don't want to offend anyone out there, but I have found that there are a lot of females that are timid around a male photographer and prefer a female photographer for these types of photo shoots.

These photos are of Jose and Christina, which were very easy to work with as well as to become very comfortable around.  What did I mean by the title of this post, "To Know or Not To Know" is what I am getting to explain now.  After I had taken these photos, Christina found me on Facebook and liked my page without me asking and said that was extremely pleased with the photos and looked forward to working with me in the future once their baby was born.  I do not like to pry into others lives when I am working with them.  Come to find out that Christina is actually Christina Zapata Cuervo and is one of the main reporters for Univision 26 in El Paso.

Now comes the question.  Do you think as a photographer that you would have treated the situation differently if you knew ahead of time that one of your clients was a public figure or celebrity?  I looked back at this situation and do not think that I would have.  I prefer not to know so as to ensure that I am concentrating on the photography and not about the person.  This is my take on it.  Until next time, keep on practicing.

Raney

Why use an External Flash (Part 2)

I wanted to provide some additional information and example from my previous post.  Using an external flash has its pros and cons as with just about every other piece of equipment used in photography.  Another added benefit is that using an external flash during sunsets can allow you to capture the deeply saturated colors of the sky while capturing your subject at the same time.  Also by using the external flash, your shutter speed can be kept above 1/125 which will help keep the primary focal point (your subject) from being blurred and keeps it sharp.

I had the opportunity recently to have the lovely subject Kelly (above) that wanted to have some college graduation photos done and wanted some of them to be with the sunset.  Anyone that has been in El Paso knows that having a sky with any clouds is an unusual event and we were actually lucky enough to have had just a few.  I would have liked to have had more clouds so as to bring out more color, but in hindsight this was actually just the right amount so as to not distract attention away from the subject.

For photographers, understanding light is one, if not the most important aspect in photography to learn and understand.  It is not just knowing how to capture the light coming from the sun during the day, but it is also every aspect of lighting to include using an external flash.  I could have even gone further with the photo and used the external flash on a tripod just to the right of where I was standing, but with time of the essence while taking the photo which was only about five minutes total, I did not want to take that precious time away from the subject.  You have to know when to compromise and when not to.

I hope that I have given you something to think about when using an external flash and hope that you realize that you must be diverse enough to use all available resources in order to achieve the desired results for your clients.

As an additional note, after the client seen the final photo ordered many more prints for family members and friends which allowed me to gain a good profit from the photo session.  If you learn, you will eventually profit from your experience whether expecting to or not.  Until the next time, keep on practicing.

Raney

Why use an External Flash

There are "Photographers" and "Fauxtographers" everywhere you go.  One of the areas that separate them is knowing when and how to use an external flash when shooting.  This is not saying that if you do not use a flash that you are not a photographer and I do not want to start contraversy with others in my statement.  But there are certain instances that when using a flash will greatly improve your image and provide the right lighting in order to flatter your subject.

I am extremely opposed to using the built in flash that comes standard with cameras, but have been known to use it as a last choice when my external flash is not working.  I currently use a 430EX external flash when I need it and contrary to popular belief, a flash is not only for shooting inside or when it is dark outside.  As you can see in the above photo, it is toward the middle part of the day around 10:30-11:00am and I still used my flash.  The reason I use the flash was to provide enough fill light on the subject since the sun is behind the left side of the tree and would have had a great amount of shadows fall on the subject.  By doing this, I give just enough power to the flash (current photo was diffused lighting at 1/4 power) giving the appropriate lighting to the subject, at the same time able to use a fast enough shutter speed to not have a completely washed out sky and able to even pull in some of the blues from the sky in the image.

This is not the easiest thing in the world to learn and takes a lot of practice in order to estimate the amount of light needed in different scenarios.  I am not perfect in this aspect either and this set-up even took me about 2-3 tries to adjust the power and shutter speed to get the look I was after.

I hope that this has helped you understand some situations that you could use a flash and why it is needed.  It has been awhile since my last post and was actually determining if I would continue this blog or not due to being extremely busying with work.  The main reason I am starting to write this blog again is that I really have a passion to teach others from my own experiences and to help those that are starting out in photography.

Last note that I will mention is that the one reason I do not use the built in flash on cameras is that the maximum effective distance for the flash is around six feet and even when it is used it can cause your subject to look flat by having no shadows.  I recommend that everyone should have an external flash that has the ability to adjust the power level.  Good shooting everybody and hopefully I will be able to write again soon.

Raney

Tip - Applying the Rule of Thirds

One of the most fundamental aspects of photography is composition.  When talking about compostion, there are many elements of design that make up this as a whole.  You have line, form, shape, color, pattern, rhythm, etc.  Of all of these different elements, the most fundamental is the "Rule of Thirds."

I give a base diagram for the rule of thirds below, but essentially this fundamental element of design plays on the visual aspect of the photograph.  As a viewer looks at a photo, the natural tendency for the eye is to look at certain points of the image first.  Asking anyone on the street, they would probably tell you that the first place to look is at the center, but they would be wrong.

Using the rule of thirds, you would basically split the horizontal and vertical portions of the frame into thirds, as shown above.  There are four (4) points on the diagram that intersect (vertical and horizontal lines cross); the upper left, the upper right, the lower left, and the lower right.  These are the points that a viewer's eye naturally is drawn to when first looking at a photograph.  These are the main points to concentrate on, but typically anywhere along the lines either vertically or horizontally that the primary focus of your photograph should be placed.  There are exceptions to this rule, but let's stick to the basics for now.  If you are taking a portrait of someone, you would want to place him/her along the dividing lines of the frame.  This will create a more visual pleasing photo to look at.

As I have said before, this is probably one of the most fundamental rules of photography.  With that being said, it is also the most unused element of design.  I would recommend a training program of sorts for the amateur photographers out there.  Go out and take a lot of photographs, it doesn't matter what it is, just take them.  First concentrate on what is your primary subject of focus and then apply the rule of thirds.  This fundamental can only be instilled if it is practice, much like driving a car, the more you drove a vehicle the more comfortable and confident you drove.  The same is for applying this rule.  Practice, practice, practice.  I cannot say this enough.