Thursday, December 31, 2009

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

Nate and Emily Sutterer
Maha'ulepu, Kaua'i
































Thursday, December 24, 2009

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

Hike to a secret swimming hole and a beautiful Kaua'i sunset overlooking the west side of the island.


























Sunday, December 6, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

Got married today!

December 5, 2009
I married my best friend today,
Haunani Kapuuwainui Kaiminaauao
















Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

We would love to hear from you!

BLACK STAR RISING


FotoTV was founded on a simple mission – to provide an online learning resource for photographers based on the principle of ‘learn by watching the experts’. Photography is a visual medium and so it made sense to combine the reach of the internet with the visual impact of videos.

KEN ROCKWELL

MIKE LARSON

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TIPS

NEW YORK TIMES - BEHIND THE LENS

PHOTOFOCUS

PHOTOJOJO

STYLE ME PRETTY

TIM GREY
Tim Grey is regarded as one of the top educators in digital photography and imaging, offering clear guidance on complex subjects through his writing and speaking. He loves learning as much as he possibly can about digital imaging, and he loves sharing that information even more.

Friday, November 20, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

We would love to hear from you!


BLACK STAR RISING
Six Good Reasons for Photographers to Lug Around Lights
Eye on Image-Making: Financial Planning, Part 1
Photography’s Old Boys Club Is Gone Forever — Now Success Is Up to You

Becca and Ben’s wedding at the Air Force Academy and reception at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs was epic!

FOTOTV
FotoTV was founded on a simple mission – to provide an online learning resource for photographers based on the principle of ‘learn by watching the experts’. Photography is a visual medium and so it made sense to combine the reach of the internet with the visual impact of videos.

KEN ROCKWELL
DxO Optics Pro 6
Indian Country Tour
Go Shoot!

MIKE LARSON
Amsterdam Workshop, Flash bouncing Demo 

NEW YORK TIMES - BEHIND THE LENS
Photo of the Day

PHOTOFOCUS
Stop Wasting Time
Primer for Still to Video Shooters Part 2
Marketing Strategy for Photographers – Understand Your Potential Customers
Picture Taker or Image Maker?
Five Inexpensive Gifts Every Serious Photographer Will Love
Emerging Photographer of the Year Finalist – Chitra Aiyer

PHOTOJOJO
Your Own Page-a-Day Photo Calendars Make Your Photo-a-Day Even More Gorgeous

STYLE ME PRETTY
Inspiration Board for Brides

TIM GREY
Tim Grey is regarded as one of the top educators in digital photography and imaging, offering clear guidance on complex subjects through his writing and speaking. He loves learning as much as he possibly can about digital imaging, and he loves sharing that information even more.

Monday, November 16, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

We would love to hear from you!
  • What do you think of our Blog Blog?
  • Would you like to see any other blogs?
  • Do you read this Blog Blog every day?

Kristy Hashimoto / Antonio Aguiar




BLACK STAR RISING
NGOs Do Good — But Make Sure They Do Right By You, Too

Custom Tasty Treats Sweet and Saucy Shop

FOTOTV
FotoTV was founded on a simple mission – to provide an online learning resource for photographers based on the principle of ‘learn by watching the experts’. Photography is a visual medium and so it made sense to combine the reach of the internet with the visual impact of videos.

KEN ROCKWELL
Arizona and Utah!

MIKE LARSON
Zurich & Rotterdam

NEW YORK TIMES - BEHIND THE LENS
Photo of the Day

PHOTOFOCUS
Top Posts at Photofocus.com

PHOTOJOJO
Your Own Page-a-Day Photo Calendars Make Your Photo-a-Day Even More Gorgeous

STYLE ME PRETTY
Inspiration Board for Brides

TIM GREY
Tim Grey is regarded as one of the top educators in digital photography and imaging, offering clear guidance on complex subjects through his writing and speaking. He loves learning as much as he possibly can about digital imaging, and he loves sharing that information even more.

Friday, November 13, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

We would love to hear from you!
  • What do you think of our Blog Blog?
  • Would you like to see any other blogs?
  • Do you read this Blog Blog every day?

Kristy Hashimoto / Antonio Aguiar




BLACK STAR RISING
The Art of Visual Storytelling

Custom Tasty Treats Sweet and Saucy Shop

FOTOTV
FotoTV was founded on a simple mission – to provide an online learning resource for photographers based on the principle of ‘learn by watching the experts’. Photography is a visual medium and so it made sense to combine the reach of the internet with the visual impact of videos.

KEN ROCKWELL
Canon S90 and G11 Update

MIKE LARSON
Dusseldorf, Germany workshop

NEW YORK TIMES - BEHIND THE LENS
Photo of the Day

PHOTOFOCUS
Mini Review of the Spyder3 Express

PHOTOJOJO
Your Own Page-a-Day Photo Calendars Make Your Photo-a-Day Even More Gorgeous

STYLE ME PRETTY
Inspiration Board for Brides

TIM GREY
Tim Grey is regarded as one of the top educators in digital photography and imaging, offering clear guidance on complex subjects through his writing and speaking. He loves learning as much as he possibly can about digital imaging, and he loves sharing that information even more.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

We would love to hear from you!
  • What do you think of our Blog Blog?
  • Would you like to see any other blogs?
  • Do you read this Blog Blog every day?

Kristy Hashimoto / Antonio Aguiar




BLACK STAR RISING
In Photography, It’s the Archer, Not the Arrow

Custom Tasty Treats Sweet and Saucy Shop

FOTOTV
FotoTV was founded on a simple mission – to provide an online learning resource for photographers based on the principle of ‘learn by watching the experts’. Photography is a visual medium and so it made sense to combine the reach of the internet with the visual impact of videos.

KEN ROCKWELL
Canon S90 and G11 Update

MIKE LARSON
Europe Wedding Workshop Tour III- Day

NEW YORK TIMES - BEHIND THE LENS
Photo of the Day

PHOTOFOCUS
Using Workspaces in Photoshop
Three Tips For Finding Compelling Photographic Subjects

PHOTOJOJO
Your Own Page-a-Day Photo Calendars Make Your Photo-a-Day Even More Gorgeous

STYLE ME PRETTY
Inspiration Board for Brides

TIM GREY
Tim Grey is regarded as one of the top educators in digital photography and imaging, offering clear guidance on complex subjects through his writing and speaking. He loves learning as much as he possibly can about digital imaging, and he loves sharing that information even more.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

We would love to hear from you!
  • What do you think of our Blog Blog?
  • Would you like to see any other blogs?
  • Do you read this Blog Blog every day?

Lindsey and Peter Mason Wedding
Ha'ena, Kaua'i











Want an Accurate Portrait of Africa? Hire Local Photographers
Hiring locals to participate in the coverage — either independently or in tandem with foreign photographers and journalists — would help. No one, after all, knows a country like a local. (more…)

Custom Tasty Treats Sweet and Saucy Shop

KEN ROCKWELL
Canon S90 and G11 Update
I've been having a blast shooting with these two cameras the past few days. What is striking about each of them is how much better they work at high ISOs than any other camera their size..

Europe Workshop Tour Images!
The European "Wedding's California Style" Workshop Tour, is going so well, after day 3, we've hit up Budapest, Vienna, Munich and now we are off to Zurich. Here are some highlights. Everyone is signing up on facebook and making comments, check out the details, tesimonials and participant images at http://www.facebook.com/mikelarsoninc many workshops have filled up, but there are a few spots left in a few cities, so check out the link to sign up for those of you photographers in Europe!

Photo of the Day

PHOTOFOCUS
Show Your Best Work
Every photographer takes bad photos. Even the big-time pros don’t get every shot perfectly composed, lit, and in-focus; it usually takes a few bad shots to get one good photo. The thing to understand is that part of becoming a great photographer means learning how to pick out your best images and knowing what to show and display for others to see.

When I choose which images of mine I want to share online I am very selective, and only show photos I am proud of and truly love. I want to focus my viewers’ attention on the photographs that I think are the best, and show them what I am fully capable of. It’s very possible to have several “great” images from any given shoot, but even out of 10 or twenty images there are still going be some that stand out and are favored over the others.

This doesn’t just apply to sharing your photographs online. If you are a portrait or wedding photographer and go through your images, pick only the very best images to show your client, even if it means trimming your “keepers” down to 50% (or more) of what you would like to have. Trust me – if you like them, then they will love them. If you were to show them every photo you take and their “favorite” happens to be one that you know is not great, would you want that photo out there to represent your work?

As photographers we are also artists, and being an artist means that we should know what looks good. So be selective and very picky about what you share – hand-pick your images and only show your best work.

PHOTOJOJO
Wedding Photos You’ll Love (Even if You Hate Wedding Photos)

STYLE ME PRETTY
Inspiration Board for Brides

TIM GREY (Digital Darkroom Questions)
Today's Question:
I have been doing a bit of reading on CS4. Adobe is enabling the user to do more and more in Camera Raw. What is your opinion of doing so many adjustments in Camera Raw that once were done in Photoshop? My concern is that adjustments done in Camera Raw can not be fine tuned later. When I do my adjustments in PS using layers and adjustment layers, I essentially have a record of what I have previously done and, if need be, I can go back and turn layers on or off or make adjustments to them. If I have done all this in Camera Raw, then, so far as I know, I do not have this flexibility and if I want to change something, I must go back to the RAW file and start from the beginning. Am I missing something?

Tim's Answer:
I don't think you're missing anything at all. My personal preference is to use Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) as a tool for extracting the maximum amount of information from a RAW digital capture as possible, not to attempt to get the image looking perfect and ready to print (or otherwise share). I draw a parallel between RAW conversion and film scanning. When you scan a negative or transparency, the focus is on extracting as much information from that original as you possible can.

As a result of this approach, I don't make use of most of the features in ACR. While it is possible to return to your original RAW capture in ACR and adjust your settings (they are all nondestructive in the context of not altering your original RAW capture). You could also convert the RAW capture as a Smart Object and then access ACR to refine the settings at any time by double-clicking the Smart Object layer. However, I don't like this approach because it causes problems when, for example, you use the Clone Stamp or Healing Brush on a separate layer (which I highly recommend doing).

With most images I only adjust the Temperature, Tint, Exposure, and Blacks sliders. If an image exhibits chromatic aberration I'll fix this in ACR (even though you can also fix it later with the Lens Correction filter). If there is minor noise I might compensate for this in ACR as well (though more often I'll use Noise Ninja after converting the RAW capture).

When adjusting settings in ACR I'll focus on maximizing the amount of information in the final image, which generally translates into setting the black and white points to the point just before clipping occurs (if clipping can be avoided), holding the Alt/Option key while adjusting Exposure and Blacks to see where the clipping occurs and refining the adjustments as needed.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

We would love to hear from you!
  • What do you think of our Blog Blog?
  • Would you like to see any other blogs?
  • Do you read this Blog Blog every day?

Lindsey and Peter Mason Wedding
Ha'ena, Kaua'i











Five Ways to Make Money in a Popular Photography Niche
I’ve read articles by a number of photography business gurus arguing that if you want to make decent money from stock photos or prints, you need to find a niche that isn’t already saturated with images. They advise photographers to shoot model-released lifestyle photos or still lifes, for example, and to stay away from travel and nature — because everyone shoots travel and nature. (more…)

Custom Tasty Treats Sweet and Saucy Shop

KEN ROCKWELL
Canon S90 and G11 Update
I've been having a blast shooting with these two cameras the past few days. What is striking about each of them is how much better they work at high ISOs than any other camera their size..

Europe Workshop Tour Images!
The European "Wedding's California Style" Workshop Tour, is going so well, after day 3, we've hit up Budapest, Vienna, Munich and now we are off to Zurich. Here are some highlights. Everyone is signing up on facebook and making comments, check out the details, tesimonials and participant images at http://www.facebook.com/mikelarsoninc many workshops have filled up, but there are a few spots left in a few cities, so check out the link to sign up for those of you photographers in Europe!

Photo of the Day

PHOTOFOCUS
Philip Bloom Gives Photographers A Basic Video Shooting Tip
Three Things You Should Know About Creativity
Now’s The Time To Follow Your Passion

PHOTOJOJO
Wedding Photos You’ll Love (Even if You Hate Wedding Photos)

STYLE ME PRETTY
Inspiration Board for Brides

TIM GREY (Digital Darkroom Questions)
Today's Question:
I have Photoshop CS3 and I would be interested to learn how to change backgrounds on a photo. I have tried a number of different ways all with no success. I would like to try and put a baby on a cloud background, or moving a person from one photo to another.

Tim's Answer:
The first step is to bring the two images together into a single composite image. To do so, you can open both images, and then use the Move tool to drag one image to the other (for example, dragging the baby image onto an image of clouds).

In most cases you can create a selection as the basis of the layer mask that will define where the upper image is actually visible (revealing the underlying image in areas where the upper isn't visible). So, for example, you could create a selection of the baby using any of the selection tools. With a selection active, click the Add Layer Mask button (the circle inside a square icon) at the bottom of the Layers panel. The "non-baby" area of the baby image will now be hidden, allowing the underlying cloud image to show through, and creating the appearance of a baby among the clouds.

Click on the layer mask thumbnail (the black and white thumbnail to the right of the upper image layer) to make sure it is active, and then choose Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur to slightly blur the layer mask so the composite doesn't show up with a "cutout" appearance.

At this point you should have a good basic composite image, but you may need to further refine things. Select the Brush tool, and press "D" to ensure the colors are set to their defaults of black and white. You can also adjust the size of the brush using the left and right square bracket keys ("[" and "]"). You can also adjust the Hardness setting using the Brush popup on the Options bar as needed to adjust the degree of blending where you'll work on your layer mask. Then paint with black in any areas where you need to block the original baby image (for example, hiding portions of the baby so it will better blend in with the clouds), and paint with white to reveal portions of the baby image. You can press "X" to swap foreground and background colors to switch between black and white.

Monday, November 9, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

Lindsey and Peter Mason Wedding
Ha'ena, Kaua'i










BLACK STAR RISING
Ask the Photo Business Coach: Beate Chelette
Editor’s note: Black Star Rising is pleased to introduce a new series of video blog posts, “Ask the Photo Business Coach,” featuring Beate Chelette. The high-energy entrepreneur and former Corbis executive has been profiled twice on this blog, once while with Corbis and again after leaving the company. Today, she is a successful consultant and author. (more…)

DANE SANDERS
Custom Tasty Treats Sweet and Saucy Shop

KEN ROCKWELL
NEW: Contax G2 Review. Better than the LEICA M9, for a lot less money! The M9 is the world's best digital camera, but the Contax G2 is about 40 years more advanced.

NEW: Contax G2 Users' Guide. How to use every feature of the G2, which is a lot simpler than I make it seem.


MIKE LARSON
Ireland... The story begins...
After flying out of New Orleans, through ORD to LHR, I Just arrived in Ireland, its 45 degrees out & rainy, I rented (hired, as they say here) a car and was traveling and exploring down Irish roads that reminded me of the chronicles of Narnia, as when they were in the forests along winding narrow roads with walls of green trees at dusk as the wind blew. Outside I could smell fires as the houses looked so warm inside! The farther I got away from Dublin, the more country-esq the landscape looked. As the sun faded the green grass turned to grey and after praying to find the house, no number address out here, just a ranch name on a street in a town. If found it!

Now we sit by the fireplace warming up over some tea as I get to know the family and we chat about the wedding tomorrow. Its amazing to hear the culture of the Irish, how they do things and what they talk about. I'm excited for tomorrow! Castles churches and green countryside's!
I know some of these people, they know me from a Wedding I shot in Italy last year, Martina, the beautiful bride had some friends who wanted the images for their wedding, just what she had. It makes such a difference to have my couples already know they are in for a big treat, and a great experience. There's no icebreaker needed! Just fun, and an amazingly beautiful day. I'll totally be posting amazing shots tomorrow!...
Photo of the Day
Canon 7D Video Example
I spent some time with my friend Dane Sanders helping him with a workshop down in Newport Beach, CA a few weeks ago. On a totally spur of the moment basis, with no planning, not much gear and no idea what I was doing, I decided to make a little video of the experience so that others might get just a taste of what it was like to hang out with Dane. The result is this video. I shot it on a Canon EOS 7D with a Canon EF 50mm f1.4 lens mounted on a Red Rock Micro Event. I also used a Zacuto Z-Finder and a Lightpanels MicroPro LED light. I forgot my mic so there’s little audio here.

Photo Book Review – Practical HDR: A complete guide to creating High Dynamic Range images with your Digital SLR


Wedding Photos You’ll Love (Even if You Hate Wedding Photos)

Inspiration Board for Brides

TIM GREY (Digital Darkroom Questions)
Today's Question:
When saving Photoshop images what is the best way to save the images--PSD or TIFF--and why?

Tim's Answer:
For most photographers under most circumstances, on the assumption we're talking about a "master" image file that has a variety of layers, it frankly doesn't really matter. Both PSD and TIFF files support all the features you need within Photoshop, so you can save multiple layers, adjustment layers, layer masks, alpha channels, and much more as part of either image file type. In both cases there are compatibility issues since most applications can't understand the PSD file format, and most imaging software can't interpret layered TIFF images saved from Photoshop. That means you should really think of both as being Photoshop-only file formats in terms of compatibility.

The only really significant reason you might want to choose one of these two file formats over the other is file size, but there's actually not necessarily a lot of clarity there either. In most cases if you save a PSD with Maximize Compatibility mode turned off, the resulting file will be smaller than a TIFF image with layers, even if you use LZW compression. But not always. To give you a somewhat typical example, I have an image saved with a variety of settings. The PSD without Maximize Compatibility mode turned on is about 65MB, the PSD with Maximize Compatibility mode turned on is about 85MB, the TIFF with no compression is about 73MB and the TIFF with LZW compression is about 88MB. Do keep in mind, however, that PSD files with Maximize Compatibility mode turned off can't be imported into Lightroom. Since you have to choose, I'll give you a definitive suggestion. I think you should use the PSD file format. One reason is that by design it is a Photoshop file format, and since you've (presumably) created a layer-based master image you'll only be using Photoshop to apply modifications. So there's no need to try to achieve compatibility (and again, when a TIFF is saved with layers intact there are going to be compatibility issues anyway).

I also have a "historical" reason for using PSD as my master image file format. It used to be that you could only save layered image files as PSD. Photoshop didn't support layered TIFF files. So all files with layers were PSDs, and in general TIFFs were used for the final flattened output file you would send to a lab for printing, for example. So many of us got to think of PSD files as the master image, and TIFF files as the flattened derivatives. So you could look at a list of files and easily know which was which. Part of the reason I still use PSD files for my master image files is this habit, but as mentioned above, there are other reasons as well.

Friday, November 6, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

10 QUICK and EASY Ways to Improve Your Photography
RIGHT NOW!

View this 14 page document packed with career-saving information. Just sign-up now as a TPG Member.
What's Inside:
  1. Read “Fast Track Photographer” by Dane Sanders: A summary of Dane's book is on our Training Site
  2. Promote and Network
  3. Constantly improve your portfolio
  4. Biography
  5. Survey, Listen and ask for Referrals
  6. Professional Web Site
  7. Attend Workshops
  8. Facebook Tips
  9. Be a Professional and Set the Standard
  10. Promoting YOU and Customer Service
Lindsey and Peter Mason Wedding
Ha'ena, Kaua'i










BLACK STAR RISING
Ask the Photo Business Coach: Beate Chelette
Editor’s note: Black Star Rising is pleased to introduce a new series of video blog posts, “Ask the Photo Business Coach,” featuring Beate Chelette. The high-energy entrepreneur and former Corbis executive has been profiled twice on this blog, once while with Corbis and again after leaving the company. Today, she is a successful consultant and author. (more…)

DANE SANDERS
Custom Tasty Treats Sweet and Saucy Shop

KEN ROCKWELL
NEW: Nikon 28mm f/2.8 AF-D Review

MIKE LARSON
Ireland... The story begins...
After flying out of New Orleans, through ORD to LHR, I Just arrived in Ireland, its 45 degrees out & rainy, I rented (hired, as they say here) a car and was traveling and exploring down Irish roads that reminded me of the chronicles of Narnia, as when they were in the forests along winding narrow roads with walls of green trees at dusk as the wind blew. Outside I could smell fires as the houses looked so warm inside! The farther I got away from Dublin, the more country-esq the landscape looked. As the sun faded the green grass turned to grey and after praying to find the house, no number address out here, just a ranch name on a street in a town. If found it!

Now we sit by the fireplace warming up over some tea as I get to know the family and we chat about the wedding tomorrow. Its amazing to hear the culture of the Irish, how they do things and what they talk about. I'm excited for tomorrow! Castles churches and green countryside's!
I know some of these people, they know me from a Wedding I shot in Italy last year, Martina, the beautiful bride had some friends who wanted the images for their wedding, just what she had. It makes such a difference to have my couples already know they are in for a big treat, and a great experience. There's no icebreaker needed! Just fun, and an amazingly beautiful day. I'll totally be posting amazing shots tomorrow!...
Photo of the Day
Fix My Photo – Fixing Color

Funny Face Photo Invites: Two-Faced, In a Good Way

Inspiration Board for Brides

TIM GREY (Digital Darkroom Questions)
Today's Question:
Do you have a preference between Unsharp Mask and Smart Sharpen when it comes to sharpening images for print?

Tim's Answer:
I do have a preference, and that preference has actually changed in the not-too-distant past. When the Smart Sharpen filter was first added to Photoshop CS2, I didn't warm up to it immediately. There's no question it had some great new features (specifically, the ability to mitigate sharpening individually for the highlight or shadow areas of the image), but it lacked a Threshold setting, and that was a major issue for me. You see, Threshold is key in terms of being able to "hold back" the sharpening from relatively smooth areas of the image, to ensure those areas remain smooth (a clear sky is a good example of such a situation).

I knew from the information Adobe provided that Smart Sharpen really was "smart" in this regard, but I had misgivings. But after much more testing with a wide variety of images, I've become convinced that the algorithms behind Smart Sharpen really are smarter than Unsharp Mask (I suppose this shouldn't have been any great surprise considering the name of the new filter). So, to answer your question, there's no question in my mind now that Smart Sharpen is the better filter for sharpening your images, and is the one I recommend most highly. I'm quite impressed with just how smart it can be, demonstrating a certain degree of self-control that in most cases will protect the image from the halos that are common with excessive sharpening.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

10 QUICK and EASY Ways to Improve Your Photography
RIGHT NOW!

To view this 14 page document, sign-up as a TPG Member or TPG Photographer.

Benefits include:
  • Credit Card Processing
  • Professional Web Site
  • Online Client Proofing
  • Online Print Ordering
  • High-Impact Slide Show
  • Professional Business Cards
  • Promotion on over 30 sites
  • Training Site 
  • Newsletter
  • Blog Blog
  • FREE Workshops from Mike Larson and Dane Sanders
  • Advanced Editing Training
  • Workflow Training
  • Photography Tips
  • Time-saving Articles
  • Product Presentation Tips
  • Product Reviews
  • Mentorship
  • “Shadow Ops”: Join an experienced photographer on a shoot

10 QUICK and EASY Ways to Improve Your Photography
RIGHT NOW!

What's Inside:
  1. Read “Fast Track Photographer” by Dane Sanders: A summary of Dane's book is on our Training Site
  2. Promote and Network
  3. Constantly improve your portfolio
  4. Biography
  5. Survey, Listen and ask for Referrals
  6. Attend Workshops
  7. Professional Web Site
  8. Network and Promote your sites on Facebook
  9. Be a Professional and Set the Standard
  10. Promoting YOU and Customer Service

BLACK STAR RISING
A Photo Credit Doesn’t Pay the Rent
In the belt-tightening world of editorial photography, many media outlets now offer a photo credit, rather than monetary compensation, for the use of your photo. “It will be great advertising for your work,” they tell you, “and getting published by us will help you professionally.” (more…)

DANE SANDERS
Custom Tasty Treats Sweet and Saucy Shop

KEN ROCKWELL
NEW: Nikon 28mm f/2.8 AF-D Review

MIKE LARSON
Ireland... The story begins...
After flying out of New Orleans, through ORD to LHR, I Just arrived in Ireland, its 45 degrees out & rainy, I rented (hired, as they say here) a car and was traveling and exploring down Irish roads that reminded me of the chronicles of Narnia, as when they were in the forests along winding narrow roads with walls of green trees at dusk as the wind blew. Outside I could smell fires as the houses looked so warm inside! The farther I got away from Dublin, the more country-esq the landscape looked. As the sun faded the green grass turned to grey and after praying to find the house, no number address out here, just a ranch name on a street in a town. If found it!

Now we sit by the fireplace warming up over some tea as I get to know the family and we chat about the wedding tomorrow. Its amazing to hear the culture of the Irish, how they do things and what they talk about. I'm excited for tomorrow! Castles churches and green countryside's!
I know some of these people, they know me from a Wedding I shot in Italy last year, Martina, the beautiful bride had some friends who wanted the images for their wedding, just what she had. It makes such a difference to have my couples already know they are in for a big treat, and a great experience. There's no icebreaker needed! Just fun, and an amazingly beautiful day. I'll totally be posting amazing shots tomorrow!...


Photo of the Day


PHOTOFOCUS
Podcast: Special guest host – David DuChemin, author of Within the Frame: The Journey of Photographic Vision.


Funny Face Photo Invites: Two-Faced, In a Good Way


STYLE ME PRETTY
Inspiration Board for Brides


TIM GREY (Digital Darkroom Questions)
Today's Question:
I’ve run into a problem recently when changing image profiles from Adobe RGB (1998) to sRGB for Web site or book (Blurb) publication. In the past when I would assign (and, yes, I use Assign Profile, not Convert to Profile) the sRGB profile in Photoshop CS4 there would be little discernible change in the display. But within the past few weeks the images seem to get noticeably muddier looking when the profile changes. If I do the conversion when exporting from Lightroom 2.0 I don’t seem to get this shift. I’m using a 24-inch iMac that’s profiled by Monaco Optix. I just re-profiled the monitor (today) to see if that made any difference, and it didn’t. My color settings in Photoshop are for Adobe RGB (1998) to be the working space.

Tim's Answer:
The problem you're experiencing has everything to do with the fact that you're using the Assign Profile command rather than the Convert to Profile command (both of which are found on the Edit menu in Photoshop). The difference between Assign Profile and Convert to Profile may seem trivial, but the difference can actually be huge. Depending on the specific circumstances the final result may not be particularly significant, but in many cases the differences can be extreme.

The Assign to Profile command actually changes the meaning of the color values in the image (without changing the actual RGB numbers), which will change the color appearance of the image. For example, assigning a given profile might cause any pixels that are "red-orange" in color to be translated into "red-magenta" pixels. I realize this might sound like a silly thing to do. The reason it sounds like a silly thing to do is that in the context of an image that already looks good, it is a silly thing to do. But the Assign Profile command is actually very important. It is used when you need to correct the colors in an image based on an "input" profile. A common example would be a scanner profile. If you create a custom profile of your scanner, that profile is really there to describe the behavior of the scanner. That way, if the scanner doesn't "see" colors accurately, you can correct the color to an accurate appearance by assigning the scanner profile (in other words, providing a new interpretation of the RGB values in the image file that resulted from the film scan). The same situation would exist for photographers using a custom profile for their digital camera (though most photographers really don't need custom profiles for their digital cameras).

The Convert to Profile will actually change the color values in your image, in an effort to preserve the appearance of the pixel values after the conversion. For example, in one color space particular values might result in a red-orange color, but in another color space those same numbers result in a red-magenta color. When you convert from one profile to another, the numbers associated with the color values for each pixel are changed so they translate to the same actual color. The key here is that the process, to the extent it is possible, retains the appearance of colors while using a different color space profile to describe the colors in the image. Of course, a different color space does mean that a different range of colors (color gamut) will be available, so there is the possibility that some colors can't be retained, and will instead be represented by the closest matching color. But overall Convert to Profile will retain the color appearance of your image quite accurately.

The reason you're not experiencing the problem in Lightroom, by the way, is that Lightroom is converting to the destination profile, not assigning the profile.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Blog Blog

KEN POSNEY: DAILY POST

Summary on "10 QUICK and EASY Ways to Improve Your Photography". The rest of this information will be posted on our Training Site.

1. Read Dane Sanders book, "Fast Track Photographer". It's $25 and can literally save your photography career from going down the wrong path.

2. Promote and Network! Tag, you're it. It's up to you to promote your photography. Shout it from the top of the world and let everyone else decide if they like your work. Share Facebook pages and "Suggest to Friends". Comment on blogs. Post your images. Tell your friends and family.

3. Constantly improve your portfolio
a. Consider your potential customer asking this question when looking at your portfolio: “Why should we hire you to capture our most important day?” Put yourself in the client’s shoes.
b. Are you jumping at the chance to improve your portfolio? Are you taking every opportunity to shoot and improve upon your work?
c. Have you submitted/uploaded your best work?
d. Use Lightscribe and pochettes (or similar) in your packaging. Impress your customers from the time they meet you to the moment they receive their long-awaited images.
e. Have friends, family and acquaintances review and edit your work. Ask them to take out five images from your portfolio.

4. Biography
a. Biographies and blogs help to break the ice. Potential clients like to feel connected to the person who will document one of the most important days of their life. They need to trust in the person who will give them their finest artistic representations of themselves.
b. Have you provided a bio; one that tells a story about who you are, what you believe in, what your photography style is and what’s important to you.
c. Give your potential customer the opportunity they’re looking for. They’re looking for a reason to connect with you. They want to feel safe and taken care of. Put yourself in the client’s shoes.


5. Survey, Listen and ask for Referrals
a. Don’t tell the customer what they need. Ask them what they need and simply listen.
b. It’s not about you. It’s all about them. You’re awesome…but they’re awesomer.
c. Referrals: This is the lifeblood of your business. Ask for it.


6. Attend Workshops
a. Learn from the pros, like Dane Sanders and Mike Larson!
b. These are FREE to TPG Photographers!


7. Professional Web Site
Simple, consistent, fresh, professional, easy to navigate, images come up quickly. Your web site will change many times over the course of your career. You will look back on your old web sites with disgust. You will ask yourself, “What was I thinking?”. Do not blaze your own path on this…too much. Do not get fancy. People just want to see your work, with a small amount of effort, in a short period of time. Review what the top photographers are putting up. There is a method to their madness. It’s simple, they load quickly, it’s easy to understand, it’s good for search engines, it’s clean, it’s not confusing in many aspects. There are some terrible sites from some of the top photographers. Use what you like, throw out what you don’t find necessary.

If you were to have the opportunity to shoot for a big time celebrity, for the President of the United States, for National Geographic, or a client who can appreciate your photography, would you be proud to show them your site…are you ready? If the answer is “no”, this web site is keeping you from getting the business you need. Same goes for the images you are displaying. Do not cling to images because of a personal attachment (i.e., we hiked for seven miles in the snow to get this shot).

You are showing your potential customers, in a few seconds, who you are and how much they should value your work. Where are you intending to get your business from? Your web site is your FIRST IMPRESSION.


8. Network and Promote your sites on Facebook. Don’t keep it a secret! SHARE ALL SITES YOU ARE ON WITH EVERYONE

From www.Photobiz.com
a. Create a vanity URL: Any Fan page with more than 25 Fans can create a shortened URL for their page similar to PhotoBiz (i.e. http://facebook.com/photobiz)

b. Remember that anytime you leave a link to your Facebook Fan Page (Or your Website for that matter) include the http:// of your domain so that it appears as a live “clickable” link rather that just text that you would have to copy and paste in the address bar. (i.e. photobiz.com OR http://photobiz.com)

c. Be sure to spend a majority of your time on Facebook engaging on your BUSINESS PAGE, not your personal page.

d. Treat the Inbox at the top like it’s the inbox to your business email; respond appropriately and promptly.

e. Accept and deny causes, groups, pages, etc… as you want your customer’s to perceive you and your business (Religious, Political, and Controversial)

f. You can create a vanity URL by going to http://facebook.com/username. *NOTE*-You must have at least 25 fans. You will need to be logged in to Facebook and look toward the bottom. Once you have chosen your name, it CANNOT be changed!

g. Don’t Waste Your Time! – Efficiency

h. If you’re a mobile “data” user, download the Facebook App on your iPhone or Blackberry to help manage it.

i. Don’t get caught up in spending too much time on here as it’ easy to do and can be more “Fun” than Effective…

j. If you have a blog, use Social RSS to have your blog content automatically transferred to Facebook.

k. If you are a Twitter user, there are a number of applications that allow you to automatically update both with the same message. We choose “Selective Twitter Status”.

l. Be Human! Don’t be so business and promote your own products ALL of the time. This will get annoying and spammy to your fans. Mix it up a bit and throw some fun into it.

m. Utilize your ability to “Send an Update to Fans” wisely. DO NOT do this all the time or you will lose fans rather than gain. Include incentives and a lot of resourceful information.

n. Are you a part of Forums, groups, blogs, other Facebook pages, etc…? Tell people to become a fan of your page and you will return the Favor. There was a recent post on I Love Photography Forum with well over 100 posts and each person was cooperative in this.

o. Use the “FBML Application” if you are familiar with HTML to build custom tabs to your site at the top. You can designate a particular tab to be the landing page like Coca Cola (http://www.facebook.com/cocacola)

p. Did you know that each Tab at the top of your Facebook Fan page has a unique URL that you can send people to? 1) Go to “Edit” your page, 2) Click on the Modify Button (Pencil), 3) Click “Link to this Tab”

q. Use the “TAG” feature. When creating a wall post, if you are mentioning someone, add @ before their name. This will allow for anyone to click on that “tagged” name and visit their profile or page (whichever you tagged) Viral Marketing!

9. Be a Professional and Set the Standard
There are specific things we all need to do to continue to receive referrals and recommendations from our clients and vendors, above and beyond just making stunning photographs. There are things like our relationship with them, our attitude, our appearance, our ethics and communication.

SHOW UP EARLY
Some wedding coordinators will ask you to show up a half hour early, just in case you have trouble finding the place, or traffic or just so you can get the feel of the location and potential spots for your shoot. Even if they don’t ask, or if it’s just you and the couple, show up early. From the coordinators point of view, they are concerned that everything is in place and ready to go. If you or the musician shows up at 4:00pm for a 4:00pm wedding, this causes stress. If you show up a half hour early, this creates happiness.

DEADLINE
If you’re running late with the photographs or have any complications, let the coordinator or clients know immediately. Communication is super important. Most of my clients are okay waiting eight weeks, if they know I’m going to provide them with exceptional images. Most clients are okay when you tell them, their images are taking a little longer to edit. They like the TLC (Tender Loving Care) you provide to them.

RELATIONSHIPS
There is a definite relationship between us and the coordinators. We need each other. We all need to appreciate the opportunities we have and nurture them everyday. It won’t be long before people start noticing you…good or bad. Remember, your work, attitude and professionalism is a direct reflection on you.

RETHINK
Consider that in order for you to improve your photography and increase your income, you may have to completely rethink your way of doing business. If it hasn’t worked in the past, by all means, change it. Having a business means being super, super…super flexible…and of course, able to leap tall business. The business side of photography is the part that’s forgotten about, or ignored by most photographers. I know, most times it’s not fun, but if you ignore it, it’ll be like the blob…it won’t go away.

...come back tomorrow for more!

BLACK STAR RISING
How to Make Winning Wildlife Portraits
Getting your first close-up photograph of a wild animal is kind of like getting your first kiss; you’re often so flustered (not to mention grateful) at the opportunity and so satisfied by the conquest that you lose all critical perspective. (more…)

DANE SANDERS
Dane's Speaking Calendar

KEN ROCKWELL
NEW: Photos from Arizona and New Mexico, November 2008

MIKE LARSON
Brandon and Kaleena {Rancho Las Palmas}
Located in the Palm Springs area, Rancho Las Palmas was a beautiful setting for this amazing wedding....

Photo of the Day

PHOTOFOCUS
Emerging Photographer of the Year Finalist – Tia M. Bailey

The Pushpin Masterpiece Frame

STYLE ME PRETTY
Inspiration Board for Brides

TIM GREY (Digital Darkroom Questions)
Today's Question:
Is there any simple and effective method to remove flare from a digital image? I have a number of images , typically from shooting into the light, where there are small flare spots that are not in a uniform parts of the image such as blue sky so making removal more difficult.

Tim's Answer:
There certainly isn't a magical formula for removing lens flare from an image. Obviously the best solution is to avoid the lens flare in the first place. In general, that means using a lens shade if available for the lens you're using, or shading the lens with something else (such as a piece of cardboard or your hand) when the situation allows. Of course, in some cases you are including the sun in the frame, or there are other circumstances that make avoidance impossible (or not practical), so you're going to have to deal with the lens flare after the capture (or simply accept it as part of the image).

One approach I often take with lens flare when I'm comfortable with the flare actually appearing in the image but prefer not to see the color shift of the lens flare is to change the color without changing the luminosity of the area affected by the flare. In other words, there will still be a bright spot in the image in the shape of the lens aperture, but it won't have a strong color element. To accomplish this I would create a new empty image layer directly above the Background image layer by first clicking on the thumbnail for the Background image layer and then clicking on the Create a New Layer button (the blank sheet of paper icon) at the bottom of the Layers panel. Change the blend mode for this layer to Color using the popup at the top-left of the Layers panel. It is also a good idea to rename this new layer so you'll know why it is there, so double-click on the name of the layer on the Layers panel, type a new name (such as "Color Fix") and press Enter/Return. Then choose the Brush tool from the toolbox and hold the Alt/Option key and click on an appropriate color within the image to set that color as the foreground color. Set the Hardness to 0% using the Brush popup on the Options bar, and make sure the Blend Mode for the Brush (on the Options bar) is set to Normal and the Opacity is at 100%. Then simply paint in the image to change the color of the lens flare, without affecting the luminosity (and therefore texture) of the image. You can choose a new color as needed at any time by holding the Alt/Option key and clicking within the image to sample a new color.

The other option is to completely remove the lens flare, which as you've realized can be considerably more challenging. If this is your goal, you need to stop thinking of the lens flare as a brighter area within the image that might have a color cast, and instead think of it as a solid object that is completely blocking an area of the image. The reason for this is that it is very difficult to adjust an area of lens flare to eliminate the tonal and color variations, and much easier (even in challenging circumstances) to simply replace the area altogether. In this case I would click on the thumbnail for the Background image layer to make it active, and then click the Create a New Layer button (blank sheet of paper icon) at the bottom of the Layers panel to create a new empty image layer. Choose the Clone Stamp tool from the toolbox, and on the Options bar click the Brush popup and set the Hardness to about 50%. Set the Sample popup to All Layers and click the button to the right of the popup (it has a half-black and half-white circle with a line through it) to disable the effect of adjustment layers. Adjust the brush size as needed by pressing the left square bracket key ([) to reduce the brush size and right square bracket key (]) to increase the brush size. Then hold the Alt/Option key and click on an area of the image that represents a good replacement for the area you want to fix (in this case the lens flare). Then click and drag on the lens flare to paint it away, replacing it with the source you defined. You may need to select a new source several times while working in a small area as you work to blend replacement pixels into the new area. Ultimately, removing lens flare is far more difficult than avoiding it in the first place. But if you have lens flare you need to correct, you can either remove the color or replace the lens flare with another area of the image in order to minimize the impact of the flare in the final image.