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Deliberate Blurs, This Weekend’s Photography Tip

Gordon Campbell — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 11:00:30 +0000

One question often received regards how to take pictures showing an element of purposeful blurring, especially involving sports and water. I was recently honored to speak on the subject at the DPI-SIG camera club meeting in Naples. A few of the points I covered on this sometimes tricky subject were:

Deliberate blurs add to your nature, sports and street scenes photography. Motorcycle blur by Gordon Campbell www.swfloutdoorphotography.com.

What’s Going On?- low light is your friend and essentially creative blurs occur when the camera moves, the subject or part of moves and or both move to help structure the image.

Shutter Speeds: Your best shots will occur with shutter speeds ranging from around 1/60 of a second down to 30 full seconds and more when shooting after sundown.

Steady Rest- because of these extended times, a rock steady rest involving tripods and other anchors like beanbags plus the use of a self timer or remote shutter release helps keep those subjects within the frame that act as an offset to the blurred areas sharp.

A strong command of these techniques adds to your ability and the portfolio of great photos you’ll eventually take but practice and knowledge are key. Zip me an email or leave a question if you’d like to learn more- Gordon.

Professional Photography from Ft. Meyers & Sanibel to Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades.

gordon@SWFLOutdoorPhotography.com

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Your Weekend Photography Tip: Know Your ISO

Gordon Campbell — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:00:47 +0000

Don’t worry about the basis for the scientific acronym but rather how things work. For some reason I find that people often confuse their ISO setting with shutter speed. Here’s the lowdown: The lower your ISO the less sensitive your camera is to light and the amount of associated grain tends to be less too. Perfect for bright sunny days. The higher your ISO say 800 plus the more sensitive your camera is to light. It will allow you a faster action stopping shutter speed but will yield noise or grain at slow shutter speeds. The upside?- you can maintain a higher shutter speed to avoid blurs under dimmer outdoor conditions or when using a flash at night.

Bump your ISO up for action shots under late day conditions like this. Flight silhouette by Gordon Campbell www.swfloutdoorphotography.com.

Now a counter intuitive curve ball. Since lower ISO settings like 100 or 200 are less grainy and less sensitive to light they’re perfect for deliberately long exposures at night when stopping motion and brightening up the room with a flash are not the goal. An evening shoot downtown is a perfect application. Not sure which way to g? Set your ISO to “auto” and let your camera do the thinking ’til you get more experienced.

Reduce your ISO for night scenes like this where long exposures are the intent. 5th Avenue, Naples by Gordon Campbell www.swfloutdoorphotography.com.

If this article helped, browse the archives here for lots more good info and if you have a question or interest in instruction, let me know. Good shooting- Gordon.

Professional Photography from Ft. Meyers & Sanibel to Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades.

gordon@SWFLOutdoorPhotography.com

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A Thing of the Past

Gordon Campbell — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 11:18:04 +0000

Things change especially with development here in Southwest Florida. You may have some favorite things or places that you like to photograph and one day they could be gone. I learned that this week when I met up for a beach photography class. The tiki hut which illustrates this article and coincidentally last week’s suddenly disappeared. No more sunset silhouettes here…..

Be sure to photograph your favorite spots. Naples Beach Tiki Hut by Gordon Campbell www.swfloutdoorphotography.com.

So lesson learned- get out there at different times of the day maybe with a few different lenses and shooting angles and put some great photos in the bank. You never know, it could get robbed! Next week: sorting out some of those mystery items in your camera menu- Gordon.

Professional Photography from Ft. Meyers & Sanibel to Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades.

gordon@SWFLOutdoorPhotography.com

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Were You In The Audience?

Gordon Campbell — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 06:00:18 +0000

With a growing interest in digital photography I was privileged to be called on to do a series of seminars on the topic through the Collier library system. Were you at the Central Ave location yesterday? We had a full house of about 95 in attendance and covered everything from camera set up, composition and lighting, sunsets, online resources plus Q&A and more.

Learn sure fire photography tips to liven up your sunsets. Photo by Gordon Campbell www.swfloutdoorphotography.com.

If you’d like to put the above ideas to work on candids, nature photography, sports, pets, people and more then mark your calendar. There is room for the February 2nd presentation at the South Regional location but just a limited number of seats for the March 6th date at the Orange Blossom location. For info and to register call the library at 239-252-7542.

Whether or not you made it yesterday, let me know if I can answer a question for you or if photography instruction including outdoor excursions along our beaches and Everglades would be of interest. If you did attend, thanks for your participation, it was a great event- Gordon.

Professional Photography from Ft. Meyers & Sanibel to Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades.

gordon@SWFLOutdoorPhotography.com

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Are Your Photos Colorful?

Gordon Campbell — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 13:23:32 +0000

Have you ever taken what looks like a great shot only to find out at home that the colors look muted or “flat”? There are three cures, two easy and one that requires more attention. Let’s take a look-

Use warm lighting, expose carefully & understand digital processing for colorful photos. Marsh trail by Gordon Campbell www.swfloutdoorphotography.com.

- The hard part… learn to understand exposure, at least the basics. For uniform colors and lighting you can use your matrix meter, if there are lighting extremes spot metering on your subject might be better. Get familiar with your exposure value adjustment too. Review your histogram for signs of over or under exposure then recompose and shoot if necessary.

- Getting easier… your richest colors come early and late in the day under the “magic hour” when the lighting is warm and leads to great saturation so do your outdoor photography then.

- Finally, using digital processing software like Photoshop Elements or Lightroom understand simple enhancements including slight tweaks to contrast, saturation and shadow/highlight relief.

Let me know if I can help further. You can explore the archives for other helpful posts or subscribe to future articles via email right here. Gordon.

Professional Photography from Ft. Meyers & Sanibel to Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades.

gordon@SWFLOutdoorPhotography.com

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Winter Means Wildlife Photography

Gordon Campbell — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 07:00:36 +0000

I like lots of you are from up North and the novelty of looking forward to Winter is always amusing. Know the feeling? Not because we all eschew Summer here in Southwest Florida but because Winter means great bird and wildlife photography. Could use use a few tips?

Winter means wildlife photography and alligators are a prime subject. Photo by Gordon Campbell www.swfloutdoorphotography.com.

- Alligators. Despite what some would guess, they’re very photogenic. I like to take shots that depict portraits, the whole ‘gator and close ups of their textured hide. The best time? Late afternoon when warm sun keeps them basking happily along waterways everywhere, particularly in the Everglades. Always use caution around these top predators!

- Birds. At this time of year we have a mix of resident birds and temporary migratory residents. Great photography can be had, just search the beaches and concentrated inland waterways. Tip: juveniles of certain species like our eagles and gulls show mottled plumage so a field guide is a must unless you’re expert.

In all cases DSLR owners will need larger lenses including zooms of at least 300mm while Point and Shoot owners should use their optical zoom while avoiding the temptation of reaching out further with the digital zoom which distorts picture quality.

If I can take a question for you or if you’re interested in a guided trip to the Everglades, just zip me a message and I’ll respond promptly. Good luck afield, let’s hear how you do- Gordon.

Professional Photography from Ft. Meyers & Sanibel to Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades.

gordon@SWFLOutdoorPhotography.com

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New Year’s Resolutions?

Gordon Campbell — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 17:21:27 +0000

How about some photography resolutions? For me that includes expanding business in the areas of real estate photography services, teaching and instruction, more guided nature photography excursions and continuing to learn myself. That’s not all either! I plan to keep sharing what I encounter, know and learn right here and… I hope to meet more of you next year.

Happy New Year! What are your photography resolutions? Photo by Gordon Campbell www.swfloutdoorphotography.com.

What are your resolutions? Trying something different? Getting more acquainted with your camera gear? Hiring help where needed? All three are a step in the right direction whether you’re a shutterbug or someone who uses photography services.

So, Happy New Year! Thanks for reading and for your business. See you in 2012- Gordon.

Professional Photography from Ft. Meyers & Sanibel to Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades.

gordon@SWFLOutdoorPhotography.com

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Enjoy the Holidays

Gordon Campbell — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 07:00:22 +0000

Regular readers normally expect photography tips, new images and other info related to the topic here. Today I’d like to start by saying “Happy Holidays” and “thanks” for your readership and support again this year.

Happy Holidays and thanks for your readership this year- Gordon.

On the topic of Holidays and photography I thought I’d link to an article that reminds us that it’s the photographer, not the camera that takes great pictures- something I always try to emphasize here and in teaching sessions. Read it & feel good about your current gear and all the opportunities for successful picture taking.

So take lots of photos and enjoy the Holidays- Gordon.

Professional Photography from Ft. Meyers & Sanibel to Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades.

gordon@SWFLOutdoorPhotography.com

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Holiday Photography Tips- Outdoor Shots

Gordon Campbell — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 06:00:26 +0000

Last week we took a look at some ideas for indoor photography during the Holiday season so now here are a few ideas for outdoor shots especially at night-

Look for attractive night time scenes around town and try these techniques. Gordon Campbell www.swfloutdoorphotography.com.

1- Try out your different lenses or if using a point & shoot vary your zoom to compose both close ups and deeper scenes. Wide angle lenses will enable you to capture trees, other tall objects and broad street scenes while adding some interesting distortion to your photos. If that distortion bothers you and you’d like to avoid tall straight objects from curving inward, try to place them in the center of your frame. Street photography peaks at this time of year with all of the seasonal lighting.

2- To take advantage of all that decorative lighting, do this: fix your camera on a tripod, minimize your ISO setting, shoot in program mode or if you’re familiar with aperture priority try that to vary your depth of field. Lastly activate your shutter remotely or via the built in self timer. Easy, compose right and you’ll get nice shots. Questions?

3- Watch your focus. Your camera may struggle at night to lock on and focus accurately. The simple cure to this is to switch to manual focus, find a discernible “edge” within your subject and dialing carefully ’til the little green light inside your view finder comes on.

There is still a couple weeks left for this most interesting photography. Let me know if I can help answer a question and…Merry Christmas- Gordon.

Professional Photography from Ft. Meyers & Sanibel to Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades.

gordon@SWFLOutdoorPhotography.com

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Final 2011 Nature Photography Class Offered at Rookery Bay

Gordon Campbell — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 06:00:48 +0000

Interested in nature photography? Want to learn to get the most of your camera out in the field? Rookery Bay, famous for environmental research and education will be offering the 3rd of 3 nature photography classes beginning Tuesday at 8:30-11:30 am next week. Camera set up, composition, lighting and more will be covered in class before a guided field trip to top birding spot Tiger Tail Beach. This is the perfect class for the beginner with either a point & shoot or DSLR.

Improve your nature photos with next week's class at Rookery Bay. Alligator photo by Gordon Campbell www.swfloutdoorphotography.com.

As a bonus there will be an optional photo editing session where students will learn to use Photo Shop Elements and similar photo editing programs to optimize their best photos.

Guess who your instructor will be? Right, yours truly and I hope to see you there. Contact Rookery Bay to register or get more details on this popular class.

Professional Photography from Ft. Meyers & Sanibel to Naples, Marco Island and the Everglades.

gordon@SWFLOutdoorPhotography.com

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Gordon Campbell

239-776-4743