Photobook

This is a link to my PhotoBook

It was a fun experience compiling my images from this semester. I got to look back on all the photos that I took this semester and see how my photography has improved in just 12 weeks. I am proud of what I have done this semester and am excited to move forward and improve.

I themed my photobook off of the idea that photography has changed the way that I see the world. Since I started taking photos and paying attention to composition, angles, and light I notice these things more often than just when I am behind the camera. I pay attention to patterns and shadows. Photography has helped me to see the world in a new way and has changed my vision.

Fine Art Print

This is the image I chose for my first large print. Out of the camera, this image was really dark and I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to salvage the details.

To lighten the image I raised the shadows and the blacks. I desaturated the colors and bumped up the texture to make a more rustic feel. There is a lot of red in the hand and it’s distracting so I used a mask to pull out the red in just the hand.

I added masks to add a dodge and burn effect. I emphasized the shadows and the highlights to add more drama to the image.

Pro Tip: turn your screen brightness down to 50-75% so that you can tell how it is going to print. When a photo gets printed it always prints darker than it looks like on the screen.

Contests

Idaho Falls Magazine

Adobe Design Achievement

Top 5

This semester I have stretched myself and pushed myself to do things that I haven’t done before. I have grow in my abilities and my confidence in my skills. The following are 5 different images that I am proud of and feel show a range of what I can contribute as a photographer.

Macro Photography

Pay attention to the details. Close up photography helps to capture a size to bring the details to focus. For these images I used a 4x close up lens and a focal length between 80-135mm.

Tip: when doing close up photography switch to manual focus and move your body and/or camera before you adjust the focus.

 

Bannack Fine Art

 

Portrait Lighting

Natural Light/Ambient Light

Model: Martin

Natural Light/Ambient Light

Model: Stan

Model: Gerald

Strobe Light

Model: Rick and Kathy Toot

Continuous Reflector

David Duster

AD500 Strobe

Model: Meghan Nielsen

Before (Natural Light)-

After (Strobe Light)-

Creative Shots

Just Flew into Town this levitation image was created from different images. I set the camera on a tripod and took one image of the subject standing on a stool. Then I took the subject and the stool out of the frame and captured another image. I posted the two images together in photoshop and was able to remove the stool. This makes the illusion of the subject floating in air.

I found this small window in the bottom of the wall. The light coming into the room on the other side of the of the wall creating lines across the hallway.

The ability to tell a story is a powerful thing. It doe. It require a ton of words. You can tell a story with just one image. The image below is called “Lady of the House”.

Visuals are an important part of advertising. The image below is an example of using photography and editing to draw focus to what you are wanting to sell. With the image you want to tell a story to promote emotion.

With a longer shutter speed you create transparency in a moving subject. For this image I used a 15 second shutter speed and had the subject stand in one place for about 5 seconds and then move to a different position. This image was captured in just one frame.

 

 

Bannack Photo Series

Rooftops

Spent a day at the Bannack Ghost Town in Wyoming. All the old houses were fascinating and made you travel back in time. I wanted to capture a new perspective so I laid on the ground in front of each building to capture the rooflines and the sky. I used bracketing to help capture all the detail.

Change Your Perspective

I spent the weekend in Arizona enjoying the sun shine and the different scenery. The resort that I was staying at had some amazing landscaping. I loved sitting by the pool and admiring the beautiful flora and fauna, especially the palm trees. All of my images contain a palm tree. Being pushed to find new and different perspectives stretches the mind. A subject can look so different up close, with all the details, then from farther away.  You can create a far different emotion and message dependent on your perspective.

Below I have featured a few of my favorite images.

 

Capturing Motion

There are a lot of different ways to capture motion. You can freeze a moment, making it look as if you have stopped time. Or you can create a feeling of movement in the image by blurring the subject. Understanding how to create these two looks can help you to create more depth of emotion and provoke a certain emotion.

FREEZE MOTION:

Jumpers, 05/05/2019, 7pm, St. Anthony, ID f/3.5, 1/1250

A frozen motion image captures a single moment, looking like you have frozen time. In order to do this you need a fast shutter speed so you only capture one moment and the subject is still in focus. Because of the fast shutter speed you need a wide aperture to let enough light into the lens. This will capture the detail like the expressions on their faces and the sand kicked up underneath their feet. With a fast shutter speed you are able to capture motion because you can see them floating and you can see where they are going to end up based on their gaze.

Red Car, 05/07/2019, 5pm, 2nd S, Rexburg, ID f/3.5, 1/800

A freeze motion image is the easiest to capture when there is a lot of light. Because the shutter speed is fast you need to make sure that you getting enough light to get the right exposure. For the image above I kept my focal length at 18mm which allowed me to open my aperture wider to get more light and bright the exposure while keeping the focus.

BLURRED MOTION:

New Tricks, 05/06/2019, 8pm, Archer, ID f/200, 1/15, chair as a tripod

This image creates a different kind of motion. Rather than seeing all of the details of the subject you can see motion because of the blurred effect.  This is create by a slower shutter speed and a more narrow aperture. There are more moments that you are able to capture at once. Its as if you are condensing a short timeline down. In order to effectively capture this look you will need to use a tripod to keep your camera steady. You have to keep the stationary objects crisp and in focus in order to bring more attention to the moving object. You will also need to think about how much blur you want to create. If your shutter speed is too long the moving object will not even be captured in the image.

Windmills, 05/05/2019, 9pm, Blacktail Dr., Ririe, ID f/200, 1/15, car as tripod

You will also need to think about how much blur you want to create. If your shutter speed is too long the moving object will not even be captured in the image. In the image above I tried a few different shutter speeds to get the look I wanted. If the shutter was too long the blades would disappear from the image all together. This is a technique that can be helpful when you want the moving image to completely disappear. In this case I wanted to still see the blades but capture the motion.

Aperture and Shutter Speed

This is a study of shutter speed and aperture and how you can use it to create powerful images. Command over these principles will help you to influence exposure and the art of your photographs.

Wide Aperture:

An image is created when light enters into the lens of the camera. The aperture is a setting to control that light. Aperture is the size of the hole in that lens that allows for light to enter. When the hole is large, described by a small f-stop, it creates a shallow depth of field. This draws attention to images in one area of the image. In the image above the beans and the hummus are sharp and very clear while the objects in the back are blurred out and there is low focus.

 

Narrow Aperture:

The image above is and example of narrow aperture. Notice how the entire image is sharp and you can see all the details. Increasing the f-stop makes the hole small and allows less light to enter the lens. This will optimize the detail of the image and will bring out all of the details.

 

slow Shutter Speed:

Another way to control the exposure of an image is by changing the shutter speed. If you decrease the shutter speed to something like 8 seconds, or even 1 second, light will enter the lens for a longer amount of time and create more detail.  This works well when you have a narrow aperture. You can use a slow shutter speed to create a motion blur. If an object in the frame is moving it will blur and create a feeling of motion like the tail lights of the cars in the above image.

 

Fast Shutter Speed:

When you increase the shutter speed, the time that light is allowed to enter the lens is decreased. This captures more fine details like the image above. Because the photographer used a faster shutter speed you can see the individual rain drops rather than a sheet of white across the image. This is a great technique to use when your subject is moving and you want to capture a lot of detail.

Light:

Now you know a little bit about how to control light and the way that your camera captures that but you also need to know how to use the light around you and command it to create a powerful image. The best times to photograph is during Golden Hour which is 1.5 hours after sunrise or 1.5 hours after sunset. Find where your light is. you can create a different effect when you have backlight vs side light or front light. You can use light to draw focus, create contrast, add color, and so many other things.