Storm Photography: Shooting in Extreme Weather |  |
- Storm Photography: Shooting in Extreme Weather
- Photographer Asks Girlfriend to Take Panorama, Proposes in the Final Shot!
- Youth Sports Photography Tips: How to Pose Groups
- How to Make a Civil War Era Tintype Photograph
| Storm Photography: Shooting in Extreme Weather Posted: 02 Jun 2013 04:39 PM PDT Quick Reminder: Only a few days left! in the deal on: Photography Magic Guide There are four main types of weather, that often discourage photographers from even attempting what might be some of their greatest work. These four obstacles would be: a) extreme cold, b) extreme heat, c) extreme moisture and d) extreme wind. While each of these has probably at one time or another discouraged even the best of us from going out to shoot, they also present unique photo opportunities simply because so few of us want to take the effort.  “storm” captured by Siro (Click Image to Find Photographer) Before tackling each of these areas let me suggest one thing that could help in all of them. The perfect camera bag is not a camera bag. The ideal bag is a coat with many pockets or if you can afford it, a camera vest. The reasons these are preferable include: Keeps film or blank media close to you (keeping them warm and dry), less likely to be stolen, less likely to be left behind, and less likely to be knocked over or damaged by the weather itself. Extreme cold (0Ú F or less) often means battery problems. Bringing extra batteries is one thing, but if they are not also kept warm, your spares could be dead as fast as your main batteries. The same is true of film or blank media; that’s why I suggest a coat, preferably one with inside pockets as well. Use duct tape to tape off any exposed metal on your camera itself.  Captured by John Milleker (Click Image to Find Photographer) Find a set of gloves that still lets you handle your camera controls. Hunting gloves are often thin but still insulated because they face the same problem you do, they have to be able to make adjustments. If you have several accessories (Film, Flash, Filters, etc.) you may also want to consider individual zip lock bags. This works well for most extreme weather situations. Extreme Heat (120Ú F or more) may also cause battery problems, but it is more likely to have an effect on your film or blank media. In this case is would be worth upgrading to insulated bags, like those found in many grocery stores. Another alternative to a traditional camera bag is a small lunch cooler, lightweight and insulated. If you want to use blue ice, put it in its own baggie just so no moister leaks out. Again you will want to tape off the exposed metal parts of your camera. You may or may not want to try still shooting with lightweight gloves depending how extreme the heat is. As a photographer, always bring extra water for yourself. It is very easy to get distracted by what you are shooting and get dehydrated or worse yet, heat stroke. Extreme Moisture (snow or rain) is the biggest threat to your equipment itself (the camera or flash or both). If we could all afford an underwater housing bag for our individual camera, life would be good. But since many of us either can’t find or can’t afford such a wonderful device, building your own is the next best thing. Take a large (1 gallon size) zip lock bag place it over your camera and cut a hole where the lens is. Use a rubber band to secure the bag to the barrel of the lens. If you have a separate lens hood, screw it into the front of the lens. If not, even a skylight filter will offer some protection. If you have both, go for it. Still keep your camera undercover when not shooting; this type of protection is only good for a few seconds at a time. In most cases, extreme wind is not something you go out in on purpose. But for those times when it comes upon you, make sure you have some type of filter on (ideally you should do this all the time anyway). Remember a twenty dollar filter is much easier to replace than a three hundred dollar lens. If you kept your moisture bag with you as regular camera gear, this would help dramatically. Use a tripod, and if at all possible weigh your tripod down.  “Lightning” captured by Great Salt Lake Photographer (Click Image to Find Photographer) I’ve heard of photographers who regularly carry beanbags with them for this purpose. Personally, I always carry some string with me. If my tripod is not stable enough by itself, I just tie a big rock to the center column. Regardless of what precautions you have taken, try not to shoot directly into the wind. If you are one of those who regularly carry tape with you, it would be worth taping all seals on your camera if you have to be out in it for any length of time. Obviously, not all of us want to go out in extreme weather; but if you do just plan ahead and you may very well end up with some extreme shots that will be worth the time and effort. About the Author: For Further Training:Special effects photography is the kind of non-photoshopped picture taking that makes onlookers wonder 'how did you do that?' This new guide is designed to open your mind to many simple and incredibly difficult techniques that will expand your photography range and help you become a more knowledgeable photographer in general. The deal can be found here: Photography Magic Guide Launch Sale Go to full article: Storm Photography: Shooting in Extreme Weather |
| Photographer Asks Girlfriend to Take Panorama, Proposes in the Final Shot! Posted: 02 Jun 2013 03:07 PM PDT Most people who have been seriously bitten by the photography bug develop a desire to incorporate photography into other endeavors in life — from travelling to food preparation to child rearing, etc. So why not combine it with the once-in-a-lifetime act of proposing marriage to a special someone? Photographer Brady Dyer did just that, tricking his girlfriend into taking a seemingly innocent 360 degree panorama of a lovely sunrise and then springing in for a romantic surprise (for those of you reading this by email, the video can be seen here): At the end of the long panorama, Brady is seen sitting there and holding a shiny engagement ring. It takes a full couple of seconds before his girlfriend realizes what’s going on and starts shrieking in glee. Though her reply is not captured in the video, we are pleased to know that, indeed, she said yes.
And that is how photographers, or at least the romantic ones, get it done. Go to full article: Photographer Asks Girlfriend to Take Panorama, Proposes in the Final Shot! |
| Youth Sports Photography Tips: How to Pose Groups Posted: 02 Jun 2013 01:45 PM PDT One of the more challenging aspects of youth sports picture days is the proper posing of team photos. You could have perfect exposure, focus and composition but if the kids aren't posed properly the products will still look unprofessional. Like anything, the more time you spend practicing the better you will be at it. The problem with that is that you don't want to learn on the fly and immediately create a lot of unhappy customers in your community. With the popularity of social media these days it isn't uncommon for one of your photos to end up on Facebook which could do significant damage to your reputation before you know what hit you. Consistency in high volume photography is vital. When photographing a league of 3,000 players things need to be consistent. It is extremely important to develop a set of tools that can be easily repeated. By creating a set of charts, diagrams and other tools you can help ensure consistency whether shooting 1 team or 100. Small Team Sports Examples of small team sports are baseball, basketball, flag football and soccer, to name a few. A small team will have anywhere from 6 to 16 players per team. It will be extremely rare that you have a league with an equal amount of players on every team. In this example I will use baseball, which is our second most popular sport, behind tackle football. Baseball teams are going to average around 12 players when dealing with a standard recreational league. Travel Ball, sometimes referred to as "Select" leagues will typically have more players because they play all year and it's a more elite level of play. When starting out, standard Little League, Pony Ball or local Park and Recreation leagues will be your most typical customer. I cannot stress enough the importance of using posing charts or diagrams for team photographs. Even if you are starting small and doing most of the shooting yourself, using charts will always help speed up the process. I have been doing this a long time now and when I go to shoots I still need to use the charts to make sure I'm posing properly. Also, using charts ensures consistency across the league. You will have siblings on different teams and you don't want a parent to get two team photos that are posed completely differently. Many parents get Memory Mate plaques that include team and individual photos to hang on their wall at home. It is important that you have consistent photos to maintain a reputation as a professional.  Common Posing Setup for a Youth Sports Team In the sample image above, our chart tells us that for a team of 11 players we have the five shortest players in the front row seated cross legged. The middle row will have four kids on both knees up tall (not sitting on their feet). The top row will have the two tallest players standing. Now, let's cover how we got them into this position. Depending on your preference, you can have the same photographer take the team and individual photos or separate them into two camera stations. This really depends on what you like best. The benefit of splitting them up is that you can make sure your strongest photographer is shooting teams. However, this does add an extra layer of complexity in tracking the image numbers and it can add a little more time to the process. At my shoots, my photographers take both the individual and team photos. This is why we have assistants there to help the photographers pose the kids and keep things running smoothly. Also, if you have a good system and charts, all of your photographers should be comfortable posing teams. Either way, before you take the individual photos, ask the coach to get the players lined up by height, shortest in the front, tallest in the back. When posing tackle football teams you will put the tallest kids at the front of the line, but for small sports you start with the shorter kids. Count the number of players and use the team posing chart to see how many players will be in each row. You will always want your rows to be uneven with players filling in the "gaps". Each photographer should have a rope in with their gear to make sure the kids line up straight. Follow these steps to properly pose the team.
Important Tips
 Youth Sports Team Posing Diagram (Click to Get Full Size Copy) Coach Placement One of the more difficult things about posing teams is understanding where to place coaches. It's hard to know exactly how many coaches each team will have or if team moms will also want to be in the picture. Plus, with young teams, the coaches are going to be a lot taller than the kids and they may or may not have matching jerseys. I like to have coaches flanking the team whenever possible. In the sample above, we were able to place 1 of the coaches in the middle to fill in the gap left by having an odd number of players in the photo. Like all other aspects of high volume photography, it gets easier with practice. After everyone is in place you want to look all around the outside of the team to check for distractions in the background. Once you see that you have a clean shot, you are ready to take the photo. Make sure to tell the players you are about to take the photo by saying something like, "1, 2, 3" to get them all looking at you. You want to take at least four photos of the team. This will give you a few choices when deciding on which one to produce. You will almost always have some shots with kids' eyes closed or other distractions so taking a few extra pictures will save you a lot of hassle in the long run. As you can see, there is a lot more to running a successful high volume photography business than just snapping off a few photos. Team photos can be one of the most difficult aspects of youth sports photography. However, if you use a solid system with the proper tools to ensure consistency, you will make your job a lot easier and you will have more fun doing it! About the Author Go to full article: Youth Sports Photography Tips: How to Pose Groups |
| How to Make a Civil War Era Tintype Photograph Posted: 02 Jun 2013 12:11 PM PDT Have you ever imagined what it was like to take photos during the Civil War era? You had a huge camera with no shutter, no aperture control, and you had to have an array of chemicals just to make a single image. Not to mention your subjects had to stand still for several seconds while the image exposed. If you’ve ever wondered how the whole process works, take a look at this tutorial on how to create a tintype image with Civil War era technology (for those of you reading this by email, the video can be seen here): How to Create a Tintype Image:
 Tintype created with Civil War era chemicals and technology Go to full article: How to Make a Civil War Era Tintype Photograph |
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