BetterPhoto Instructor Insights

Creative Photography: Capturing Texture

By Lynne Eodice

When we see an image of an old weather-worn building, we often get a sense of how rough the wood feels. Our memories of how objects feel is ingrained into our subconsciousness, and just the sight of them can evoke a sensation of touch. By making a strong statement about texture, you can add a tactile dimension to your photos.

Angled light captures the shape and imperfections of an object’s surface and creates a pattern of highlight and shadow to produce visual texture. The rough surface of a weathered building is best emphasized by strong, direct sidelight.

Framing is important too – it’s a good idea to get close to a subject when you want to emphasize texture. And very often, converting an image to black-and-white enhances the graphic qualities of your subject and eliminates the distraction of color.

(c) Lynne Eodice

Editor's Notes:

• Check out Lynne Eodice's excellent courses at BetterPhoto's digital online photography school:
  • Learning to Shoot Inspiring Images
  • Pro Tips for Great Exposure
• The upcoming book by Jim Miotke and Kerry Drager - The BetterPhoto Guide to Creative Digital Photography - focuses on composition, color, and the elements of design.

Fixing Depth of Field - with Photoshop

By Jim Zuckerman

Photo 1: Sharp leopard, blurred foreground branch - c) Jim Zuckerman

Too often, the laws of optics conspire against us photographers, and to get what we want artistically, we have to outsmart these annoying limitations.

For example, on a photo tour to Kenya in 2007, our group spotted this beautiful leopard sleeping in a tree. It was a great shot — except for the fact that the large branch that was about 5 or 6 feet in front of the cat wasn’t sharp. I was using a 500mm f/4telephoto, which meant that depth of field was very shallow. I was shooting wide open because the light level was low, and in the vehicle, a tripod is impractical. Out-of-focus foregrounds are usually very distracting, so I solved the problem by taking two pictures.

Photo 2: Sharp foreground branch, blurred leopard - (c) Jim Zuckerman

First, I focused on the leopard and took a photo, and then I focused on the foreground branch and took a second shot. I tried to be as precise as possible in not moving the lens from the time I tookone shot to the time I took the second one was snapped. The camera and lens rested on a bean bag, so while it wasn’t a perfect match, it was close enough.

When I got home, I used Photoshop to combine the two images, below. I metic- ulously cut and pasted the sharp branch (using the pen tool in CS5) over the out of focus branch. Now both the foreground and the background are tack sharp and the picture works. It represents what I saw with my eyes.

Final image: Composite of #1 and #2 for sharp branch and sharp leopard
(c) Jim Zuckerman

Editor's Notes:

- Jim Zuckerman is a top stock photographer and published author who teaches many excellent online photography courses at BetterPhoto.com, including Creative Techniques in Photoshop , Advanced Creative Techniques in Photoshop and Photoshop: Thinking Outside the Box.

- Also, Jim Z is a contributor to two upcoming BetterPhoto Guide books (co-authored by Jim Miotke and Kerry Drager):

• The BetterPhoto Guide to Creative Digital Photography (subtitled "Learn to Master Composition, Color, and Design"), October 2011
• The BetterPhoto Guide to Light (subtitled "Learn to Capture Stunning Light in any Situation"), April 2012

The Power of Less in Photography - Minimal Depth of Field

By Rob Sheppard

(c) Rob Sheppard

A lot of photographers are afraid of shooting wide-open with their aperture, photographing with little to no depth of field. Yet, there can be great power in images using less depth of field, especially when doing close-ups of nature.

I know photographers are afraid of the maximum f-stop of their lens, whether that is f/2.8 or f/5.6 or anything else, because of a class I teach (at BetterPhoto.com's digital photography school online) about better use of f-stops. In one lesson, the assignment is to shoot for minimal depth of field - in other words, with the lens at its widest aperture or at least close to it. Yet, again and again, I find students, photographers who know what they are doing, chickening out and stopping that lens down. Maybe they know "too much."

Everyone "knows" that lenses are not as sharp wide-open as they are stopped down. And of course, everyone knows you get almost no depth of field when you shoot wide open for close-ups and who wants that? Who indeed?!

(c) Rob Sheppard

I do! I love the look. Minimal depth of field does magic things to backgrounds and really helps emphasize a subject. Plus, whenever you shoot with one of the widest f-stops your lens has (remember, these are the lower numbers), you also get to shoot with the fastest shutter speed possible, which will often eliminate camera movement during exposure (a major cause of less-than-sharp photos).

(c) Rob Sheppard

To get this look, however, there are some things to keep in mind about depth of field. It is mainly affected by three things: f-stop, focal length and distance to focus point. Wide f-stops (small numbers) give less depth of field. The more telephoto the lens, the less depth of field you get (a very important corollary to that is that wide-angle lenses have a lot of inherent depth of field, so getting a limited depth of field effect can be challenging with them).

And the closer you are to a subject, the less depth of field you get, meaning that close-ups give you the least depth of field (and an important corollary to that is that the farther away from a subject you are, the more depth of field you get, so that if you are at a distance from a scene, almost any f-stop will give you close to the same depth of field).

So keep this in mind: With a telephoto focal length, you get shallow depth of field with a wide f-stop from close to moderate distances. With a wide-angle focal length, you only get shallow depth of field with a wide f-stop when you are very close to the subject. And remember that distance to subject (which affects depth of field) affects what is in front of and behind your subject as well, so you get a stronger effect when those things are not close to your subject.

(c) Rob Sheppard

Give this a try. Go against the "rules" of depth of field that have been part of the culture of photography. Don't just shoot a couple of photos, either. Try many times to see when it works and when it does not. This is not a magic bullet that will always work. It is a tool that can be an important part of the craft of being a nature photographer.

Editor's notes:

• Check out Rob Sheppard's bio and online photography courses!

• Also, Rob is a top contributor to one of the upcoming BetterPhoto Guide books (co-authored by Jim Miotke and Kerry Drager): The BetterPhoto Guide to Light (due out in April 2012 and published by Amphoto Books).

Announcing: New Book on Creative Digital Photography

Learn how to shoot photos with real "Wow" impact! A new book by BetterPhoto founder Jim Miotke and BetterPhoto instructor Kerry Drager will be published in October 2011 by Amphoto Books:

The BetterPhoto Guide to Creative Digital Photography

This book - part of the popular BetterPhoto Guide series - is designed to take your photography to the next level. It covers such topics as the elements of design, photo composition, depth and balance, photographing motion, getting creative with lenses, working with color and natural light, and lots more!

You'll learn what works and what doesn't. You'll explore time-tested guidelines and discover when you might artfully breaking the rules.

In short, The BetterPhoto Guide to Creative Digital Photography will help transform the way you make photographs!

Should You Pay More for a Photo Printer Using Pigment Inks?

By Peter K. Burian

Q: I'm ready to move up to a 13x19-inch photo printer and I wonder if I should get one that uses pigments? Those machines, like Epson's new R2000 or the Pixma Pro 9500 Mark II, are more expensive than others that use regular inks, like the Epson R1900 or the Pixma Pro9000 Mark II. Is it worth paying more to be able to use pigments for photo printing?

Answer: Well, there are several reasons why some of the printers employing fade-resistant pigment-based inks are more expensive than others that use dye-based inks. Check the specs for the new Epson Stylus Photo R2000, for example. Aside from the different types of inks, the R2000 benefits from new technology. That includes a superior AMC print head with more accurate dot placement and reduced maintenance, plus wireless 802.11n and Ethernet support.

Pigments are more fade resistant than dyes but, as discussed in a moment, some of the machines using dye-based inks can provide impressive print permanence. To maximize fade-resistance when displaying photos, be sure to frame them using a matt and glass, preferably glass with a UV filter. (c) Peter K. Burian

The difference in specs is not always as great. Compare the two PIXMA machines, for example: the Pro9000 Mk II (which uses dyes) and the Pro9500 Mk II (which uses pigments). The most important benefit provided by the latter is its inkset: ten vs. eight for superior quality in both colour and monochrome printing.

Whether you should pay more for a machine that uses pigments also depends on your needs in regards to print permanence. Pigments are more lightfast than dyes, as a general rule, but the cost of ink is higher. On the other hand, new dye technologies make the Epson R1900 quite competitive with printers using pigments. Its prints should last over 100 years on display under glass when framed and matted, according to Wilhelm Research. The difference in on-display print permanence is more significant with the PIXMA machines: 100+ years for the Pro9500 II vs. 50 years for the Pro9000 II.

While the Epson Stylus Photo R3000 (which prints using eight pigments) will satisfy pros and galleries, the more affordable R2000 (which prints using six pigments) targets photo enthusiasts. It includes some of the useful features of the R3000 but not all of the latest technology and it's not as impressive in black and white printing. If you primarily make colour prints, however, the R2000 should be a fine choice.

Frankly, few photo enthusiasts display their photos for much longer than 20 years. Hence, I would recommend buying the machine with the speed, features and print quality that meet your expectations. Also check out the Epson Stylus R3000. This is a brand new model with numerous features for great convenience and versatility as well as the latest technology for superb prints in both color and monochrome.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Peter Burian teaches two terrific online photo courses at BetterPhoto's digital photography school online - Mastering the Digital Camera and Photography and Mastering the Canon EOS Digital Rebels. Also check out Peter's Pro BetterPholio website: www.peterkburian.com.

Add Interest to Your Photos with Visual Framing!

By Lynne Eodice

Using a foreground element to create a frame for a subject has long been a popular artistic trick of the trade. It can emphasize and isolate a subject, as well as impart an image with a real feeling of depth.

Frames often work best when they are thematically related to the subject. Get into the habit of looking for framing elements to add interest to a scene - a window, doorway, overhanging tree branch or archway can provide a great frame for your subject. Frames that contrast with the area they surround, such as the silhouetted tree branches in the photo below, are often most striking.

(c) Lynne Eodice

EDITOR'S NOTE: Lynne Eodice teaches two excellent online photography courses at BetterPhoto:

• Learning to Shoot Inspiring Images

• Pro Tips for Great Exposure

Exposure Technique for Raw Capture

By Peter K. Burian

Question: What is the best technique for getting ideal exposures when shooting Raw photos? There seem to be a lot of different opinions on photography forums. Which one do you recommend?

Answer: I'm sure that one of the techniques that you have read about is called "expose to the right". Based on my experience with Raw capture when testing dozens of DSLRs, this is definitely the best bet for serious photographers. It's based on a principle that was first explained by Michael Reichmann (in 2003) and in an update (Aug. 2011) titled Optimizing Exposure. Here’s a brief summary: “Get your histogram as close to the right side as possible but not so close as to cause the over-exposure indicator to flash. The ideal exposure ensures that you have the maximum number of levels describing your image without losing important detail in the highlights.”

This Raw photo was made using the Expose to the Right technique to minimize digital noise. (Even in a "normal" exposure there would be no detail in the brightest window.) Naturally, it will need to be modified in software for a more pleasing effect before conversion to TIFF as discussed later. (ISO 1600; Nikon D5100) (c) 2011 Peter K. Burian

In other words, overexpose your Raw photos but without blowing out light-toned areas. Do note that this concept relates only to Raw capture and not to JPEG capture. It's intended to optimize image quality by minimizing the appearance of digital noise, a grainy or mottled colour effect. Here's a specific method that you might try when first experimenting with the "expose to the right" (ETTR) principle:

• Be sure to activate your camera’s highlight warning ("blinkies") feature in the menu. When viewing a Raw photo in Playback mode, you'll also need to activate the screen that provides a histogram.

• Start by metering a mid-tone, or a grey card, in the same light as your primary subject. This is only a preliminary step and will not often provide the ideal exposure for a Raw photo.

• Increase exposure - with + compensation when using Aperture Priority mode, for example - to make a photo that appears too bright overall on the camera’s LCD monitor.

• When examining the photo in the camera's Playback mode, consider the histogram and any blinking that warns of a loss of detail in highlight areas. Don't worry about specular highlights such as ultra-bright reflections on water.

• If important highlight areas are blinking, set a slightly lower level of plus compensation and re-shoot. Check the new photo and the histogram. If important highlight areas are still blinking, set a slightly lower level of exposure compensation and re-shoot.

A histogram is available with all DSLRs in Playback mode; some newer cameras can also provide it in Live View. The first one in this series illustrates a Raw photo made with the ETTR technique. It indicates some loss of detail in the brightest highlight area but if that's an ultra-bright small window or reflections on water, it would not be of concern.

Especially in high-contrast lighting, you may need to re-shoot the photo several times - at different exposure levels - to get a Raw file that provides an ideal ETTR histogram. Later, using a versatile Raw converter program, modify the photo for a pleasing - not overexposed - effect. Also experiment by setting a lower than default level for Noise Reduction in the software for the best possible resolution. All of this may seem a bit complicated and time-consuming at first. Based on my experience however, the extra effort will pay off, with Raw format photos with the best possible quality that any DSLR can provide.

NOTES:
Peter Burian teaches two excellent online photography workshops - Mastering the Digital Camera and Photography and Mastering the Canon EOS Digital Rebels - at BetterPhoto's online digital photography school. Also see Peter's Pro BetterPholio website: www.peterkburian.com.