CONVERT BACKGROUNDS INTO BACKDROPS

Do you ever wonder how professional photographers get those nice blurred backgrounds? Well, you don't need to apply photo editing software tools after the fact--that doesn't require photography skills. You can create what I call "backdrops" easily, in camera! All you need to know are the basic concepts behind f/stops.

I'll use one of my lenses as an example: my 24mm-70mm zoom lens. Its range is from a semi wide angle lens (24mm) to a semi telephoto (70mm). It's a great range for almost anything, especially since it is a close-focusing lens-I can focus at a closer distance from my subject than other lenses (about 10"). That's a great advantage when I want to blur backgrounds.

I go into more detail in my upcoming book, RIGHT BRAIN PHOTOGRAPHY (be an artist first), but for now, let me break it down to some basics.

I always tell my students not to memorize rules, but to understand concepts. The reason that is so important is because if you try to memorize rules, you will always ask the wrong questions, like, "What f/stop should I use......?" If you learn concepts, you will ask, "What do I want this to look like?" The answer to that question will determine what f/stop you need to achieve what you want. It's not about what you need, but what you want. The want determines the what.




Two simple basic concepts to understand are:
1) The smaller the number (f/2.8, f/4, f/5, etc.), the larger the opening or diaphragm in your lens, therefore MORE blur in the background.
2) The larger the number (f/16, f/18, f/22, etc.), the smaller the opening or diaphragm in your lens, therefore LESS blur in the background.

Let me demonstrate with these three examples. These will show you what to do to get the result you want, and also show you what to watch out for when out in the field.

This first image what shot at close range, at f/22 (read basic concept #2 above).
Notice that, although the background is far away, you can still see some detail in the trees; I didn't get much blur. That detail distracts from the subject I'm trying to photograph--those nice red autumn leaves in the foreground. There is detail in the foreground leaves, but there is also too much detail in the trees and leaves in the background.

This is what can happen if you put your lens on auto focus. If you're not careful, you camera/lens may arbitrarily focus on the wrong subject--in this case, the background trees. Although this shot was also at f/22, even that large number wasn't enough to render both the distant trees and the foreground leaves in sharp focus--just too much physical distance to cover. Result? My intended subject, the foreground leaves, are out of focus! Look familiar? You've seen this before in your photos, right?

Now let's do this right. I took my lens off "auto focus" so that I could manually focus, i.e., focus on those foreground leaves. Secondly, I used an f/stop of f/5 (compared to f/22). Read basic concept #1 above. I used f/5 for demonstration because most lenses allow you to use at least an f/5 f/stop. Results? Nice, clear photo of my desired subject, with a nice blurred backdrop.

These basic concepts will really enhance how your images look. You will start getting those results that make your friends ask, "Did you take this?"

So, go out there and convert backgrounds into backdrops. Have fun with it!

CONVERT BACKGROUNDS INTO BACKDROPS

Do you ever wonder how professional photographers get those nice blurred backgrounds? Well, you don't need to apply photo editing software tools after the fact--that doesn't require photography skills. You can create what I call "backdrops" easily, in camera! All you need to know are the basic concepts behind f/stops.

I'll use one of my lenses as an example: my 24mm-70mm zoom lens. Its range is from a semi wide angle lens (24mm) to a semi telephoto (70mm). It's a great range for almost anything, especially since it is a close-focusing lens-I can focus at a closer distance from my subject than other lenses (about 10"). That's a great advantage when I want to blur backgrounds.

I go into more detail in my upcoming book, RIGHT BRAIN PHOTOGRAPHY (be an artist first), but for now, let me break it down to some basics.

I always tell my students not to memorize rules, but to understand concepts. The reason that is so important is because if you try to memorize rules, you will always ask the wrong questions, like, "What f/stop should I use......?" If you learn concepts, you will ask, "What do I want this to look like?" The answer to that question will determine what f/stop you need to achieve what you want. It's not about what you need, but what you want. The want determines the what.




Two simple basic concepts to understand are:
1) The smaller the number (f/2.8, f/4, f/5, etc.), the larger the opening or diaphragm in your lens, therefore MORE blur in the background.
2) The larger the number (f/16, f/18, f/22, etc.), the smaller the opening or diaphragm in your lens, therefore LESS blur in the background.

Let me demonstrate with these three examples. These will show you what to do to get the result you want, and also show you what to watch out for when out in the field.

This first image what shot at close range, at f/22 (read basic concept #2 above).
Notice that, although the background is far away, you can still see some detail in the trees; I didn't get much blur. That detail distracts from the subject I'm trying to photograph--those nice red autumn leaves in the foreground. There is detail in the foreground leaves, but there is also too much detail in the trees and leaves in the background.

This is what can happen if you put your lens on auto focus. If you're not careful, you camera/lens may arbitrarily focus on the wrong subject--in this case, the background trees. Although this shot was also at f/22, even that large number wasn't enough to render both the distant trees and the foreground leaves in sharp focus--just too much physical distance to cover. Result? My intended subject, the foreground leaves, are out of focus! Look familiar? You've seen this before in your photos, right?

Now let's do this right. I took my lens off "auto focus" so that I could manually focus, i.e., focus on those foreground leaves. Secondly, I used an f/stop of f/5 (compared to f/22). Read basic concept #1 above. I used f/5 for demonstration because most lenses allow you to use at least an f/5 f/stop. Results? Nice, clear photo of my desired subject, with a nice blurred backdrop.

These basic concepts will really enhance how your images look. You will start getting those results that make your friends ask, "Did you take this?"

So, go out there and convert backgrounds into backdrops. Have fun with it!







   out how easy it can be to achieve professional
 looking photos.

ROI And Photography

We've heard the term: Return On Investment, an economic term that has direct application to photography. The investment is in time, dedication, commitment, and tenacity. The return is in the quality of images we come home with. I will look for places that have great potential for 'A' shots, 

those images that are absolute "keepers." I will consciously revisit certain places, either on a periodic 

or annual basis, depending on when I am most likely to get the highest ROI.

One of those places is Mapleton Avenue in Boulder, Colorado, in October. I have had such success there every year that I go back annually, like clock work. It's like going on an Easter egg hunt--I look and look, high and low, until I find the right combination of compositions, shapes, texture, and colors. My favorite timing is right after a snowfall. This is what I found this past October.

I got several shots of leaves against snow, which I liked. However, this particular grouping really got my attention. The combination of color, texture, melting snow, and nature's arrangement was just too good to resist. My job was to create order out of chaos. There were so many of these leaves covering several yards, all covered by snow and ice. 
It took me a few minutes to carefully scan the area, without disturbing the leaves. What I was looking for was the best composition that would give me the strongest impact, interest, and design. Notice the lack of areas with "dead space"--areas with nothing there. 

 

After getting several good images on the ground, I decided it was time to see what was above me as well. I saw this great combination of yellows, reds, and greens against the blue sky. I also liked the diagonal lines created by the thin branches, which I knew would come out dark (I know what that built-in meter does!). As luck would have it, I saw the sun peaking behind some leaves. I knew instinctively that I just had to include a sun burst as part of my composition. I also knew that if I hid it behind some leaves, it would not be overpowering. In order to get the sunburst, I stopped down to a small aperture (f/22). I've used this technique before in similar situations and it works like a charm.  

So, next time you visit a place and go home with a collection of "keepers," revisit that area again. You might get a good return on your investment.

www.elivega.net

 

 

NOT EVERYTHING HAS TO BE "SHARP" IN PHOTOGRAPHY

Based on a lot of photography I see today, there seems to be an obsession with everything having to be absolutely, totally sharp. For a lot of images, doing just the opposite can produce some of the best, most intriguing images--especially when they're done intentionally. Here is but one example.

I was in the middle of a festive, colorful, and fun-filled Mexican celebration in Boulder, Colorado.There was a lot of dancing. This particular event was an Aztec dance. There was a lot of color and movement. I could have tried to freeze the action, in order to photograph the dancers. But, I decided to do just the opposite--to depict, not the dancers, but their dancing, and the movement of their dancing. 

You'll need a relatively slow shutter speed to get the blurred interpretation of any scene. 
The exact shutter speed depends on how fast the action or movements are, regardless of the subject. With my photo art, I don't ask, "What shutter speed should I use?" I ask, "What do I want this to look like?" In this case, I wanted it to be blurred, to reflect the movement of the event, not the event itself. My shutter speed for this image was around 1/60th of a second-- slow enough to give me that nice blur, but fast enough to give me some detail.

I call this piece, "Cara En Sueño," or "Face In A Dream."

So, go out and experiment photographing movement at different shutter speeds. 

For more samples of my photo art visit me at www.elivega.net