Editorial Photography

November 27, 2011


Years ago I did a lot of editorial/street photography.  I still enjoy shooting on the street, getting that fleeting image that just happens.  The key to fast action photography is just doing it.  Getting your timing down.  Knowing your camera and having it as an extension of your eye.  I used to preset my camera at the fastest shutter speed I could use.  You can't use a tripod when shooting fast paced action during protests or dramas being played out in a split second and with people moving in and out of your frame constantly. My shutter speed was set at 1/250 or higher depending on lighting conditions.  Yes, sometimes I would be pushing my film up to 1600ASA to get that faster shutter speed.  I would set my Aperture at f/5.6.  With this as a base, I could adjust my exposures up or down and still be able to stop motion and get the subject in focus.  Serendipity plays such a big role in street photography.  You have to be aware of your surroundings and see a possible image developing before it appears.  Your eye/finger coordination only improves with practice.  And when you get a photo that no one else will ever get because you were quick to see the potential, that is a good feeling.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

November 24, 2011

Rush Hour Traffic

November 20, 2011


I have lately been in some pretty amazing rush hour traffic jams.  So I thought why not write about my top dislikes about getting stuck in a 5 mile or longer backup on I-5 going south into the Great City of Seattle.  Here they are in no particular order.

1)  Drivers who suddenly change lanes into a moving traffic lane only to be passed by me as that lane stalls.

2) As I merge onto the freeway and ( after finally, someone grudgingly lets me in by centimeters) put my blinker on to move over to the left lanes and as I see an opening and begin to move over, a driver behind me who has just got into the traffic mess tries to cut me off by putting his blinker on quickly and jumps over to the lane that I have been waiting to get into for minutes and then lays on their horn as if I was the one who cut him off.

3) Drivers who think other drivers have cat like response as they cut in front of you at the last moment as their lane shows upcoming brake lights. Note to drivers, Brake Lights are a warning to slow down not speed up and cut others off.

4) Traffic flows much better if you happen to be caught in the right lane and you see in front of you merging traffic, just back off a bit and leave a couple car lengths in front of you for the merging cars, this keeps the traffic flow going instead of riding the car in front of you so no one can get in and then the car merging has to stop and then more cars pile up behind him.

5) My biggest concern in rush hour driving is a jack rabbit driver behind you.  As you go faster and get some distance from the car behind you, you see brake lights up ahead, you slow down, but the car behind you comes racing up and appears to touch your bumper as you wait for the sound of metal crunching.  And this is played out over and over again as you gradually speed up and the driver comes racing up to your bumper.  Does he/she not see that we are in a traffic mess and we can't go seventy through other cars.

6)  Having to keep reminding myself to focus because I just went a mile and can't remember doing it.

What Is This?

November 13, 2011


Shooting subjects that can't be easily identifiable makes the image more interesting.  Curiosity is just as great in humans as it is in animals.  I recently took some photos of two interesting subjects.  Can you guess what they are?   One is definitely more abstract and the other image, the gestalt hits you in a few seconds.  Good Luck.

First Image is of Metal Shower Rings 

Second Image is of an environmentally friendly Mail Drop Box

Macro Photography

November 5, 2011



When shooting close up work patience is the key.  How many times have your heard that in shooting photos.  I have to constantly remind myself to Slow Down and take my time and really look at the subject and compose the image for maximum effect.  The thing about shooting close to your subject is movement.  Any camera movement or breeze and you can lose the focus of your subject ( but is this a bad thing?).  Sometimes, I use a tripod and this allows me to relax and take my time composing the image but still you have to be aware of motion.  Early morning is a good time to shoot because more often than not there is a calm atmosphere before it begins to heat up and wind arrives.  You can always use barriers to block breezes (cardboard that surround your subject) so you can shoot longer into the day but this does not make for a spontaneous, intuitive compositions that can say more about your subject than a more studio like image. So, in alot of circumstances I shoot untethered to a tripod whereby I can get in close to my chosen subject using different angles and experimenting with the subjects color and softness to create a more interesting photograph.  This intimate closeness to your subject sometimes generates a more authentic relationship in the final photographs than shooting a more defined sterile approach with a predetermined design in mind.

One other thing I have to be aware of when shooting without a tripod is my death like grip on my camera.  Years ago when we had cameras with film in them (yes they still sell those camera with film) I was getting a scratch that went horizontal through a good portion of the frames on a 36 exposure roll of film.  When I couldn't figure out what was causing this frustrating scratch on my film I brought the camera into the repair tech to find out what was causing these scratches.  He couldn't find anything on the back plate that was rough enough to make the marks.  After reviewing my shooting, I realized that I was holding the camera too tightly while shooting and putting extreme pressure on the back plate without realizing it.  I was so caught up in the shoot that I didn't pay attention to my death grip on my camera.  Now with digital that is not a problem but how you hold your camera still can make or break a shot.  When shooting close up work hand held, hold you camera firmly with the camera sitting in the palm of your hand and don't squeeze the life out of it.  Relax and focus, breath easily and press the shutter button calmly with out jerking the camera downward.


Finally, I always try and anchor the viewers eye to a focused detail in the close up.  Sometimes you can go so abstract that no one knows what the subject is and might lose interest.

I have selected a few close-up images of nature and a few images that were set up with a more predetermined design in mind.