Category Archives: Photography

Taking Care of Business

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I have a lot of photo editing to do tonight, so this will be a brief blog entry. Editing photos can be a time consuming process but today’s software makes it a breeze. Adobe Lightroom is my all-time favorite photo software right now. It not only excels at managing my collection of photos, but I can also change the White Balance, adjust the exposure, and even touch up part of a photo with the adjustment brush. It is some sweet software!

I still have to use Photoshop every now and then. It is very powerful and useful. The resulting images are so much more clear than back in the old film days. Just compare a scanned slide image next to one taken with a digital camera. It is amazing!

Ok, I really have to get back to my photo editing job. Good night!

More Rain but Some Constructive Photo Learning Nevertheless

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It is raining in the Poconos once again. Rain, rain, go away!

But instead of letting it get me down this time I started reading a good photo book, made a plan to backup all my photographs, and started fixing a desktop computer to connect to my network.

The book is Scott Kelby’s, “The Digital Photography Book, Volume 3” and I cannot say enough about this book. Let me, however, say this, “I already ordered Volumes 1 & 2 and I’ve only had Volume 3 for one day.” Buy this book if you want to get some creative ideas for your photography. It is well worth the price and time to read this incredible book.

My backup plan started with a few paragraphs of Scott’s book, which referred me to an article on his blog. The backup scheme he uses is solid and I decided to adapt slightly a few of his ideas and use them for my backup procedure. I will follow his advice of making sure I have two copies of each photograph before reformatting a flash card, In my case I will use my laptop for one copy and a portable hard drive for the second copy. The OWC portable drives caught my eye and I plan on purchasing one soon and another one in the near future. They are smaller than the external drives I have been using up to now. I also plan on breaking down and buying a Drobo. I first heard about this little robot on “This Week in Photography.” The redundant backup scheme of this little guy far exceeds the RAID option. I will have to save a few pennies first, but since I recently acquired the 24-70mm zoom lens, I figure it is okay to spend a little dough to protect my photographs.

The desktop computer is one that I haven’t used in a while, but I want to utilize a good laser printer that I acquired and connecting this desktop to my network should allow me to do just that. I have to work around one minor monitor issue, but after that I should be up and running.

It is raining, but I’m still thinking a lot about photography nevertheless!

What To Do on Rainy Days

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Well, it’s another rainy day here in the Poconos. So what is a photographer to do on such a rainy, miserable day?

Here is a list of things I can think to do photographically on rainy days:

  1. Catch up on keywording photographs.
  2. Sort and organize photos
  3. Create a list of subjects and places you would like to photograph
  4. Backup photos
  5. Clean your photo gear
  6. Shop on the internet or add to your wish list
  7. View other photographer’s websites for inspiration
  8. Check out some new photo blogs
  9. Read some good photography books
  10. Dream about photography

 

Rain, Rain…

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With all the heavy rain we’ve been having I haven’t been able to put my new standard zoom lens through many paces. I was hoping to have some photos posted by now, but this just didn’t happen. It’s been raining so hard that I got to use one of my favorite sayings, “It’s raining as hard as a cow peeing on a flat rock!”

The rainy weather has put a halt to many outdoor activities: my son’s baseball tournament and the ALCS baseball game between the Angels and Yankees just to name a few. I know we need rain, but it sure puts a damper on outdoor photography. Sometimes I tough it out and go out in the rain anyway, but this weekend the rain was often very heavy. So I chose to stay inside, stay dry, and watch some college football.

My new lens will get to be used soon enough I suppose but I am impatient. Rain, rain, go away!

New Lens on the Way

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Late last night I ordered a Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 lens. This lens has been on back-order for quite a while and no one seemed to have any on hand. This allowed me to continue saving my pennies to have enough to purchase this lens. I also used the B&H Photo website feature to have them notify me when this lens was available.

Well, last night I received just such a message and I promptly placed my order. I am looking forward to receiving this much acclaimed lens. It is in the standard zoom range and has received many praises from amateur to pro photographers.

I will use it primarily for portraits, team photos, and some landscape shots. Since I shot sports and wildlife the zoom lens will still be attached to my camera body much of the time, but this new lens should give me some very good quality photographs for the closer subjects.

It is always exciting to receive a new piece of equipment. I am trying to wait patiently and will share a few photos and a personal review once I receive shipment of this lens and am able to take it through a few paces.

What piece of photo equipment is on your next to obtain list?

Uploading Photos to Your Hard Drive

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How do you upload photos taken with your camera to your computer?

Many cameras come with a cord that connects your camera to your computer, so many photographers use this option. Connecting your camera directly to your computer or laptop is certainly one option to transfer the photos, but this is an agonizingly slow process. This type of connection is simply going to take some time.

But there is a better and faster way. Remove your flash card from your camera and put it into a card reader, then connect it to your computer. This might not sound all that different but believe me it will be faster. This might not be so important when you are transferring 25 photographs, but it surely does when you are transferring 500 or more!

Years ago we stored our photographic prints in albums or worse yet, shoe boxes. Now our photos reside on hard drives rarely seeing the light of day. This will prevent our photos from fading but will also prevent anyone from seeing these great photos, too. Once your photos are on your hard drive, try to make sure you have a plan for them. Create a slide show, put them on a cd or dvd, or print them out. Photographs were meant to be seen so make sure that people get to see your photos!

Fall Leaves

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How are the fall colors where you live? Here in the Poconos and even in Elk County the changing of colors is late this year. Last year we had snow in October and it was probably colder. This year the spring and summer rains may have also affected the changing of colors.

I watched a webinar this week on photographing the fall colors, which I found very interesting. Many of the teachings and suggestions cross over into many other types of photography, too. For example, knowing what the subject is in a photograph and using foreground subjects to create some depth to the photo. The problem with fall colors seems to be that many photographers think the brilliant colors will almost automatically make a great photo. This is obviously not the case.

Careful composition and forethought are needed to create a great photograph even in the presence of impressive fall colors. Don’t forget to take some closeups of the leaves and some wide-ranging shots that reveals a larger depth of field and shows some of the landscape.

Fall is my favorite time of year for photography. Are you getting some photos of this year’s fall colors and leaves?

Learning Photography

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I am a graduate of Temple University with a degree in journalism. I cut my photographic teeth in an intro to photography course that I just adored. The professor was tough and honest, but the time out taking photos and then developing the film and making enlargements in the darkroom was so enjoyable. I learned a ton about photography that semester.

Fortunately, learning does not have to stop. Today I listen to a variety of photo podcasts and even tune in to “webinars,” which are basically seminars on the web. I get to learn so much from these experiences. Of course, books are another source from which to learn.

So, what are you learning about photography these days?

Photography Subjects

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What are you photographing these days? Are you getting out with your camera and making photographs? Or are you busy with life so much that there is little time to spend out and about with your camera?

I absolutely love the fall season. I find there are many subjects to photograph–more than I have time to capture! Recently, in the last three to four weeks I have photographed the following:

Baseball Games
Pennsylvania Elk
Whitetail Deer
Chipmunks
Backyard Birds

I also have plans to hopefully photograph these upcoming subjects:

Fall Colors
Family Holidays
More Wildlife
Snowy Scenes
Christmas Lights

What are you photographing? Can you find some time to get out with your camera sometime soon?

Tough Lighting Conditions

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What do you do when the lighting conditions are extremely challenging when you are out with your camera?

It seems to me there are at least three choices you can decide on:

  1. Complain about all the great shots you are missing
  2. Quit altogether and go home
  3. Keep trying and see what happens

Fortunately for me, I decided on the third choice this past week when I was on the elk range. My good friend and photography colleague, Dick McCreight, had a big part in this important decision. You see, when you are out photographing with someone else, they can spur you on and keep you working even in tough conditions. Yes, I complained a little about the tough lighting conditions and the problem I had focusing on the elk, but working with Dick helped motivate me to keep at it. I am very glad I did, too.

Here is one example of how “keep trying and see what happens” can turn out to be the best decision a photographer could make.

Bull in the Fog