Learning something new

01. August 2015 · Comments Off on Learning something new · Categories: Mental Process, Philosophy · Tags: ,
Milky way from Glacier point, learning something new; night photography
Moon & Planet through the Tufa; learning night photography

Moon & Planet through the Tufa; learning night photography

When I go out to a restaurant, often I order something new, just to see what it is like, but sometimes I have the tried and true (like vanilla ice cream).  Most folks I know have some spark of adventure in them, and some being comfortable.  I drive the same 4 routes to work with very little adventure, whichever way is quickest, but with food, far more adventuresome. What about your photography?  Are you learning something new? Or are you doing what you always do?

Milky way and Cathedral Peak - Learning night photography

Milky way and Cathedral Peak – Learning night photography

I have been curious about night photography, but haven’t done much.  I have thousands of frames of  Yosemite, but when an opportunity came up to try night photography I was up for it (in a literal sense as well; the first night ended about 1:30 AM).  Mostly the photos were duds which is not a surprise for the first time out.    I don’t particularly like the first image because of the blurriness of the stars.  Here are some of the the things that I learned:

  • Even with a red light headlamp, it causes problems.  Lots of images where the red light either came in through the eye piece or the foreground.
  • Similarly the red light on the camera for when it is active caused problems as well.
    • It helps if there is no one around with extraneous lights !
    • For the next night I put duck tape over active light on the camera (it still shown through, but much less, and didn’t seem to impact the photos)
    • I also put duck tape the second and third nights over the view finder to minimize any light that way as well.PJL20150717-Toulome Meadows-0593-Master-150717-2
  • Dress warmly.  This one I had nailed, even though it was in the 80s  during the day, at night with a breeze it was cold.
  • I also knew about hanging my camera bag from the tripod to help stabilize the tripod from the breeze.
  • I had problems getting the right exposure and focus
    • As can be seen in the the first image, that has the crisp silhouette, but small star tracks getting a good crisp sky, properly lit sky is tricky.
    • Use the fastest lens you have !
    • If you have a foreground, then use 2 different exposures with different focus points.  Use tape to hold the zoom, and focus in one place so that it doesn’t creep during the exposure.
    • Look up ahead of time what is needed for a good night shot (it is different between star trails, and milky way shots) that has ISO, exposure time, f-stop. Nice sites with info:
    • TURN OFF automatic noise reduction in the camera (certainly for Canon, maybe Nikon as well), as it doubles the time needed for every exposure.
  • And of course ! a GOOD tripod.

    Sunset over Mono Lake

    Sunset over Mono Lake

There is still lots more to learn about night photography !  Also lots of interesting foregrounds to use.

What are you learning that is new?  Go look at some photos, and see what you would like to try that is new? Patrick Lynch Photography

In Naiveness all things look simple; even in photography

18. July 2015 · Comments Off on In Naiveness all things look simple; even in photography · Categories: Mental Process, Philosophy, Practice, Preparation · Tags: , , , ,
Random chaos & order - It was my naiveness that let me do fall colors the first time without a place to stay

Random chaos & order

Sunset, Moon rise. Planning, not naiveness let's us be at the right place at the right timeAs a kid, I read Tom Swift books.  In these he invented all sorts of very reasonable sounding incredible inventions.  I kept wondering if he could do them in the books, why were they not actually invented yet, seemed simple enough in the books…  The naiveness of a child.  How does my naiveness show up today, or where or when do I choose not to be prepared?

Over the years, I have learned, that if things looked simple and had not yet been done, that I was probably naive.  It would be a call for me to dig into what was the reality.

The mass marketing of photography plays to this. ‘It is simple to get a great photo,  just buy the latest technology and hold your finger down on the button until the great photo shows up.’   True, higher end stores like Keeble & Shuchat have a book section, but even many of these seem to promise ‘if only you did this’ you would have great photos.

But the truth is, there is a lot to consistently (as opposed to an occasional lucky shot) getting good (and sometimes great) photos.  Yes, lucky is good, but ” Chance favors only the prepared mind” is still true today, otherwise it is just random chance.

What is the ‘prepared mind’? what do we need to do for ourselves to improve our photos?  Let’s look at some of the things that go into a typical good photo.

  • The photo is sharp (not usually fuzzy).  So technology can help here, if it is used appropriately.
    •  We can use a tripod
    • We can use image stabilization
    • We can use faster shutter speed (what are we trading off for this?)
    •  Do we have the picture focused on the right thing, or are we focusing on the wrong point…?
  • Is the image lit correctly? Do I have the correct exposure?
    • Cameras today have built in exposure systems that are very good at generating snapshot like images.  However, if you want a dramatic image, then you might have to understand lighting; low angle light vs overhead light, or flat even light vs. hard light, or the color of the light (before or after sunrise, or mid day).
  • Composition – There are so many things here, and there is not nearly the help from technology that there are for sharpness and exposure.
    • Do I really want the subject dead center, or do I want it some place else?
    • Remember rule of thirds
    • Don’t put the horizon on the mid line
    • Make sure that there is not ‘extra’ in the photo
      • No strong lines coming out of someone’s head
      • No extraneous lines that are not contributing (twigs, branches, arms…)
      • Make sure that borders and corners are clean and are not distracting
    • Are you or can you frame the photo?
    • Do the lines lead you into the photo?
    • Is the expression on the face  the expression you want? (or is their mouth open?)
    • … and the list goes on ….

And if you can do all of the above in the 2 seconds that you bring the camera to your eye and snap, you are a better person than I.

What is a prepared mind with regard to photography?  For me, and folks that I work with it means that we practice evaluating photos to see what works and what doesn’t work in photos.  We practice enough that looking at a photo on the screen or in the camera or in magazines, until it is second nature to figure out what works and what doesn’t work.  Where does naiveness show up in your photography?

So, we can try and practice with our own photos, but I have found that usually doesn’t work very well, particularly for learning in the beginning.  What I have found works much better is to practice with other people’s photos.   I strongly recommend that you get yourself an account on 500px .  Then force yourself to write reviews of photos.  Having to write a review forces you to evaluate the photo and what works and does not work in it.   After a few hundred reviews you will understand what sorts of things work in photos and what does not.  This is the practice that creates the prepared mind.  And now, taking good photos is not so naively simple.

Oh, and remember,

HAVE FUN

PLP

 

Dreary weather – The Cat in the Hat

16. March 2015 · Comments Off on Dreary weather – The Cat in the Hat · Categories: memory, Mental Process, Philosophy, Uncategorized

“The sun did not shine.
It was too wet to play.
So we sat in the house
All that cold, cold, wet day.”   The Cat in the Hat, by Dr. Seuss

North Zion -What would the Cat in the Hat do on a dreary cold day?

North Zion What would the Cat in the Hat do on a dreary cold day?

The Cat in the Hat… and photography?  What could the   The Cat in the Hat possibly have to do with photography.  As with so much of Dr. Suess (aka Ted Geisel), his stories had morals built into them.
It is Sunday of a men’s ski weekend, and it is drizzly rain outside. What can be done? I have been convinced that the rain hasn’t ruined all the snow, so later we will try skiing. Laurie in large lupine What does all of this have to do with photography? or Fall Colors? Well with my passion around photography, this time gives me an opportunity to visualize and rehearse. The technique has long been used by athletes, and studies are showing that the mental rehearsing changes the brain to make it easier or more familiar. So, I use it here as well as with athletic things.

What do I rehearse? The number one thing that I visualize is checking composition; checking the corners, checking to see where the lines are. I imagine myself checking the focus point; is it on the eye?

CSL,Santa

CSL,Santa

or if it is a landscape, how is the depth of field?.

All of this checking may not be as rewarding as a day in the field but, constructive day dreaming is way better than worrying or being upset with the weather.
This is kind of like the fisherman who organizes the tackle box waiting to go fishing. And when rehearsing gets old, I remember beautiful places and the expectation to visit more of them.

What do you rehearse? Why not rehearse something that is enjoyable and beneficial when you have time rather than the something negative? Try reading Dr. Suess.

“The sun did not shine.
It was too wet to play.
So we sat in the house
All that cold, cold, wet day.”   The Cat in the Hat, by Dr. Seuss

 

Details – Learnings from a workshop

11. March 2015 · Comments Off on Details – Learnings from a workshop · Categories: Mental Process, patience, Philosophy, processing photos, Uncategorized

The Courthouse from main streat

The details are not the details. They make the design. Charles Eames

 

Success is the sum of details.   Harvey S. Firestone

Now this is a laugh!  Me with ADHD, the big picture guy writing about details!  But maybe that is why this is an important note for me.  Four months ago, I took Charlie Cramer workshop on printing.  Now I love printing photos, and I already knew most of the techniques that Charlie taught. What I didn’t recognize until recently, was what it was that I did learn.  Paying attention to details.  In lots of different ways, the message was pay attention to details, not just the big picture; the big picture takes care of itself if the details are observed.

I was reviewing some photos of the southwest that I had previously posted on my site.  Wander through the galleries and see if you can detect the details that have not been attended to ! In reviewing the photos, I was appalled at the poor quality that I had posted before.  I haven’t updated all of the photos yet, it takes time…. Details I noticed that had escaped me the first time around.

  • Spots, particularly in the sky
  • Halos
  • Shadows too blocked up
  • Horizons not quite flat
  • Unsharpened photos
  • Not cropped well
  • Photos too dark

It is amazing the improvement in quality in the photos from paying attention to the series of details that are available.  It wasn’t as if any of these things was new at all, but was new was instilling the eye to be able recognize the series of details that needed attending too!

One of my photographer sons says over and over, when I talk with him (sons are like that, probably learned some place LoL) is that we have to become ‘engaged with the picture’ but I think I might answer back, pay attention to the details, the picture will take of itself..

At lunch – what works for learning Photography

04. March 2015 · Comments Off on At lunch – what works for learning Photography · Categories: Mental Process, Preparation · Tags: , , , ,

Early morning. Any time, anyplace is good for learning photographyThe other day, several of us who are interested in photography, got together and had a beer over lunch (sorry, no photo of the beer).   The lunchtime conversation was interesting in that we spent most of it reflecting on what worked for each of us and what did not work.  Below is a quick summary of the conclusions we had and the common shared philosophy around teaching and learning photography.

  • There are good workshops, and not so good workshops
    • Not so good have things like:
      • ‘Here is what is wrong with that photo’ followed by a long devastating list
      • ‘Oh, there are no photos or anything to take a photo of here’
      • Where the workshop people are more interested in taking their own photos than helping you with yours.
    • Unfortunately it is kind of hard to figure this out without having been on one of these types of workshops….
    • Good workshops
      • Instructors are there to help you
      • Interactive question & answer (not pontificated at)
      • Instructors give each person something to work on for their own improvement based on where they are at.
  • That the learning process takes practice and gentle feedback
  • That we can learn to give ourselves feedback with practice.

In one workshop that was led, one of the participants was complaining that the sun was in the wrong position and that it was the workshops fault…

Part of what any workshop should teach is how to work with what is there, not what you wish were there.    The joke was about a guy who always won whatever bet he make.  Life became uninteresting…. Part of what makes photography what it is, is the learning of how to work with what we have.

There was one workshop that we bumped into at Bodie,

Shanty town, Bodie. Learning Photography can occur anywhere

Funniest places to meet people. Learning Photography can occur anywhere

one of the participants of that workshop had a question that the workshop instructor couldn’t answer.   We looked up the answer out of curiosity, and then ran into the same workshop group at dinner (there are only a limited number of places to eat).  We sat around and discussed the answer with that whole workshop, even though it was not ours.  The goal is about sharing, not hoarding.