The Peace Bridge - At Last! by JAS_Photo

This month’s choice is (click to see the larger version of this image)  The Peace Bridge – At Last! by JAS_Photo

I chose this image for several reasons:

1 – Composition – This is a very strong composition and the bridge itself acts as a fantastic leading line. It guides our eye beautifully into the image. In addition, aside from the shape of the bridge itself, there are also other “mini-shapes” in the bridge itself as well as all around the image. These other mini-shapes add a lot of interest to the image.

2 – Tones and post processing – The bridge itself is selectively coloured in this image and I like that very much in this case. I feel it works and offers a new take on what is likely a heavily photographed piece of infra-structure. For me it suggests ‘something new’ being introduced into a city. The desaturation of the background compliments the bridge and really makes the bridge pop.

3 – Story and perspective – This bridge is still a work in progress and we can see a crane in the background that suggests this. We see the bridge “moving” toward the background which suggests to me something new being introduced to something older. The angle or perspective from which the image was taken was very well chosen to suggest this story.

For all these reasons, this is my choice for image of the month. Since we all have opinions, some members may disagree with my choice. That’s cool but THIS thread is not the place for debate over my pick, NOR is it the place to further critique the image. The purpose here is to suggest strong elements in the photo that we may learn from.

Congrats again JAS_Photo for creating this wonderful image!

Fight Club! by Lizardqing

This month’s choice is (click to see the larger version of this image) Fight Club! by Lizardqing

I chose this image for several reasons:

1 – Timing/Decisive moment. You gotta have a quick trigger finger to catch a moment like this or you will miss it. We’ve all missed fab opportunities like this, or misframed opportunities like this; good on Lizardquing for this fab capture.

2 – Composition – I really like the composition here. It is especially impressive given the speed needed to catch this image. I really like the faun at the right side as well as the position of the trees.

3 – Exposure/lighting/colour – Exposure looks very good here and could easily have been missed given the lighting. Good choice of shutter-speed to keep things fairly sharp but still reveal motion in the deers’ front legs. Lovely colour palette as well. The lighting is wonderful in this image, good on Lizardqing for being there early enough to capture.

For all these reasons, this is my choice for image of the month. Since we all have opinions, some members may disagree with my choice. That’s cool but THIS thread is not the place for debate over my pick, NOR is it the place to further critique the image. The purpose here is to suggest strong elements in the photo that we may learn from.

Congrats again Lizardqing for capturing this wonderful moment!

Autumn Web by Richard

This month’s choice is (click to see the larger version of this image)  Autumn Web by Richard

I chose this image for several reasons:

1 – Planning and execution – This striking image is the result of planning, it didn’t “just happen” and it wasn’t a quick snap. The lighting, comp and post-processing are all well thought out here. The result is a striking moody fall image.

2 – Composition – details – postprocessing – Lovely rendered details like the spider as well as the spider’s web all contribute to the composition here. Spider is framed nicely between the red leaves and against the backlight. The postprocessing including the vignette and possible selective sharpening are guiding our eyes thoughtfully without distractions.

3 – Lighting – Mood – Backlighting is a challenging light to deal with, but Richard balances it well with off camera flash. The end result is an image with a lovely mood that would likely have felt too dark without the added light.

4 – Selective focus – A wide aperture is well used here to get the dreamy background bokeh. It adds another ‘layer’ to the image.

For all these reasons, this is my choice for image of the month. Since we all have opinions, some members may disagree with my choice. That’s cool but THIS thread is not the place for debate over my pick, NOR is it the place to further critique the image. The purpose here is to suggest strong elements in the photo that we may learn from.

Congrats again Richard for creating this striking image!

This Saturday I spent about 3-4 hours going to different exhibitions that make up Mois De La Photo (Photo Month) in Montreal. I’m not fond of writing about things I don’t like, I MUCH prefer to select a few things that I do like and write about those.

I was disappointed in the work that I saw overall. I saw about 8-10 exhibitions and I won’t name them. It wasn’t because the work was bad or anything, it just was not my cup of tea. Almost everything I saw was dark-themed, abstract, overly-intellectualized, and WAY too experimental imo. I have nothing against experimental, but imagine if 99% of everything you heard at the Montreal Jazz fest was experimental….it would suck for most people. People expect festivals that they go to, to somewhat represent their idea of what the festival is about. Of the 8 Exhibitions, 3 of them had videos…Video is not photography. I DO have an open mind BTW; I guess I just would have liked even a teeny representation of the work that I saw to be similar to the fine art photography that I like to see.

So at the end of the day, I guess my issue is with the Title, “Mois de la photo”. Such a conventional title, it makes you think you will be seeing ‘some’ conventional photography. You will not (as far as I can tell from my sample). I’d much rather they title the thing Experimental photo Month.

Of the 8 exhibitions I saw, the only one I liked a bit was The Dead by Jack Burman. Large prints of dead people preserved in formaldehyde. Not trying to be facetious here, but Burman’s exhibition was one of the most concrete, and “accessible” ones. You know full well what you are looking at.

My Little Friend by Wicked Dark

This Month’s choice is  (click to see the large version of this image) My Little Friend by Wicked Dark.

I chose this image for several reasons:

Sharpness – It’s difficult to get this level of sharpness when doing macro work and the sharpness on the crawler here is wonderful and very striking! On the opposite end the background out of focus elements also work well to isolate the primary subject.

Composition – All eyes are on the bug here and this is due to good composition with almost no distractions. The curved part of the crawler is well seen due to the comp and the diagonal branch at right act as a frame and helps keep our eyes on the most important element.

Colour/Lighting – The image busts with colour due to shooting in softer light along with some (likely) processing to enhance the greens.

For all these reasons, this is my choice for image of the month. Since we all have opinions, some members may disagree with my choice. That’s cool but THIS thread is not the place for debate over my pick, NOR is it the place to further critique the image. The purpose here is to suggest strong elements in the photo that we may learn from.

Congrats again Wicked Dark for capturing this striking crawler.

Today's Calla Lillies by Ernst Ulrich-Schafer

This month’s choice is Today’s Calla Lillies by Ernst Ulrich-Schafer.

I chose this image for several reasons:

Composition – Composition here is very pleasing to the eye! Diagonal stems from bottom left guide the eye to the focal point of the image which are the flowers’ interiors. The shapes of the flowers themselves are wonderful and wonderfully placed in the image. The flowers even create quite an interesting negative space due the contrast against a black background.

Lighting and Post-processing – Lovely lighting here shows off the flowers very well. The lighting is softish but doesn’t look oversoft. Shadows are well controlled here with the deepest blacks being the background itself. This helps the flowers “pop” big-time against that background. Post-processing is also well done here with lovely details in the whites. If I have one nit, I’d nix the black frame as this changes the overall perspective of the flowers making them look smaller. That said, I know Ernst put it there 100% on purpose and it works for him.

Tonal quality – I really like the monochrome (light sepia to my eye) quality of this image. Monochrome really helps show off the strong shapes of these flowers, as well as give them a nostalgic feel.

For all these reasons, this is my choice for image of the month. Since we all have opinions, some members may disagree with my choice. That’s cool but THIS thread is not the place for debate over my pick, NOR is it the place to further critique the image. The purpose here is to suggest strong elements in the photo that we may learn from.

Congrats again Ernst Ulrich-Schafer for creating this wonderful image!

With this shot, I was so intensely involved with the flowers that I didn’t really “see” my backpack which was about 4 feet away and clearly in view.  I really needed to stop and look at the whole scene, but I didn’t.  Sometimes it can take a few minutes to settle into the groove and start practicing good habits and by the time I got diligent, it was too late for this one.

Photograph by Kristen Smith

In addition to watching the far background, keep an eye out for stray items close to the subject that might distract the eye.  So many times I get my pictures home only to find some annoying leaf, pine needle or branch.  Ugh.  I find that using Live View not only makes taking the photo easier, but gives you a 2D image to look at right away. Many times I catch bad compositional elements this way.  Check out this series of shots that illustrate how I cleaned up my shot –

Photograph by Kristen Smith

Hmm that background doesn’t do the flower any favors, does it?  I need to make the flower really pop out of the bokeh, not just sit there in it.  That stump has got to go. Luckily at this magnification and perspective, very small movements make for very big changes.

Photograph by Kristen Smith

I barely moved my camera, but the difference in background works so much better.  But this time I notice two things – one, there’s a lot of light playing the backdrop and I have to time the shot right so that it is more uniform back there and there aren’t any hot spots to detract from the flowers, two, there are a few stray pine needles and that leaf in the bottom right isn’t contributing anything good.  I pluck those out of the way and lo and behold there’s moss under that leaf and when I judge the light to be the best – Presto!

Photograph by Kristen Smith

So as you can see, the process can take a few steps to get a useable image.  The key is to develop good habits.

1. Stop and look at the whole scene, background and foreground and evaluate each aspect including the light if it’s variable
2. Remove distracting things like sticks and leaves
3. Change camera position for more harmonious backgrounds and foregrounds
4. Use Live View to see how the 3D translates to 2D

Hopefully this helps you in the field the next time you’re doing close-up and macro work.  Got any to share?  Feel free to log in to the Photography.ca forum and start a thread.

For more of Kristen’s outdoor photography and other articles visit wickeddarkphotography.com

Every month on our photography forum members nominate images that they like. Then at the end of the month I choose an excellent image and talk about why it rocks. The photo I choose is not necessarily the best one of the month. I’ve come to realize it’s not really logical to pit images from totally different genres against each other. That’s why there are categories in photo contests. I just choose a photo that has extremely strong elements that we can learn from.

Flower Picking at Astbury Mere by Richard

This month’s choice is Flower Picking at Astbury Mere by Richard

I chose this image for several reasons:

Gesture/Mood – The overall ‘gesture’ is beautifully captured in this image. Richard captured his daughter in mid-step while walking through nature playing with a leaf and a flower. It feels as though she may have been daydreaming; in fact the whole image has a daydreamy quality due in good part to the ‘gesture’ and wonderful backlighting.

Post-Processing – The (PP) post-processing here works very well to support the image. I really like the vignetting all around the girl as it emphasizes the girl’s walk through a field of flowers and sunshine.

Selective focus – Shallow depth of field is classically used to have the girl stand out against the dreamy background.

Lighting/exposure – Backlighting was well chosen here as the light is quite harsh but the image doesn’t have a very harsh feel. The girl’s face looks well exposed and appears comfortable and natural because the sun is not blasting it directly. The specular highlights on the hair, hand and around the clothing are wonderful warm accents and do not distract.

For all these reasons, this is my choice for image of the month. Since we all have opinions, some members may disagree with my choice. That’s cool but THIS thread is not the place for debate over my pick, NOR is it the place to further critique the image. The purpose here is to suggest strong elements in the photo that we may learn from.

Congrats again Richard for seeing and capturing this wonderful photo!

Image by thoughton

Thoughton, a member of our fine art photography forum recently uploaded a gorgeous set of travel photos where the backgrounds share equal or greater importance to the foreground or the main focal point. In some of the images the background IS the focal point.

Part of the skill here is of course anticipation, desire and patience. Sometimes we can spot a great street background but we need to hunt down (sounds better and less boring than ‘wait for’) a foreground subject to complete the scene.

Image by thoughton

Click to see the photo thread that contains thoughton’s whole set in a larger size.

Happy hunting

Q: What is Gaia Nudes?

A: Gaia Nudes is the name of our project for photographing artistic nudes in the landscape.  As landscape shooters, we have an appreciation for natural beauty.  Melding the human form into the landscape seemed a fun and challenging way to merge our appreciation of the landscape with recognition of the beauty inherent in the natural human form.  The results of our work are showcased on our website, www.gaianudes.com.

Q: As you say, you are primarily nature and landscape shooters; how did you come to develop this website and concept behind Gaia Nudes?

A: Well, there are many, many wonderful landscape scenics out there online, in magazines and in other forms of publications.  There are also a lot of pictures of nude or naked people online:  just try searching for quality, fine art nude photography and you are inundated with what is often just soft porn!  We realized that there are much fewer examples of images that combine a well-composed landscape with an artistic interpretation of the human form.  We thought this would be a challenging yet rewarding way to broaden our skills as photographers.

Q: How is Gaia Nudes different from say, boudoir or glamour nude photography?

It really boils down to one key word:  sex.  Fine art nude photography is not there to sell a sexual idea.  Sure, there is intimacy and sensuality in fine art nude landscape images, but we are appealing to these sensibilities more than we are appealing to people’s interest in sex.  Boudoir photography is as its name implies:  shot in a private, intimate setting with props such as sexy clothing, mood lighting, makeup and provocative postures.  The emphasis is on the physical desirability of the person being photographed rather than on a general aesthetic appreciation of the figure.  Glamour nudes sell sex packaged up with fashion.  Both are respectable forms of expression, but they are not what Gaia Nudes is about.  A Gaia Nudes shoot may show the fragility of the body when exposed to the elements, it may be a story in the contrast in textures, or it may highlight the parallel forms of the human body and its echo in the line of a tree, hillside or jagged rock.

When we are out photographing with our models, we are all having fun.  We laugh at our mistakes, spin creative ideas off each other, and experiment with poses that connect the body to the landscape.  It’s a physical and mental workout!

Q: Why would other photographers be interested in this area of photography?

We have heard many times from our workshop participants that they are ‘in a rut’ or bored with their photography.  For shooters looking for a challenge, photographing nudes outdoors brings into play many skills and challenges, forcing photographers who think of themselves as ‘people’ shooters or ‘nature’ shooters to think outside of the box.  If you enjoy photographing beauty in any form, then you would be interested in this kind of photography!

As well, because we have avoided the need to ‘sell sex’, the photographer has a much wider range of emotion and story to work with.  By freeing the shooter and the model from the boudoir or bedroom, we’ve freed them to work together to channel original and unique expressions or stories.

Q: What do you look for in a landscape for a Gaia Nudes model shoot?

Good question!  We look for a landscape that has a bit of mobility in terms of it can support more than one pose or idea.  Ideally, a landscape that has several features of interest, such as some open land, rolling hills, some forest, perhaps some rocky terrain….  Practically speaking, we need land features that are capable of supporting safely both photographer and model (so no swamps, willow thickets or scree slopes!).  Privacy is also critical so both model and photographer can concentrate.  The landscape should also be something that we would photograph for its own sake.  Too often when a photographer takes a model outdoors for nude work, the landscape gets short shift and is relegated to a few sticks or a rocky waterfall.  We want both nature and the model to be appreciated since their stories are interwoven.

Q: What do you look for in models?

There are a few characteristics that are critical.  The most important is attitude.  We are seeking a fun and rewarding experience for both model and photographer, so a person with a positive attitude and a willingness to get a bit dirty or work a little harder for the shot are critical.  In terms of physical characteristics, we look for a slim, fit and healthy body that looks natural.  The camera appreciates models who can elongate their limbs and carry an elegant line from head to toe.  We love yogis, dancers, and gymnasts for this form of work.  The model should have a good kinesthetic awareness and an ability to understand a direction from the photographer so that he or she can translate a verbal suggestion into a pose.  This is definitely a talent!  We avoid models that are too muscular, too endowed (remember, we’re not selling sex!) or disproportional.  We don’t have height requirements, we aren’t gender-biased, and we don’t really care about the model’s facial beauty since we’re not selling glamour, fashion or boudoir.

Q: Describe a typical shoot.

This is one area where we are landscape shooters, through and through!  We start early (just after sunrise is best) and work in the lovely early morning light for a couple of hours.  We usually break for midday both for health (heatstroke, anyone?) and then resume in the long, golden light of the evening.  Each session is usually about three hours long.  Both of us work one model and encourage suggestions or ideas from the model as well as each other.  We rarely use supplemental light, but sometimes we share holding a reflector to brighten parts of the model’s body.

Q: What are some of the challenges and rewards of this form of photography?

The challenges of this form of photography is that it is like an ‘all over’ workout:  so many skills are at play!  Mentally, you need creative vision to picture a concept.  You need good communication skills to translate this vision to the model so that he or she can picture what you have in mind and execute your suggestions.  You also need to be flexible to respond to changing poses, other’s ideas and variable weather and light conditions.  There is a bit of physical exercise too.  Fine art outdoor nude photography combines skills from the traditions of both portraiture and landscape photography.  The rewards are increased skill levels, compelling imagery and that satisfaction you feel when you work together as a team with your model to create an amazing image.

Q: Can you provide any tips for composing the scene?

You have to work within an idea.  Just plunking a person into a scene is going to look artificial.  Try and think of the model as another feature of the environment.  Where would this feature look best in the overall scene?  Look for shapes or elements in the scene that might mirror the shape and form of the human body, or contrast with the human form.  If you are really stuck, try having your model make different forms (rounded or long, arms and limbs out or close to the body) next to another distinctive element in the scene.  For example, a round rock in a prairie scene might suggest a curved form on or around the rock, or you could angle for contrast and have your model in a sitting triangular pose to contrast with the rounded form of the rock.

Lens choice and point of view are also important when composing the scene.  Since this is about the landscape and the model, we often use wider angle lenses and shoot further back than traditional boudoir or fashion photography.

Q: Where do you look for inspiration on how to pose models within the scene?  Is communication of your vision easy or difficult?

A lot of our inspiration comes from the landscape itself.  There are always interesting shapes, textures and lines in nature that you can work with.  We encourage our models to come up with ideas as well since they know what their bodies are capable of doing in terms of reach, balance etc.  Communication depends each time on the relationship between the photographer and the model.  We try to be very clear and descriptive with our language to translate our vision in what we want the model to do.  So, instead of saying, “Can you just move that arm a bit more over there?” which is a terribly uninformative way of putting it, we would be more specific:  “Can you lift your right arm about 90 degrees out from your side and bend your elbow so that your right hand rests behind your right ear?”

We have also wandered across some exceptional fine art nudes in the landscape and those are also always an inspiration.

Q: What equipment do you use in the field?

We mostly use natural light as it is very beautiful and flattering to both landscape and model if you shoot in bright overcast light or when the sun is lower in the sky.  We may use a reflector for some fill, and on some occasions we break out off-camera flash with a soft box for other effects.

Q: You are also both photo instructors with eBooks and workshops on offer.  I understand you have an upcoming workshop on this form of fine art photography.  Can you describe that for any viewers who may be interested to learn more?

We greatly enjoy teaching, so we do have some eBooks on generic photography topics, along with our business partners Jay and Varina Patel, at www.visualwilderness.com But our Gaia Nudes work is primarily on our Gaia Nudes website.  We are offering a workshop this summer, in Alberta near where we live, on how to create this form of artistic photography.  The workshop takes place August 12-14, 2011 on gorgeous, private ranchland in the foothills.  We have several models and a very limited number of participant spots.  We’ll be covering how to communicate your creative vision, compositional tips and techniques and essential equipment, and we have a Ladies Only day specially set aside for female shooters who appreciate comraderie and company in learning new forms of photography.

Darwin Wiggett and Samantha Chrysanthou are both creative and life partners.  They specialize in high-quality, accessible instruction on photographic topics.  Their work has been published in both national and international magazines and publications; Darwin is a regular columnist for Outdoor Photography Canada magazine.  You can read more about them by visiting their websites (www.darwinwiggett.com , www.chrysalizz.smugmug.com) or their blogs (www.darwinwiggett.wordpress.com , www.samsrant.wordpress.com)

Image by Ron Cardinale

I’ve walked the shore of this lagoon many times. On this morning, a storm was approaching from the Pacific. I had an idea of what to expect so I had my wide angle zoom with me and used it at 12mm for this shot. The luck part of it was being there at the right time to catch these dramatic clouds with unusually still water. I’d taken a few other shots around the lagoon that morning but I like this one the best because the clouds and their reflection appear to converge directly across the lagoon. Despite the calm conditions on the ground, the clouds were moving along so I didn’t have a lot of time. The converging pattern was vanishing and I could see that the clouds that were moving in weren’t as dramatic as these.

One issue with such a wide angle lens when shooting a scene with bright clouds is that the lens sees a lot of those clouds so the camera’s meter very often reduces the exposure and the shot ends-up too dark. In previous shots, I had increased the exposure but that caused the loss of too much highlight detail in the clouds. The clouds are a key part of the image so it was important to hold detail in them. For this shot, I used the camera’s normal metering. The exposure was 1/500 at f/8 with ISO 100.  The resulting image was dark but it held details in the clouds except right were the sun was.

I made some adjustments later at the computer. I made a quasi HDR photo from different processings of the single raw image and also made a curves adjustment. A real HDR image sequence wasn’t feasible in this situation because the clouds were moving and the water wasn’t completely still.   Have fun and keep shooting!
Read a little more from Ron Cardinale at http://roncardinale.110mb.com

Lake Wall by taffy

This month’s choice is Lake Wall by taffty.

I chose this image for several reasons:

Mood – The overall mood here (which I interpret as as “ethereal”) is created by many factors including; the soft light, the composition and of course the black and white post processing. The whitish clouds reflecting in the water as well as what looks to be a really gentle surf also give you the feeling/illusion that the wall is floating on air.

Composition – The lines, curves, shapes, sub-shapes created by the lines and curves, and the use of negative space are all well used here. They please our eyes and intrigue our eyes. The curved wall-path that starts with medium/light tones in the foreground to darker at left midground leads our eye beautifully as it ‘cuts’ through the lighter tones on the left..

Exposure and post processing – Both well handled here. Even though the light is soft, reflections off the water make for a trickier exposure. Whites hold their subtle detail on my monitor and I like that. Silvery midtones in the sky (background) and immediate foreground match each other for wonderful effect.

For all these reasons, this is my choice for image of the month. Since we all have opinions, some members may disagree with my choice. That’s cool but THIS thread is not the place for debate over my pick, NOR is it the place to further critique the image. The purpose here is to suggest strong elements in the photo that we may learn from.

Congrats again taffy for seeing and and creating this wonderful photo!

Repetition in Monochrome by Casil403

This month’s choice is Repetition in Monochrome by casil403.

I chose this image for several reasons:

Spotting the scene – Abstracts like this are often all around us, and the vast majority of us will never ever see them. Looking is not the same as seeing. Seeing takes longer, it takes more time and more patience. Hats off to Casil for seeing this fabulous abstract.

Composition – Even though we are not sure what we are looking at, this abstract scene is very well composed and very deliberate. Both the curved lines and the straight lines in this image intrigue and successfully guide our eye through the image. The repetitive quality of the curves and lines is also very pleasing. In case people are wondering what the abstract actually is, Casil wrote …”it’s the reflection of a soffit ceiling on a mirrored pole.”

Post processing – Black and white was an excellent choice for this scene. The lack of colour emphasizes the graphic quality of the lines and patterns that we see. The tonal quality of the scene (good representation of tones) as well as the frame around the scene suits this image extremely well.

For all these reasons, this is my choice for image of the month. Since we all have opinions, some members may disagree with my choice. That’s cool but THIS thread is not the place for debate over my pick, NOR is it the place to further critique the image. The purpose here is to suggest strong elements in the photo that we may learn from.

Congrats again Casil for seeing, capturing and processing this wonderful find!

In its simplest photographic definition bokeh refers to the out of focus areas of a picture. Mostly the meaning is applied to photographs where there is a specific subject in the immediate foreground. Not always a close up or macro, but not really a landscape either where some of the photo might not be in crisp focus. Bokeh is a product of shallow depth of field which is achieved by a wide aperture relative to the length of the lens.

One of the most dramatic uses of bokeh is to separate your subject from the background. Especially if the background is very busy. Rendering it smoothly out of focus makes things really pop –

Joyeuse by Kristen Smith

One of my favorite bokeh techniques is to echo the main subject exactly. Your imagination can easily fill in the missing detail because it resembles the sharp subject so much. The echo reinforces the main idea, but also gives your brain something to play with. The trick is to utilize an aperture that will simultaneously allow you to recognize the out of focus object and leave it fuzzy. I love this technique –

Vinca by Kristen Smith

I also love how bokeh can create atmosphere in a photo – mostly a gauzy, dreamy effect. It doesn’t work in all circumstances, but if you are working in the right light it is beautiful. With this kind of image, the subject most often is the bokeh itself with the sharply focused parts playing supporting roles only.

Birch by Kristen Smith

The digital age is a real help when experimenting with bokeh because you can see your shot immediately and use live view and depth of field preview to fine-tune each one. Get to know your lens by shooting objects at different apertures and focal lengths then studying the effect. Think about what kind of photo you want to make and how bokeh can emphasize your photo’s intent.

Got any good bokeh shots? Feel free to add them in comments or join the Photography.ca forum and start a thread.

For more of Kristen’s outdoor photography and other articles visit wickeddarkphotography.com

Urban Eagle by Michaelaw

This month’s choice is Urban Eagle by Michaelaw.

I chose this image for several reasons:

Story and composition – The title Urban Eagle tells it all and the awesome background imagery of a bridge and cranes make the story more compelling. Themes and subthemes abound in shots like this and I really enjoy that. The eagle is well positioned in this shot that had to be composed super-quickly. The background elements (bridge structure and cranes) are also very well placed in the shot.

Degree of difficulty – timing/decisive moment – This is no easy shot to get. The timing, (just look at the lovely frozen open-wings) the focus, and composition have to be very well synced and Michaelaw did an excellent job.

Sharpness – The bird’s feathers are really sharp and the eye looks quite sharp along with some lovely background bokeh.

Colour and post processing – Both are well controlled to create this very striking image with a lovely ‘cool’ colour palette that totally suits the image. If it were my shot I may have burned in the rear white wings a bit and dodged the face a wee bit but that’s it.

For all these reasons, this is my choice for image of the month. Since we all have opinions, some members may disagree with my choice. That’s cool but THIS thread is not the place for debate over my pick, NOR is it the place to further critique the image. The purpose here is to suggest strong elements in the photo that we may learn from.

Congrats again Michaelaw for capturing this wonderful scene!

In my last blog for Photography.ca I wrote about Picasa. Picasa does a wonderful job of basic photo editing, however, it just doesn’t cut it for anything really detailed. When I need more detailed editing capabilities I use Gimp. Gimp is a wonderful piece of software available for free use for Windows and Mac users as well as the original Unix platform. A companion product called ufRAW, also free, allows Gimp to open and edit RAW image files and since I shoot almost exclusively in RAW format it was a necessary add-on.

Gimp will do a lot more than I am capable of doing and I have still used it to do some amazing things. Like Photoshop it allows you to edit images using multiple layers, has many different filters and scripts that can change the look of your images (or parts of it) and also provides many different tools to work on your images. In this blog post I’ll edit an image and provide some screen shots to give you an idea of the capabilities of this wonderful piece of software, however, to really learn how to use it visit the tutorials page on the Gimp site.

In order to give you the broadest tour possible I will take an original image where I’ve done a fair bit of work on the image and walk you through the editing steps that I took to get it the way I wanted. Some of you out there may be much better at photo editing and so you will undoubtedly see areas where I am doing something wrong. Please feel free to comment below so I can learn more about how to do this stuff properly.

Let’s start with this photograph of a butterfly. Here’s the JPEG version created by exporting from Picasa with default settings. All things considered it’s not a horrible shot of the butterfly but the composition is kind of blah and the butterfly’s camouflage makes it difficult to see. Let’s open it in Gimp to see what we can do with this boring image.

First up, since it’s a RAW and I have ufRAW installed it automatically opens in ufRAW for me.  Here I can make adjustments to the RAW image before jumping into the Gimp editor proper.  For this image I’m going to make a few adjustments here so I end up in Gimp with the basics already completed.  This is the general process for me.

Living in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Glenn Euloth enjoys travelling on the photographic journey.  Visit www.euloth.com to join him on the trip or find him on our photography forum under the nickname of Iguanasan.

Stairs of Montmartre, Paris - 1925 by Andre Kertesz

What makes this, and tons of other Kertesz images fantastic is the precise and deliberate composition. Kertesz was simply a master at guiding your eye to interesting places in the photograph. The shapes of the shadows and the position of the railings are both delightful to look at and they guide your eye perfectly toward the humans in the photo.

Kertesz was also keenly aware of all planes of focus in an image and how they work together. The connection between the foreground, midground and the background elements of this image helps to suggest a story as well as make the image graphically striking.

Haunting the Obscure by Kristen Smith

There are some general guidelines you should follow when shooting burial grounds.  The first thing to remember is to be respectful.  These places represent lives and history and often sorrow.  If there are mourners or visitors present, give them space.  Don’t crash a ceremony.

Also don’t touch or move anything with respect to the graves themselves.  If one is damaged or fallen over, leave it.  Sometimes branches or other debris fall on monuments and I always leave those as well, unless it is photographically in the way.  I also avoid climbing over anything I don’t have to like walls or gates. And I never remove anything from a gravesite and I can’t imagine doing so.

Angle of Repose by Kristen Smith

My main interest is in old cemeteries.  Luckily in New England we have the oldest European cemeteries in the country and I’m never short of subjects.  Whatever your particular interest is, find ways to accentuate what you find interesting.  It might be particularly moving epitaphs, or artwork and common decorative motifs or maybe just finding stones of people with your name.  Personally I like to show the overall structure and character of a cemetery as well as highlight some of the oldest or most interesting headstones.  Decaying stones are always terrific subjects; lichen, cracks, weathering and even outright destruction can make for really interesting images.

Harriet Obscured by Kristen Smith

I will admit that after years of shooting in cemeteries it does get tougher to come up with original compositions.  Sometimes approaching a grave yard in a different season helps, like winter.  Sometimes it means getting there at a certain time of day so that carvings are brought up strongly with shadows. Sometimes it means finding unusual perspectives and including other things like walls and gates in my compositions.  Frequently I use different post-processing techniques to bring out what I want in a photo.  This doesn’t always mean black and white or sepia, but I do use them since they especially suit the older burial grounds I haunt.

Keeping Watch by Kristen Smith

So don’t be afraid to step into that cemetery near your house.  Explore it respectfully, photograph it creatively and walk away with a sense of history.

Kristen Smith is a New England photographer whose cemetery work can be found in her Graven Images Gallery

I was out wandering about with my newly purchased 8mm fisheye lens on a crisp Sunday afternoon. The temperature was hovering at minus 20 C with the bit of wind chill. It was sunny and the snow was reflecting the light back on every surface. I was in the skate park with the idea I could try out some interesting experiments with the snow covered skate domes. The new C Train overpass also runs along the edge of the park, so I thought it would work well with the lens’s distortion as well.

Urban Trek by Jacqueline A. Sheen

The problems that a cityscape photographer faces in winter are not much different than what a landscape photographer would experience. Our terrain is generally a bit smoother but it is equally as cold, so I always dress about the same as you would expect to dress if you were out in the mountains. I am usually out for a few hours at a time, so I make sure I am prepared for the weather.  The advantage I have over the rugged landscape photographer is that I can find a Starbucks to warm up in pretty quickly when the going gets too cold!

If you are out in sub-zero temperatures for extended periods of time, you will have to consider how to care for your gear.  I usually carry an extra battery in my pocket but so far I have not had to use it. Recently, while out on the street on a crisp day of about minus 10 C, I noticed the sun shining into one of our plus 15s that is accessible from the street. I thought it might make for an interesting shot from the inside and climbed up the stairs to go inside. Well- myself, (I wear glasses) the camera LCD screen and the lens filter all fogged up as you might expect. After a few minutes the fogginess cleared and I was able to get the shot. I am told that having a filter on the front of your lens helps keep moisture off the lens itself so you may want to consider a UV filter for that reason. Also when I come in from shooting on a cold day,  I remove the memory cards  from my camera,  pack up the camera and lenses  in the bag, then I zip it up tightly. I let everything return to room temperature for several hours before removing the gear  from my bag. That way I avoid the problem of condensation on my camera and lenses.  Having a well padded camera bag is useful for this reason.

For this photo, which I call “Urban Trek”, I was lining up the 8mm fisheye lens to show off the circle of street lights in the park. Someone walked into my frame and I snapped the picture.  The idea of the urban trekker appealed to me. Here we have an urbanite facing the harsh cold elements surrounded by this stark bright landscape. His dress and posture further emphasize the cold temperatures as he quickly walks to his destination.

Jacqueline A. Sheen is a photographer living in Calgary Alberta, Canada. You can check out more of her work at www.jasphoto.ca and she also goes by the handle JAS_Photo on our photography forum.

Junk Yard Cat by Barefoot

This month’s choice is Junk Yard Cat by Barefoot

I chose this image for several reasons:

Mood – Lighting – This image has a great mood due to the wonderful lighting. The lighting is on the low key side and it’s totally working for me here. Even though the lighting is low-keyish there’s still quite a bit of delicious shadow detail.

Good suggestion of a story – This is also related to the mood but it looks to me like this car is in an old garage or barn. The car is also way old with loads of rust but it still serves a purpose, it’s not dead yet. It serves as a potential favourite resting spot for the cat.

Subtlety – Mystery – Surprise – I love the fact that my eye did NOT go straight to the cat in this shot and this is due to the fact that the bright circular thing on top of the headlight at right is the first thing we look at. I love that. Had the cat been brighter, the shot would have been more about the cat and our eye would have gone straight for the cat. This way, we get a better surprise when we notice the cat.

Composition – I dig the repeating circles and lines in this image as well as the point of view from which the image was taken.

For all these reasons, this is my choice for image of the month. Since we all have opinions, some members may disagree with my choice. That’s cool but THIS thread is not the place for debate over my pick, NOR is it the place to further critique the image. The purpose here is to suggest strong elements in the photo that we may learn from.

Congrats again Barefoot for seeing and capturing this wonderful scene!

I tried the Kodak software that came with my first point and shoot but it was very slow and clunky and didn‚„t come with a decent image editor so I gave up on it and went back to copying files in Windows.

Google bought Picasa from Idealab in 2004, branded it, and started giving it away as a free download. ‚The Google fan-boy that I am I decided to give it a try and it was instant software love. ‚I don‚„t know how much of it was Idealab and how much of it was Google but I found Picasa to be a wonderful piece of software that did everything I needed in a slick, easy to use package.

First up was image import. ‚I no longer had to launch two explorer windows, create a folder and copy the files from my SD card to the new folder. ‚Instead, inserting the SD card into my laptop automatically launches a window that asks me if I want to import the files into Picasa. ‚All I have to do is click OK. ‚Picasa looks after the copy process and deletes all the images off the SD card after confirming the copy so I‚„m ready to go shooting again.

Next is the easy editing tools. ‚Once the image is in Picasa I can quickly navigate to an image and perform a number of easy edits.

Picasa software - Click to enlarge

1. Red-eye removal
2. Saturation and sharpening
3. Convert to black and white or sepia
4. Crop to any dimension or aspect ratio
5. Facial recognition
6. Straighten the image
7. Tag and Geotag
8. And much, much more…

Not only do the edit tools work easily and quickly but Picasa automatically creates a backup copy of the image and performs the edits on the copy so if you make a mistake or if you want a copy of the original you can always find it or revert back.

I ran into a bit of problem organizing my images initially as I was not using Picasa so I had created a 2009 folder and in it I created January, February, March, etc. ‚After I started using Picasa I had a very simple way to upload images to PicasaWeb for sharing with just a click of a button, however, it used the folder name as the album name on PicasaWeb. ‚This became a problem when I started uploading ‚”January‚ images from 2010 as they got put in the same album on PicasaWeb.

To solve this problem I developed the following strategy: ‚At the beginning of the month I create a folder in Picasa with the format YYYY-MM (Monthname), so for example I have 2011-01 (January), 2011-02 (February), etc. ‚This allows me to store and manage the images by date without worrying about duplicates and when I want my holiday photos I can easily search for ‚”December‚.

If you are not sure how to manage your photos or if the software you are using is awkward and not working well for you then I highly recommend you‚download and install it. ‚At the very least you should check out the‚video. ‚Come back next month and I‚„ll talk about advanced image editing without having to spend a lot of money on expensive software.

Living in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Glenn Euloth enjoys travelling on the photographic journey. ‚Visit‚www.euloth.com to join him on the trip or find him on our photography forum under the nickname of Iguanasan.

Sidelong Glance by Robert Doisneau - 1948

What makes this photograph so appealing is the sense of story and sense of humour. The woman is looking at the art in the‚foreground painting‚but the man sees ‘art’ in a different painting off to the side. The model’s bare bottom in the painting is the brightest element in the image so our eye (as well as the man’s roving eye) goes right to it. The point of view of the image, the fabulous timing, as well as the fact that the subjects seem unaware that they are being photographed all add to this image’s appeal.

First ‚œ get close! ‚So many times I see ‚Ëœclose-up‚„ pictures that include way too much in the frame. ‚Like a flower image that shows other flowers, leaves, a fence, the dirt etc. ‚That‚„s not a close-up. ‚The reason good close-up and macro photos are so magical is that they show us a world we might not ordinarily notice. ‚Here‚„s what to do, find out how close your lens will focus and then try and stick to that as much as possible. ‚My ZD 12-60mm lets me get a couple inches from my subject and does a good enough job that I can sometimes leave my macro lens at home.

Ice Crystals by Kristen Smith

Second ‚œ isolate! ‚Close-up photographs are much more effective when the subject is clearly separated from the rest of the scene. ‚You can do this in two ways, first by choosing a subject that doesn‚„t have anything near enough to be in the frame with it. ‚So pick that flower or mushroom that doesn‚„t have any friends. The second way you can isolate your subject is by opening your lens to a large aperture. ‚Doing this limits your depth of field and creates an out of focus background also known as bokeh. ‚Of course sharp focus on your main subject is critical, so be careful. ‚Watch the shutter speeds and use a tripod if necessary.

Chicory Blossom by Kristen Smith

Third ‚œ surprise! ‚Show me something different. ‚Oh gee, another flower picture. ‚Yay. ‚How about a bug? ‚Yawn. ‚A leaf? ‚Zzzzz. ‚Sorry, I‚„m not really dumping on any of these things, but haven‚„t we all seen a million of them? ‚I‚„m just as guilty of it. ‚After a while they‚„re all the same and it takes an effort to bring something different to the world of close-up photography. ‚Find it. ‚Whatever it takes, find something unusual about an everyday object or something you hardly ever see photographed. ‚Try new angles, perspectives, juxtapositions, play with depth of field, background, color combinations; anything to help your image break free of sameness.

Broken Cork by Kristen Smith

So that should get you started. ‚Get close, isolate and surprise me! ‚Feel free to post comments with links to your best close-up photos or share them on the‚forum.

My Website = www.wickeddarkphotography.com and I’m based in New Hampshire, USA

A snowy morning by Bambi

This month’s choice is‚A snowy morning by Bambi

I chose this image for several reasons:

Mood – This image has a wonderful mood and this mood is created by the falling snow, the snow covered branches in the foreground against the darker toned trees in the midground and of course the figure in the background. A shallower depth of field with the sharpest elements in the foreground might not have been the obvious choice for many photographers, but it is rocking this image big-time! The shutter speed catching the suspended snow is also helping the mood. The Black and white conversion is very well done, and it suits and enhances the other elements contributing to the overall mood.

Composition – Very well done here! There are ‘layers’ of interesting things for our eyes to look at starting from the foreground and continuing to the background where the focal point (the person) is. Our eye is well guided through this wintery ‘tunnel’.

Exposure/shutter speed – Both are well handled here. The shutter speed ‘freezes‚ ‘ the falling snow here. A good exposure keeps the whites in check and offers up wonderful tonality with a good range of tones. If I have 1 teeny niggle I might burn in the lightest branches at top right by maybe 5%.

For all these reasons, this is my choice for image of the month. Since we all have opinions, some members may disagree with my choice. That’s cool but THIS post is not the place for debate over my pick, NOR is it the place to further critique the image. The purpose here is to suggest strong elements in the photo that we may learn from.

Congrats again Bambi for capturing this gorgeous scene!

Calgary Cityscape by Jacqueline A. Sheen

Calgary is not a big city although it suffers a bit from urban sprawl. It sits nicely on the prairies, where the Bow River runs through it. The CPR railway also runs through the downtown core. This is a vibrant, wealthy city, that was built on a ‚”can do‚ pioneer spirit.

Calgary‚„s many skyscrapers afford some wonderful skyline photography. Because the city core runs east to west along the core, some really wonderful late day photos can be had from the western side of downtown facing east. The glass towers literally glow pink and gold. The downtown core itself is located near the riverbed in a bit of a valley, which makes for some awesome vantage points both at river level and from higher vantage points.

When photographing the city, I walk everywhere. It is not really much different than landscape photography in that respect. To see, really see what you are looking at, you have to slow down. I try to photograph the city in a way that shows off its beauty but at the same time, shows it in a way that the common commuter may not notice in their race to get downtown. Look up. Did you notice the classic art deco styling on that old building? ‚Did you see those gargoyles way high up on another?

Calgary is blessed in that the downtown core is vibrant and alive. There is an active arts community and there is much public and private funded art. The photo above shows a portion of a large sculpture that graces the sidewalk in front of one of the ‚”Oil Towers‚ downtown. It looks like a stylized dinosaur skeleton, which makes sense as all the oil reserves come from ‚”dinosaur bones‚ so to speak. Although the owners of the sculpture may not like my use of it to frame a skyscraper other than their own, when I saw the photo, the title came immediately to mind. ‚”This City was Built On Dinosaur Bones.‚

Jacqueline A. Sheen is a photographer living in Calgary Alberta, Canada. You can check out more of her work at www.jasphoto.ca and she also goes by the handle JAS_Photo on our photography forum.

I guess the most important aspect of shooting these types of subjects is the ability to look up, vertical, sideways, basically any way that gives one a different perspective. When shooting, look for interesting shapes and reflections off the glass windows of the towers. This can be anything from the reflections of the other parts of the buildings themselves, to reflections of the sky or clouds, sunlight or other buildings in the area.

Energy Plaza - Calgary, Alberta by Lisa Couldwell

If you see something that catches your eye, try turning your head, body in a way that might perhaps give you a different perspective and if you see something, get the camera ready. I usually set my Pentax into auto-bracket mode because I like to have the option of an HDR shot to play around with when I get home. Put the camera to the eye and again turn the camera, sideways, on an angle or basically any way that intensifies the abstractness of what you see through the lens. Take your time and don’t be afraid to take several versions of the shot while moving the camera and your body into different angles as you never know what may work and what may not. When composing the image in camera, I often compose lines to move on the diagonal as this moves the eye through the photo and creates a pleasing perspective. I look for symmetrical and geometric shapes when I move and photograph. I will go across the street and try from a different street corner as well. The beauty of this kind of photography is anything goes and you never know what you may end up with just by moving either a few centimeters or several feet. (Just as an FYI, sometimes you may get hassled from security people but in Canada as long as you are on a public sidewalk and not on private property you have the right to continue to photograph.)

In this image, I really was attracted to the V shaped angle of the building, vanishing perspective, symmetry, and the reflections of the other windows and the clouds. I pointed the camera straight up and tried to angle it so it was perfectly symmetrical. I then autobracketed 3 shots at exposures of +.5/0/-.5 stops, combined them into an HDR image in Photomatix, converted to BW in Silver Efex and minor touch ups in Lightroom to really bring out the cloud detail.

Lisa Couldwell is a photographer living in Calgary Alberta, Canada. You can check out more of her work in the Pentax Gallery, on fluidr,‚and on Smugmug. She also goes by the handle casil403 on our photography forum.

Rayography – [Kiss] by Man Ray 1922

The image above is a photogram which means it was taken without a camera. Faces and hands were placed over photographic paper and exposed to light. Man Ray preferred to call the photograms he created Rayographs (after himself).

Joseph Koudelka - Portugal - 1976

What attracts us to this image is the sense of story combined with brilliant composition. I don’t know what the story is here but it’s a drama. Older man waits in background with a shadowed profile overlooking a private conversation. The woman is smiling in profile, perhaps trying to soothe or coax the young girl, and the child is concerned. What is happening to her? For me, this scene is filled with tension.

Compositionally, this image is a master-class. Angular lines add to the tension in the image. Triangles (our eyes love‚triangles) are everywhere . Corners, angled light rays, noses, table ends, knee bends, elbows are just a few of the triangles that we see. Look harder and you’ll see more of them…it’s no accident that they are there. Even the interaction (both obvious and subtle) between the 3‚individuals‚is triangular. Some fine black and white printing with a rich assortment of tones further‚adds to this image’s impact.