Flash Light

The convenient on-camera flash unit can be a real life saver at times, giving you the opportunity to capture shots in low light situations that may not be otherwise possible, but because it is positioned so close to the lens there are problems as well. The on-camera flash tends to produce relatively flat lighting with harsh highlights and, if your subject is positioned too near a wall, hard shadows. By comparison, when I was shooting weddings and portraits I often used two off camera flash units, one positioned above the camera, the second angled off to the side. This set up helped to minimize shadows and to provide a more even tonal range on my subjects. The Petersen Photographic website offers a nice article on ways in which to make the most of an on-camera flash, including a couple of low cost home made accessories.

Photographic: Pop-Up Flash

If you have ever struggled with producing good results using a flash, the article is worth a look.

Cold, cold, cold!

Back at the beginning of December, when we had our first real snowstorm of the winter, I blogged on the joys of wintertime photography. But here we are well into January, experiencing one of the coldest winters in recent memory and my enthusiasm for outdoor photography has waned considerably. With highs in the teens, single digit lows and below zero wind chills, the idea of venturing out in search of photogenic winter scenes chills me to the bone (pun intended). So until it warms up just a bit, to somewhere just below freezing, I will spend my time indoors paging through shots taken in the past year in search of good candidates for a bit of Photoshop work in preparation for printing - there is plenty of wall space yet to cover around the house.

THE Color Photographer

At one time when people discussed color photography, Pete Turner was the name that was often the first mentioned. Turner has been a successful commercial photographer for decades, hitting a peak in the Seventies and Eighties. I remember ogling Turner's work in the photo magazines, wishing I could duplicate his ability to capture rich color and bold graphic imagery. Besides the deeply saturated color of his images, Turner was also known for his special effects photography. Special effects created in-camera by Turner and his assistants in the halcyon days before Photoshop. In addition to his commercial advertising work, Pete has published a coffee table sized tome covering his time traveling in Africa along with a book collecting covers he shot for a variety of jazz albums. Take a few minutes to visit Turner's website http://peteturner.com/ and enjoy a trip through his virtual gallery for a taste of color photo work at its best.

Space Age Buick

I really love this hood ornament from a 1950 Buick spotted at a car show last summer. I'm not a big fan of cars from that era, but man oh man that chrome jet just screams space age! The sky reflected in the hood helps to emphasize the feeling that the jet is in full flight. But the reflection also caused a problem with the hot spot from the glaring afternoon sun creating a distraction to the eye. I wanted the focus on the chrome elements - the jet and the Buick lettering - so I softened the glare with a bit of retouching. The finished piece has been added to my Cars gallery on Imagekind (click link below the page header). Hopefully there are Buick fans out there who will want a picture of this fine piece of car art for their very own.

Hot Rod Photographer

If you are interested in hot rods, auto racing or car related photography take a minute to visit this link to the Hot Rod magazine site.

http://www.hotrod.com/thehistoryof/hrdp_1101_bob_dolivio_photos_1952_1960/index.html

The article is the first in a series paying tribute to the magazines long time photographer Bob D'Olivio. Interesting article and some very cool photos. D'Olivo's photographic subjects were not always focused just on sheet metal but the car culture in general. Having worked for Hot Rod magazine, along with freelancing for other clients related to the world of the automobile, he rubbed elbows with some pretty well known people of the era including Sandra Dee, the Everly Brothers, Annette Funicello and many others. The story and accompanying photos make for a fun stroll down memory lane.

Gray Sky or Blue?

While hanging out at a local booksellers coffee shop, I paged through a British photo magazine that featured an outstanding portfolio of black and white images. I love looking at these types of features as they can often provide inspiration for my own work. One point made by the writer of the accompanying article was how a mundane color image can be taken to another level by converting it to black and white. Seems almost counter intuitive, doesn't it? A color image should tickle the optical nerves, but in fact B&W can do the same and sometimes better.

After finishing my coffee I headed home and started a search through my files for color photos that might benefit from a conversion to gray tones. One of the first candidates was "Reach for the Sky". Taken this past autumn at Bald Mountain, the starkness of the branches offers quite a contrast against the intense blue sky. Not a bad color image, what struck me was how it took on a much more ominous tone when converted to black and white. The process of making B&W photos from color originals can be an enjoyable experience in and of itself since you never know how the conversion may affect the image. Sometimes the results can be surprising.

A Camera Does Not A Photographer Make

A professional photographer once observed "People don't consider themselves pianists simply because they purchased a piano and yet they believe buying a camera automatically makes them a photographer." A bit harsh? Maybe... but still pretty close to the mark. Anyone who owns a camera can be a picture taker but becoming a photographer owes more to the person behind the camera than the hardware. With photography, like most artistic pursuits, it seems the more you learn the more you realize you don't know.

One suggestion I would make if you want to be more than just a picture taker/image recorder is to spend some time at your local bookseller perusing photography books. When you find one (or two or three) that excites and inspires you, buy it. I have photo related books on my shelf dating back to the late Seventies that I still refer to. Even though the technical info may be irrelevant in the digital age, chapters on artistic vision, composition, lighting etc are still practical, and more importantly, still inspiring. There is plenty of info on the internet but there is something about the tactile experience of leafing the pages of a book that makes for time well spent. And having a favorite photo book within easy reach on the shelf makes for quick reference or inspiration when you need it.