Digital Camera World » Photography Tips

Photo Anatomy: shooting underwater photography in a freezing Alpine lake

jmeyer — Sun, 19 May 2013 01:00:15 +0000

In our Photo Anatomy series on Digital Camera World we select pictures by famous photographers and explain point by point what makes them work.

In our latest instalment underwater photographer Franco Banfi reveals how he captured this stunning image in the freezing waters of a Swiss alpine lake.

Hidden depths
Banfi’s image shows an unusual, fish-shaped iceberg. It’s located under the surface of a small, freshwater mountain lake: Lake Sassolo, located in the south of Switzerland.

Sense of proportion
By including his partner Sabrina holding a torch in the image, Banfi created a crucial extra point of interest and enabled the viewer to appreciate the scale of the iceberg.

Challenging conditions
“It was very cold in the lake, so having the right diving equipment was essential,” says Banfi. “That included a good dry suit and a pressure regulator that worked well in low temperatures.”

Tried-and-tested kit
Banfi shot close to the iceberg using a Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II with a 15mm f/2.8 fisheye lens, contained in a Seacam underwater housing. Settings were 1/100sec at f/5, ISO 100.

Insider Knowledge
“In spring this lake is still covered with ice,” says Banfi, “but the temperature rises and the ice melts quickly. Usually there are only 2-3 weeks in which to shoot the ice.”

We Say
As water absorbs colours at the red end of the spectrum, underwater photographers often like to shoot with strobe or flash for a more balanced range of colours. However, shooting with ambient light, as Banfi has done here, uses the resulting blue hue to create a much more subtle and atmospheric image.”
Chris Rutter, technique editor

Motorsport photography tips from start to finish line

jmeyer — Thu, 16 May 2013 23:01:34 +0000

In our latest Professional Photographer to the Rescue post our professional photographer takes our apprentice into the rough and tumble world of motorsport photography to shoot a leg of the British Rally Championship.

Meet our professional photographer

Jakob Ebrey runs Silverstone-based Jakob Ebrey Photography, the UK’s leading national motorsports photography agency. He’s the official British Rally Championship photographer and also shoots many other high-profile motorsports events. See more of his work at www.jakobebrey.com

Meet our apprentice

Trucker Dave King hails from Essex. He’s been taking photos since he was 15, and used to help out pro photographers at Arena Essex Raceway shooting all sorts of motorsport photography in the ’80s. Now using a DSLR, he asked for our help to improve his sports action shots.

Technique Assessment

Set Shutter Priority Mode
“Taking control of your shutter speed is critical when shooting motorsport photography,” advises Jakob, “so I got Dave to use Tv (Shutter Priority) mode, so he could set his shutter speed while his camera takes care of the aperture. I generally want a shutter speed of 1/250-1/500 sec to freeze the action in my motorsport photography, unless I’m panning for motion blur.”

Manage your ISO
“To make sure Dave’s DSLR is letting him set a good and fast shutter speed I got him to manually increase his ISO,” says Jakob. “It was a dull day, so we were shooting at ISO400 and 800 for most of the day. If you don’t increase your ISO, even shooting on your lenses widest aperture (such as f/2.8 or f/5.6) won’t achieve a resulting fast enough shutter speed.”

PAGE 1: Meet our professional photographer and apprentice
PAGE 2: Motorsport photography tips for during the shoot
PAGE 3: Final tips from our professional photographer
PAGE 4: Our professional photographer’s recommended gear
PAGE 5: Shot of the Day

Photography composition tips: 3 killer ways you can master perspective

jmeyer — Wed, 15 May 2013 23:01:28 +0000

Learn how to take control of perspective in your photo composition. In this tutorial we offer our best photography composition tips through your choice of lens to shooting position so you can start making perspective work for you.

For artists and draftsmen learning how to create a sense of perspective is one of the first disciplines to master. In a nutshell it’s the art of rendering the three-dimensional world that we see around us onto the two-dimensional surface of paper or canvas.

Of course, this is also what we do when we take photographs, but because the camera essentially does the work for us it tends to get overlooked.

However, being aware of some the basic principles will help you understand how the elements of your composition work. Knowing how lines draw the eye in and can be used to create a sense of distance can make you a better photographer.

While it’s tricky to manipulate perspective ‘in-camera’ in the way a draftsman might play with it using pen and paper, there are aspects that you can control through your choice of lens, angle-of-view and your distance from your subject.

You can choose whether buildings appear plumb-straight or ‘keystoned’ in your shots, and decide how much of the background to include in photographs of people and objects. You can even play with perspective to create entertaining optical illusions.

So let’s see how you can use perspective to take control of your picture taking…

PAGE 1: What perspective means to photography
PAGE 2: Photography composition tips – Linear perspective
PAGE 3: Photography composition tips – Background
PAGE 4: Photography composition tips – Perspective of scale

Refraction of light: capture amazing photography effects with a glass of water

jmeyer — Wed, 15 May 2013 11:37:11 +0000

The refraction of light is one of the most commonly observed phenomena and is a perennial favourite of photographers. While talk of bending light waves and the effects they produce may sound like complicated work, it’s actually a rather simple photography effect you can recreate anywhere.

Find out below how to capture the refraction of light using a glass of water and a cool background!

In this tutorial we’re going to use the refractive properties of glass and water to make a striking arty abstract. The chances are you witness this effect every day, and it can be clearly seen by simply looking through a glass of water.

But we’re going to take it one step further and control the effect for creative results.ding light

Using a background of diagonal black and white stripes, we’ll use the distorting properties of water and glass to bend, twist, rotate and skew the lines to form intriguing abstract shapes.

This is a relatively easy technique to get to grips with. Simply fill a glass container with water and look through it – you’ll instantly see the distorting effects of refraction in action.

Layer several glasses in front of one another and you’ll add layers of distortion to the overall effect.

The lighting is straightforward, and a regular camera mounted flashgun bounced off the ceiling will be more than adequate. You don’t need any fancy equipment or complicated camera techniques to achieve amazing results.
A simple table top is all you’ll need. So let’s get started and see how it’s done…

How to photograph the refraction of light

Get started
For this project you’ll need to make a simple background. We’ve created a diagonal black and white stripe in Photoshop and printed it out on a regular office laser printer. It doesn’t need to be too fancy. It’s worth experimenting with different designs, or you could even introduce some colour.

Perfect your settings
Position super-clean drinking glasses in front of the backdrop, and fill them with water to varying levels. Use a small aperture such as f/16 to maximise the depth of field and ensure everything’s sharp. Use a tripod, as small changes in camera angle will affect how the glass and water refracts the pattern.

Prepare the lighting
Daylight can work perfectly, but we’ll be using a flashgun here as we’re shooting in lowlight conditions. Ideally you want to avoid any unsightly reflections on the glass – you can easily achieve this by bouncing the light off the ceiling. To do that, simply point the flashgun in the up position.

10 reasons why your photos aren’t sharp (and how to fix them)

anicholson — Tue, 14 May 2013 23:01:40 +0000

Getting sharp photos is one of the fundamental goals in photography. If your images aren’t as sharp as you’d like, take a look at our ten-point guide to work out where you’re going wrong and how to get it right next time.

Reason No. 1. Your Photos Aren’t Sharp: Shutter speed too low

In the days of film photography there was a general rule that in order to get sharp images from a hand-held camera the shutter speed needed to be at least one second divided by the focal length of the lens.

So if you were shooting with a 100mm optic the shutter speed needed to be at least 1/100sec, which because of the way shutter speed is set usually translates to a setting of 1/125sec or faster.

This rule still holds today, but it is somewhat complicated by the focal length magnification factors of sub-full-frame sensors and image stabilisation systems.

For example, if a 100mm lens is mounted on a Nikon APS-C format SLR like the D5200, which has a focal length magnification factor of 1.5x, the photographer would need to set a shutter speed of at least 1/150sec.

Canon APS-C format DSLRs like the EOS 650D have a 1.6x focal length magnification factor, so the shutter speed would need to be at least 1/160sec.

The image stabilisation systems built into some lenses and cameras have a mechanism to compensate for accidental camera movement and this allows slow shutter speeds to be used when the camera is handheld.

Many lenses now claim a 4EV compensation, which means that the shutter speed can be reduced by 16x. That’s the difference between 1/125sec and /18sec.

Even with image stabilisation some people are better at handholding a camera steady than others. The amount of coffee and alcohol that you’ve drunk can make a difference as well.

Photography Lighting: using flash to cope with challenging conditions

jmeyer — Sun, 12 May 2013 23:01:58 +0000

In the final post in our Shoot Like A Pro series on photography lighting, we explain simple techniques for using flash to take control of your lighting environment.

Shot with on-camera flash

Unlike other lights, where you can see the effect of the position of any modifiers such as diffusers or reflectors, you can’t see the results with flash until you take a shot.

Flash doesn’t have to be scary, particularly if you are now familiar with how the direction of natural light affects your shots.

The quality of the light from most flashguns will be a little harsher than the light from your average reading lamp, so you still need to do some test shots with your own kit, but the basic principles of the quality and direction of light are the same, no matter what type of light source you use.

Shot with off-camera flash

Using a flash fired directly at the subject as the main light source is almost guaranteed to put you off using flash for life.

Used like this the flash works as a tiny point of light producing harsh, unflattering, high-contrast light.

You need to soften this light by making it appear to be much larger to the subject to make it more photogenic.

PAGE 1: Why you might want to use flash
PAGE 2: Soften the light from your flash
PAGE 3: How to use flash triggers
PAGE 4: Your remote flash options (infographic)

Photo Anatomy: capturing un-tamed moments in the wild

jmeyer — Sun, 12 May 2013 00:00:04 +0000

In our Photo Anatomy series on Digital Camera World we select pictures by famous photographers and explain point by point what makes them work.

In our latest instalment award-winning wildlife photographer Bence Máté reveals how he captured a rare confrontation between a hummingbird and a snake.

Shallow depth of field
By using a telephoto lens and throwing the background completely out of focus, Bence has concentrated attention on the bird and snake. The branch provides context and a frame.

Long lens
Bence captured this unusual stand-off with his Nikon D300 fitted with a 300mm f/2.8 lens. He was only able to fire off a few frames before the hummingbird flew away.

Supplementary lighting
Rain was falling and the light was poor, so Bence used two flash units – one in front and the other behind the action. The flashes enabled him to capture the motion of the hummingbird’s wings.

Restricted colour palette
The photograph uses different shades of green to striking effect. The bright green snake and moss, and the hummingbird’s mid-green plumage, stand out brilliantly against the muted, darker green background.

Expecting the unexpected
Bence was photographing hummingbirds in Monteverde, Costa Rica, when he noticed they had become agitated. He soon realised why: a side-striped palm pit viper was coiled on a nearby branch.

We Say
“Getting into the situation where you can photograph something like this is one thing, but this picture could easily have been ruined by the poor light. Using flash to supplement daylight gives wildlife images added impact, and allows you to work with faster shutter speeds.”
Chris Rutter, technique editor

Macro flower photography ideas: create fake dew drops to act as miniature lenses

jmeyer — Sat, 11 May 2013 13:00:26 +0000

When shooting macro photography, it’s often the small details that complete an image. And adding drops of water to your photo composition can serve to magnify the finer details of your subject for a striking effect. Here’s how it’s done.

Shiny raindrops add the finishing touch to macro flower shots, catching the eye and acting as miniature lenses that magnify the detail in leaves and petals.

There’s no need to wait for a downpour to achieve the look – you can recreate this effect without getting your camera wet.

You can find a floral subject in your local park or buy a potted one. A macro lens will let you get in really close and capture minute details in the flower’s petals, while maintaining a shallow depth of field for that dreamy macro feeling.

A tripod isn’t essential, but it will keep you steady and leave your hands free to create the effect you want. Use a watering can to create a falling rain effect, or mist petals with a hand sprayer for delicate dew drops.

How to create your own dew drops for macro photography

01 Set it up
Switch to Direct Sunlight White Balance mode if you’re not shooting on a sunny day, as this makes plants look fresher. Also, use a low ISO to ensure a crisp final image. A super-shallow depth of field that blurs out the background works best, so pick an aperture of f/5.6 or wider.

02 Perfectly composed
Position your flower against a clean background like a grassy lawn. (Pick up any leaves or twigs that might show up in the shot.) Stay parallel to the flower and use Live View to check how the shot is looking. Make sure you focus manually on the rain drops to get them pin-sharp.

03 A spoonful of sugar…
Add sugar to the water – this helps the droplets adhere to the flower’s leaves and petals and takes longer to dry, giving you more time to compose your picture. A watering can is brilliant for creating a falling rain effect, or you can use a hand sprayer to get a fine mist on petals.

Slow shutter speed vs fast: how to maintain a consistent exposure

jmeyer — Fri, 10 May 2013 11:00:18 +0000

How do you choose between a slow shutter speed vs fast shutter speed? In our latest photography cheat sheet we break down all the numbers…

As the name suggests, shutter speed sets how quickly – or slowly – the shutter curtains open and close in front of the camera’s sensor. In order to make an exposure, the camera’s sensor needs to be exposed to light.

The size of the aperture (the hole in the lens) determines how much light is let into the camera, while shutter speed dictates how long the sensor is exposed to this light.

The shutter speed can be seen in the bottom of the camera viewfinder and on the LCD screens.

Fast shutter speeds have high numbers, such as 8000, which represent fractions of a second – so 500 means 1/500sec. Lower numbers indicate slower shutter speeds, such as 1.6 ̋ for 1.6 seconds.

To maintain a consistent level of exposure, the shutter speed needs to be balanced with the aperture, and as one is increased, the other needs to decrease.

For instance, smaller apertures (which let less light into the camera) require slower shutter speeds (to expose the sensor for longer).

Wide apertures (more light) need faster shutter speeds (less time) to produce the same exposure.

The camera will do this juggling for you when you’re shooting in one of its automatic or semi-automatic shooting modes, but you need to adjust it yourself in Manual mode.

Just bear in mind that the choice of shutter speed is limited by the maximum aperture of the lens.

In our latest photography cheat sheet we explain the difference between fast vs slow shutter speeds… and what all those numbers mean.

Click on the infographic to see the larger version, or drag and drop the cheat sheet to your desktop.

DIY Photography Hacks: how to use your car as a mobile hide for bird photography

jmeyer — Thu, 09 May 2013 10:00:59 +0000

In our latest DIY Photography Hacks post we show you a simple way to bag frame-filling pictures of wild birds from the comfort of your car’s bucket seats. Find out how you can ditch the uncomfortable hides for good!

Image by Mark Hamblin

One of the most frustrating things about photographing birds is finding a way to get close without scaring them off. However, a tried and tested technique is to use some kind of portable hide, and what could be more portable than your own vehicle?

Using your car as a mobile hide is perfect for approaching many bird species and has the advantage that you can change position easily, quickly move on to new locations and have a warm, comfortable place to wait for the action to unfold!

So what do you need? Well a top of the range 4WD would be nice! But any vehicle will do just fine. The important thing is the support for the camera.

It’s possible to simply rest the lens on the glass of the open window, but this won’t provide much stability.

A beanbag (or perhaps a bag of lentils!) is a much better bet, or you can splash out on a purpose-built window mount with a tripod head to attach the lens.

This has the advantage of keeping the lens in position while driving. It can help to drape some camouflage netting over the window and lens barrel to conceal your face and hands.

There are some road safety issues to consider with this technique, so only attempt it on quiet roads where it’s safe to pull over.

It’s much better and safer if someone else is driving so you can concentrate on photography, with the added benefit that you can have your lens ready on the beanbag to start shooting as soon as the car comes to a halt.

How to photograph birds on the move the DIY photography way

Provide support
Use a beanbag to keep your lens steady and prevent camera shake. One that looks like two bags sewn together (www.wildlife watchingsupplies.co.uk) is ideal, as these have a gap that drops snuggly over the glass to form a solid platform to rest the lens on.

Be prepared to shoot
Before you approach, set your camera up. Set the exposure in Manual mode by taking a meter reading from a nearby midtone. An aperture of around f/5.6 is ideal, and use a shutter speed of 1/250th sec or faster to stop unwanted blurring.

Make your approach
To stalk roadside birds, reduce your speed to a crawl, and as you get closer, turn off the ignition (to prevent vibrations and noise) and coast into final position. Ensure you stop at the right spot, as starting your engine again may frighten the bird away.