Copyright in the digital age...

I'm headed into ASMP's symposium of copyright "Copyright and the New Economy" in NYC tomorrow.  Should be a fascinating day with many photographers and (c) luminaries in attendance.

As important for everyone is the pending (less than two months now) publication of Ed Greenberg and Jack Reznicki's new book, "Photographer's Survival Manual: A Legal Guide for Artists in the Digital Age." I'm working on a review copy so I can tell you more, but anyone who knows how thorny these issues have always been--and the even denser briar patch we've been thrown into by the internet and the altered expectations of people who want to use our images, will definitely want to check this out--and maybe buy a copy for their attorney.

Rules, schmules...

It's amazing how often I find myself breaking the "rules" these days. I still read blogs, many from "pro" photographers that try to make sure you've got the light coming from over your shoulder, i.e. front lighting your subject. More times than not, I'm working with (sometimes strong) backlighting.

Don't have your subject looking OUT of the frame? Says who.

Always trying to have your photographs tack-sharp? Why?

Using high shutter speeds to freeze motion? Why?

Cranking the aperture to maximize depth of field? Why?

Staying away from high ISO's to prevent grain? Why?

Attach lens to the front of your camera? Why? (try free-lensing).

Shoot subjects at eye-level? Why? (depends what you're trying to say).

Use only natural light? Why?

Don't shoot in the middle of the day? (already covered this one in another post).

This is safe. FORGET ABOUT THE RULES AND PLAY. You're not likely to be arrested if you break any of these rules (...I suppose it's possible depending on how far you take things...).

Look at the photography that inspires you and speaks to you. For me, these days, the pictures that really resonate are almost always rule-breakers. You can't get there if you don't.

POP YOUR BATTERIES OUT!!!

 Don't even think twice. If you're not using it TODAY, go to your flash (and other electonic gizmos) right now and DUMP THOSE DOUBLE-A's on your desk. Storing your equipment, even for a modest amount of time, with the batteries installed is NOT a good idea. Batteries leak, and the result is a mess--corroded contacts at the very least, and you can imagine where it goes from there.


How do I know this? Funny you should ask. I don't really want to talk about it.


The other day I pulled out my Nikon SB-800 Speedlight to do a little experimenting with a new technique. No power. On top of that, the door to the battery compartment wouldn't open. At that point battery meltdown was the furthest thing from my mind. The unit was in clean, pristine shape--no sign of trouble...


...except for that door.


Not wanting to force it open and damage it, I did a little web search to try to figure out why the door wouldn't open. That was fruitless, of course (no nitwit could possibly fail to open the door!). Then a light popped on--the freakin' batteries!


I'm pleased to say that I didn't explode. The damage was undoubtedly already done. I got a butter knife and pried the cover loose. Sure enough my Duracell AA's had committed sepaku, spilling their guts all over the inside of the battery compartment and fusing the door shut with their blue-green entrails. The contacts were shot and I had a repair job on my hands.


It strikes me as ironic that batteries from the same purchase, stored OUTSIDE of equipment in the camera bag are just fine. It's almost as if they turn into little monsters bent on destruction when they're installed. 


Nikon was more than happy to have me ship the flash in for repair. Thankfully, I could not hear any chuckling to themselves as they explained the process--and that it would likely cost more than $100.00 to fix the damage done by four bucks worth of coppertops.


SO...don't do this. Keep your batteries outside your electronics until you need to use them. When you're done using the equipment, take the batteries back out.


That's your tip for the day. I just saved you a lot of money.

Be your own best client...

The phone's not ringing off the hook, all your business "housekeeping" is done, and your well of creative inspiration is reduced to a damp spot at the bottom of a very deep hole. What's a photographer to do? Well, sitting on your butt is not an option.

Be your own best client.

Give yourself an assignment. Photographers do best when they are accountable. An assignment is made, a shoot scheduled, a client guided toward a vision that fulfills their image needs. You are being counted on to make it happen. That accountability fires the creative imagination.

If you're experiencing a lull, you likely have a shortage of accountability. When that happens your creative spark flickers, gutters, and sometimes, all but goes out. Time for a personal intervention.

One of my goals for 2010 was to be more proactive in my personal shooting. When I'm not busy for clients, I refer back to a list of personal projects/shoots that I created early in the year. New subjects, new techniques, experiments, holes in the stock library...all are fair game.

Slack time can be filled with professional and creative projects. The key, however, is that you MUST treat them as if they are being done for a paying client. I will repeat: YOU MUST TREAT THEM AS IF THEY ARE BEING DONE FOR A PAYING CLIENT!

That means they must be planned, scheduled, and executed using your best business practices. Your personal work must be done professionally. It's the only way to create the accountability that keeps us moving forward.

The beauty of this idea is that your completed projects will result in new expertise, new techniques, images with value beyond your investment of time. Your next sale could result from these efforts.

Hire yourself.

Grab your camera...the games are afoot!

Join the Biphotothon!

Inspired by the Olympic sport of Biatholon and underwhelmed by the physiques of many photographers seen at industry events the past twelve months, I've hit on a perfect new event--the Biphotothon. It involves skiing (winter Olympic years) or running (the summer years) and hand-held shooting from prone and standing positions. 

There would be short lens and long lens classes and 5k, 15k and 30k course lengths for the sprinters and the distance folks. 

Pulse will be measured at each shooting station and shutter speeds restricted to one-half heart rate. Shooting targets will be posted at 100 meters. They should be uniform and chosen to make the measuring  of sharpness and clarity quantifiable. 

Podium placement will be judged by a disinterested (but no doubt amused) panel of judges and based on sharpness (50%), speed of course completion (25%), and composition (25%...and yes, it could be a factor!). 

No post-processing or tilt-shifting of any sort allowed.

Next development: Free-style Aerial Photography and Skelephoto....stay tuned. 

Every hour is a golden hour....

New photographers are often told to shoot during the "golden hours", those halcyon moments around the sun's rising and setting when the world is bathed in a golden glow that somehow makes everything look better. Years of heeding this advice lead to advanced shooters reluctant to photograph outside this sacred window of opportunity.

To listen to the authorities there is no other time to wield a camera (except for the rara-avis who shoots only when the sky is overcast. These are the troglodytes who hide under a rock until the mean, shiny sun is going away. They huddle in front of their computer doing post-production until it's safe to play again.

Both of these camps miss the point. EVERY HOUR IS A GOLDEN HOUR. You only get so many in a day, and (sorry to say) your days are numbered.

Just as your best camera is the one you have with you, your best light is what you're shooting in. There is no time of day that can't be used to create photographs. Time permitting, no opportunity should go unpursued.

Beyond the issue of artificially restricting the time within which you can work, there are compelling reasons to shoot during the strong sun of midday--between the mythical golden hours. First and foremost, there are many things that happen only when the world has shaken off its slumber and the sun is high.

I spend a lot of time photographing gardens, plants and nature. Many flowers, particlularly the spectacular blooms of cacti and succulents, just don't open when the sun isn't shining brightly. Photographers who only venture out when the day is gray or the hours "golden" will never see the light of day with respect to these opportunities. Begging your pardon for the awful pun, you must be prepared to shoot midday if you are to capture these images (see Delosperma congestum above!).

Some of my favorite photographs are those showing patterns and textures. Everyone has seen glamour shots with lighting through Venetian blinds throwing repeating, razor-sharp shadows across model's legs. Unless you've got hundreds of watt-seconds of artificial light being pumped into the scene, this requires strong natural light. Characteristics of many surfaces and textures do not reveal themselves except in the brightest conditions. This requires lovers of pattern and texture to shoot midday.

Without bright light, high-contrast photographs are difficult, if not impossible to achieve. Strong light creates strong shadows, and the two together make the funky, arty photographs that adorn many a gallery wall.

The over-exposed portrait with blown-out background that is currently in vogue is easiest to accomplish with the assistance of full sun. Popular modern wedding photography includes liberal use of powerfully sun-lit scenes to create romantic portraits of happy couples with rays of light coursing through their entwined arms.

Back lit and rim lit photographs are difficult to create without the aid of midday sun. Whether light is bounced back into the scene or not, to get light coming through a flower's petal you have to have strong light on the other side....

When you've exhausted the potential for using the sun during the day, there is still plenty of photography to be done midday. There are always detail shots, macro work, and photography in full and dappled shade, to fill the hours until your next "golden" opportunity.

So don't let the "experts" convince you to put your camera down once the sun has risen. Every hour is a golden hour.

Conversion factors and shutter speed...

People often ask about why they took better pictures with their point-and-shoots than with their DSLR's. The complaint is that pictures turn out blurry and out-of-focus. While there are many potential reasons, one of the most overlooked is related to lens conversion factors on other than full frame sensors.

The long standard rule for hand-holding (yes I know, we should ALL be using tripods ALL the time...) is that shutter speed should be equal to, or faster than the inverse of the focal length of the lens being used. That may sound complicated but is actually quite simple. If you are using a 100 mm fixed lens or have your zoom set to 100 mm, you can only get sharp pictures with a shutter speed of 1/100 second or faster. An 85 mm lens would allow you to hand-hold at speeds down to 1/85th of a second, and so on. Where there isn't a shutter speed that matches your lens' focal length, use the next fastest available.

Where we run into problems is with DSLR's that have smaller than full-frame sensors. Full frame models correspond to traditional 35mm cameras and the rule above holds true. Smaller sensor cameras have a magnifying effect on lens. Usually called a digital conversion factor, it makes the effective focal length of a lens some multiple (usually 1.4--1.6x) of its named length. A camera with a 1.4x conversion factor makes a 100mm lens the equivalent of a 140, and a 300mm lens...a 450mm! While this is terrific for photographers that need longer glass, it creates a problem for everyone when it comes to shutter speeds.

Remember our rule? Good. Now remember this: the rule applies to the EFFECTIVE focal length of your lens. This means that higher shutter speeds are necessary to hand-hold your camera if you don't have a full-frame sensor. The 100mm lens mentioned above needs to be used with a 1/140 second or faster shutter speed to get sharp pictures. The 300mm must be shot at over 1/450th of a second.

With enough light, increased shutter speeds don't pose a huge problem. At low light levels and in close-up work additional light or higher ISO's will be needed. The biggest problem is REMEMBERING that higher shutter speeds are needed. I've fallen into the trap of thinking shutter speeds are fast enough, only to be disappointed with results later on.

AND, vibration reduction (VR) lenses should not be considered a fix. In some ways they're used as a crutch to compensate. While they can be of some assistance with minor, barely detectable camera movement; they are no substitute for shooting with appropriate shutter speeds.

When in doubt, lug the tripod out. If you can't, or don't want to, be aware--and REMEMBER to apply conversion factors to your shutter speed consierations...