Photo insights december '15

Jim Zuckerman’s

PH OTO I N S I G HTS December 2015

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Winter photography challenges Garish imagery What’s wrong with this picture?

Short and sweet Ask Jim Photography tours Window and door light Student showcase Back issues On the cover: Four great Pyrenees puppies celebrating Christmas. On this page: Grand Teton National Park in winter.

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know some photographers get into a rut with their photography especially in the winter months when the weather is cold and unpleasant. In spite of this, there are many inexpensive things you can buy that should stimulate your creative juices, and thanks to the Internet and home delivery, you don’t have to go anywhere to get them.

You can get many things online that are fun to shoot in an indoors setting. I know because I’ve done this numerous times. These subjects are fascinating, beautiful, and very photogenic. They are especially appealing if you like closeup photography.

Here is a list of things I’ve purchased on eBay, Amazon, and other websites: Exotic feathers, stunning seashells, rocks and minerals, fossils, dinosaur models, chocolate designs, art paper, dried insects, and skeletons of dinosaurs (models, of course), fish, reptiles, and mammalian skulls. I then photograph these things in nice arrangements usually with nothing more than diffused window light and a dark or black background.

With Photoshop embellishments at times, I have produced a large number of very cool images without leaving home.

For some examples of the types of subjects that I’ve purchased online and photographed in my kitchen or office, see page 38 in this eMagazine. I think you’ll find the images intriguing at the very least, and perhaps these ideas will help you get through the photographic doldrums of the winter season.

Jim Zuckerman www.jimzuckerman.com 3

Winter Photography Challenges

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inter photography is not easy.

You have to deal with a lot of issues that are not present when taking pictures in moderate or warm temperatures such as exposure on snow, fogging of lenses, cold hands and feet, deep snow, and fast depletion of camera batteries. Here is how I deal with these challenges.

Exposure Exposure is a problem when the frame is

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largely filled with snow because, like the arctic fox below, the built-in light meter in our cameras is programmed to produce accurate readings when it detects middle shades of gray, or middle tones. When the meter sees all white, it assumes this is middle gray and it therefore gives you a light reading based on that. In other words, it dictates an f/stop - shutter speed combination that turns the white snow into gray, hence the images are underexposed. Adjusting the ISO doesn’t solve the problem. All that doest is change

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the f/stop and shutter numbers, not the actual exposure.

When we shot film and we couldn’t see our pictures on an LCD monitor as soon as we took them, photography instructors taught that you had to overexpose snow pictures by about 1 1/3 or 1 2/3 f/stops to compensate for the underexposure. This advice is still correct with one caveat: It’s not precisely accurate. The reason it’s not a perfect solution is that there are many kinds of snow pictures. The picture of a cottonwood tree in Montana at right is all white, but in the image of the panda I shot in China, below, there is a sprinkling of snow and much of the dirt on the ground as well as the trees and the panda itself are not white at all. How can one exposure guideline fit both pictures? It can’t.

In the shot of the Japanese vending machine on the opposite page (this machine had hot coffee even while buried in snow!), the entire environ-

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UPCOMING PHOTO WORKSHOPS Carnival in Venice, Italy Jan. 29 - Feb. 4, 2016

Outrageous costumes in a medieval environment! Venice is beautiful any time, but during carnival it’s beyond amazing.

Frog & Reptile Workshop Close-up encounters with poison dart frogs and exotic reptiles in St. Louis, MO.

May 21 - 22, 2016

Home Photoshop workshop Learn amazing techniques that will give you unparalleled control over your images such as replacing the sky, making composites, using layers, and more.

April 2 - 3, 2016

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ment is white snow but the machine, which is largely middle toned, fills the center of the frame from where the meter takes most of the exposure information. This is another example of where a single exposure rule doesn’t apply to all snow situations.

The correct approach is to take a picture of the snow scene, study the LCD monitor on your camera, and tweak the exposure if necessary in 1/3 f/stop increments. It may take a couple of tries before you tweak the exposure to your satisfaction.

Fogging When a camera is moved from a cold environment to a warm house, hotel room, or heated car, water vapor condenses on the lens, the viewfinder, the mirror in SLR cameras, and possibly on the thin glass covering the sensor.

This makes photography impossible for 15 or 20 minutes until the fogged glass in your camera clears.

The way to avoid this is to keep the cameras and lenses you’re using cold. If you go indoors and you’ll be shooting again soon, leave your entire camera backpack outside. Lock it in a cold car or leave it on a balcony or by the front door. If you are going into a restaurant for a meal, leave your gear in the car within plain view from your table in the restaurant for security reasons.

If you are staying in a hotel, it’s obviously not wise to leave expensive gear in a parked car outdoors in the parking lot. Instead, bring large zip lock plastic bags and place the camera and lenses in individual bags. Using the plastic seal protects the glass in your equipment from becoming fogged.

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Fast depletion of batteries In cold weather, batteries lose their charge faster than they do is temperate or warm climes.

This is an easy fix -- just bring extra batteries -but the main thing is that you are aware of this issue. If you normally carry an extra battery, in extreme cold weather it’s a good idea to bring two extra batteries. Make sure they are all fully charged before you leave your home or hotel.

Deep snow In areas of the world where snowfall is heavy, hiking off-road and off a trail can mean you suddenly find yourself in very deep snow. This makes walking almost impossible, and doing photography this way is just too hard. The picture upper right was taken of me in Japan, and the snow-covered meadow looked easy to walk on until I unexpectedly sank in several feet of powder.

The only solution for this is to carry with you a pair of snow shoes. Many types are available, from classic wooden ones to hi tech shoes with aluminum frames like the ones shown at right.

They prevent you from sinking thigh-deep into the snow, and you can walk on top of the snow with relative ease.

Fingers and toes I wrote about keeping extremeties warm when shooting in winter last month, but it bears repeating again because it’s so important. For your toes, buy boots rated for at least 20 degrees colder than the temperatures you expect. If you think the coldest it could possibly be is minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit (-29 Celsius), then get books rated for minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit (-40 Celsius). I wear boots rated at minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit (-73 Celsius) because I hate 10

to have cold, painful toes. My boots are large and heavy, and I feel like Godzilla when I wear them, but they are warm. When your toes hurt from the cold, there is nothing you can do but go inside and take off the boots to warm up.

For fingers, I wear only a glove liner on my right hand so I’ll have complete dexterity to work the camera. I place five hand warmers in the right pocket of my parka, and when my fingers get cold (about every minute or two in extreme cold) I reach into the very hot pocket and warm them completely. Then I’m ready to shoot again. This is the best way for a photographer to shoot in very cold weather. §

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OVER THE TOP: Garish imagery

don’t know any other photographer who likes the range of photographic imagery that I do. There must be some out there, but I don’t know any. I thoroughly enjoy all aspects of photography except two: Ugliness, like war and natural disasters, and party photographs like weddings and Bar mitzvahs.

pages, you have to think differently. You have to wear a different hat, so to speak. In addition, you need to:

I bring this up because in the previous article I talk about nature photography, and in this article the subject is surrealistic color. Both of these subjects and styles are exciting to me, and perhaps to you as well. To create the wild, garish types of pictures I show in the next few

2. Think in terms of compositing pictures together for the perfect arrangement of elements as in the four-photo composite of the 1958 Ford Edsel, below.

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1. Take pictures of subjects that work well with a wild style such as the old American cars in Cuba, Venetian carnival costumes, brilliantly colored floral displays, etc.

3. Use ultra wide angle lenses for creative dis-

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NEW eBOOK One of the most important ingredients to great picture taking is lighting. Most of your pictures are taken with natural light, and that’s what this ebook addresses. You will learn to recognize the best types of lighting for the most stunning photography, which types of light to avoid, how to make the most out of bad lighting, how to expose perfectly every time even in tough situations, and how to deal with the constant problem of contrast.

If you are in any way insecure about your photography when it comes to using natural light, this easy to read ebook is a resource that you’ll feel is essential to your growth as a photographer.

Click the photo to see inside the ebook

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tortion as in both of the car pictures on pages 12 and 13.

4. Be willing to pump the colors beyond what most sane photographers would do. Or, conversely, desaturate colors for a completely different look as I did in the model shot in a Venetian bookstore on page 16 There are three pieces of software I use to introduce this kind of course, grainy, bold look: Nik Color Efex Pro 4. Within this suite of plug-in filters there is one called Tonal Contrast. In the dialog box, right, there are three sliders for the highlights, midtones, and shadows. I move all of them all the way to the right for the strongest effect.

processing programs have a clarity slider. This sharpens the mid-tones, and I move this about 3/4 to the right for a bold effect.

ACR or Lightroom.

Aurora HDR pro. This is new software that

Both of these RAW

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Become a better photographer with

eBooks

Click on any ebook to see inside

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is designed to process HDR images. It does a brilliant job, and in fact it is the only HDR program, including Photoshop, that has a slider called HDR Look. This allows you to exaggerate HDR or tone it down so it looks very natural with just one slider.

One of the presets in Aurora HDR Pro is Party in My HDR Pants, and that’s what I use to get the most punch out of a photograph. I also like the preset The First Time I Did Mushrooms. As you would expect from these names, the results are quite surreal. In some cases, the images almost look like drawings. They definitely enter the realm of art rather than being simply photographs.

If you want to try a free download of Aurora HDR Pro, click on this link: aurorahdr.com.

If you like artistic interpretations of your work plus a great HDR program, it’s worth a try. §

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LEARNING TO SEE

online course

by Jim Zuckerman

The ability to ‘see photographically’, to really grasp how your camera and lenses capture a subject or scene (which is different than how we see with our eyes) underlies successful picture taking. It is the bottom line that you’ve been looking for to take that quantum leap forward in your photography.

The great thing about online courses is that they can fit into any schedule. Life gets in the way at times, and Jim puts no limit on the time you can submit your work for his critiques. CLICK THIS PAGE to read more about this course.

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INDONESIA WILDLIFE & CULTURAL TOUR July 8 - 22, 2016

orangutans komodo dragons birds Bali ancient temples

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What’s wrong with this picture?

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n a word, it’s the light. When we look at a person or animal, we look at their face. Sure, we may glance at other parts as well, but it’s the face that holds our attention. In this shot, the lion’s face is in shadow while the back of the head is receiving the direct sunlight. It should be the opposite. The face is obscured by the dark shadow while the unimportant areas are lit, and that means since our eyes are drawn to the lightest part of a subject (or background) first, our attention is misdirected.

Wildlife photography is fraught with many challenges, and this is one of them.

The angle of the light and the direction of the subject’s face don’t always give us the best photo opportunity. In this case, there was nothing I could do. I took the shot, knowing it wasn’t correct, and the best I could hope for was that the lion turned its head and looked either at the camera or over its should back to-

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ward the sun.

That’s exactly what happened. With a simple turn of the head, above, half of the face became lit while half stayed in shadow. That is perfectly acceptable. This kind of sidelighting is one of the best ways to light a portrait -- animal or human. This kind of lighting gives us detail, texture, and a strong focal point -- the illuminated eye.

The sun was a bit high in the sky, and this accentuated the contrast, but given the time of day this was the best I could hope for especially considering that the lion’s tail was pointing toward the light and the cat’s face was at first angled at 180 degrees from the sun.

It doesn’t always work out that for a moment you get what you want. But this is why wildlife photography taught me patience. I see in my mind what I want, and usually I’m willing to wait to get it. Once I waited four hours in Kenya for a leopard to sit up in a tree, yawn, and climb down the trunk. In this case, I waited only about 8 minutes to get the sidelit shot.

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SHORT AND SWEET 1.

I photographed this white-headed marmoset in a large cage in an animal park in Bali, Indonesia. I shot right through wire mesh to get a shot that is devoid of the wire. By using a long lens (500mm plus a 1.4x teleconverter) the mesh became completely out of focus.

2. Out of focus foliage is often the ideal background

3. Photo instructors spend a lot of time talking about

4. When man-made objects don’t embellish a picture,

the beauty of low angled sunlight, but sometimes a harsh, bright sun works instead. Not often, but sometimes. I took this shot in the British Virgin Islands, and it’s the mid-day sun that created the cool shadows beneath the shutters and the strong color.

behind an outdoor subject, but if patches of sky can be seen through the branches and leaves, even if they are out of focus, they should be cloned out. Bright highlights in the background like this are distracting.

eliminate them. This Cuban cowboy was herding his cattle on the highway, and as he moved to the side to let our vehicle pass, I got down low to eliminate the road.

I also cloned out distant powerlines that could be seen faintly in the distance. §

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ASK JIM

Every month Jim will answer a question from his online students, from people who participate in his tours and workshops, or from subscribers to this magazine. If you have a question you’d like Jim to answer, please drop him a note at photos@jimzuckerman.com.

Q:

Jim . . .I took this picture a few years ago and always felt there was something wrong with it but I can’t quite put my finger on it. Do you think this is a successful picture, and if not, why not?

Jules Stude, Mecon, Georgia

A:

Horses in motion are beautiful, but the success or failure of equine pictures are almost completely dependent on the position of the legs. If the legs form an attractive graphic design, then the pictures will be great . . . assuming that the background and the lighting are good, too. In this picture, your background is fine, the diffused light is excellent, but the legs, especially the front legs, were not arranged well the moment the shutter was pressed. As in all compositions, it all comes down to graphic design. A beautifully designed picture where the lines are artistic makes a successful photograph. §

© Jules Stude

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Photography Tours 2016 - 2017

ARMENIA & GEORGIA June 2016

CARNIVAL IN VENICE Feb, 2016

CROATIA, SLOVENIA, MONT. May, 2016

INDONESIA July 2016

KENYA migration Aug. 2016

CHINA Sept. 2016

GREECE Oct. 2016

AMERICAN SOUTHWEST Oct. 2016

THE PANTANAL, BRAZIL Nov. 2016

PATAGONIA Apr. 2017

NEWFOUNDLAND Jun. 2017

KAZAKHSTAN Aug. 2017

For a complete list of all the photo tours/workshops Jim conducts, go to his website: www.jimzuckerman.com.

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KENYA PHOTO SAFARI August 4 - 15, 2016 The greatest concentration of wildlife on the planet - The Migration

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Window and Door Light O

ne of the most beautiful types of lighting for so many different types of subjects is the diffused light entering a window or door. Note that I said diffused.

Direct sunlight entering a room through a window or door is usually too harsh and contrasty. It works sometimes, but for consistently beautiful images it is the soft and diffused light that complements subjects and produces fine art imagery.

The good news about this type of lighting is that it’s free -- there is no studio equipment to

buy -- and it’s always available during the day.

The most important aspect of this type of photography is that the background has to be unobtrusive and non-distracting. If you position your subject by a window or door, you need to eliminate the window frame, door hinges, clutter in the room, and any other elements that detract from the subject. The easiest way to do this is to hang a piece of black velvet or other complementary fabric in the background. That’s what I did in the photo of the columbine flower, below, and I also hung black

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velvet behind my great Pyrenees when he was still a puppy on the previous page. Notice how there is nothing to look except the subject.

In the photo below, I made a portrait of a Himba woman in her hut. The light coming in from the small door was the only source of illumination. The mid-day sun was harsh, but I asked her to sit far enough back into the home so I could avoid the bright light striking the ground near the door itself. I had to raise the ISO because this was hand held and it was quite dark inside the hut. My settings were 2500 ISO at 1/50th of a second and f/5, and I used a 24105mm lens. I love this kind of natural light.

The Cambodian dancer, right, was being sheltered from rain in an alcove in Angkor Wat. She was facing out toward the light -- in essence

looking through an open window in the ruins -- and I used the soft and flattering light for the shot. The background is a wall inside the ruins, and I used the burn tool in Photoshop to make it darker. This direct all the attention exactly where I wanted it -- on the dancer. To make this young woman more doll-like, I applied Portrait Professional, a software program that can make skin look like porcelain.

Window and door light can illuminate a subject from the front, the side, a 3/4 angle, or even from the back. You control this by directing your model, or your pet, to face the direction that gives you what you like. In the shot of the Himba woman, I asked her to face the door to receive front light. The Cambodian dancer is lit from a 3/4 angle, and the woman in period clothing on the next page is side lit. ยง 29

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AMERICAN SOUTHWEST photo tour October 7 - 16, 2016

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Student Showcase Each month, Jim features one student who took beautiful and inspiring images on one or more of his photography tours or workshops. It’s really fascinating how photographers see and compose such different images even though we may go to the same place. Everyone gets great images on my trips.

Kevin Viney, Milton Keynes, United Kingdom Carnival in Venice, Cuba

Š 2015 Kevin Viney

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Student Showcase, continued

Š 2015 Kevin Viney

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Student Showcase, continued

Š 2015 Kevin Viney

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PHOTOSHOP WORKSHOP in my home

Sat. & Sun., April 2-3, 2016

Photoshop is a photographer’s best friend, and the creative possibilities are absolutely endless. In a personal and ‘homey’ environment (I have a very cool classroom setup in my home), I start at the beginning -- assuming you know nothing -- but I quickly get into layers, cutting and pasting, plug-ins, using ‘grunge’ textures, modifying lighting, replacing backgrounds, using layer masks, blend modes, adding a moon, and a lot more. I promise to fill your head with so many great techniques that you won’t believe what you’ll be able to do. I go over each technique several times to make sure you understand it and can remember it.

Photoshop instructors approach teaching this program from different points of view. My approach is to be as expansive in my thinking as possible in creating unique, artistic, and compelling images. In addition to showing you how to use the various tools, pull down menus, layers, and so on, I spend a lot of time giving you

creative ideas that will inspire you to produce amazing images with the pictures you’ve already taken.

I live in the Nashville, Tennessee area, and if you fly into the airport (BNA) I will pick you up. If you drive, I’ll give you my address and you can find my home on Mapquest or with a GPS. For the $450 fee, I include one dinner in my home (prepared by my wife who is an amazing cook and hostess) and two lunches, plus shuttling you back and forth from my home to your nearby hotel.

Contact me if you would like to participate in the workshop and I will tell you how to sign up (photos@jimzuckerman.com). All you need is a laptop and a lot of your pictures. If you don’t have a laptop, I have two Mac Book Pro laptops I can loan out for the duration of the workshop. §

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Jim Zuckerman’s

Jim Zuckerman’s

PH OTO I N S I G HTS

PH OTO I N S I G HTS

February 2015

January 2015

• Topaz Glow • A different approach to composition • Photographing puppies • Kaleidoscopic images • Online photo course • Student showcase • Photo tours

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Jul.‘15

Jun ‘15

May ‘15

• White balance • When can highlights be blown • Abstractions in soap • Fisheye lenses • Online photo course • Student showcase • Photo tours 1

Aug.‘15

Sept.‘15

Jim Zuckerman’s

PH OTO I N S I G HTS June 2015

• Realistic HDR • Selective focus • Simulating bokeh • Sepia & Dark Contrast • Online photo courses • Student showcase • Photo tours 1

Oct.‘15

Nov. ‘15

Dec. ‘15

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Online items you can purchase and photograph during the cold winter months

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PHOTO INSIGHTS® published by Jim Zuckerman, all rights reserved © Jim Zuckerman 2015 email: photos@jimzuckerman.com mail address: P.O. Box 7, Arrington, TN 37014

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