Time Lapse Photography – Podcast with Dave Delnea

In this month’s podcast, Matt Brandon speaks with Vancouver-based photographer Dave Delnea about his newest Craft & Vision eBook, Timelapse: An Introduction to Still Photographs in Motion. Matt & Dave discuss the details of timelapse photography, and the nuances of stitching those still images together to create a movie. Hear the podcast here

Burn magazine calls for entries in Emerging Photographer Fund

Photographers have been invited to submit their work for a chance to win a $10,000 grant for the completion of a personal project. From the Burn website we get this
We are now officially announcing the Emerging Photographer Fund grant for 2013.

We are awarding $15,000 to three winners and spreading the love.

One top winner will receive $10,000 and two runner-ups will each take home $2,500.

These grants are designed to support continuation of a photographer’s personal project. This body of work may be of either a journalistic mission or purely personal artistic imperative. It was initiated by David Alan Harvey in 2008 and is awarded by the Magnum Foundation.

We offer this to support emerging photographers in our craft. All types of photographers. This is not a photojournalism grant, nor an art photographers grant, but could be garnered by either or both. We just want to support committed authored photography of any ilk. Please click here and see who has secured this grant in the past and who our jurors have been. 2013 jury will be announced in the next few days!

The deadline for entry will be May 5, 2013 (6pm EST). No extensions for any reason.

© Matt Lutton

Presented by the Magnum Foundation and initiated by photographer and Burn magazine’s founder David Alan Harvey, the Emerging Photographer Fund offers, each year, grants designed to support the continuation of a photographer’s personal project.

 ”This body of work may be of either a journalistic mission or purely personal artistic imperative,” say the organisers. “We offer this to support emerging photographers in our craft. All types of photographers. This is not a photojournalism grant, nor an art photographers grant, but could be garnered by either or both. We just want to support committed authored photography of any ilk.”

One top winner will receive $10,000 and two runner-ups will each get $2500.

Photographers have until 05 May to submit up to 25 photos, with the winners announced in June on Burn and at the Look3 Festival of the Photograph.

 

How to take a photography portrait in 10 minutes

When time is short or the location is a disaster, every photographer needs some tried and tested ideas to fall back on. Here are a few tricks of the trade

David Bailey once said, “I’m very quick. Ten minutes, that’s about enough time for a portrait.”

How long should it take to shoot a portrait for the Guardian? Probably longer than the time our photographers are often given: interviews run over; subjects are busy people; it’s a daily newspaper, and arrangements are often made at the last minute; the pictures are wanted for a pressing deadline.

So you’re the photographer who has been assigned the job, you’ve rushed at the last minute to arrive at an unprepossessing building where the subject is finishing an interview in a dull room. It could be in a bland hotel or an office decorated in an even blander shade of beige. What do you do next?….READ MORE HERE

This useful article in The Guardian doesn’t really tell you anything you couldn’t work out for yourself by looking at pictures of important people in newspapers and magazines. Most photographers have their style, their go to way of photographing and rarely shift far from it. Jane Bown, who photographed for the Observer was a case in point. See how she always uses light from one direction with preferably a dark background. Very effective.

We teach about natural light portraiture on our Portrait courses

One photographer who makes is living photographing the very important and to whom 10 minutes would be luxury is Ander McIntyre his website is absolutely full of images of presidents, politicians, scientists, artists and others in the public eye and all photographed in about 2 minutes. Go and have a look at his remarkable portraits and learn.

 

 

All images ©Ander McIntyre

7 Basic Tips That Will Make Your Stock Photographs Sell

On Lightstalking this useful article by Rachael Towne,  a professional photographer and editor of Photoluminary.

The microstock model is a relative newcomer in the world of commercial photography. Previously, only an elite few were able to make a decent living with stock photography since it required a lot of specialized training, expensive equipment and the elusive knowing the right people at the right time. The advent of digital photography turned this traditional stock world upside down and has made it all but obsolete. Anybody with a decent digital camera and a basic knowledge of photography has the potential to earn money with their photos now. However, in order to really make it big and earn a living with microstock, there are some things that are very important to know and do.

Click Here: 7 Basic Tips That Will Make Your Stock Photographs Sell Like Hotcakes

15 Thoughts on Fine Art Photography Composition

By alainbriot on Lightstalking

What are the most important aspects of composing a Fine Art Photograph?  The answer to this question certainly varies from photographer to photographer because each of us places more importance on some aspects than on others.  What follows is what I personally consider to be the most important aspects of Composition….

Much of what Alan says I think is fundamentally true and good starting points to think about photography as a medium for art. I do think that art is a much wider subject than can be addressed by consideration of composition, the definition between fine art and photography as a medium for art is a strongly debated. Just search ‘define fine art photography’ to see how difficult it is to nail a definition. Wiki says

Fine art photography is photography created in accordance with the vision of the artist as photographer. Fine art photography stands in contrast to photojournalism, which provides a visual account for news events, and commercial photography, the primary focus of which is to advertise products or services.

We don’t have to believe or agree with everything in the Wiki world though.

So basically is anything that is not photographed for the purposes of making money art? But that can’t be correct, just look at a site like Flickr to recognise that most people using cameras are not artists they are at best recordists.

These are questions we pose of our students in our Intermediate Photography course, our aim is to stretch their understanding of photography and to encourage them to incorporate these ideas within their own work. To help them to stop just recording what is front of them and to start using their cameras as a means of expressing their ideas.

Here are  of Alan’s suggestions about making images with the intention of creating fine art. As I say I don’t disagree with any of these but I don’t think adhering to a set of rules can create art, fine or otherwise. I think that art is in the intention of the creator, therefore if you intend to make an image that is more than mere representation then you are attempting to create something with art at it’s foundation. Using Alan’s suggestions may certainly help.

Rhine 2 by Andreas Gursky; this is the most expensive photograph ever sold and is considered by some criteria as a pinnacle  of photographic art. What do you think?

Click Here: 15 Thoughts on Fine Art Photography Composition by Alain Briot (With Photos)

Portraits: Pakistani victims of Taliban violence

Pakistan based Associated Press photographer Muhammed Muheisen recently created a portrait series of victims of Taliban violence. To many of these men and women, the idea of negotiating with people responsible for so much human pain is abhorrent. Their voices, however, are rarely heard in Pakistan, a country where people have long been conflicted about whether the Taliban are enemies bent on destroying the state or fellow Muslims who should be welcomed back into the fold after years of fighting. Denver Post

In this Tuesday, July. 31, 2012, photo, Pakistani newspaper seller Mohammed Rafiq, 20, who was injured in a bomb blast on June, 29, 2008, in Swat valley, poses for a picture in Islamabad, Pakistan. To many victims of Taliban violence, the idea of negotiating with people responsible for so much human pain is abhorrent. Their voices, however, are rarely heard in Pakistan, a country where people have long been conflicted about whether the Taliban are enemies bent on destroying the state or fellow Muslims who should be welcomed back into the fold after years of fighting.(AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

In this Saturday, July 7, 2102, photo, Pakistani daily worker Mufeed Ali, 48, who was injured by a remote control bomb at Lahore train station, on April, 24, 2012, reacts while posing for a picture in Lahore, Pakistan. Hazratullah Khan’s right leg was amputated below the knee after he survived a car bombing as he was on his way home from school. His response when asked whether peace talks should be held with the Taliban leaders who ordered attacks like the ones that maimed him is simple: Hang them alive. Slice their flesh off their bodies and cut them into pieces. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

In this Monday, July 30, 2012, photo, Pakistani politician Israr Shah, 56, who was injured in a bomb blast in Islamabad on July, 17, 2007, poses for a picture, in Islamabad, Pakistan. To many victims of Taliban violence, the idea of negotiating with people responsible for so much human pain is abhorrent. Their voices, however, are rarely heard in Pakistan, a country where people have long been conflicted about whether the Taliban are enemies bent on destroying the state or fellow Muslims who should be welcomed back into the fold after years of fighting.(AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

See the rest of these powerful portraits here

15 of the Worlds Most Famous Photographers

I think we could all put together a list that might contain some of these but as a stab at one person’s list I think it is OK. From Tripwire magazine

What makes a world’s famous photographer noticed or well-known? Is it the number of years he or she has been in this profession, the experience they have gathered, or a particular field of photography that he or she has chosen? None of these; the most important reason behind any of the world’s most famous photographer is the pictures he or she has taken.

World’s most famous photographers do keep a low profile a lot of times. A by-line in their photo is enough to acknowledge their work. Some famous photographers would rather not reveal their own faces for personal reasons. These reasons can be to stay mysterious to their growing audience in particular or they are just too shy, plain and simple. World’s most famous photographers are celebrated because they have made a particular shot of a bizarre or amazing moment that can only happen in a millisecond. People admire how in so little time, they have captured such an astonishing event or happening. .………….MORE

well Steve McCurry would be on most people’s list

 

The 7 Common Habits of Remarkably Talented Photographers

From that other excellent antipodean photography blog, Lightstalking, we get this article by

Tiffany Mueller,  a professional music and fine art photographer. She has been published in various publications including magazines, art journals, as well as photography books. She blogs at Life Is Unabridged.

I think I probably agree with everything here so read on

One of the best ways to improve yourself is by observing the habits of those you find to be inspirational and talented. In doing so, we hope to learn what it is they have done that helped them achieve success. Of course, there’s no set route to the top of the photography game, but if you were to do a case study on the habits of some our favorite photographers chances are you’d find some very similar habits among them.

Here are some of the greatest photographers ever just in passing ©Magnum photographers

Click Here: The 7 Common Habits of Remarkably Talented Photographers

 

Wildlife photos: How to take the best shots

From the BBC website we have this

Even though the latest digital cameras can take dozens of photographs within a matter of seconds, and reveal instant results, it is still not as easy as you might think to snap a winning image.

The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition – run by the Natural History Museum and BBC Worldwide – receives thousands of entries. With the 2013 entry deadline approaching, what could you do to make your images stand out? Watch this slideshow – click here – to get some expert tips.

Enter Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2013 now and take part in one of the world’s most prestigious photography events. The competition is open to professional photographers, amateurs, young and old, worldwide until 25 February 2013. Full details here

Adults may enter up to 20 images for £20.00.  Entrants aged 17 and under may enter up to 10 images FREE.

Here are some other great tutorials that will help you to get great shots

12 Great Online Tutorials on Wildlife Photography

10 Tips for Improving Your Wildlife Photography

 

 

Lightroom Tutorials and Tips

We have recently started our first Lightroom course and it is going really well. What we have learned from our students is that many, prior to the course, hadn’t realised the vast array of processing options available through this wonderful program. Lots of people assume it is good for sorting out a bit of exposure problems or to correct colour vagaries but have not comprehended how much improvement both technical and creative Lightroom offers. I have gathered here some tutorials available on line that you will find interesting. Often, because of the space available, the tips and tutorials are more a bit, ‘do this and you will improve your pictures’ whereas when we teach we explain how and why there will be an improvement. Understanding the process is important because it gives you much better creative control and that is what we all seek.

3 Easy Lightroom Adjustments to Add Drama to a Landscape from Lightstalking

An old adage of photography is that you should try to create the image you want with the camera rather than relying on post-production. And that’s good advice. The less post you need to do on a photograph, the easier your life will be (as post-production throws up an extra set of challenges). But sometimes, for one reason or another, you might want to make your landscapes shots pop a little more by applying a little well-considered post production to them. Here are a few ways you add the drama you are looking for.

Play With the Blacks Slider – Lightroom has a convenient little slider called “Blacks” in develop mode that allows you to have more control over the contrast in your images. Dragging the slider to the right to increase your blacks will usually result in a slightly more dramatic image in landscapes owing to an increase in contrast. Be sure not to clip too much (you can see exactly how much clipping you’re doing by holding down the “option” key on a Mac or “alt” key on a PC as you use the slider with your mouse). For a great little video on using the black slider, check out this tutorial.

“Sacrifice” (Explored #23) by Luke Peterson Photography, on Flickr

Click Here: 3 Easy Lightroom Adjustments to Add Drama to a Landscape

Using Lightroom 4 to Recover Almost Unusable Photos from Lightstalking

Adobe Lightroom 4 has some significant changes within its develop module that gives us photographers several new impressive tools when post-processing images. Adobe came out with a new image process version (2012) which is basically the image processing engine behind Lightroom and Photoshop’s Adobe Camera Raw plug-in. This new process version provides many significant updates, including more options when making local adjustments and the new highlights and shadows sliders (which essentially replaces the recovery slider in Lightroom 3). Because of these new powerful features in Lightroom 4 we can now, with much greater ease, recover those photos which we may have thought were unusable.

Tumihay the Hunter (before Lightroom 4 post-processing and then after) by Jacob Maentz

Click Here: Using Lightroom 4 to Recover Almost Unusable Photos

How to Import Photographs into Lightroom By Chase Guttman on Lightstalking

Before you can truly harness the power of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, the most essential thing you must know is how to import your digital photography files into a catalog. As mentioned in the previous tutorial, Lightroom is a modular based program where you can organize, develop, print, share and display your photography, among many other things. In order for Lightroom’s vast number of features to be useful to you, you must first import your images into a catalog so you can work on them. The importing process is done via the “import dialogue box.” There are two ways to quickly access the import dialogue box:

Click Here: How to Import Photographs into Lightroom

There are endless numbers of site offering advice as well as the excellent Lightstalking here are some of my favourites  you might like to check out:

Adobe Tutorials

Lightroom Queen

Presets Heaven

A Killer Collection of Adobe LightRoom Tutorials

Lynda.com