On Photography: Panoramic Images

August 6th, 2008

Last week, I mentioned assembling multiple images into a single panoramic image.  After a few people asked me about it, I thought I would elaborate on exactly how to make a panoramic image.  The best way is to use a film camera specifically designed to make panoramic images.  These cameras use 6X17 film instead of 35mm.  However, since most of us don’t have cameras specifically designed for panos, let’s talk about how to make panos with what most of us do have. Read the rest of this entry »

On Photography: Can Photoshop add Truth to Images?

July 31st, 2008

I came across a photographer at an art show this month who had a sign on his booth that read something to the effect of “My images are made using film and traditional darkroom printing.  No computers!”  The message was clear.  There is something wrong with computers.  The subtext was that there was something less honest about digital manipulation techniques compared to traditional analog ones. 

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On Photography: Flash for Landscapes? You bet!

July 18th, 2008

Flash has a rather underserved reputation for only being useful for indoor or nighttime photography.  In fact, nothing can be further from the truth.  When the camera’s flash is the only light used to illuminate a scene, the light can look garish and uneven.  Flash, technically called “fill flash” is best used to fill in the shadows of a scene to make the light look more natural, not less.

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On Photography: Wildlife Photography

July 11th, 2008

A couple of weeks ago, I was photographing in Rocky Mountain National Park and witnessed some disturbing although not surprising behavior.  I spent about an hour moving into position to photograph a grazing elk.  After a few minutes of photographing the elk raised its head in alarm.  I didn’t think I had caused it, and when I looked over my shoulder there were no fewer than five people behind me photographing.  They weren’t there a few minutes earlier so I can only guess that they had seen me and ran up behind me putting both them, the elk, and me in danger.

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On Photography: Happy 4th!

July 4th, 2008

Happy Independence Day!  One of my favorite 4th of July activities has always been watching and photographing fireworks.  This week I wanted to share a few quick tips with you so that you can get out there this evening and get some great fireworks shots.

 

fireworks_1.jpg  Read the rest of this entry »