In photography, every decision, creative and technical, rides on achieving a good exposure. When shooting portraits or products, landscapes or architecture, we must control our camera’s settings to ensure that just the right amount of light is allowed into the camera. When we strike the right balance in our exposure, we have a full range of tones, from pure white to deep blacks. We have rich visual detail. We have a sense of dimension. The colors and tones and contrast in our images weave the visual story of our subject and scene in a way that visually computes. As a result, we see just the image we strove to create, rendered perfectly in a way that satisfies our creative vision. In this book, Mark Chen shows you how to take full control over the science of exposure, providing you with the foundational skill-set you need to maximize your artistic vision.
Building on a professional photographer's on-the-job experience using the high dynamic range (HDR) imaging technique, which captures an astounding range of tones that far exceeds the native abilities of any camera, this guideÊshows serious photographers how a more sophisticated approach to HDR can produce images that lack visual pretense, stand the test of time, and realistically capture details that would otherwise elude the photographer. It demonstrates the basic procedure for creating an HDR image step-by-step, then explores progressively more complex and refined techniques that can be applied as the scene dictates or the artistÕs personal aesthetic requires. Ample image sequences with plenty of screen shots let the reader follow the entire process through from start to finish. Unique techniques are presented for the treatment of special subjects, ranging from landscapes to still lifes and portraits. Ultimately, the handbook demonstrates that HDR imaging is a powerful tool and the professional photographers who take the time to fully master its potential can mean substantial rewards, both creatively and financially.
Today’s brides- and grooms-to-be have grown up inundated by world-class photography on the Internet, television, magazines, and social networking sites. Therefore, it’s no surprise that these savvy, image-conscious consumers have high expectations when commissioning their engagement portraits. They want unique, innovative images that make them look great and reflect their personal style as individuals and as a couple. In this book, acclaimed photographers Bob and Dawn Davis show you how to rise to that lofty goal and deliver memorable, personalized images from each session. Covering the process from start to finish, you’ll learn how to select locations, work with clients on their styling, get great poses even from camera-shy subjects, and find (or create) amazing lighting indoors and out—all day long. Lighting diagrams paired with each final image selection, along with supporting image variations from the same session, make it easy to learn!
In portrait photography, posing must make the client look amazing, and this book takes photographers through that process from start to finish. With short, one- or two-page lessons that are amply illustrated with before and after images, the book guides the reader through each phase, from the positioning of arms and hands to the degree of the head tilt and shifting the weight. Image sequences showing variations and posing alternatives are also presented to customize a pose for an individual subject, accentuating the assets and minimizing the flaws. Readers are encouraged to take this book with them on shoots and work on replicating or refining the provided examples, creating a self-study course in the art of posing for portrait photography. This thorough guide shows how to get the pose to work within the photo’s composition—sure to give portraits a finished, professional look.
The core goal of photography is representing subjects that have depth and texture in a medium that inherently lacks both those qualities, and this book shows the best way to rise to that challenge: through the careful application and capture of lighting. It demonstrates how to accentuate or minimize textures, add or subtract highlights, and create or combat shadows to showcase the subjects in the best way and create the illusion of a third dimension in the images. Exploring techniques for lighting portraits, still-life subjects, nature images, and architectural shots, both studio and location lighting are covered in detail. The book teaches photographers how to study their subjectsÑwith all of the textures, colors, shapes, and surfaces they haveÑthen visualize the image as a finished photograph before the photography actually begins. With chapters that thoroughly cover the science of lighting and visualization, photographers can apply that knowledge and successfully create artful images.
With lighting techniques beneficial for professional photographers but also accessible for those less experienced with a camera, this handy reference offers insights into utilizing “hot lights” (tungsten-based continuous light sources) to achieve glamorous, Hollywood-inspired shots. This “Hollywood” lighting—characterized by dramatic contrast, sharp shadows, and a sultry mood—is simple to create and allows photographers to “sculpt” the subject, accentuating their best features while minimizing flaws. Though the focus is on nostalgic lighting style, the book acknowledges modern advances in photographic technology and discusses how to produce these dazzling retro effects using both digital and traditional film cameras. Throughout the book, lighting diagrams showing the photograph’s setup accompany nearly every image, carefully illustrating the lighting techniques for easy re-creation.
While the number of assignments available in many photographic specialties is decreasing, there are still relatively untapped growth areas for still photographers and videographers. One of these specialty fields is legal photography. Legal photography involves working closely with lawyers in law firms to provide photographic or video documentation relevant to their civil, not criminal, cases. It can involve a range of other photographic specialties from macro photography to architectural photography. No matter what is involved in a legal photography assignment, it is generally interesting and presents a new, unique set of problems to solve. Legal photography is far more technical than creative, but it is also in demand and is financially rewarding. Civil cases brought to arbitration or jury trial range from simple to complex. Common to all cases is the need to present evidence in a fair and accurate manner. In this book, readers will learn how to take responsibility for ensuring that the images captured and delivered for presentation are a “fair and accurate representation” of the observed scene. That responsibility begins with the choice and use of the proper equipment (e.g., camera type, sensor size, capture mode, the correct focal-length lens for the job), through the techniques used during image capture (exposure, lighting, camera angle, camera-to-subject distance, white balance, etc.), to the processing of the captures for output. Sholik also points out that documentation is required for each step to ensure all parties that the representation is indeed fair and accurate—and the details of how this can be accomplished are outlined in this book as well. Also covered is information about how to proceed should you be asked to give testimony as to the accuracy of your work and information about the requirements to be deemed an “expert witness.” For most photographers, doing assignments in the field of legal photography is the easy part. Getting the assignments can be more of a challenge, so the process of marketing yourself as a legal photographer is covered.
Covering every aspect of creating portraits in available light, acclaimed professional photographer Doug Box provides tips for finding great natural light, practical approaches for optimizing exposure, and techniques for posing subjects for the most flattering effects. For those situations when “perfect” available light can’t be found, readers are shown how to modify ambient light to suit their purposes—or give it a bump in intensity with a little pop of flash. Additional topics touched upon include proper lens selection, calculating exposure, managing ambient light both indoors and out, shooting at night, and more. A discussion of applying the many techniques to nature and wildlife, travel, and sports photography rounds out this all-encompassing guide to working with available light.
Preparing wedding photographers to navigate these once-in-a-lifetime events, this resource acknowledges the highly emotional clients, shifts in natural lighting, and changes in location that come with the territory. Showcasing countless techniques for shooting with flash by itself, ambient light alone, or a combination of the two, the chapters provide elegant solutions to an array of potential lighting challenges that can surface on the wedding day. Postproduction remedies using Adobe Camera Raw are also included for those occasions when initial exposures prove insufficient. From selecting the right equipment for a versatile yet streamlined wedding-day kit to making smart adjustments to settings, all bases are covered. Numerous before-and-after images are explored, demonstrating common errors and how to avoid them. A wide variety of practical examples from real weddings round out the book, guiding a tour through challenging scenarios, illustrating the remedies devised, and explaining how they were quickly implemented in order to produce successful portraits.
After months of joyful wedding dreams, brides and grooms trust their photographer to transform the day’s fleeting moments into lasting mementos. In this book, Neal Urban helps you go beyond merely documenting events to design works of art that capture the spirit of the couple’s relationship. Quick, easy-to-follow lessons walk you through every phase of the process, from engagement portraits, to wedding-day coverage, to post-wedding bridal portraits. At each step, you’ll learn how Neal infuses his images with personality—and rises to the challenges all wedding photographers face from time to time! With vivid colors, dramatic poses, and gorgeous lighting, this book flawlessly guides you through the creation of images that transcend the couple’s dreams for their special day.
