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25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision
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www.digitalphotoacademy.com
Live Weekend Monthly classes in 20 U.S. cities plus Toronto
[CLICK HERE]
Great Free Inspirational Slide Shows on various
Rules of Compositions
[CLICK HERE]
Over 4 hours of Online Photo classes for full curriculum
on Rules of Composition as well as Mechanics of DSLR and
Mirrorless Cameras & Free Examples included
[CLICK HERE]
Tailored Tailored Movie-Critiques of submitted photos, any image
you submit to the Digital Photo Academy Pro Shooters
[CLICK HERE]
Lenses, Focusing & Depth of Field, Digital Photo Academy 2016

Photos Copyright George Schaub, 2015
Cover and Book design by David A Najarro, dnCreative.
Editing by George Schaub
Author photograph by Grace Schaub
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Over 10 years ago, Digital Photo Academy was born with 60 Proshooters who live in 20 of the major cities of the United States. The
concept began as a resource for people in each city who wanted to
understand their cameras on a deeper level, taking them off program
and shifting to manual as well as turning snapshots into portfolio
images. Within 4 years, the annual enrollment moved from 3000
attendees per year, always small classes, to 12,000 students, still
with small classes, 12 or less participants per class. And now instead
of only beginners, lots of the attendees are advanced shooters but
like working with the photography instructors in their respective
communities because it means special access to venues that are not
ordinarily available to the public, an ongoing knowledge of festivals,
special events, hidden spots of beauty that are nearby and other
advantages of working with a pro who makes it his/her business to
know everything about their community that relates to photo ops.
After 10 years the teachers have unending examples of the priorities
of a full range of photo enthusiasts to the natural next step has taken
place and Digital Photo Academy has launched 4.5 hours of online
photo curriculum of library/power point talks, inspirational slide
shows and in-the-field demos. Check out the highlights via the link
[CLICK HERE]
A 2+ hour lesson on Rules of Composition. Check out a free example
of what you can buy via the link. [CLICK HERE]
A 2+ hour lesson on the Mechanics of a DSLR and a Mirrorless
Camera. Check out a free example of what you can buy via the link.
[CLICK HERE]
Log on to www.digitalphotoacademy.com
or call us toll-free at (877) 372-2231
Digital Photo Academy, DigitalPhotoAcademy.com, is located in the

lower Hudson Valley at 15 Powder Mill Road, Newburgh, NY 12550,
an hour drive from NYC and a 90 minute train ride along the scenic
Hudson River. It is no wonder that the Hudson River School of
Painters reached word wide recognition with their work in the late
1800. This region of the country, where the American Revolution
fought many battles, is amongst the most beautiful settings in the
world, year round. On top of the natural beauty there remains old
stone wall remnants of factories from the Industrial Revolution and
other architectural settings that would delight any photographer.
Come join us at any time. Click on the link, [CLICK HERE], for
details.
Live Courses and Private Classes

Over 100 professional photo instructors to help you master your
camera controls. More than 300 scenic Composition-in-the-field
classes offered in the followig cities:
Atlanta
Hudson Valley
Phoenix
Boston
Los Angeles
San Diego
Chicago
Miami
San Francisco
Cleveland
Minneapolis
Seattle
Dallas
New Jersey
Tampa
Denver
New York
Toronto
Detroit
Orlando
Tuscon
Houston
Philadelphia
Washington, D.C.
To find out more visit our website or call us toll-free
www.digitalphotoacademy.com
(877) 372-2231
Why not get in-depth feedback on any or all of your images. Simply
submit an image or collection of images and the DPA instructors will
film themselves as they showcase your image, moving the cursor in
and around your image to specifiy which area of the image they are
addressing. This will include feedback on how to modify the image to
enhance your signature style and options for various dynamics that
might be to your liking.
Tailored movie-critiques of submitted photos, any image you submit
to the Digital Photo Academy Pro Shooters, Click on the link,
[CLICK HERE], for an example.
Table of Contents
About George Schaub
Introduction
Tip 1. Thinking About Your Pictures
Tip 2. Image Effects: Creative Use Of Aperture And Shutter Speed
Tip 3. ISO: Light Sensitivity And Scene Brightness
Tip 4. Seeing Light: Quantity And Quality
Tip 5. What Statements Are You Making With Your Photographs?
Tip 6. The Pixel: A Piece Of The Image Mosaic
Tip 7. Directional Lighting
Tip 8. Composing Deep Shadows: Creative Forms Without Content
Tip 9. Goodness! What Do All Those Buttons And Dials Do?
Tip 10. Get Your Camera Off Auto
Tip 11. Camera Buying: Megapixels And Print Size
Tip 12. Lighting Terms
Tip 13. Work Objectively, Think Subjectively
Tip 14. Depth Of Field
Tip 15. Photo Concepts: Tonal Range
Tip 16. Noise And Its Reduction
Tip 17. Composition: Using Classic Shapes And Forms
Tip 18. Making Choices: Equivalent Exposure
Tip 19. Tripods
Tip 20. Enhancing Texture With Light
Tip 21. Theres More In Shadows Than You Might Think
Tip 22. White Balance
Tip 23. Lens Terms: Know Your Focal Length
Tip 24. Your Photo Is Just The Beginning...
Tip 25. What Does A Photograph Mean?
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About George Schaub

George Schaub, Chief Editorial Advisor at Digital Photo
Academy, has authored over 20 books on photography and is
currently the Editor at Large at Shutterbug magazine, an associate
professor at Parsons School of Design in New York City, and a
member of the Technical Committee of the George Schaub, Chief
Editorial Advisor at Digital Photo Academy, has authored over
20 books on photography and is currently the Editor at Large at
Shutterbug magazine, an associate professor at Parsons School of
Design in New York City, and a member of the Technical Committee
of the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA), a worldwide
organization of photo reporters and editors.
His photography and writing has appeared in the New York Times
Sunday Arts & Leisure section, Popular Mechanics, Mens J ournal,
Camera Arts, American Photography, and Travel & Leisure, and
he has had over 2000 articles published in numerous photo and
imaging journals and magazines. He has also taught at numerous
workshops, lectured at universities in the US and abroad, and led
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shooting expeditions in the US, Canada, and the Caribbean. He has

led printing and digital photography workshops at the Santa Fe
Workshops, Maine Media College, New Hampshire Institute of Art,
and the Palm Beach Photographic Centre.
Starting as a freelance photographer and lab technician who ran
a custom black and white printing lab, his editorial work began
as an Associate, then Executive editor at Popular Photography
magazine from 1984-1989. He then became Editorial Director at
the PTN Photo Group, which published 5 magazines that covered
commercial, laboratory, and industrial photography, as well as daily
newspapers that reported on various professional trade shows and
events, including those at Photokina in Germany. In 2000 he joined
Shutterbug magazine as editorial director and helped establish their
online presence, and in 2010 became editorial director at Petersens
Photographic magazine as well.
His prints have been displayed at various galleries in individual and
group shows throughout the US, and was chosen as part of the Taos
Selects show in 2013. His most recent project was editing Twentieth
Century Photographers published by Focal Press (2015), interviews
and essays from a wide-ranging group of photographers done by his
late wife Grace, which were published in numerous photo magazines
from 1984-2000. He currently splits his time between his homes in
Sea Cliff, NY and Taos, NM and continues to photograph, print and
contribute articles to numerous magazines and web sites. Technical
Image Press Association (TIPA), a worldwide organization of photo
reporters and editors.
##
His photography and writing has appeared in the New York Times
Sunday Arts & Leisure section, Popular Mechanics, Mens J ournal,
Camera Arts, American Photography, and Travel & Leisure, and
he has had over 2000 articles published in numerous photo and
imaging journals and magazines. He has also taught at numerous
workshops, lectured at universities in the US and abroad, and led
shooting expeditions in the US, Canada, and the Caribbean. He has
led printing and digital photography workshops at the Santa Fe
Workshops, Maine Media College, New Hampshire Institute of Art,
and the Palm Beach Photographic Centre.
Starting as a freelance photographer and lab technician who ran
a custom black and white printing lab, his editorial work began
as an Associate, then Executive editor at Popular Photography
magazine from 1984-1989. He then became Editorial Director at
the PTN Photo Group, which published 5 magazines that covered
commercial, laboratory, and industrial photography, as well as daily
newspapers that reported on various professional trade shows and
events, including those at Photokina in Germany. In 2000 he joined
Shutterbug magazine as editorial director and helped establish their
online presence, and in 2010 became editorial director at Petersens
Photographic magazine as well.
His prints have been displayed at various galleries in individual and
group shows throughout the US, and was chosen as part of the Taos
Selects show in 2013. His most recent project was editing Twentieth
Century Photographers published by Focal Press (2015), interviews
and essays from a wide-ranging group of photographers done by his
late wife Grace, which were published in numerous photo magazines
##
from 1984-2000. He currently splits his time between his homes in

Sea Cliff, NY and Taos, NM and continues to photograph, print and
contribute articles to numerous magazines and web sites.
##
Introduction
The aim of this book is to help you make better photographs, ones
that express what you see and what prompted you to snap the
shutter in the first place. It concentrates on making pictures in the
field and not what comes after, the idea being that the better you
expose and set up the image when you take it the less work you
have to do later if and when you process it. Following the tips and
techniques will get you improved images out of the box that do not
rely on expensive and time-consuming software processes to look
great.
The book is set up as a series of tips and techniques that, overall,
touch on just about every function within your camerafrom
exposure and focusing modes and patterns to menu settings for
enhancing contrast, color and image mood. While it is about digital
cameras it is essentially a book about photography and aiding you in
the process of making great photographs.
Rather than march through these functions and ideas a la an
instruction book, each is covered within the context of four sections:
Terms, Concepts and Camera Vision;
Lighting and Exposure;
Lenses, Focusing and Depth of Field; and
Camera Tools. Because these tools and their application are rarely
used in isolation, each technique will cover the coordination of tools
and settings that come together every time you make a picture.
Theres no need to read these Tips in sequencepick and choose as
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you will and as you want to learn more about a specific topic. Follow
the ideas and techniques and apply them to your camera and your
photography. As you do, you will find yourself becoming familiar
with the most used, and sometimes hidden, features and functions of
your camera.
In all, it is intended as a field guide that hopefully provides
inspiration and technical guidance as you shoot.
##
Settings: 20mm lens, f/4 at 1/40 sec, ISO 800
Tip 1: Thinking About Your Pictures

Everyone sees differently, but there are some visual elements and
considerations that are fairly common to all photographs. Thinking
about your point of view can be helpful when you start making
photographs.
As you gain experience and an understanding of how to attain the
effects you want you will attain a camera vision that can be applied
to every subject and scene. In this Tip well discuss composition:
how you frame to make arrangements of subjects and to create an
interrelationship of light, color and form.
There are no hard and fast rules about composition. In essence, your
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choices will be determined by what you are trying to say about the
subject and your own personal view of it. There are two important
considerations: the lens you use to make the image and your point of
view, that is, the angle of view the lens affords and the vantage point
from which you choose to make the picture.
New Yorks Times Square at night can be a fairly chaotic swirl of
lights and motion and there are plenty of photo ops. For one, I chose
a very wide angle lens tilted upwards--which made the tall buildings
seem to converge in the center, and used the pedestrian Walk sign as
a visual anchor amidst the bright lights.
While the walk sign is in the center of the image, including it in the
context of the lights of Time Square tells more of the story and adds
more visual excitement to the scene. This image was made with a very
wide-angle lens.
##
Tip 2: Image Effects: Creative Use of Aperture

and Shutter Speed
The two main controls you have over the amount of light that strikes
the sensor are the aperture, the diameter of the opening of the blades
within the lens, and shutter speed, the duration of the exposure.
Wider apertures let in more light, as do slower shutter speeds. While
these are key elements in light control, they have a secondary, but no
less important affect upon the image.
Shutter speed can range from minutes to as fast as 1/8000th second.
What takes place in front of the camera is also affected by the
shutter speed, with fast shutter speeds freezing instants in time
while slow shutter speeds can record motion more as a blur. Sports
photographers make their living with fast shutter speeds, catching
the exact instant of the catch in the end zone or the tag at second
base during an attempted steal. (And some photographers rely on
fast shutter speeds to catch their scurrying kids in action as well.)
Slow shutter speeds can be a creative way to depict motion, from a
speeding taxi on a busy city street to a waterfall deep in the woods.
Aperture is one of the three determining factors in what will be sharp
and unsharp in the frame. A wide-open aperture (such as f/2) will
contribute towards a shallow depth of field (sharpness in a portion of
the frame) while a narrow aperture (such as f/16) will aid in making
all within the frame sharp. (By the way, the reason f/2 is wider in
diameter is that these figures are actually fractions, with f/2 being a
larger value than f/16: think of it as 1/2 and 1/16.)
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When you consider a scene or subject, your first decisions should

include which image effect you want to achieve in terms of motion
and sharpness, and set your lens and shutter speed accordingly. Of
course, other exposure factors come into play, such as the ISO you
set and the brightness of the scene, but keep those two key image
effect controllers in mind as central in your decision-making.
Settings: 20mm lens, f/4 at 1/40 sec, ISO 800
At a powwow, there are many photo opportunities. Here, the framing

concentrates on the elaborate and colorful aspects of the regalia
worn by the dancers.
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To maintain a respectful distance, the choice here was a 200mm lens,

which yielded the amazing details of texture, color and design.
Settings: At ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/1000 Second.
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Settings: At ISO 100, f/22 at 1/4 Second: Camera Mounted on a Tripod with a Panning Head.
By using a slow shutter speed of 1/8 second and panning, or

following the motion of a subject across the field as the shutter
remained open, the action of a polo match is captured in a special
way.
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Settings: With a 150mm lens, at ISO 200, f/2.8 at 1/1000 second.
Shallow depth of field can be used to create visual attention on

the foreground subject by making the background go soft, or
drop off in sharpness. This stalk might have been lost in the
similar background if a deep depth of field had been used. Setting a
telephoto lens at f/4 and focusing on the foreground thistle yielded
this sharp/unsharp relationship.
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Settings: 24mm lens; at ISO 200, f/22 at 1/60 second.
Wide-angle lenses and narrow apertures combine to deliver a zone

of sharpness, or depth of field that cannot be seen by the unaided
eye. Setting a narrow aperture, here with a wide- angle lens, makes
for a very deep depth of field from the front formation to the distant
mountains.
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Tip 3: ISO: Light Sensitivity and Scene

Brightness
The ISO number defines just how sensitive the sensor is to light.
The degree of sensitivity any given ISO delivers is difficult to put
your finger on, as it is not something intuitive to the eye or mind. It
is stated as a number, with ISO 100 being the lowest in most digital
camera systems. The term ISO 100means nothing onto itself, but
in the context of the scene brightness and aperture and shutter speed
values it is a very key element in determining exposure and exposure values. It is part of an elegant, balanced system of exposure.
ISO poses part of an exposure solution to a given light level. For
example, at ISO 100 on a bright day the correct exposure is usually
around f/16 at 1/125th second, or the so-called sunny 16 rule.
(This says that if your meter is broken and you have to set exposure
yourself and its sunny out with the sun coming over your shoulder
you can set the ISO at 100 and have a great exposure at f/16 at
1/125 secondand it works!) But the required ISO for a very low
light scene, like the interior of a museum or cathedral where flash is
forbid- den, might be as high as 4800, or higher.
In all, the sensitivity of the sensor is calibrated by your setting
an ISO number. In round numbers, many cameras offer a range
between ISO 100 and 3200, with some going up to as high as ISO
48,000, and beyond.
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Why would you need to set those very high numbers? Every time you
double the speed, or ISO, you are in effect doubling the sensitivity of
the sensor. Say you are photographing handheld in low light and the
exposure you get is f/2.8 (the fastest aperture you lens might afford)
at 1/2 second.
To get up to a reasonable hand-holdable shutter speed you might
need 1/60 second. If you were at ISO 100 that would mean that
changing to an ISO of 3200 would do the trick. But if you need a few
more steps on the aperture side as well, say f/5.6 (two steps from
f/2.8), then a 12,800 ISO would be needed. The camera will do the
exposure calculations for you; your job is to give the system enough
sensitivity to handle the lighting conditions.
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Heres an extreme example of noise introduced by using a high ISO

and a long exposure of this photo of the Golden Gate Bridge from the
headlands.
A very high ISO was needed because there was no tripod along to
help steady the shot. The result was that an ISO beyond quality limits
was used. Its certainly not a keeper but serves as an example of the
consequences of setting an ISO too high
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Corresponding values: ISO 100-200-400-800, 3 step raise;

1/8-1/15, 1/30, 1/60 second, a three step gain.
Sn general, you will usually need a higher ISO setting in low light and
want a lower ISO setting in bright light. Why not just set the highest
ISO for every shot? Another rule to keep in mind is: the lower the ISO
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setting the better the quality of the image, all else being equal. Thats
because to get more light sensitivity a gain, or additional electrical
charge, is applied across the sensor, and the higher you go in ISO the
more noise, contrast and lack of color fidelity you introduce to an
image.
No flash was allowed in this curio shop in the French Quarter of New
Orleans. I shot this handheld photo with an exposure of f/5.6 at 1/60
second with the camera ISO raised to 800.
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No flash was allowed in this curio shop in the French Quarter of New
Orleans. I shot this handheld photo with an exposure of f/5.6 at 1/60
second with the camera ISO raised to 800.
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Settings: ISO at 160, f/9 at 1/60 second. 16mm lens.
Tip 4: Seeing Light: Quantity and Quality

The ISO number defines just how sensitive the sensor is to light.
The degree of sensitivity any given ISO delivers is difficult to put
your finger on, as it is not something intuitive to the eye or mind. It
is stated as a number, with ISO 100 being the lowest in most digital
camera systems. The term ISO 100means nothing onto itself, but
in the context of the scene brightness and aperture and shutter speed
values it is a very key element in determining exposure and exposure values. It is part of an elegant, balanced system of exposure.
ISO poses part of an exposure solution to a given light level. For
example, at ISO 100 on a bright day the correct exposure is usually
around f/16 at 1/125th second, or the so-called sunny 16 rule.
(This says that if your meter is broken and you have to set exposure
##
yourself and its sunny out with the sun coming over your shoulder
you can set the ISO at 100 and have a great exposure at f/16 at
1/125 secondand it works!) But the required ISO for a very low
light scene, like the interior of a museum or cathedral where flash is
forbid- den, might be as high as 4800, or higher.
In all, the sensitivity of the sensor is calibrated by your setting
an ISO number. In round numbers, many cameras offer a range
between ISO 100 and 3200, with some going up to as high as ISO
48,000, and beyond.
Why would you need to set those very high numbers? Every time you
double the speed, or ISO, you are in effect doubling the sensitivity of
the sensor. Say you are photographing handheld in low light and the
exposure you get is f/2.8 (the fastest aperture you lens might afford)
at 1/2 second.
In this photo made in Berlin, the quantity of light is expressed in the
darker and lighter areas of the scene, a balance struck by measuring
and applying exposure settings.
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Settings: at ISO 100, f/2.8 At 1/180 second. Spot reading off yellow portion of flower.
The light meter in the camera translates light energy into specific
camera light controlling factors that have a profound effect on how
you interpret the scene. The two light controlling factors are the
diameter of the opening in the lens (the aperture) and the shutter
speed (how much time elapses as you record it.) In this close-up,
decisions about where the light is measured affect the exposure and
the vivid color while the aperture setting of the lens determines the
way the foreground blossom stands in relief from the slightly softer
background.
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Settings: At ISO 800, 1/200 second at f/3.5. 190mm focal length.
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Another part of the equation of exposure, or balancing the light

in the scene with the ability of the camera to record it successfully, is
the amazing ability of the sensor to be made more or less sensitive to
light. This is accomplished by changing ISO settings, which in todays
cameras allow us to make better photographs in dimmer light than
ever before.
This candid portrait of an elegant fortune teller in Hong Kong
could only be captured by raising the ISO to 800. This allowed for a
handheld shot with a long telephoto lens in dim light.
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Settings: ISO at 160, f/9 at 1/60 second. 16mm lens.
Tip 5: What Statements are You Making with

Your Photographs?
Not every photograph need bear the responsibility of having
meaning, but there should be some sense of what the main subject
or idea is that spurred you to make the photo.
The subject could be as simple as sunset light or as complex as a
formal study of tonality. It might be a depiction of a landscape or
environment, or a tree, a flower, etc. Knowing what the subject or
idea is will guide you in how you frame, expose and compose (point
of view) the picture.
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These kayaks sat at a dock in Alaska. When you see subjects like this,
walk around and look for different angles and ideas.
This photo does not consider the kayaks as kayaks, but as elements
of design and color within the frame. There are always many ways
to consider subject matter, so take the time to consider how you
can use exposure, composition and a specific point of view to make
them unique.
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Settings: With a 28MM Lens, at ISO 160, f/8 at 1/60 Second.
This rotary snowplow sat in a rail yard on the front of an engine, and
while the thing itself is interesting, perhaps what is more so is the abstract design and shapes it affords. A contextual shot would have
been one that included the engine and perhaps even the rail yard, and
that would be a fine functional or documentary take, But getting closer to create this more abstract (or lifted from context) view is another
option that poses a sort of mysterious take on the scene. The choice between record and abstraction is often present, and its your choice as to
how you want to interpret the photo opportunity.
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Tip 6: The Pixel: A Piece Of The Image Mosaic

Short for picture element, a pixel is the building block of the digital
image. Think of a pixel as the light and color gathering element that
after processing has an address that identifies it as having a certain
color, brightness and edge contrast.
Now consider that, like in the population of a very large city, there
can be millions of pixel addresses, each covering a specific hue,
brightness and contrast within the visible spectrum that can be
recorded and reproduced with the digital camera. Now put all these
pixels on a screen and think of the entire picture as a mosaic and
each pixel as one of the tiles.
The pixel address, or identifier, is a binary code that can be read by
a computer to create an image on a screen, be it on the LCD of your
camera or on a computer monitor.
These codes can be changed with a processor in your camera or via
image editing software on a computer to, for example, alter the value
of pixels in the sky portion of the image to become bluer, or the edge
of a fern to be sharper, or even to retouch a human face in a portrait.
All this is done with microprocessors without your having to know
code.
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Heres the path of image formation with a digital camera. The light
that strikes the sensor passes through a pattern of color filters, which
sorts the light into red, green and blue elements (RGB). Each contact
point (each pixel) converts the photons (light) to electrical signals
that are then passed to a buffer, or staging area, which then passes
those signals to a processor that converts the signals to binary code,
the address or identifying characteristics of brightness and color.
Millions of these addresses are combined to form an image, a mosaic
of all those tiles that we see as an image.
In this simulation, a small portion of an image is enlarged to
illustrate how a digital file is constructed of millions of image tiles.
Taken individually, each pixel has a specific color and brightness-its code or address. When combined all those pixels form a coherent
image that we see as a photograph, or continuous tone image.
##
Because the individual pixels are actually codes that become visually
rendered by an image processor, altering that code via image editing
software allows us to change the look of the image itself in numerous
ways.
This can be used to correct various faults, or enhance the image as

we see fit, such as making this underexposed photo (T23-C) of a
brilliant fall scene look as brilliant as it did when the shutter was
snapped, (T23-D).
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Tip 7: Directional Lighting

While having scenes where the sun fully illuminates the subject can
be pleasing and informative, more dramatic renditions can usually
be captured early or late in the day, or when a seasonal sun is low in
the sky. Known as cross- or directional lighting, it relies on the conditions, be it stormy or low sun, to create a kind of spotlight within
the frame. This type of light skims across surfaces and creates bright
areas that become natural attractors to the eye. Because readings
should be made for these brighter areas, the shadow areas in the
frame tend to darken, another bonus, since the deep contrast created
adds even more to the impact.
When making light readings in these conditions rely on spot or Center-weighted averaging metering patterns (see section 2 on Light and
Exposure for more details) as this will restrict the light being read to
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those crucial, brighter areas.

Do not hesitate to bracket exposures, to make photos plus and minus
from the actual reading; although differences can be minor, slight
changes in exposure can make a big difference in attaining success
with this technique. The main point now is to keep your eye out for
directional lighting and use it to add extra impact to your images.
The sun had just risen on this quiet street scene in Delray Beach, Florida.
The light revealed a rich blue sky with billowing clouds and spotlighted
the soft, rounded edges of the building. The exposure reading was made
from the bright area of the building, which made the dark, shadowed
building on the left a strong counterpoint.
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Settings: At ISO 200, F/8 at 1/250 Second, Spot Reading Off the Bright Area on the Left.
Catching the mood of directional light requires some nuanced exposure

techniques. The sun was slanting through some low clouds onto the
Ile St. Louis in Paris. When light is fleeting you may have to work fast;
thats when familiarization with exposure techniques pays off. A spot
meter reading was made from the building face on the left and locked,
and then the image was reframed to include the boat on the Seine.
Check the section on Light and Exposure to learn more about exposure
reading techniques.
##
Tip 8: Composing Deep Shadows: Creative Forms

Without Content
While there may be times when you want to expose so that the detail in shadows is visible, consider the role deep shadows can play
in defining the space in the frame. Such shadows can take on a life
of their own and have shape and volume that can be as important to
the composition as the visible content itself. They can also break
the rectangular frame by spilling into the edges and making curved,
triangular and truncated edges.
For this to work, the scene contrast ( the difference between light
and dark) must be rather high, or high enough to have no detail or
content within shadows when exposure is made to saturate, or expose for the highlight areas. If you are working outdoors and you
have to squint you are in deep shadow territory.
To deepen shadows, exposure readings should be made from the
brighter or brightest part of the frame alone, with the shadow removed from consideration. This generally means use of the spot metering pattern. If need be, upon review, consider using less exposure
using minus exposure compensation to enhance the effect further.
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Settings: Spot Reading Off Yellow Flower Petals, Exposure Lock, at ISO 200 F/11 at 1/125 Second.
The color and quality of light on this flower is enhanced by the deep,
dark background and light skimming across the edeges of the leaves.
This technique illuminates the edges but drops the shadows into nearor complete darkness.
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Settings: Spot Reading Off Bright Cloud Exposure Lock, at ISO 100, f/16 at 1/200 Second.:
The sense of being deep in this stand of trees, photographed at 10,000

ft., is heightened by the use of shadow and form and placement of the
giants against the billowing clouds.
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Tip 9: Goodness! What Do All Those Buttons and

Dials Do?
When you first open the box to unveil your new digital camera you
might be taken aback by all the buttons, dials, icons abbre- viations
on the camera body. While there is some consistency between
brands and models, which will be helpful if you have shot with a
digital camera before, the first task is unraveling all those controls
and what they do. Thats what we
hope to do throughout this book, but to get started lets look at the
top plate of a DSLR, the Nikon D300.
##
In some cameras these controls are only revealed on the LCD by

opening the camera Menu. With this camera and those like it oncamera buttons open the options for these controls on the LCD,
which in some cases is an easier and more convenient path. What
they do is open the door to an amazing array of imaging options,
so learning about how they work with your camera is essential.
As a quick preview, lets take a look at the controls left to right with
some brief descriptions that will be amplified through the many Tips
coming later in the book. The round dial on the left has a number of
options.
WB brings up the White Balance menu, used to control color balance
and rendition, on the LCD and/or the LED, the latter being the data
center on the right. Press the buttons and you can scroll through the
options. QUAL is where you choose file format and compression,
generally JPEG or RAW. ISO allows you to set the sensitivity of the
sensor to light with higher numbers being more light sensitive, great
for low-light shots. CH is an advance modecontinuous high-which sets the framing rate per second you will get when you press
the shutter release button.
On the right, the Mode button lets you set the exposure mode, the
way you tell the exposure system to set up the relationship of
aperture and shutter speed for different image effects, as well as set
Program (shown here on the LED) and Manual exposure mode. The
+/- button allows you to modify the auto-exposure reading according
to lighting conditions or to change the way an image looks after you
review it in the Playback menu for a reshoot. If this seems confusing,
rest assured that through shooting experience and working with the
Tips in this book youll understand and be able to apply all these
controls with ease to attain just the type of image you want.
Many digital cameras have image controls and options, some of
##
which are essential to mastering your camera and other you might
never use. Knowing how to access these controls, and what they
offer you, is an important part of getting the most from your camera.
These easy access, on-camera buttons and dials on the Nikon D300
allow you to have quick access to important controls commonly used
in digital photography.
##
Settings: With a 20MM Lens: At ISO 100, F/16 at 1/200 Second.
Tip 10: Get Your Camera Off Auto

There can be a difference between what you see as the end result of
your shot and what the camera might record. The most important
way to get successful results is to understand that a gap might exist
between the two and to take the time to learn the tools in the camera to have it work for your aims. This includes learning about exposure and focusing techniques, and knowing when you can rely on
the cameras automation and when to take charge yourself. In other
words, get that camera off AUTO. It takes practice and experience,
and going out and trying different approaches to making pictures.
##
This photo made in a scenic railway yard relies on the ability to create a
deep depth of field, one that has sharpness from close to far, to have
all the elements in sharp focus. This uses a few techniques: making sure
the foreground subject is the point of initial focus, setting the lens aperture to maximize the range of sharpness at a narrow aperture, and exposing so that the bright subject in the foreground is not overexposed.
In other words, what the eye sees and the camera records might be different. Its your job to know what controls to apply to make it the way
you want it to turn out.
Settings: With a 24MM Lens, At ISO 200, F/16 at 1/60 Second.
Compositional decisions are often inherent to the subject at hand. The

key is to be open to the suggestions of your environment and know the
tools that will allow you to make the most of them.
Upon disembarking from this ship there was a huge violin sculpture on
##
the dock. This lent itself to working ways to exploit a sense of scale,
or juxtaposition between small and large subjects that would make
for an interesting visual encounter. The image was composed so that
the minds eye would finish the truncated sculpture. The moment to
shoot arrived when the trio of people made their way towards the right
side of the frame. This balanced the split created by keeping the column in the center.
To enhance the sense of scale, a wide-angle 24mm lens was used, which,
given the entirety of the frame, made distant subjects seem smaller
than they appeared to the eye. To have everything in the frame from the
foreground column to the hull of the ship stay sharp, a narrow aperture
was used for a deep depth of field.
##
Settings: At ISO 200, f/8 at 1/250 Second, Jpeg Large Format.
Tip 11: Camera Buying: Megapixels and Print Size

If your aim is to make large prints from your images, its good to
know just what size file you need to do so. This calculation starts
right at camera level and is in part dependent on the megapixels
your camera sensor is capable of delivering. In truth, some sensors
deliver less information than the megapixel number might imply, so
its always good to check lab test reports prior to making a final purchase. And, while the chart below gives approximations and are a
ballpark estimate, keep in mind that image sharpness and especially
camera steadiness when making the image play a key role in making
large prints as well.
When you go to make a print, the file size, expressed as megabytes,
will determine the actual print size you can make. To find out the optimum megabyte file sizes your camera will produce, simply multiply
##
the megapixel number of your sensor by three. If you have an 8MP

sensor, for example, thats a 24MB file; a 10MP file equals a 30MB
file; a 14MP camera, 42MB, an 18MP, 54MB and so forth. Use the
chart shown here to get a rough guide to the largest size image you
can print and still retain good quality image.
This assumes that you will be shooting in Large JPEG format or
RAW, and that when shooting JPEG you use the lowest compression.
Keep these numbers in mind when buying a camera, and choose the
one with the sensor size in megapixels that will match your printmaking aims.
This photo was made with an older 8MP camera and probably the best
quality will be attained by making an 8x10 or slightly larger print from
it.
##
Settings: With a 100MM Lens, At ISO 100, F/8 At 1/125 Second, Raw File Format.:
Tip 12: Lighting Terms

As you look through this book, and other books on photography, and
listen to photographers talk about their tools and techniques, there
are certain terms used to describe the type of lighting conditions in
which photographs are made. Understanding these terms will help
you better understand why certain paths are chosen to make an
image. In a sense, its a kind of shared lingo common to the practitioners of the photographic craft. Here are some of them.
Ambient Light: This simply describes the light in the scene, In
general, it refers to natural light, that provided by the sun or moon,
as opposed to the light provided by flash, photofloods, lighting fixtures, etc. Ambient light is often considered when choosing a white
balance setting for your camera, and can refer to the color cast the
##
light imparts to the scene.

Artificial Light: Any light not directly produced by the sun. This
can be light provided by tungsten bulbs, flash, household bulbs, sodium vapor street lamps, etc. In some cases, the color produced by
artificial light is deficient in the blue end of the spectrum, thus white
balance settings are required to render true or perceived color.
Flash and daylight balanced lights produce light that approximates
that of sunlight.
Available Light: The light thats normal in a scene, although the
term is generally used when the light level is low. Available light
shooting usually involves high ISO settings, low shutter speeds and
apertures, and/or the use of a tripod.
Backlighting: Based on camera position, light that comes from
behind the subject. Usually, a backlit main subject will be underexposed unless the metering system is set to read selectively off the
subject. Extreme backlighting can be exploited to create silhouettes.
Backlight is any light in which the main subject is cast in its own
shadow.
Bounce Light: Light that reflects off a surface into the scene, but
does not directly light the scene. For example, using a reflector, the
photographer can direct light from over a portrait subjects shoulder
back into their face.
Brightness: The luminance of objects. The brightness of any area
of the subject is dependent on how much light falls on it and how reflective it is. Brightness range is the relationship between the lightest
and darkest subjects in a scene. Brightness contrast is a judgment
of the relative measure of that range, such as high, low, or normal.
Brightness values are sometimes referred to as EV (exposure values).
Brightness values in the scene are translated to tonal values in the
##
image.
Directional Light: Light that comes from the side of the frame.
Also know as cross lighting.
This image was made with a 14MP camera, which resulted in a 42MB
file, which can be used to make a good quality 13x19 to 16x20 print.
Settings: With a 100MM Lens, At ISO 100, F/8 At 1/125 Second, Raw File Format.
This photo of the train station in Hamburg. Germany, has a combination of cross and bounce lighting. The morning light is coming through
side windows and creating the diagonal steaks on the platform. The
shiny roof of the train is a kind of reflector that bounces light around
the entire scene.
##
Tip 13: Work Objectively, Think Subjectively

Photography is both a subjective and objective matter. The objective side is in measuring the light and understanding the tools for
manipulating it; the subjective side is in deciding how to manipulate exposure, white balance, focus and shutter speed to serve the
way you wish to interpret that light in your images.
##
You could think of photography as blending science and art. The

scientific side requires that you learn the difference between how you
and the camera perceive and handle light, the limits of the recording
material, and how various image effects are achieved.
The artistic side is how you apply those considerations to your
photographs and how you use them to render the subject and
scene. This combination has been termed camera vision, being
able to see as if you are looking through the eye of your camera and
understanding how to attain what you want by using the instrument
and its controls for your desired result.
This type of seeing takes time and practice, and allowing yourself
to experiment and make mistakes that are always one path to
discovery. Yes, photography, like all mediums, has its lim- itations
and modes of expression, and like any two-dimensional art form
has methods to create dynamic imagery. And while photography can
seem like an automated method of making an image, bringing your
experience and visual literacy, an understanding and appreciation
of past photographers work and techniques, into play, is an
important way to develop your eye and the methodology by which
you can create your individual point of view.
One way to develop your eye is to reinterpret mundane subjects
that you pass by every day. These commonplace subjects often have
hidden treasures that you can find by using your imagination and the
photographic tools at your disposal.
This escalator sat next to large glass windows and the play of
light and repeating forms created by the reflections made for an
interesting image. Though shot in color, it is mostly a monochrome
(black and white) image, save the small amber dashes on the left side
of the frame.
##
The exterior of this train station in Cologne, Germany, seems like a

mass confusion of lines and shapes. The final shot concentrates on
compositional balance: the three signal posts in the foreground divide
the image into four vertical spaces, with the diminishing size of the
three going from left to right due to their different distances from my
shooting position.
These four vertical spaces are mirrored by the four arches in the
background, two full and two partial, which are unified by the large
arch over them. The tracks and platforms create S-curves into the
darker interior, out of which emerges a train, the tone and form of
which are balanced by the church tower on the left.
##
Tip 14: Depth Of Field

Being in focus means that subjects are sharp. When a lens is set at
a certain focusing distance, only that distance is truly in focus; the
other areas in front of and behind that distance might seem in focus
because our eyes tolerate a certain unsharpness and make them
seem sharp in an image.
The way we create that illusion of sharpness, or create images that
are sharp in one area and clearly unsharp in others, is through the
use of an optical effect known as depth of field. By using different
focal length lenses and setting the aperture on the lens, we can have
almost total control of what is sharp and unsharp within the frame.
The range may be shallow, and might be as slim as 1 to 1.5 inches; or
it might be broad, from 1 foot to infinity.
There are three main factors that determine depth of field:
Distance from the camera to the subject
Focal length of the lens
Aperture setting of the lens
Focal length can range between telephoto and wide-angle lenses.
The rule of thumb is that the smaller the focal length the greater
potential for deep depth of field; the inverse is that the longer the
focal length the shallower the potential depth of field effect.
Each is interdependent with the other, and changing any one of the
factors will affect the depth of field.
##
The aperture setting is the diameter of the opening in the lens. The
aperture numbers can range from, for example, f/2 to f/22. The
higher numbers represent narrower openings. The general rule
is that the narrower the aperture opening (say f/22), the deeper
(greater range) the depth of field effect will be. On the other hand,
the wider the aperture opening (say f/2), the shallower the depth of
field effect.
The distance from the camera to the area of prime focus also has an
effect. Shoot close and youll usually get a narrower depth of field;
back up and it will be greater.
Controlling depth of field is a key creative tool in photography. It
allows for isolating a subject in a background of unsharpness, or
creating contextual sharpness throughout the picture space to marry
subject with surroundings in a way that cannot be done with the
unaided eye.
The automatic exposure mode for controlling depth of field is called
Aperture Priority (AV, or aperture value) mode, where you set the
aperture and the exposure system sets the shutter speed for what it
considers to be the best exposure. When using this mode the point
of initial focus is key. Generally that is on the main subject, with all
other considerations of sharpness or unsharpness emanating from
that point.
##
Settings: 24Mm Lens, Iso 320, F/22 (Set In Aperture Priority Mode) At 1/125 Second.
With very wide-angle lenses you can achieve an almost startling deep
depth of field. Focus was set on the blue painted rib on the stern of this
boat and an aperture of f/22 was used to createa depth of field from
one foot to infinity.
Settings: 135MM Lens, F/4, F/8 AT ISO 100.
This photo illustrates a shallow depth of field and combines a close focusing distance, a fairly long focal length and a wide aperture setting.
##
The soft background creates a dimensional feeling by isolating the foreground subject though sharpness set against a softer background.
Settings: 20MM Lens, F/16, 1/125 Second at ISO 100.
The eye sees sharpness in space by moving about rapidly and focusing on
different points. The camera can only capture one moment of focus; the
rest is created through depth of field effects. These leading lines stretch into
infinity with depth of field beginning at the base of the pictures frame.
##
Settings: At ISO 100, F/16 at 125 Second.
Tip 15: Photo Concepts: Tonal Range

Think of what youd have to do to make a sound recording of a symphony orchestra. There are bass (dark) and treble (bright) notes of
different timbre, levels of pitch (produced by different instruments)
and highs and lows produced by timpani and perhaps a piccolo. How
wide a range of that sound you could record depends upon the dynamic range of the recording instrument (its ability to record a range
of musical sounds), the placement of the microphones, and the way
the levels are set on the recorder.
Recording light in photography is similar: the analogy of light in
photography to musical tones is apt.. Numerous photographers often
refer to this similarity; indeed, Ansel Adams was an accomplished
pianist and his Zone System is based on the gray scale, a kind of
##
spectrum of brightness from deep black to bright white.

The ability to record the full range of light depends upon how the
sensor can respond to light (its dynamic range), the way the light is
read (the use of a meter with different patterns), and the placement
of those brightness levels on the recording scale in the photographic system (like setting levels on a recorder). The aim of both types of
recording is to get as full a range of tonal values as possible.
Light, like music, has its moods. There are times when you might
want to limit that tonal range by compressing tones (playing within
certain octaves) and values for artistic ends. That interpretive power
is an option with any photograph you make. It can be done when you
make the exposure and also in image processing. If you think of light
as tones, as a form of visual music, it will open new doors of photographic seeing and expression.
This is what could be called a full-scale image, with recording of tonal values from the bright, white of the clouds to the deep, near-black
of the mountain on the horizon. In general, you should aim to record
as full a scale image as you can to get all the richness and depth in an
image as possible.
##
Settings: At ISO 800, F/8 at 1/30 Second.
Of course, not all lighting conditions and images require or even want
for a full-scale recording. Just as in music, there are moodswhich you
can think of as restricted tonal scales--that best tell the story of the
scene and how you want to interpret it. This photo of Jordan Pond in
Maine right after sunset is what is referred to as a low key type of image. The beauty is in the darker tones and their subtle variations.
##
Tip 16: Noise and its Reduction

Visual noise in an image is rarely attractive. It can generate artifacts or space junk of discontinuous color and tone. It might even
look as if your image is pixelated, where you get the sense that some
pixels have jumped from miniscule to evident discontinuities. While
some folks argue that noise yields an impressionistic look to images,
there are much better ways to do that with plug-in filters and special
effects software.
Noise can be caused in a number of ways: when you make long exposures (depending on the camera and sensor, from 1 second on is
common); when you use high ISO settings because of the increase in
gain, or current, in the sensor field thats used to raise light sensitivity; or, sometimes even when you shoot in high temperature conditions when your camera simply gets too hot. The last in the list is the
most frustrating of all, as it is not as predictable an occurrence as in
the other circumstances.
Noise used to occur at what might be considered moderate ISO settings today: ISO 800 was a common point at which noise would enter the image. Admittedly that bar has been raised, and ISO 3200 is
a more common point of quality falloff today, but in truth any ISO
above 800 may contain nasty surprises. Noise is most noticeable
in dark, or shadow areas, but given enough enlargement noise will
make itself known in almost every area of the image.
##
There are a number of ways to suppress noise when you make images. First, shoot at the lowest ISO you can, given the lighting conditions. Raise ISO judiciously, not in great leaps because you just want
to insure that you get the shot. (Tripod usage will certainly help lower noise overall because you can always shoot more steadily at slow
shutter speeds, thus do not need to raise ISO as much.)
Another resort is to use the noise reduction (NR) filter you might
find in your camera menu (you usually have to go one or two levels
down to find it). This filter reduces noise by softening pixel edge contrast. There may be two or three levels of noise reduction filtration
availableLow, Medium and High. Because the filter actually softens the edge contrast of the image, in effect masking out the noise,
my experience is that High NR can give the image a plastic look, so
I avoid using it. Test your cameras NR levels to see how it performs.
To show you how ugly noise can get I greatly enlarged and added contrast to this section of an image, which was exposed mistak- enly at ISO
1600 outdoors on a very hot day in an old digital camera. It looks like
static on a cheap TV set.
##
Heres another high ISO image (ISO 6400) detail that shows a grainy,
mottled noise result (T75-B). The image was then corrected using a
noise reduction (NR) filter set at Medium. While the noise has been
somewhat tamed, the image details have a kind of soft, plastic look
to them (T75-C). The lesson here is to learn at what ISO your camera
starts to get too noisy as well as the effects of NR filtration: its also to
shoot at the lowest ISO you can given the lighting conditions. If need
be, a shot like this certainly could be made on a tripod to help reduce
the need to go to very high ISO settings.
##
Settings: With a 28MM Lens, At ISO 100, F/16 At 1/250 Second.
Tip 17: Composition: Using Classic Shapes And

Forms
Certain shapes and forms have always been part of creating effective two-dimensional art. The triangle, the semi-circle, the S-curve,
the leading line or lines that bring the eye to a vanishing point: these
are just some of the compositional tools you can use in your photographs. By using dynamic shapes and forms you can capture the
viewers eye and add a true sense of dimension to a scene.
One of the best ways to learn about these compositional tools is to
study photographs, prints and paintings and see how the artist uses
certain compositional techniques to catch the eye and add to the
strength of the composition. When you make images, seek out these
forms, and begin to incorporate them in your framing. Arrange sub##
jects in the frame so that they create simple geometric forms, then
start to appreciate how different points of view alter the dynamics in
the scene.
While you do not want to become academic in your use of forms,
analyzing an image for its structure can serve as a kind of study that
you can then incorporate into your own images. This photo was taken at the edge of the Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone. There
are a number of interacting forms and shapes here. The bright orange begins lower left and forms an S-curve to the horizon line.
There is a semi-circle formed by the blue. There are two triangles:
the one that begins lower right and goes diagonally upwards towards
the left, and one that juts mid-frame right into the center of the
frame.
Settings: At ISO 200, F/8 at 1/250 Second.
##
This photograph is all about a sort of compositional formalism that

dictated the placement of the various objects within the frame and determined the point of view from where the photograph was made. If
you graph it out you will see how the arrangement, though looking
quite random, makes use of various shapes, lines and forms.
On the right side the ramp from the boat dock is a leading line that
ends about three quarters up into the frame. The three large pilings and
smaller supports jut upwards,balancing the dominant horizontal orientation of the other shapes and forms. The struts of the bridge form a
truncated semi- circle in the upper portion of the frame. The anomalous
red form is strong enough to balance out the large dark area within the
leading line on the right. The white fence starts on the lower right and
binds the scene together by exiting on the left. While this may all seem
a bit academic, it can be fun to study your own images in this fashion
and see how you almost instinctively play with
forms and shapes in your work.
##
Tip 18: Making Choices: Equivalent Exposure

Aperture and shutter speed balance the amount of light in the scene
with the sensitivity of the sensor, the ISO. You change aperture and
shutter speed for various image effects, weighing one against the
other in every frame you take. A good exposure is when you create
balance, or equilibrium between all the factors and come up with the
image effects you desire.
The concept behind this balancing act is called Equivalent Exposure,
which is a way to change one or the other (shutter speed or aperture)
and still retain the same amount of exposure overall.
This works because both aperture and shutter speed are calibrated
by a system of stops, more commonly known these days as EVs
(Exposure Values). Every time you halve or double the amount of
light allowed by either of these controls you are changing the exposure by 1EV or +1EV, respectively. Lets look at how these steps
work out in actual Exposure Values correlated with aperture and
shutter speed.
An Equivalent, or the same amount of exposure, is created by changing one of the values and shifting the other correspondingly. All of
the exposure combinations below equal the same amount of exposure.
##
F/2 at 1/1000 second

F/2.8 at 1/500 second
F/4 at 1/250 second
F/5.6 at 1/125 second
F/8 at 1/60 second
F/11 at 1/30 second
...and so forth.
Think about the different image effects achieved through these various choices: faster shutter speed means catching moments of peak
action, while wider apertures (f/2) contributes to shallower depth of
field.
Choosing the proper combination to satisfy the needed exposure
means you have lots of choices of how you want to render the subject
and the scene. You can work with equivalent exposures using any
autoexposure modeProgram is often best as it allows you to shift
the values easilyand the exposure system will make the shifts for
you.
##
Tip 19: Tripods

Theres no question that using a tripod will result in better image
quality. While tripods are often thought of as an afterthought, the
truth is that a good tripod will make a difference regardless of shutter speed. First, a tripod slows you down a bit and makes you consider the composition more carefully.
Second, even at normally handholdable speeds, a tripod will dampen any effect of camera shake, which sometimes can result from just
pressing the shutter release button. Third, a tripod really comes to
the fore when shooting in low light at slower shutter speeds. This
allows you to keep the ISO reasonable, thus further contributing to
overall image quality.
##
But, a tripod might seem to be an extra burden when shooting in the

field. Although many tripods fold up to be backpack-able, they are
still another thing to carry. Theres no question that they take time to
set up, and that sighting through them means more extra time spent
prior to making a shot. All in all, its a matter of balancing the benefits of a tripod with the extra effort they require. That will usually be
determined by the type of subjects and scenes you are photographing, and whether spontaneity far outweighs the quality gains.
Tripods are made with various materials, generally aluminum or alloys or carbon fiber. The former tend to be less expensive, while the
former are lighter when put against a similarly-sized aluminum or
metal alloy model. Some tripods are even made from wood, although
these are generally used more by large format film photographers
than DSLR shooters of today.
As important as the tripod is the head, or the connector between

the camera base and the sticks and their basic platform. There are
many types available, including whats called a panning head, a
platform mount with a handle that you can move from left to right,
and a ball head, a ball and socket arragement that can be turned
just about any way you desire. The former is the favorite of video
##
phootgraphers (and some still photographers) while the latter is

probably the most versatile.
Settings: Five Shots, Overlap 30%, Camera Mounted On A Video Head Tripod.
While panorama shots can be done handheld, the best results will
come from having the camera mounted on a tripod. This insures a level
swing that will gather individual images that match up with one another. While a ball head can be used, many panoramic photographers
prefer a video head style.
##
Settings: At ISO 100, F/8 at 1/8 Second. Focusing Close With A Long Lens Resulted In This Fairly Shallow
Depth Of Field.
To get this flowing water effect a slow shutter speed was required. The
photo was shot low to the ground so a splay-leg tripod was used. Effects such as this are near impossible to get without the use of a tripod.
##
Tip 20: Enhancing Texture with Light

Study the influence of light on your subject and you will go a long
way towards developing a photographic eye. For example, when lit
fully, the texture of any subject may be subdued. Lit from the side,
or with selective light, however, each difference in surface topography becomes emphasized, each weave in the fabric of the subject can
be revealed. If one of the reasons you choose a subject is its textural
quality, then consider a point of view that works with light to enhance it even more.
Known as cross-lighting or side lighting, this angle of light emphasizes detail and surface. Cross lighting occurs early or late in the day,
when the sun is low in the sky. It skims across a surface and offers
selective illumination, shadow, thus shape, to any object.
This close-up of a frozen pond surface relies on cross lighting to emphasizes its every rill and form. The selective lighting creates a subtle contrast that, if photographed in full, bright light, may have been
lost. Exposure was made using spot metering on the brightest white
area with an exposure compensation of +1EV.
##
Settings: With a 50MM Macro Lens, F/16 At 1/15 Second, +1 Ev Compensation On Spot Reading Made Off
Bright White. Camera Was Mounted On A Tripod To Allow For The Slow Shutter Speed And To Maintain
Composition.
##
This white birch tree sat in a grove and was photographed during the
late afternoon. The light was coming from the right and illuminated every textural element in the bark. A telephoto lens was chosen to attain
a soft background. The frame was composed so that another tree in the
background would echo the form of the main subject.
##
Settings: At ISO 1600, F/8 At 1/1600 Second. Shutter Speed Raised To Freeze The Speeding Biker In Place.
Well, If You Could See The Biker, That Is.
Tip 21: Theres More In Shadows Than You

Might Think
While you might be content with images direct from the camera,
with no further processing, the ability to make even further refinements in image processing programs should encourage you to begin to explore its possibilities. In some cases this will only be a small
tweaking of exposure, color saturation, and the like, but heres one
image that might convince you that image processing, and digital
image files, have so much more possibilities and potential.
This photo was made of a construc- tion site pedestrian tunnel that
was quite narrow and dark, with a number of bikers making their
way through. The shot was timed so that a biker would be captured
##
just as they emerged from the dark.

However, when the image was first opened the file on the computer
monitor the biker was obscured from view. The exposure was read
from the bright areas of the tarp and signs outside and could not, it
seemed, bridge the gap between the bright and dark areas.
But in truth there can be an amazing amount of detail in seemingly
too-dark areas.
The image was opened in a RAW file converter, in which there is a paintbrush that allows you to make selective adjustments to areas of the images. The area in the tunnel was brushed and exposure selectively added. Lo and behold you can now see the biker, proving once again that
the flexibility of digital image files is wondrous indeed.
Settings: Same Camera Exposure With Raw Processing Increase Exposure In The Dark Area.
##
Curiosity moved me to see if I could recover the biker from the darkness,
so I opened the RAW file converter and selected the area of the dark
tunnel with a paintbrush and then added exposure using the exposure.
##
Tip 22: White Balance

When we think of color we have associations that describe what
that color looks like. The hue red, for example, can be the soft red
of a rose, the deep red of an apple or the shiny, metallic red of a fire
truck. These subjective descriptions count on our visual experience to create a picture red in our mind, but they are among all the
many shades and types of red that exist in the world.
The image processor in a digital camera acts like a modifier of different hues as well, and can reproduce the shades and tints available in
the original scene. The aim of most digital camera manufacturers is
to keep any color subjectivity within reasonable limits and to insure
that the red you see is close to the one that is recorded.
Most times you want the recorded color to match the color in the
scene. This can be quite important to professional photographers
who are paid to deliver a specific red on a sweater for a catalog or a
skin tone on a portrait. But color need not always be that exact; there
are times when color mood is more important than color matching.
With digital, you can match or alter colors through the use of various controls, such as white balance (the influence of the ambient or
prevailing light in the scene), color tone settings (the adjustment of
color bias) and exposure (how bright or dark colors record.) You can
use those controls to enhance color mood, with less care about color
matching and more emphasis on the emotional power of color in the
scene.
White balance settings can have on the emotional effect of color in
your images. What does white balance do? The white balance set##
tings affect the color cast in the image. That cast is usually caused
by the ambient light, more specifically, the color that the prevailing
light imbues. For example, a landscape at sunset has a warmer, often
redder overall color than you would see at mid-day. A foggy morning or a subject photographed in deep shade may have a blue cast,
at least when compared to the same subject in broad daylight. And
interiors lit by light bulbs will have an amber cast compared with the
same interior illuminated by flash.
White balance settings can be thought as corrective filters that
re-balance the color to make it more neutral. Rather than have to resort to color filters that fit over the lens, as in the past when film was
used, these casts are counterbalanced by the image processor that
gets instructions from your white balance settings to apply them.
But there are often scenes where you dont want to remove that cast,
where you want the scene to record as you see it, not as a neutralized
color balance. Yes, you can add a cast or mood later, but theres a
simple way to get this at the moment you make the exposure.
##
One of the settings in the white balance options is called Daylight. This assumes that the scene was shot under daylight, thus fairly neutral or natural
light conditions.
When you set this in a scene with a color mood, one where the ambient light
color cast dominates, the recording will be the colors you see, not the color
balanced rendition.
Yes, there are many tools for color control, but this is one of the easiest to
use to capture the emotion that light can lend to any subject or scene.
##
However, this is how the scene looked. The warm, red light imbued the scene
and offers quite a different rendition; in fact, it is the natural light at the moment the exposure was made.
To capture this light use a Daylight white balance setting. Taken separately,
each is a valid approach, but the warmer rendition was truer to the moment.
Settings: Both Images: 75Mm Lens, F/4 At 1/60 Second At ISO 100. White Balance Changed From Auto
To Daylight.
##
Tip 23: Lens Terms: Know Your Focal Length

Lenses are your photographic eyes on the world. You can work with
many different lenses with a DSLR or mirrorless camera and interchange them as you see fit. You can work with lenses that expand
your pe- ripheral vision (wide angle lenses) or that bring distant subjects closer (telephotos).
Each lens is identified with a focal length that tells you its angle
of coverage. Think of angle of coverage as an arc that starts at the
front of the lens and spreads out to encompass the scene before you.
Wide-angle lenses have a wider arc, while telephoto lenses have a
narrower one. Telephoto lenses, as their name implies, bring distant subjects closer, while wide-angle lenses tend to make distant
subjects seem further away. Zoom lenses can incorporate many focal lengths within their range. Zooms are often de- fined by the ratio
between the wide angle and telephoto maximums. A 14-28mm lens
is referred to as a 2X lens; while an 18-180mm lens would be a 10X
zoom.
The focal length of a lens remains its focal length regardless of what
camera you have mounted it on: focal length is technically the distance (in millimeters) from the rear point of the lens to the sensor
when the lens is focused at infinity. However, because of the many
different sensor sizes, what does change from one camera format (or
sensor size) to another is the effective focal length, that is, how that
angle of view interacts with the sensor size.
So, if you have an 18-80mm lens on a full frame DSLR thats the
angle of view it affords. Mount it on an APS-C sensor camera and
##
effectively you have a 27-120mm lens; put it on a Micro Four

Thirds mirrorless and the effect is that of a 36-160mm lens, quite a
difference from that 18-80mm when on the full frame DSLR.
You can visualize this if you think of the light heading from the lens
to the sensor as a circle, which it is. If you then place the various size
sensorsDSLR, APS-C and Micro Four-Thirds--at the same distance from the rear of that lens youll see that the sensor actually
crops into the rectangular sensor shape in different ways, with the
smaller of the three, Micro Four Thirds, cropping into the circle the
most.
In fact, there are various sensor sizes available now with the proliferation of mirrorless cameras, so always check the crop factor of the
camera you are considering or use to take the effective focal length of
the lens into account. Take a look at the comparative effective focal
lengths below to get a sense of how this plays out.
##
Equivalent angle of view comparing full frame, APS-C and Micro

Four Thirds sensor cameras:
Full Frame
18mm
28mm
35mm
50mm
100mm
APS-C
27mm
42mm
52mm
75mm
150mm
Micro Four Thirds

36mm
56mm
70mm
100mm
200mm
##
Zooms
24-80mm
36-120mm
48-160mm
70-210mm
105-315mm
140-420mm
Choosing focal length is a matter of matching the subject with how

you want to portray it. For example, you would use a short focal
length (wide angle lens) when you want to encompass a wide field of
view, say for a landscape.
You might want to use a 80mm for a portrait. And longer focal
lengths get you closer to the subject, though you then have a concomitant narrower angle of view, like tunnel vision, but this is ideal
for a wildlife or sports photography.
A wide-angle lens creates a broad visual arc that allows you to encompass a wide view, like in this scene of a gnarled branch four feet
away all the way to the distant mountains. On a full frame camera an
18mm lens does the trick. On an APS-C sensor camera you needed a
12mm and on a Micro Four Thirds a 9mm lens for the same effect.
##
In general, a lens with a 75mm focal length or so is very good for

portraits, as this creates a comfortable camera to subject distance
and allows you to get a fairly soft background. On an APS-C sensor camera that would equate to a 50mm lens and with a Micro Four
Thirds a 38mm lens. Note: diffusion effect added in post processing.
These balloons were high up in the Albuquerque sky during the exciting Balloon Festival held each year in the fall. This shot was made
with a 135mm lens on an APS-C camera. A full frame camera would
have needed a 200mm lens and on a Micro Four Thirds a 100mm
lens for the same framing.
##
Tip 24: Your Photo Is Just The Beginning...

The amazing thing about the digital image is its incredible ability to
serve as the foundation for many more visual explorations. Because
the image file is composed of millions of pixels, all of which are
processed to produce certain characteristics, theres virtually no limit on the variations you can create. Working with easy- to-use image
editing software, you can process the image to simply change the vividness of color or increase or lower contrast, or, if you want to take
it further, to make radical changes that uses your initial exposure as
the starting point for an exciting visual exploration.
Thats not to say that every image you
make shoul d be interpreted and changed in
radical ways. Most images stand on their own as documents or memory keepers and might need just a tweak to make them perfect. In
##
fact, you can make small improvements right in many cameras; oftentimes, the software that comes with your camera has many corrective and creative options as well.
You might think you need to learn about complex image editing programs to accomplish this, but thats not the case. Costly programs
like Photoshop are quite amazing, but are geared more towards
those who make their living from photography.
You can begin with an affordable program and use software called
plug-ins that offer literally thousands of image changing options
that can be applied with pushbutton ease. The point is, when you
make a photograph, understand that it might only be the beginning
of how it might end up. These days, there are limitless things you
can do with an image with affordable programs that are easier to use
than ever before.
This photograph of an old door leaning against an adobe building is
a nice rendition of the light and textural qualities of the scene. It can
stand on its own as an image, but can also serve as the starting point
for further explorations.
The original image was brought into an image editing software to experiment with the line, form and texture.
The door and windows were altered using a liquefy brush, and then
grain was added. Finally, color saturation was exaggerated. In the
past, changes like this could only be accomplished with quite expensive computers and software, and software knowledge.
Now, these changes are quick and easy to make on affordable computers and programs. The only problem they pose is choosing which
type of changes you make from among the thousands of possibilities
available.
##
Settings: At Iso 100, F/5.6 At 1/80 Second, 28Mm Lens.
##
Tip 25: What Does A Photograph Mean?

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of camera operation and creative
controls, it might be good to pause to consider the nature of photography and how it can be a profound influence on how you see and
choose to interpret the world around you. If you were a detective you
might look for a motive for a certain act. The mystery all photographers eventually attempt to solve is: just what is it that motivates me
to make a picture?
Theres no simple answer. Most photographers are often baffled by
their own motivation, other than those made as documents or of
family occasions. Some say that over-analyzing the process can stifle
the creative instinct and that its best to just go with the flow; others
seek for meaning in their work.
Critics have written that we photograph in order to acquire and
control, and to gather trophies, and say that these innate human instincts have found a ready vehicle in picture taking. Others see photography as more of a self-conscious act, or perhaps, better said, a
conscious of self activity, and see the photographic process as a
way to further define their existence, a sort of imaged autobiography.
Some take it to the level of trying to reveal their inner self in their
images; others look for the universal in the individual image, and
make it an observation on the human condition. The list could go
on that photographs represent internalized forms in (often) more
elaborate guise; that they represent repressed desires and sparsely
remembered dreams; that they are indicative of a socio-political matrix, etc. While each approach may be part of the truth, there is no
##
definitive statement simply because photographers produce such a

diverse range of imagery.
If you get a chance, give a listen to a 19th century musical composition by Rimsky Korsakov entitled Pictures at an Exhibition. Known
as program music, it was part of a brief trend to create music that
would evoke or recall images in the listeners mind. Pictures at an
Exhibition was a musical reference to a suite of paintings in a museum. Other composers in this movement would pass out small poems
or essays that would be used to steer the listener to visualize places
or moods. Indeed, this is often practiced today in books and articles
that mate images and words, one reinforcing the other.
Photographs are mute, of course, but the idea of visual/ musical/
verbal association still has power. Generally, the degree to which we
can analyze a photograph or a photographers motivation or indeed
or own motivation is proportional to the amount of time we wish to
spend doing it. There are so many layers to an image--spiritual, psychological, observational, emotional, and so forth- -as well as the
cultural layers and time and place self-evident in the subject mattersome say that even the simplest snapshot can be a worthy topic
of discussion.
One of the transformative processes in photography takes place in
the time between when the image is captured and when it is finally opened on a monitor. This time can be a day or, with rediscovered images, many years. Aside from being a profound storehouse
of memories, this process clarifies the vision, and puts it to the test
of timeeither it continues to hold power, or ends up on the editing
room floor (known these days as the Trash). In a sense, what we retain are those images that continue to resonate with our lives.
##
This discussion is not meant to place the burden of validity and

meaning upon each image, or to say that each picture must be a personal, temporal and universal metaphor bound into one. There are
just too many images photographed in a lifetime for that to make
sense. It does say, however, that photography is a way to gain a
depth of understanding about oneself that is at once ineffable and in
the present, yet remains as a milepost throughout ones life.
That is why pictures are so powerful, so compelling, and why the
study of the craft of photography is a truly artistic endeavor. Photography is at once creative, spontaneous and interpretive. It allows
us to see above and below the surface, often to surprising depths, in
one intuitive, split- second glance. While over-analyzing your photographs might restrict your ex- perimentation and freedom when you
shoot, it is often a good idea to return to them and give some thought
about your mo- tivations in order to guide your eye in the future.
##
This photo at the edge of land in low tide is formalistic and almost
sculptural, and photographically is a study of line, form, and the
quality of light and shadow.
That might be enough, but it also speaks to the way nature, and life,
changes us, and how time can strip us of our illusions in the way that
these pieces of massive driftwood once had leaves, and bark, and
stood tall, rooted in the ground. This way of thinking about your images can lead you down some interesting roads, and may influence
how you see and photograph later.
##
Settings: At ISO 800, F/4 at 1/60 Second, With Conversion To Black And White With Added Blur And
Texture.
This photo of a young child waiting her turn to perform at a dance

recital was made 15 years ago, and while a fond memory of her innocence and antici- pation at the time it also speaks to the young woman she was to become.
Photography is not only a very powerful memory keeper, it also allows us have a perspective on the lives of those we love and follow
them as they grow and change...and to perhaps consider how the
past often writes the future.
##

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Geo

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Lenses, Focusing & Depth of Field, Digital Photo Academy 2016

Digital Photo Academy, DigitalPhotoAcademy.com, is located in the

Live Courses and Private Classes

To find out more visit our website or call us toll-free

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

About George Schaub

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

shooting expeditions in the US, Canada, and the Caribbean. He has

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

from 1984-2000. He currently splits his time between his homes in

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Settings: 20mm lens, f/4 at 1/40 sec, ISO 800

Tip 1: Thinking About Your Pictures

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Tip 2: Image Effects: Creative Use of Aperture

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

When you consider a scene or subject, your first decisions should

Settings: 20mm lens, f/4 at 1/40 sec, ISO 800

At a powwow, there are many photo opportunities. Here, the framing

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

To maintain a respectful distance, the choice here was a 200mm lens,

Settings: At ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/1000 Second.

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

By using a slow shutter speed of 1/8 second and panning, or

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Settings: With a 150mm lens, at ISO 200, f/2.8 at 1/1000 second.

Shallow depth of field can be used to create visual attention on

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Settings: 24mm lens; at ISO 200, f/22 at 1/60 second.

Wide-angle lenses and narrow apertures combine to deliver a zone

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Tip 3: ISO: Light Sensitivity and Scene

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Heres an extreme example of noise introduced by using a high ISO

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Corresponding values: ISO 100-200-400-800, 3 step raise;

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Settings: ISO at 160, f/9 at 1/60 second. 16mm lens.

Tip 4: Seeing Light: Quantity and Quality

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Settings: At ISO 800, 1/200 second at f/3.5. 190mm focal length.

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Another part of the equation of exposure, or balancing the light

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Settings: ISO at 160, f/9 at 1/60 second. 16mm lens.

Tip 5: What Statements are You Making with

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

To get up to a reasonable hand-holdable shutter speed you might

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision

Settings: With a 28MM Lens, at ISO 160, f/8 at 1/60 Second.

25 TIPS from Digital Photo Academy on Photo Vision