BRRRRRRR It’s cold out there….

It seemed fitting to make a post about cold weather photography since we are having such terribly cold and snowy winter.

COLD WEATHER TIPS:

1. Your camera has a cold limit just like you. If you notice your camera is lagging or not displaying properly, it’s time to pack it in.  Make sure to keep your gear in your pack after you bring it inside and let it warm up slowly to prevent condensation.
General Note: It is also advisable to not store your battery within your camera if it is going to be sitting for long periods of time. 

2. Check your exposure setting and white balance! Winter is such a beautiful time to photograph the great outdoors, but sometimes your camera won’t know what to do with the sun being intensified by the snow. Typically most cameras want to over expose and make everything too bright. Your best bet is to use manual settings and shoot in RAW format vs JPG. That way if your photos are a little over or under exposed, you can always fix them with your post-processing software. 

3.  Never delete photos while you are out and about. As stated above winter can bring some bright and harsh lighting and it may be hard to judge a photo on a tiny screen. Always wait until you get them on your computer. 

4. Charge your batteries! Warm batteries are better than cold and last longer. Charge your own batteries too before venturing out with a good sustainable meal!

Here are some great cold weather clothing tips for shooting outdoors from Improve Photography!

Stay warm out there!

Weddings! Weddings! Weddings!

So you thought you would try your hand at photographing a friend’s wedding or maybe use your DSLR to get some great snap shots of a wedding you’re attending. Beware.

Photographing a wedding is grueling work. Lugging around your equipment, the possibility of inclement weather and demanding wedding parties and guests can all be thorns in your side.  That being said, there can be joy and good times, but only if you put in the work.

We’ve all been to weddings, we’ve all seen the beautiful pictures that can result. Wedding photos are the most highly scrutinized photos. There are so many people to please, that wedding photography is best left to the professionals. However, if you’re going to make the leap into wedding photography, here are some great tips from Improve Photography to get going!

I’ve included some of my own photos from weddings I’ve second shot years ago. Don’t forget the details! 

It’s all about the details!!!

Today we’re going to talk a little about macro photography. For all of those readers out there who don’t know what macro means, simply put it is close up photos that show detail.

I’m going to be featuring some of my own photos. Keep in mind that there are many factors that influence a photo. Lenses, camera body, settings and the quality of your equipment (unfortunately) makes a difference as well. Caveat: You get what you pay for with photo equipment. I do not own professional equipment. I do not own expensive macro lenses.  The photos shown on today’s post are years old and shot with everything from an old video camera to a new DSLR. You don’t need expensive and professional equipment to get the shot you want, but boy does it help! 

This first photo was shot with an old video camera, circa the 2000’s.  I simply got as close as I could, and held as still as possible. I’m quite sure that I was actually laying on the ground in my parents from yard to get this photo. The quality isn’t great, it’s a bit grainy but I still consider it a neat photo. This is one of my very first attempts at an “artsy/macro” kind of shot and I think it turned out well considering I couldn't change any settings. This image is SOOC (straight out of camera) and has not been post processed with any editing software. 



As I became more skilled and gained more equipment I started producing higher quality images. Even though these photos have been compressed (with downloading and uploading) you can still see the difference in quality. The sparkle of the ring and the reflection in the gold ring. I actually had to edit my reflection out of the gold ring. Besides editing myself out, this photo has had little post processing besides bumping up the sharpness a little.  

Stay tuned for more examples and tips! 
Check out these amazing tips from Improve Photography!

Welcome to the wonderful world of photography.... terms!

Welcome!

This blog will be documenting different tips and tricks for beginner photographers.

Note: I’m a Canon user so most tips and references will be based off Canon cameras.

As a photo hobbyist /enthusiast I will be learning some new things as we go too!

I will be discussing a number of photo and camera terms, as well as providing links to helpful websites and before and after photos for all the visual people out there!

To get started, let’s define a few common terms…

• POINT AND SHOOT CAMERA : Simply put it is a camera that doesn’t have any
  detachable lenses.
• DSLR = Digital single-lens reflex camera.
• ISO = a DSLR camera’s light sensitivity. Identified as a number rating on cameras, in increments of  100’s or 1000’s. ISO is one of the 3 things that helps your camera determine exposure, which will be discussed in future posts.
•  SHUTTER SPEED = How fast your camera allows light to hit the camera’s sensor (the shutter opens and closes). Usually measured in seconds or fractions of a second. (Example 1/125, 30 seconds) 
• APERTURE VALUE (AV) = A small opening within the camera that essentially helps control focus (usually measured in “ f stops “ which can be fractions or whole numbers -  f1.4 or f2). Aperture is one of the 3 things that contributes to depth of field – which will also be discussed in further posts. 
• CANDID = A style of photo that is not posed

Stay tuned for more posts!
Thanks for reading!