Browsing all posts in "Photography".

Is True SOOC Possible

By Steve Russell One of the great things about photography is there are few absolutes. Even an image that’s overexposed or underexposed can be interesting and compelling to some people. What really makes a good photograph is whether the photographer thinks it is. It doesn’t make any difference if I like it or if the [...]

Three Bad Photography Habits I’m Going to Break

1. Relying on one shot. Believe it or not, often times when I photograph something I’ll just take one or two shots of it, then move on to the next thing. It’s like my attention span won’t allow me to consider that it may take a half-dozen or more shots to really get it right. [...]

Discuss: Is true SOOC possible?

Here’s a question for you, my friends. Do you think it is possible to “get it right” straight out of the camera, with no post-production necessary? Or do you think it’s impossible to obtain the correct exposure, white balance, and color balance without post-production? I recently watched this video, in which Mark Wallace explains why [...]

The Importance of Perspective

How large do you suppose these rocks are? Could you pick them up in your hand? Step over them? Are they the size of your bed? Your car? Your house? Well, now take a look at this photo: That’s me up there! Here’s another angle. Here’s another one. Pretty mountain stream? Or enormous Upper Falls [...]

Four Things We All Need To Remind Ourselves

1. It doesn’t have to be a difficult picture to take, in order to be a worthy picture. I was talking to a photographer friend of mine the other day, and asked how he composed a particular shot we were looking at. He gave me chapter and verse on lighting, light modifiers, angles, the inverse [...]

This and That

By Steve Russell From time to time I like to write an article that covers multiple subjects, none of which would make a complete article alone. I haven’t done this in a while and thought now would be a good time. This photo has nothing to do with the article, I just liked it when [...]

Expose for the Sky

A reader recently asked, “I’ve read a lot of photography articles where they say to “expose for the background” or “meter for the subject”, then “recompose and shoot”. When I do that, it still doesn’t work! My camera just adjusts the exposure for whatever I’m focusing on. For instance, if I want to take a [...]

Three Items of Equipment No Photographer Should Be Without

By Steve Russell The title of this article begs for part of the answer to be camera and lens but then I wouldn’t have anything to write about or I’d have to title the article Five Items… In other words, I’m going to assume that the camera and lens is a given and not count [...]

Your Weekend Project – Purposeful Focus

Focus is inherently critical in photography. What is OUT of focus is just as important as what is IN focus. Using unexpected focus, or off-center focus, can add interest to your photographs. This weekend practice purposeful focus. Focus and recompose, or practice moving your focus points around through the viewfinder. Break away from auto focus [...]

Six Tips For Overcoming Photographer’s Block

By Steve Russell This isn’t going to be one of my usual 1,000+ word articles but for some people it may be more important than an article on the difference between bokeh and depth of field. Over the last two years I’ve seen enough comments here and on our Facebook page to make me believe [...]