The Golden Hour

Pat bought some simple sunflowers for the table yesterday. As I was getting out of bed, and fumbling for my first coffee, I couldn't help but notice how beautifully the morning sun was coming in through the dining room window. So, after a quick caffeine break, I grabbed my camera.

The scene could be set in so many ways - I could've arranged the flowers & draped a sheet or towel to create a neutral background, so the flowers were the focal point. But I decided to do what I could in-camera. No tricks, just pure photography.

This is the first image I took. It is dark in all the wrong places, and it almost looks like the vase full of stems was the focal point. But this is how it looked when I noticed the warm vibrancy of the sunlight. And look at the shadows on the apples - I really love the sense of depth.

 

 

This is the same image, gently re-touched. I'm not a huge fan of overdoing post-processing. I believe that the best photos happen in the first 2" behind the camera - the photographer's eye.

The image I captured has been cropped to 16X9, because I love the feel of that aspect ratio. I brought the exposure up about 2/3 of a stop, and played a little with the blacks & whites.

Some may feel that the vase now looks blown out, and that is OK. I like how it looks. The apples still have a nice sense of depth, but more of their colours are showing.

I could have messed with the saturation of colours in the flowers & stems. I could have, but I didn't. They have wonderful tonality (really... I did just say that !) that also gives them depth.

Rule of thirds, golden ratio, bah ! A nice, simple capture of something that caught my eye first thing in the morning.

It truly was the "golden hour".

 

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Project365 - Manipulating Light with Gels

Introduction

I really should stop calling this a 365 Project - we've been so busy moving and settling into the new house that I really haven't been able to make time to shoot. I will do my very best to get back to shooting regularly, if not every day !

Pat taught me how to make jam over the past few days. On the first evening, we made ten jars of strawberry jam. I thought it would make a colourful subject for this blog, so I documented the process. The second evening, we made bumbleberry jam. This time I slowed down & thought about what I was doing. I made two changes between the first & second nights.

The Setup

Day 1 - I shot handheld, with my Canon 60D. I wanted a fast lens, so I used my Canon 40mm f2.8 lens, and mounted my Canon 430 EX II flash in the hotshoe.

Day 2 - still handheld with the 60D, but with my Canon 24-105mm f/4 L lens instead. I mounted the flash in the hotshoe, but added a half-density orange gel to correct for the incandescent lighting.

Let's see how the pictures look !

The Photos

Day 1 - no gel:

Here is Pat, cooking the strawberry jam. It's bubbling away so hard, it looked molten ! Notice the yellowish tinge in the appliances & her shirt ! That's the incandescent lighting.

 

 

 

Here we see the yellow tinge, but more pronounced.

Day 2 - 1/2 CTO Gel on the flash

In this photo, the colours are correct. The whites are white - not cream, and the strawberry jam is a brilliant red.

 

 

 

Did I mention we made a dozen jars ? ;-)

 

 

 

 

Lessons Learned

Once again, I need to remember to slow down & plan my shoots. The photos turn out much better when I think through all the components - especially when I think about light temperature !

 

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Project365 - Of Grids and Snoots

Introduction

I managed to collect the components of my Honl speed strap & gels system yesterday. They also make a grid, so I picked one of this up up as well. Grids & Snoots are another form of light modifier for your flash system. They don't change the colour temperature of your flash, instead they focus the beam.

Why would you want to do that ? It allows the photographer to more selectively light the scene. Imagine a photo of a model in a dark room. Perhaps you want to expose the background to look like a black backdrop. That's easily achieved, but you still need to light up the model, to show off contrast and colour. The grid or snoot will help "aim" the light at the models face, while minimizing the spillover onto the background.

 

The Setup

These are some more "goofing around" shots. None of my available models were out of bed yet, and I was getting impatient. A very simple setup, with the Honl 1/8 grid attached to the Canon 430 EX II via the Honl speed strap. The whole shebang is mounted on the hotshoe of my Canon 60D, which has my general purpose 24-105mm f/4 L lens attached. I shot handheld for quick & dirty testing.

 

The Photos

A simple before and after shot. First without the grid, followed by a photo taken with the grid.

Note the even lighting. I used no other light modifier, like a gel, as there was no other ambient light - just the flash at 1/8 power.

 

 

 

For comparison, this photo is shot with the exact same settings, and the grid in place. Note how quickly the light falls off ! The grid directs the flash down a very narrow beam.

 

 

 

Lessons Learned

The use of a grid or snoot allows more creative use of light. It provides an easy way of selectively lighting a small portion of the frame, while quickly allowing the ambient light to light the rest. I see this as very useful for fill-flash and portraiture.

 

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Project365 - Flash Light-Modifiers

Introduction

I have been noticing that I am often unhappy with the colours of my photographs when I shoot with a flash. While there is a white-balance setting on my camera, the light from the flash is a harsh white, which competes with other lighting in the photograph. There are a ton of ways to light scenes - you might be outside on a shady or sunny day. You might be interested in taking family portraits in the living room. Or perhaps you are doing commercial work, shooting products or Executives.

Seems that different lighting has different "temperatures" - you get a feel for it when you see pictures that appear to have a cool blue tinge, or ones that have a warm orange glow to them. Colour temperature is measured in terms of degrees Kelvin, and different lighting has different colours associated with them. Primarily, the objective is to get back to an "honest" white colour. Unless, of course, you WANT to create warmer or cooler tones in your photographs !

The Setup

It took me a bit of running around town, but I finally picked up the components I wanted. My preferred supplier, Saneal Cameras in Calgary, had the Honl speed strap at one store, and the gels at another. I bought a grid while I was at it, but we'll discuss that in a separate blog entry. I like the Honl system, because it makes quickly changing between gels and grids easy. The speed strap loops around the flash and then the components attach to the Velcro for a firm grip.

This isn't really a photo shoot, I was just messing around, attaching the gels & seeing what the effects are. I used my handy Canon 60D handheld, and affixed the 24-105mm f/4 L series lens. Around one of my Canon 430 EX II speed lights, I wrapped the Honl speed strap and started expeimenting. I have:

2X full Green gels (CTG ?)

1X full Blue gel (CTB)

1X half Blue gel (CTB)

2X full Orange gel (CTO)

2X half Orange gel (CTO)

2X quarter Orange gel (CTO)

 

The Photos

This photo was taken with a full green gel. If you compare to the other two pictures, everything has a sickly green colour. The kitchen was illuminated only by the light coming in the window. The green gels are to be used to colour-correct for fluorescent lighting.

 

 

This photo has the full blue gel applied to the flash. Can you see the difference ? I bet you can ! Note that the calendar (taking the top left corner) is white.

 

 

This photo was taken with the full orange gel applied to the flash. It's amazing the difference that the different gels make. Note that the wall beside/behind the refrigerator is a light beige colour.

 

 

 

So let's see the colour-correction in action. For the following two photos, I took shots of the window & door off of our dining area. The window and door are brilliant white, while the only light source is the tungsten (incandescent) chandelier overhead.

This photo was shot using the flash, but without any gel to modify the light source. See how there is an dingy yellow cast to it ?

Here is the same scene, only using the full orange gel. The whites look white again !

Lessons Learned

Photography is merely the task of capturing light. But when we need to add external light to a scene, such as a full-flash, we need to be careful to balance our flash against the ambient light in the scene. I will keep experimenting with flash photography, and use the gels accordingly. The aim is to improve the overall appearance of the photos.

 

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Project365 - Two Strobe Portraits

Introduction

In my last installment, I refined my technique for creating a deep black background. In this shoot, I applied that technique, along with two flashes to create more interesting portraits.

 

The Setup

My thought was to set up for a black background, and then light the model from above and to her right. Then, I wanted to place another strobe below and behind her. I was hoping to create a sort of light halo effect. Unfortunately, I didn't get the halo as her hair was as dark as the background. Worse, I had remarkably dark shadows across her face.

I shot the Canon 60D handheld. In the hotshoe was one of the Cactus v5s. I was set for a black background - f/250, ISO 100 and an aperture of 16. One Canon 430EX II was mounted on a Cactus v5 atop a tripod to the kodel's right, while the other was mounted on the trigger and placed on the floor.

The Photos

I am still learning about portraiture. It's not really something I'm very good at, so I was fortunate that my daughter agreed to be my model. It is easy to have a good rapport...

In this first photo, the main light was too powerful. While I had a nice dark background, you couldn't really see any definition between the background and the kodel's hair. And the pose is funny - unnatural, even. It looks like her eyes are pointed in two different directions !

Here, the main light is better, but the secondary is still underpowered. There are very harsh shadows on the models face. Given how pale her skin is, I would've liked to have made her skin tones warmer with a bit of makeup.

 

This one is better. We see a nice cross-lit effect, haloing her cheek and chin. And there is even a hint of catch-lights in her eyes ! But her dark hair is lost in the black background, still.

This is a little bit tighter a shot. I like the effect of the cross-lighting, and the black background.

Lessons Learned

I still need to figure out how to create the halo effect around the model's hair. I suspect my life would be easier shooting at night, when the room is darker to begin with. I'd also like to try to use a reflector to cross-light the face, which would free up the flash for the halo effect !

 

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Project365 - Black Backdrop

Introduction

Today I learned much more about a technique I had attempted once before. Now that I better understood how it worked, I believe I am better able to put it to good use. You see, one of the things that most studio photographers invest in is backdrops. Often large rolls of seamless white or black paper, they allow the subject to be the true focus of the photograph. Who knew I was carrying a black backdrop around in my camera ?!?

It's truly a simple effect involving the use of flash (or sometimes called strobe) photography. Cameras have a maximum speed with which they can sync with the flash to achieve a nicely lit picture, it's usually around 1/250th of a second. Keeping that portion of the exposure triangle still, we next dial down the ISO (the sensitivity of the CCD) to 100. The only thing left that is adjustable is the aperture. All we do is close that down until a picture taken in the ambient light is completely black. Now, anything lit up by the flash will be nicely lit, while the background remains black.

The Setup

Nothing really complicated the Canon 60D, set at f/16, ISO 100, and a shutter speed of 1/250th of a second. The Cactus v5 was mounted in the hotshoe, so I could use the Canon 430EX II off-camera. I placed it on a basic tripod with the other Cactus v5, so I could move the light & the camera around freely.

The Photos

Believe it or not, this is a photo of Pat's flowers on the dining room table. I was setting the ISO, Aperture and shutter speed to get a black background. Got it !

 

Whoops ! The flash was spilling onto the background too much, so I elected to put a snoot on the flash, to more tightly focus the beam.

That's better ! Although you will notice the pen & paper on the tabletop still show up faintly. Now to play around a bit... ;-)

The first few pictures weren't as bright as I would have liked, so they came out a little dull. Time to up the power of the flash a notch, and move the light stand a little closer !

Much better ! I like the contrast created by the various petals on the flowers.

I think this is one of my favorite photographs of the shoot...

Lessons Learned

I thought I really understood this technique, but now with a little better tutorial, I think I know how to nail it whenever I need it. Certainly, implementing the snoot helped narrow the beam, and moving the light stand over to one side helped with not lighting the background. I really like this technique & see myself using it for portrait work.

 

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Project365 - In the Kitchen

Introduction

Pat bought me a slab of Montréal Smoked Meat from Dunn's. It's an extra-special treat, bringing back memories of kosher dill pickles, beautiful rye bread, and tangy mustard. These were all shared with my father, whose laboratory at McGill was just a few short blocks from Dunn's famous delicatessen.

So todays's project was to slice it up & repackage it, so that we could enjoy it over a longer time. Unfortunately, we are also getting ready to move, so our meat-slicer is packed, but I know not where !

 

The Setup

Product shoots require a little bit of planning. Usually, you use a light-box, which helps create evenly diffused light on all surfaces of the product. I didn't want to lose the feeling that we were in the kitchen, so I decided to just shoot handheld, right on the cutting board

I used my trusty Canon 60D, and mounted my 40mm "pancake" lens. While it is capable of a nice wide aperture, I wasn't interested in a really shallow depth of field, so I shot it at about f/8. I also mounted a single Canon 430EX II on a Cactus v5 trigger, so that I could simply wash the ceiling & create a more natural light.

 

The Photos

So let's see how we did:

The smoked meat had a beautiful "marbled" effect. Montréalers will tell you, it must be served fatty & hot, so the fat runs out, releasing the flavour !

When the meat is cured, it is first rubbed with a wonderful medley of cracked pepper, which you can see here. Obviously, this shot is taken before we began slicing the meat.

While I wasn't able to shave it as close as I could have with the slicer, I still got nice thin slices. We then arranged them in stacks, so that they could be repackaged.

Lessons Learned

I spent a lot of time working out the lighting. I took a number of shots that I immediately discarded, as they looked so unnatural. I tried bouncing the light, dialling it down & aiming it slightly away, and I still couldn't get the look I was looking for. Finally, I decided "back to basics !" and washed the ceiling with light at about half power. Finally, it looked natural to me.

 

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Project365 - Second Curtain Flash

Introduction

The kids are over for the weekend, but the continual snow has everybody a little down. So what better to lift everybody's mood than a little RC Car racing ? Since the cars move on a set track, it's pretty straightforward to capture some of the action. It's also a great opportunity to try a new technique called Second Curtain Flash.

The idea is that under normal conditions the flash fires as the shutter opens, freezing the action. Then, depending on the shutter speed, the shutter closes again, finishing the shot. Second Curtain Shutter delays the flash until the shutter is about to close. So in slightly longer exposure shots, the effect is to capture some blur of movement, and then freeze the action with the flash.

The Setup

My trusty Canon 60D, with the venerable 24-105mm f/4 L lens. The Canon 430EX II flash is mounted on the hotshoe, and set to ETTL and Second Curtain Flash. In order to get the blur, the shutter was set to 1/4 second, aperture at f8, and the ISO at 125. I shot handheld, as I was down on the floor, on my belly to achieve the look I wanted.

The Photos

A little racing action sees the grey car passing the yellow car. The blue streaks are actually the Bluetooth indicator lights on top of the cars.

I really like how the yellow car blurs brightly. You get such a sense of speed from this effect !

Taken a little bit wider, both cars are in the frame. Unfortunately, there's not much contrast between the grey car's "blur" and the dark background. So it's not as good as I had hoped.

Lessons Learned

This was a quick little shoot - only a dozen or so photos. I like the effect, but have come to realize that it works best when you have high contrast between the background and the subject.

 

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Project365 - When You See It...

Introduction

I've been struggling to find my muse. There have been so many distractions, I'm afraid I can no longer really call this a 365 Project. Sigh... I must soldier on and keep shooting ! We are in the process of moving homes, and I was given the task of cleaning the jetted tub. You pour these crystals in, run the pumps, and they scour the internals of the pump and pipes. Then you drain the tub and refill, repeating the process to rinse the crystals out of the tub and it's internals.

The Setup

The ever-so-trusty Canon 60D, mounted with my Canon 24-105mm f/4 L lens. To brighten up the contrast, I mounted the hotshoe with a Canon 430EX II flash. I shot handheld, so I could get as close as I wanted.

The Photos

You can just make out the refraction of light around the drain. Do you see it ?

 

It may be a little less easy to discern in this photo...

I wanted to capture the vortex of water, created as it swirled down the drain. While the vortex wasn't so evident, the refraction of the light was !

 

Lessons Learned

This caught my eye & I decided to shoot. The challenge was that the water was SO clear, that I couldn't make out the funnel-shape I hoped. But the refraction of light bending the overall shape of the drain was wonderful ! Perhaps next time, I might try some light food colouring to the water.

 

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Project365 - The Boy Scout Motto

Introduction

I was on Facebook this morning, and a friend pinged me via the Messenger app. He was lamenting that a pair of bald eagles were roosting in a tree on his acreage, but he couldn't "find" his good camera body & long lens ! Of course, I felt for him - it sucks not being able to take the shot you want. But - how do you "lose" your equipment ?!?

On my way home from dropping Pat off, I came across an accident. The fire trucks and ambulances were long since gone, and the police were probably waiting for a tow truck to come cart the wreck away. Fortunately for me, I never leave the house without a camera with me.

The Setup

Nothing exciting, my Canon 60D with the trusty 24-105mm f/4 L lens. I shot handheld from across the hi way, as the constable didn't seem thrilled to see me !

The Photos

Bear in mind these were entirely spur of the moment. Couldn't really even call them Street Photography, as there were no people in the frames.

When I first came upon the scene, I had a moment where all I could think was "Whoops !". Truly, I hope nobody was hurt, but I may never know.

As you can see, the van tore up the guard rail before ending up on its side, up against the pole. I suppose we're lucky the pole didn't come down too !

Lessons Learned

The motto of the Boy Scouts is "be prepared", had I not had my camera with me, I wouldn't have been able to capture these photos.

 

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Project365 - Studio Shoot

Introduction

I have been doing a lot more reading about how to set up a basic photography studio. It usually involves having multiple strobes, umbrellas or big soft-boxes, as well as a host of other tools. Being on a budget, I don't have a lot of those things. So I improvised !

The Setup
My Dad had an old Kodak Brownie Junior camera amongst his keepsakes. I thought it might make an interesting shoot - taking photographs of an antique camera ! Lacking a lightbox (although I have seen a YouTube video on how to make one inexpensively), I decided that a couple of flashes and some white paper carefully arranged on the dining room table might do the trick !
I mounted the Canon 24-105mm f/4 L lens onto my Canon 60D. I also used the Cactus v5 to trigger the flashes. One flash, at 1/4 power, was fitted with my inflatable diffuser & mounted on a small tripod. The other flash at 1/2 power was set to nuke the ceiling with bright light !
The Photos
I took quite a few photos, and the shoot lasted about 45 minutes as I played with my settings to get the sort of shots I wanted. Here are three of the best.

As you can see, the Brownie is a very simple camera, with a fixed lens. There's no focus or aperture settings here !

Note the Kodak name on the hand-strap ! At the bottom of the photograph, you can make out the winding mechanism for the film.

An interior shot highlights the lack of vanes on the shutter. It is a simple procedure to slide the shutter open & then closed. Really, there's not much to this beauty !























Lessons Learned
I enjoyed this shoot. I was faced with a number of challenges, including not being able to properly diffuse the light. But by bouncing one flash off the ceiling & using a diffuser on the other, I was able to properly light the subject without creating any harsh shadows. In a future entry, I want to build the lightbox I saw in the video, and see how well it works (or doesn't) .

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Project365 - Out and About

Introduction

Lately, I've been facing a bit of a block when it comes to my photography. There's lots of things I want to try, but either I don't have the equipment, or the conditions aren't right. As such, I have been procrastinating... But the best advice I read recently was to just simply go & shoot. Take photos every day, even if you end up discarding them later. So that's what I am going to try.

The Setup
The ever-so-trusty Canon 60D, paired with the de-facto Canon 24-105mm f/4 L zoom lens. All shot handheld, so no tripod or other setup required.
The Photos

This first photo was taken while I was waiting for Pat to be done work. The hospital she works at is a brand-new facility, with state of the art everything. They have even tried hard to work the landscaping into the surrounding area. I like the way they used this long grass to act as a screen around an outside patio area.

It is certainly a neat building, which incorporates all the latest technology to make it Leeds Platinum certified. I just like looking up at it !










Lessons Learned
In the movie Finding Nemo, the one character Dory (played by the wonderful Ellen Degeneres) had a catch-phrase - "Just keep swimming...". I have taken that over as "Just keep shooting..."
Hopefully, that as I find something new to shoot every day, it will help me find my muse. Stay tuned, you never know WHAT I will shoot next !

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