Silhouettes add value to your portfolio

Your first silhouette image was probably a mistake. You were shooting your subject against the sun or a bright sky. What you got was an underexposed foreground and a brightly lit background. Even though you made a mistake, you probably said that you would like to do it again. But how?

It's easy to deliberately create silhouettes is you understand a few simple techniques. 

A silhouette is an image representing the outline of a subject with out any interior details. Silhouettes are usually black but can be any color. You often see them representing a profile that is cut from black paper glued to a white background. It's a simple form of portraiture that was popular in the 18th Century.

In photography, you can achieve the same result by backlighting your subject. In other words, put your subject against a bright background and meter for the background. Sounds easy, but there are a few tricks that can help you control the technique. 

Cemetery in Queens, NY

Setting the camera on automatic makes the process harder because the camera wants to make a "perfect" picture by adjusting aperture and speed. So the first thing to learn how to do is to make this adjustments on your own. If you use a DSLR, just change the setting to "A" or aperture mode, or "M" for manual. Many advanced point and shoots allow you to do that, too. You can set your aperture to F8 through F16 to control depth of field. 

Secondly, learn to manually focus with your lenses. You don't have to shoot in "Manual" mode on your camera, you just have to switch your lens to manual. This is important because your subject may be off center and you need to control the focus point and maintain it even if you point to another area in the frame. If you have enough depth of field, a wider area of the image will be in focus. 

Even though you can't manually adjust a lens on many point and shoot cameras, there are ways to get around that limitation. Holding the shutter button down half way after you focus on your subject, will hold the focus point, but then you can move the camera so it reads the light coming from the background. 

Sunrise on the Ganges River, India

Once you have that set up, the camera will continue to try to give you a "perfect" picture by adjusting the speed to allow more or less light to reach the sensor. If the shutter speed adjusts for the subject, it will stay open longer to let more light in. If it adjusts for the background it will let less light reach the sensor. That's the trick. The camera has to believe that the background is what you're after. That's easily done if you can control your camera settings manually. Expose for the background, then focus on the foreground object. 

Fire Island Lighthouse at dusk

Statue of Aphrodite in Santorini, Greece

You can create silhouettes with flash, strobes or controllable spots like those workshop halogens available in most hardware supply stores. Here are three images. The first one is back lit but I used spot meter to meter the Uncle Sam bobble head. The middle image was created by taking a reading of the light coming in from a sliding door through a white cloth drape but not on Uncle Sam. The third image was created by bouncing the light from an off-camera flash on a light green wall behind the bobblehead. I could have done a better job with the third one by diffusing the light a little more and controlling the direction of the light beam, but you get the point.

Conditions aren't always right for creating silhouettes when you are out doors, but you can create the right light in the studio. Everyone should take some time to become familiar with this technique. It can help expand your creativity and help you see form, shape and light.

National Historic Landmarks Photo Contest 2013

The National Park Service is running its 14th Annual National Historic Landmarks Photo Contest and will be accepting photo submission through July 9th 2013. There are more than 2,500 landmark places, objects or districts across the United States so there is a lot to photograph.

Each photographer can enter up to 10 photographs, but each must be of a different historic landmark. So if you enter ten photos you must visit ten National Historic Landmarks and submit one photo for each one. Each submission should include a comment by the photographer about the personal significance of the image.  

You can read more details about the contest at the National Park Service's website. You can also view a screencast that provides a clear description about how to enter images. All entries are submitted to Flickr and you can view some of the early entries here. If you're not sure where landmarks are in your state you can view the list in PDF format here. For instance, there are 271 landmarks in New York State that cover the state from Niagara Falls to Montauk. 

The weather in the North East is starting to get better and it's time to break out the camera and make this contest your photo self-assignment for the spring. 

Photogene2: A "must have" iPhone app for photographers

Photogene2 has been around for quite a while. It's a "must have" for any serious iPhone photographer. It's simple to use and it only cost .99 cents at the iTunes store.











If you haven't used a photo editor and dread the expense and the steep learning curve for the complicated processes in Photoshop, you will be pleasantly surprised by how quickly you'll pick things up in Photogene2. In fact, using this app is a good introduction into the photo-editing world. And, if you are one of the millions of photographers who use your smartphone as your primary camera, then you'll be surprised at how much better your photos will look once you edit them in Photogene2.

I started using the Photogene2 in earnest once I began my Project 365 for 2013, but in less than a month I developed an appreciation for many of the sophisticated editing tools. You can crop, change aspect ratios and rotate or straighten horizon lines. You can adjust clarity, brightness, color saturation and vibrancy, white balance, shadows and highlights, sharpen, remove noise, view a histogram, adjust RGB values and adjust curves.




If you go to "Presets" you'll find automated pre-configured adjustments, for color, b+w, vintage photography looks that add that old-time flavor to your images. You can make you photos look like they were taken in the 1920's, or give them that lomo, cross processing, and old pink look that adds mood and texture to your photos. If that's not enough, try preset frames to help make your photos pop even more. Or, try some fun presets that make your image look  like a painting or a pencil sketch.



Photogene2 doesn't stop there. You can remove red-eye, and you can heal and clone to get rid of unwanted elements in your image. You can dodge and burn like the big boys and girls do in Photoshop and you can use a brush to localize an effect. And, you can make all these adjustments non-destructively as Photogene2 leaves your original image intact.

Add to that, the cataloging functions like the recording of EXIF data and GPS coordinates, and a tab where you can add keyword tags, captions and other supplemental information that can help you retrieve the image some time in the future when your photo library becomes very large.



Once you finish adding your edits, you save the corrected image to your camera roll or photo stream and then automatically export to your Facebook page, your Twitter feed or your Flick'r portfolio. You can even send the photo to your AirPrint compatible printer. (See a List of compatible printers.)







This is a fully loaded photo-editor that can take average smart-phone photos and make them pop. At .99 cents it certainly makes Photoshop look like a Hummer in a world of zippy Fiats.

Everyday: A year + of self-portraits

Last year I started a personal project with the goal of taking a year's worth of self-portraits. The video here is the result and the images were taken everyday in various locations using the iPhone app "Everyday." After a week  of just taking straight on portraits, I decided to include the background to give the photos some context. Sometimes I included a person for some added fun. Since I did a lot of traveling during 2012, you will notice backgrounds that include scenes in New Mexico, New York, Long Island, Florida, India, Nepal, China and Thailand. Some scenes are in restaurants, on boats, in automobiles, buses and airplanes and airports. You will notice that I don't shave everyday, I wear the same clothes a lot and sometimes I have to force myself to smile.

With all that said, this personal project helped me develop a habit of taking a photo a day. I have already started a new project which I will write about in future posts.

If you're interested, you can get the "Everyday" iPhone app from Little Pixels in the iTunes store. See a promotional video and download the app here.

Almost, but not good enough!

No matter how much pre-visualizing you do there is always something unexpected that can challenge your photography. Mostly it's your state of mind that gets the creative juices flowing. But if it doesn't, you end up with lack luster images.

Montauk Point in February is usually cold and bitter especially if there is any kind of wind to add discomfort to the experience. I was prepared for the cold and the wind so I don't have too many excuses. I was properly dressed. But I think I was more interested in getting to a warm spot like John's Pancake House back in town instead of really wanting to explore all the photo opportunities available.

Here a few shots from the dawn excursion to Montauk Point.

I could have worked the location a little more.

Next time I want to try from the front with the lighthouse blocking the sun. I wonder if it's better to go down to Turtle Cove and try from that angle. Maybe Turtle Cove would be better later in the day but not quite sunset.

A few more trips would expand my familiarity with the various photo opportunities there.

Some thoughts on pre-visualizing images

Fire Island Light

In preparing for my next photo session, I decided to formally decide what I was after and why I was going to shoot the subject on a cold winter morning. After all, thousands of images of Montauk Light House at dawn already exist. Many of those photos were taken by far better photographers than me. And, another photo of a lighthouse runs the risk of being a trite cliche of coastal living.

There is a very good possibility that the sky will be overcast and the sun will not cast a red glow over the horizon, therefore, so much of what I’m planning depends on the quality of light. I will be positioning my tripod and camera before sunrise on the north side of the lighthouse with a view of the ocean and the silhouette of the tower and beacon.

First of all, high tide will be close to 10 a.m. so we will have a rising tide at mid-tide levels at dawn 6:35 a.m. and the moon phase should have little effect on the height of the of the water. Weather, high winds, precipitation, over cast or clear skies will be the next factors to consider and will change how and what we photograph.

As Galen Rowell suggests, an image has to have an emotional impact. I’m not sure what emotions I will feel when I get there, but I have to strive to recreate that for the viewer. How do you evoke an emotional response from viewing a photo? Awe, fear, sadness, joy, conflict,drama, turbulence and/or the inexorable march of time and tide.



Here are a few photographic scenarios:

Sunset at Orient Point Light

• Left side of frame will contain the red glow of sunrise while center/right of frame will show a silhouette of the lighthouse tower and beacon.
• As sun rises check for reflections of the sky’s color in the water.
• If the surf is up, get into position to capture back lighted waves.
• Set up tripod and camera low to the ground and put beach rocks on boulders in foreground with wide angle lens.
• Snow is unlikely based on the recent warm temperatures, but it is February, so there’s always the possibility. Will snow on the beach reflect rosy-colored dawn?
• Slow the shutter to blur water movement and create silky effect as water races up the beach.

Portland Head Light, Maine

So, do I want to capture a post-card view, or do I want to create an emotional response to the scene. What emotion do I want to portray? Joy and reverence for the beginning of a new day with the rising sun; Drama from the pounding surf and erosion of the beaches; Conflict as man tries to exert his dominion against the forces of nature; Or, harmony and acceptance of life while in such close proximity to the timeless sea.


Am I over planning for this? Of course conditions will dictate what I can do, but at least I now have an idea of what may be possible.

Prevent water damage to your camera's electronics

Water and electronics don’t mix! I just returned my iPhone and was told that water damage caused the hardware malfunction. And, of course, that’s not covered under the warranty. Since much of my life relies on the convenience of the iPhone, I had no choice but to purchase a new one at the Apple store. 


The cost of an iPhone is a heck of lot less than a DSLR, so protecting your camera from water damage is very important. Not only will it save you from costly repairs or replacement, it will allow you to shoot even in the worst conditions.


I usually keep my cameras away from wet environments, but occasionally that is your only opportunity to film an exciting event or scene. I recall going whale watching in Icy Straits in Glacier Bay, Alaska. It was raining when we left the lodge so I brought a plastic bag from the waste basket in the room. I was using a Nikon F100 and a Tamron 200-400mm Zoom lens. I cut a hole in the bottom of the bag and taped it to the lens hood and extended it back over the camera.


It was pouring when we got there, but the whales didn’t mind as they were enjoying the abundance in the nutrient rich waters. Our captain/tour guide turned off the engine and several humpback whales surfaced near our boat and kept circling in close proximity. I stuck my head in the plastic bag a la the black hood of large format cameras. It worked. I got some shots and the camera LCD only got a little moist and was temporarily unreadable, but that cleared up by the next day after a few sessions under the portable hair dryer.


Knowing what I know today, I have to think that I was pretty lucky that the camera survived at all.


Recently I had the opportunity to go the Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. The spray from the falls makes the area surrounding it a rain forest that stays wet most of the year. You can walk fifty feet and get drenched by torrents of water falling in the atmosphere and then in the next fifty you will remain relatively dry. This time I was prepared. I brought a waterproof DiCAPac ® made specifically for DSLR cameras.



The contraption is form-fitting plastic bag with sealed finger holes so you can access the shutter release and lens zoom ring. You can view the rear LCD screen and the view finder. through the clear plastic panel. It will hold a full-size DSLR but it won’t take a long zoom lens. I used it with a 12-24mm, and a 50mm. The clear polycarbonate lens cap gets water on it so have some dry paper towels handy so you can keep it clean. Otherwise your images will only feature water droplets.

The manufacturer claims you can use it  underwater to about 16 feet, but I’m never comfortable doing that. I stressed every minute I used my Nikonos V, even though I never had a problem. However, if you want to shoot in a wet environments like hurricanes, storms at sea or while kayaking, this handy package could save the day without breaking the bank.

If you go to http://www.dicapac.com you can check to see which model is designed to fit your camera brand and model. You can buy one for your DSLR for under $100 and for your point and shoot for under $50.