We all know the sky during the day is blue. We know that clouds are white (or grey). And we know that the sky can turn different shades of yellow and orange at night. But why? When you are photographing in the outdoors, the sky is such a huge part of your pictures that it… Continue reading The Color of the Sky
Photography Articles
A Little Cleanup Can Go a Long Way
About eight or nine months ago, I took this picture of a sheep in Ireland: I really liked the picture for a lot of reasons. First of all, it isn’t that often that you can catch a relatively close-up, frontal view of a sheep like that. It certainly isn’t unheard of, but I’ve been to… Continue reading A Little Cleanup Can Go a Long Way
How to Photograph the Moon
Almost everyone’s first attempt at photographing the moon results in disappointment. When you look at your pictures after that first try, the moon inevitably appears like a small white blob in the sky. The question quickly becomes how to avoid that and get a really sharp picture of the moon. Is there a trick to… Continue reading How to Photograph the Moon
The Tools for Creating Sharp Images
Everyone wants a create tack sharp pictures. We spend a lot of money in the pursuit of sharp photos. We also spend a lot of time and effort in the field to make them sharp. We fuss over stabilization, exposure, and focus. If you aren’t familiar with the things you might do to make your… Continue reading The Tools for Creating Sharp Images
Goal Setting in Photography
As I write this, we are in the final few days of 2016. As with the end of every year, we are all being bombarded with calls to set new goals for the coming year. Everybody talks about New Year’s resolutions, for example. If you follow any productivity or self-help resources, this is the time… Continue reading Goal Setting in Photography
Banding: How to Avoid It, How to Get Rid of It.
When you have ugly bands of color in your picture, it is referred to as “banding.” It occurs where you have large portions of a single color in your picture, usually a dark color. For the outdoor photographer, that almost always means it occurs in the skies. Since we frequently have skies in our pictures,… Continue reading Banding: How to Avoid It, How to Get Rid of It.
Do I Need to Learn Exposure?
You already know I’m going to say “yes”; but I think there is a little more to it than you might expect. I approach questions like this with a degree of caution. The reason is that I’ve seen answers from experts in other contexts go horribly wrong. For example, I’ve always been interested in sailing.… Continue reading Do I Need to Learn Exposure?
Photoshop or Lightroom? Which To Start With
When you are starting out in photography, and want to get the best software to edit your photos, should you get Photoshop or Lightroom? This is a question a lot of people have, so I want to answer it directly. But before I do so, let me say that it is a false choice. There… Continue reading Photoshop or Lightroom? Which To Start With
Florida Panhandle: Western Lake on 30A
How to capture this photogenic coastal dune lake near Seaside on the 30A. If you live in the midwest United States, you have probably seen stickers on cars from time to time that look something like this: 30A is a scenic coastal road in the Florida panhandle that stretches for 28.5 miles along the Gulf of… Continue reading Florida Panhandle: Western Lake on 30A
Simple – But Powerful – Tips for Color Enhancement
An Introduction to Color Enhancement in Lightroom or Photoshop Working with color may seem like something for interior designers, who can discuss differences between different hues that you don’t even see. But it is actually pretty easy to make dramatic improvements to your photos – even if you have no eye for color. In this… Continue reading Simple – But Powerful – Tips for Color Enhancement
Nailing the Focus in Outdoor Photography
A guide to focusing properly – and boiling it all down to 3 simple rules to help you while you are shooting. Many photographers have it really easy when it comes to focus. Consider the portrait photographer. Do you know what the rule is for where to set your focus in portrait photography? On the… Continue reading Nailing the Focus in Outdoor Photography
Southern California: El Matador Beach
A beach with nothing but sand is boring. For coastal photography, you want something with some interesting features, like large rocks and boulders. That will provide your pictures with some sort of subject or center of interest. I found such a beach with all sorts of great rock features. It is called El Matador State Beach… Continue reading Southern California: El Matador Beach
Getting Started With Long Exposure Photography
Once you are in command of the cameras shutter, new worlds are opened up to you as a photographer. Things that are simply not possible for the average snap shooter become possible for you. You control the action. You control what is blurred and what is sharp. You control the exposure. Shooting with a fast… Continue reading Getting Started With Long Exposure Photography
Ireland: Giant’s Causeway
Along the northern coast of County Antrim in Ireland lies a unique coastal area made up of hexagonal columns called Giant’s Causeway. The strange shape of its rocks has spawned legends among the Irish. It is now one of the top tourist areas in all of Ireland (North or the Republic). It was declared a World… Continue reading Ireland: Giant’s Causeway
Editing the Giant’s Causeway Photo using Lightroom
In this video, I will walk through an edit of a recent photo. The point is to show you a few things: A quick edit without a lot of explanation (ok, there is some explanation – the video runs about 8 minutes, but the edit could be done in under a minute). A fairly typical scene where… Continue reading Editing the Giant’s Causeway Photo using Lightroom