So this is new. I mentioned to Isaac how I needed to do a tool post
about camera lenses at some point this month & look what he put
together & surprised me with… a guest post. Too fun. It’s kind
of technical though, so perhaps we’ll need to discuss this in the
comments till it all makes sense. I’ll make sure Isaac reads the
comments & chimes in if you have any questions about photo
equipment, lenses, etc. Here’s Isaac:
"I get a lot of questions about the equipment I use to create the
photos that you see on my website, which is the same equipment used to
create photos for this blog. First of all, let me say that Heather is
quite a good photographer and does 99% of the photography for her blog
herself. That being said, we do share the same equipment and since it
is March of the Tools, I thought I’d chime in and share one of the
tools that makes my style possible. There is no substitute for a good
eye and an active, observant imagination, but certain looks just can’t
be achieved without the right tool.
When I want to get the effect in the photo of the lavender flowers,
where the flowers in the foreground are the only thing in focus and the
background seems compressed and close, I use my 70mm to 200mm f2.8
lens. Set at it’s longest focal length of 200mm, this lens all but
eliminates depth of field. Depth of field is the distance between the
first object in the foreground that is in focus and the last object in
the background that is in focus. The depth of field is determined by
two properties, the focal length of the lens (longer focal lengths —
telephoto lenses — have less depth of field built in) and the aperture
of the lens (f-stop) which is the size of the opening that lets the
light into the camera. A very fast lens like this one opens very wide
and hence has very shallow depth of field.
A third factor in the look is the effect of compressing the
foreground and background, which eliminates a lot of extraneous details
from the shot and has the effect of making shots look tightly-cropped
in the camera. This is a result of the length of the lens — imagine
looking through a long tube where all peripheral vision is eliminated.
The 70-200 mm f2.8 lens is a bit pricey, but for the serious amateur
or pro, it creates a look that can’t be replicated by other lenses.
While you will not be able to fully achieve this look with a point-and-shoot, try setting the camera on macro focus (it’s usually the little
flower icon), zoom in as far as your optical zoom will allow, then back
in and out until you find the absolute closest place you can focus.
By the way, thank you for all of the compliments on the MEHC
article. That was a very intense and fast paced shoot, but extremely
fun!"
–Isaac
All of this camera talk reminds me that I never showed you the slideshow from Heather Tinsley’s wedding (click here). Heather is a blog reader who
flew Isaac out to photograph her wedding last December. Love that! Hi Heather.
It was in D.C., I think, as Isaac went to the Spy Museum the next day. The Spy Museum! Can you believe there’s a spy museum? I wonder how much James Bond reflects reality — or vice versa.
There’s certainly nothing discreet about that camera lense up
there. I usually use a smaller 24-70mm f2.8 lens because the other one
makes my arm ache. They both have a similar effect in my opinion.
Similar enough (don’t tell Isaac I said so).
my 70-200 2.8 is is one of my fav along with my 17-40!
I love my 24-70 2.8 and 70-200 2.8 lenses! I just wish my pictures turned out as good as your do!
Excellent tool explanation – Thank you, Isaac! Now I’m going to go play with the little flower icon on my camera… And, seriously, maybe finish reading the door-stop of an owner’s manual, so that I can learn more of these incredibly cool tips!
Great lens info, but I’d like to comment on the wedding pics. Great job, Isaac! The bride and groom will have a phenomenal record of the wedding.
Hi there guys ‘n’ gals…
My wife has pointed me to you blog, thinking I might want to read/learn a bit about photography from this post as “it was a ‘bit to technical’ for me”!
I did learn a bit of this from a Community College course I did just after getting my Canon 400D. BUT, this was a great refresher so I say thank you!
Also, do you have any tips (the easier the better 🙂 ) on doing HDR stuff? I would like to extend what I am doing for that next…
Thanks in advance… Some of our shots are in http://burntofferings.blogspot.com and more at http://berniefotoblog.blogspot.com
What’s so interesting about photography is that the most simple things can make the most fantastic shots. I blog about my garden, primarily, so I shoot photos most every day outside. A bead of water on a rosebud is striking. A simple leaf and it’s variagated texture. I don’t have it down like your husband does; I mostly just put it on the flower icon, as he mentioned above. But I still get some really good photos from my Canon EOS Rebel.
Brenda
The best definition of depth of field that I have ever read. Thank you, Isaac and Heather.
This was great… I’ve been photographing some paintings for my etsy shop with my Rebel xTi… I don’t know why it never occurred to my to set my camera to “the little flower” (I do not have a macro lens…yet!)
I’d like to see more of Issac’s tips in the future!
BTW, beautiful magazine cover shot… congratulations!
This is the best! Thank you and now off to get to know my camera a whole lot better!!!!!
Hi Heather!! Thank you for your comment and for being so cool! Your work and vibe are so refreshing and engaging. And I’m so proud you are from the 602!! Maybe we can meet for coffee sometime! Congrats on it all 🙂
Kathy 🙂
Issac – LOVED the photo for the magazine Great Job! Someone above asked for HDR photo tips.. there is an awesome free tutorial available here..http://stuckincustoms.com/2006/06/06/548/
The website – stuckincustoms.com is awesome too!
Oh thank you so much! I just made a ‘big’ purchase (for me anyway). A nikon D40 and started with the 15-55mm. Just wanted to get my feet wet and learn how to use the camera. I appreciate the free tips from such great photographers. Happy picture taking to ya …
This is great – thank you! Both of you take incredible photos, so any advice you have, I will soak up every bit!
Hi,
I am really glad that you posted about photography. I used 24-70mm 2.8F lens onece, and I totally understand what you are saying about this lens. It’s worth the price.
However, by using 24-70mm lens I still can’t satisfy the look my camera creats. Do you take RAW photo rather than jpeg photo?
I feel like only way I can improve my images is using RAW file, but I havn’t tried yet. If you have time to discuss about RAW file, please!
Thank you for the information. It is really great to hear some of the stuff you don’t even know how to ask for!
Isaac, any tips on achieving the best natural lighting without using a harsh flash? Thanks!
Just what I needed to read! I am asking for a new lense for my Birthday, and you just saved me a lot of research! THanks!
What a nice gesture to share this info with readers.
The photography on this site is always amazing and I think a big part of what helps draw the reader into this wonderful world Heather has created. IMHO.
I checked out the tutorial that Lanne linked to above and it is really fantastic. I have never employed the HDR techniques discussed, but I read about the concept when Adobe first introduced it to the camera raw plugin. I can see a number of uses for it. I especially like the cathedral shot and the one in Time Square.
Some of the questions asked are very good. I will try to answer the one about Raw files in particular and perhaps address others in a subsequent post.
Raw files are simply the largest file that a camera can take, with the most information. JPG files are compressed files. The computer in your camera looks at all of the pixels in a file and finds those that are similar to their surrounding pixels (within a given tolerance that is built in to the camera’s firmware.) The computer then tosses out all but the central pixel and draws a map for the places where the rest of the pixels used to be–even though these pixels are differnet from the central pixel, they all get assigned the same value as the central pixel. When the file is opened by your computer, your graphics software reconstructs the image based on the map built when it was compressed. Depending on the amount of compression, the quality loss can be significant. Multiple compressions will continue to degrade the image further.
A Raw file is compressed only where adjacent pixels are exactly the same. With millions of values available, this doesn’t happen very often, so a Raw file is, for the most part, uncompressed.
The advantage of a Raw file is that it has the most information, the highest detail, the largest range of tones, and the most color depth. On the flip side, Jpeg files typically look better right out of the camera with more contrast and richer colors. The contrast and richness are primarily a result of the compression, which also results in being able to store many more files on a disk. Also, shooting Jpeg compressed files results in faster write times to the disk, meaning your camera will be ready to shoot again sooner.
Heather and I shoot only Raw (with a few minor exceptions), preferring to selectively add the contrast and saturation ourselves. I find that this unfailingly results in the richest final result–the difference can be staggering. The best software for Raw processing is hands down Adobe Lightroom. It is the central tool of my workflow.
If your DSLR or point and shoot allow Raw capture, it is the file type that will allow you to get the most out of your camera, but it will require you to do more work on the file in your image editing software.
Good luck with Raw
Isaac
I am so impressed!
Thank you so much for your kind and detailed answer.
I will try to shoot Raw from now on!
Also, thank you so much for sharing the software. I am going to downroad a free trial today.;)
I know this may be kind of an elementary question but… how do you download your pictures on this blog to make them so big?? I really want large pictures on my blog (I just switched to typepad) and I don’t know the best way to upload them. I edit my photos in photoshop is there a certain size I should make them?
Any help would be appreciated!
I love your blog!
ok, one day i’ll have a “real” camera and in the meantime i try to learn as much as i can both about how to get the best out of the point and shoot one that i have and the one that i will eventually buy. so thank you for explaining a lot of things. i had actually already been playing with the little “flower”-setting and i found that on my camera it works ok with the supermacro, but not the macro. can i just add that the pictures for the magazine are magical and that you two seem to be the lovliest of couples? anyway, thanks for technical stuff and lots of inspiration!
Incredibly informative and inspirational, thank you!!
Hi! Nice and interesting blog you´ve got!!
Camilla
Hi Isaac,
I just wanted to send my compliments on your beautiful pictures featured in the slideshow from Heather Tinsley’s wedding.
Not only have you stylishly and playfully captured the intimacy of the event, but also really tapped into that magic that make the pictures come to life. Looking at each of them triggers a little ‘movie clip’ in my mind as the characters come alive and I can really feel the moment. Such a rare ability to have – very well done! Charlotta
I just found your blog and wanted to say that it’s simply lovely! And your photos are beautiful.
This information is extremely helpful for me and I appreciate your sharing it. I’m a novice and trying hard to learn to take better photographs. My husband is like you (Isaac) and has been patiently working with me. Thank you so much for your willingness to share your own techniques and what lenses to use.
Hi Isaac –
Your work just keeps getting better every time I see it. Congrats on your successes!
Thanks so much for adding the tips for those of us with point and shoot cameras! I am off to try and see what I can accomplish. Wish me luck!
wish i had a camera that fancy. it looks like the post was successful and not too heavy. 🙂
jenny
Thanks Heather and Isaac…I really enjoyed the wedding slide show…I was married in the early ’80’s with a sort of schmaltzy photographer…Would love to have that to do over again…Maybe I will! Take care, Katie
Do you have any tips for us amateurs who wish they could take better pics of their family and for their blog. Also for say we only have crummy $200 dollar digital cameras but still want quality. Any help would be great. I would just be happy if i could get a blurry background and focused foreground shot. Thanks
For Sheva –
I use a small digital camera most of the time as well, and I’ve found that for the focused foreground/blurry background it is best to put it on portrait mode (which on my dial is two little heads) and also on macro (the little flower). It doesn’t blur the background as much as the big fancy schmancy cameras, but it does soften it quite a bit. Also, the closer you are to your object in focus, the more blurry the background.
Hope this helps!
I have both the lens you use as well as several fixed lens. I, too, Heather…find the 70-200 heavy and tend to use the smaller one more. Although both produce different results. I love the longer lens for my outdoor photography. I really need to venture out and take more RAW photos, though. That would just limit the amount of photos I take, though…since processing is such a more time consuming thing with RAW.
Thanks for a wonderful eye-candy blog and tips…
Hi Heather and Isaac,
Thank you, Isaac for taking a moment of your time to post about the type of camera and lens used for this blog. I know I asked this question several months ago.
I’ve had my Canon Xti for over a month now and still playing around with its capability plus several books from the library to help with technical names. I really like your simple explanation on depth of field.
I’ve always wondered if you had Macro lens but now I know you use 70-200mm. Which brings up a question – How is that different from 75-300mm in terms of depth of field and sharpness?
Thanks again and Happy Spring to you!
Isaac, Isaac, Isaac, Tell us how to photograph a quilt or a medium sized sewing project, like an apron or skirt!!!
A few tips for natural light that will help with both animate and inanimate objects:
1. Use Natural Light
Professional photographers take years to learn effective use of studio lighting. I believe the flash on a point and shoot should be considered for emergency use only. It is rare, and difficult to get a beautiful picture using a pinpoint light like the flash on a typical point and shoot as the main light source
2. The two factors that determine the softness of a light are the size of the light and the light’s intensity. The sun at it’s zenith, for example is a small very intense light. A small intense light, like the flash on a point and shoot, creates harsh shadows and washed out highlights.
3. Look for areas where the light is flat and even. In open shade, for example, the sky becomes the light source. The sky, by itself, without the sun, is a large soft light source. A room with a large window–without direct sunlight can be a very softly lit place.
4. For indoor still-life photography use a tripod and set the camera on self timer. For people photography set the iso on the camera higher so that the image won’t be blurry. Keep in mind, this will increase the noise, or grain in the photo.
5. Most important, look for beautiful light that is happening already, and place your subject in it. The biggest challenge you’ll face is that your camera and you, almost always have a different idea of what great light consists of. When you agree, that is when the photography is easy and you can’t go wrong. The ability to see light the way your camera does is one of the characteristics of a seasoned photographer.
Thank-you for this post! In the fews days I’ve been experimenting with my old digital we’ve got some amazing photos – at least compared to my older ones.
I have used this tip all week, many thanks…what talent Issac has…
Thanks so much for the tip =0) I love your pictures too…!
Hi Heather,
We live in NewZealand and I have just been to Portland to Spring Market and attended your School House…Such Fun.
My husband and I have a mini Schnauzer, her name is Esta(Means shining Star in Italian)
She is just the most darling wee girl.
I am sure your family wiil love having a little schnauzer, they are so loving and very clever.
I would like another one, but my hubby has put his foot down…so a suggestion for a name? HMMM let me think… TULLY..short for Natalie and a story I read a while ago, the name just sticks in my head.
Good luck
Michelle
I’ve been admiring your blog since we accidentally got mixed up through Google after my post : “Hello My Name is Heather and I Steal Frenchfries”. I’m a craft and art lover and have a serious passion for photography. I have a Canon 40D and have not experimented much with RAW despite the capability. You have inspired me to do so. I will just need to get familiar with the formatting end/software – any tips?
I loved the light tips by your readers. I knew that harsh shadows in outdoor light from the sun happened, but wasn’t sure what to do about it. It makes sense to use the shade or a diffused and larger light source to even out the light.
Your blog and photos – crafts, patterns, and eye for beauty are impeccable. 🙂 Keep up the good work.