1. Is there really a bad day taking photos? If you are out exploring your city or the country, is that ever bad?
2. While I don't think I have any worthwhile photos from last night (honestly I haven't even looked), I came up with a new location and I found that picture that I have to get.
So with further details, yesterday in the greatest city on Earth that is Kansas City (not even joking, please don't move here) the native were treated with big white fluffy cloud day. I always enjoy these days (btw...those of you in New Mexico, is this every day for you or was I just lucky the several weeks that I have spent there?) and how could you not enjoy blue skies with big white fluffy clouds? The problem arouse when I had a life issue I had to deal with. That life issue had me on the phone for an hour and gave me a resolution that I wasn't extremely found of, but worst of all, when I walked outside afterwards, I noticed that most of the clouds had moved on!!!!! I was so upset, but my beautiful and calming wife, told me I needed to go out regardless of what happened to the clouds. So I did.
What I found out when I tried getting pictures of the remaining clouds, was the spot I thought was good, was not. While that sounds bad, and while it would have been better if I had known that before, it prepares me for the future. Actually I had just noticed that spot a couple days before and didn't really have time to scout it, but by trying to scout it on the day I needed it, I managed to find another spot nearby, that will do what I envisioned. So yesterday I missed, but I am better prepared for the future.
My failure at that site and finding of what I wanted was great, but what I am really excited about, was what I saw on the way. This will take a lot of work, but I should be able to get this shot: I found a bridge where the train goes underneath. When I saw it the train was just a few seconds from passing, but the shot was perfect. PERFECT. I was in my car and had no chance of getting that shot, but I recorded the time, and in the immortal words of Arnold "I'll be back!".
So you see, while I didn't walk away with amazing photos, I enjoyed myself being out and about, plus I furthered my photo knowledge of locations and am ready for some future photos. A bad day isn't always bad, it's all about your own point of view.....
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A common question I get asked is how I took a waterfall photograph like the one here.
The blurring of waterfalls in photographs is done often because it's very pretty. It is also a very simple technique. You need only a few things: camera, tripod (those two are must haves, the rest can usually be worked around), filters to darken the exposure, shutter release. If you don't have a shutter release, just use the timer on your camera. If you are in the Pacific NW, then the filters probably are not needed as it's usually cloudy, but in bright sunlight you probably will need them. Set up your tripod, frame your picture, and set your shutter speed to 1-2 seconds. That should cover about 90% of waterfalls and camera settings(or at least it has in my experience). Hit the shutter release and You're done! That's it. That's all there is to it.
Other ways you can use long shutter speed times are photographs of traffic at night. The lights on the vehicles will blur, and you can ghosts the vehicles like in this picture, or with a longer shutter speed, you will only see the lights and no car.
Those are long shutter speeds, short shutter speeds are for freezing motion, such as in this water fountain.
These are just a few of the ways you can use shutter speed and it can be used on photos with no motion to make rooms brighter or darker. Experimentation is always the best way to learn, so grab your tripod and go try a few things!
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Another time for patience is with animals. You may have already taken a majestic shot of your subject looking right at you, with a river running through the background, but animals are unpredictable and the unexpected could always happen. Last fall, in Yellowstone National Park, I found a great grey owl up in a tree. He was perfectly positioned on a branch sticking out from the rest of the branches, so I had a completely clear view of him. After a couple minutes of waiting and snapping many photos, he looked directly at me and I took the first picture you see below. I could have pulled up shop then and there, thinking I had the shot. However you never know what happens, maybe you were out of focus on that shot, it's always good to stay longer with animals. This particular time I was convinced that owl was going to take flight. I felt he was hunting, and he was going to take to wing, and I was going to get a shot of him with his wings spread, taking flight. Well, he didn't quite do what I expected, as he dived down instead of flying off. However I was there, waiting and ready to get that shot, and I now have the bottom shot of that owl diving on unsuspecting prey.
To me one of the coolest things about this country, is the fact that we still have horses running free, roaming the country side for the best running ground they can find. While there I went to the petrified forest portion of the park, there was one horse that was grazing all on his own. He really seemed to be posing for me most of the time. Not wanting to disappoint my model, I took a lot of pictures of the horse posing.
We were camping at Devil's Tower and decided to stay an extra night, so we went to the town of Huelett, Wyoming to grab more food for the extra night. It was around one o'clock and neither of us had lunch yet and that seemed like a good thing to do there as well. Huelett being a town of roughly 400 people, restaurant options are not that plentiful. As we get out of the truck, my wife informs me that we need to hit a bar and grill, because she wants a cocktail too. I really had no desire for one, but peer pressure and all, I go along with her.
So into the Rodeo Bar and Lounge we go, and I quickly determine there is no food to be had in this place. My wife however, feels the pressure of walking in and must sit down and have a drink. So we saddle up to the bar, and grab two seats. It being after one and on a weekday, the bar was not too crowded. Off to my left, were a couple locals that looked to be in their late 60's, early 70's, and wore the overalls of farmers. Off to my right, there were a couple guys that were working some construction job and have been local for a couple months. They are probably in their 40's. The bartender was a woman of undetermined age. Left side was non-stop chatter, most of which were jokes about their wives. They were hilarious. Bartender asks us our drink order and my wife grabs a rum and coke, and I go vodka tonic. The bartender then takes to making drinks, while left side continues their onslaught of jokes on an ever widening range of topics, laughing at their own jokes as loud as anyone. Right side laughs often, occasionally throwing out a comment or two. I joined in with the occasional comment, but clearly I was out classed in their war of banter. Bartender, who has not smiled, laughed, or even really acknowledge the going ons, drops off our drinks and informs us of the price. I hand her my credit card, and she stars blankly at me with a thousand yard stare that looked right through me and she very slowly shook her head with zero words. OK.....I have cash, we can make this work.
Tab resolved, banter continuing, laughing often, bartender comes up and puts two disposable shot cups in front of us. One in front of each of us. I was unsure what this was, but was worried. A little bit later I was on the final drops of my vodka tonic, and she brings out a second one, takes the plastic shot cup, and wordlessly walks away. I didn't want a second drink, I didn't really want the first one! We come to find out that the right side guys bought us a round! More banter followed, more people showed up and joined in, and good times had by all. We eventually finished our second round, and slowly staggered out of the bar to continue our quest for food.
It was a great time, with some charming characters that I will probably remember for life. So in the future, take time for things like this. Photography is about living life, and enjoying the things you see.
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The most important piece of gear a photographer has (aside from camera and lenses) is actually the camera bag. I know that sounds pretty trivial, but when you spend 8 hours out taking photos, you quickly figure out nothing is trivial. For example, if you get a messenger style camera bag for your large lens and heavy camera, it could end up causing a lot of pain. All that weight on one side of your body for the day, can really start to hurt. Pain means that you will probably stop taking pictures earlier in the day, and will end up missing shots. Another problem with camera bags is ease of getting to things. If it's a complicated process to get to your stuff, you will again miss shots. Eventually, you might even start to avoid changing lenses, because it means getting into your bag and it's a pain in the butt. When people are tired, they naturally start taking shortcuts. Now here comes the bad news: there is no perfect bag.
I have two bags and they handle 99% of my days out. One is just your standard camera backpack. It holds all my lenses (though I have to pack it full) and it has the quick access pocket for the camera. I use this in the city, when I might go inside shops. It's compact and stays on my back out of the way. It's a simple solution, but by no means my favorite option. I use this roughly 20% of the time. Again, if I think I will be going inside shops or restaurants, this is the bag I use.
For most of my camera days, I use a utility belt (think batman). I have an individual bag on the belt for each lens, and a couple bags for filters and accessories. I find this to be the best setup because it keeps all the weight on my hips (which reduces a lot of the physical stress of carrying all that equipment), and I can reach all my lenses and filters within seconds. As there is no perfect bag, here is the problems with this set up: You can't go inside, as you will run into everything; it kind of disrupts your arm flow while walking and I find that a bit annoying (but just a bit, it can be ignored); and it only works for day trips. If you are actually in the wild and plan on camping, you can not wear a camping backpack with this setup. Camping backpacks are large and have hip belts and you already have something on your hips.
Filters: if you are outside, there is one filter you have to have and that is the circular polarizer. If you have ever worn polarized sunglasses, you get the idea, but basically the filter blocks some of the reflected light, which makes your pictures look better. The other filter I use often is the graduated neutral density filter. It's a long name, but it's a rectangular filter that is clear on one end and dark on the other. So when you have those big fluffy clouds in the sky, this helps them to not be washed out and yet still have definition in the land under the clouds.
Finally I carry a small little backpack that is designed for cyclist. It's just big enough to have a water bladder (staying hydrated is important), a snack, and if I shove it in, a sweater or rain jacket.
That gear gets me through most of my shots. The main thing I wanted to point out was the utility belt. I love that thing and have not looked back since getting it.
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So if you find yourself bored with your photography routine, shake things up by visiting a local site. It's usually dark inside, so you will want to bring a tripod at the minimum. Flashes or lights can also be very helpful. Looks for unique angles, shadows, light, and try to capture the mood of the building and it's past history.
Don't forget while you are out taking pictures of buildings, pay attention to what is reflecting in their windows. You can get interesting pictures using the windows to help.
And I played with this young hawk for at least an hour.
After the tour we had plenty of time before dinner at Voltaire in the Stockyard District (if you have not tried Voltaire, you should), so we stopped at Blvd Tavern for a cocktail and to let the day slip into night, then it was over to Union Station for some night shots.
A city isn't just defined by it's cool, trendy, new things. There is also the old, barely used things that give a city it's character. The West Bottoms is currently have a resurgence after decades of mistreatment. It's still pretty under used, but it's a really cool part of KC with old brick buildings, and different architectures. This fire escape caught my eye, and the large slide next to it for one of the haunted houses that open in October.
Speaking of unused places, at one end of the West Bottoms sits Kemper Arena. Aside from the American Royal, I am not sure that Kemper has been used in over a decade.
And apparently I was not the only photog out in the West Bottoms. These days I don't think I am ever down there without seeing at least one other photographer, this day I saw 3 other than myself.
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It doesn't always have to be some massive landscape or an iconic scene in Kansas City. Sometimes just a simple scene can be beautiful, like this potted plant in front of Myriad Coffee House.
Other photo notes, I have messed up my back pretty good and I am struggling a bit with photos. Also just strapped on my first new camera strap....well really ever. I think I had the same one the entire time I have been taking photos. Still keeping it around though, just in case the new one has some bad juju! :}
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The problem with this task, is that it's an every week thing. So when I do things like go to Sauer Castle for the first time, well it's shoot and hope for the best. Normally I would have scouted more, and waited for the proper weather (in this case clouds would have been nice). There was also a fence in the way, so I could have brought a ladder to see over the fence, but it is what it is. This is a beautiful Italian style house, that has unfortunately sat abandoned for 30 years. The sun sank in the sky shortly after this, and I moved on to Union Station. But it was apparently not my night, as I got reprimanded there because I was talking photos while using a tripod. Tripods are apparently illegal there. Anyways, I got these before they got mad.
It was a fun night at the Kauffman Center, what an amazing place to listen to music. So at the end, I decided to get some pictures as well.
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The other pictures are from the Milwaukee Delicatessen Company, just up the block from the library in the Historic Cosby Hotel building. The Deli was originally there in the 20's but closed around 1940. The new one is in the same spot and even has a picture of it's namesake from the end of prohibition. I had a very unique take on a pulled pork sandwich that was very enjoyable and my wife went with a calzone that she liked. Its a cool little corner bar/deli. Stop by and enjoy a pint.
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I got out early, but the part I did not think about on this project is how quickly I have to work on the photos and post them after I have taken them! Getting me out to take pictures is not a problem, edit and write a blog post is another story. :}
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So for the first photos of the year, I decided that since it is night time most of the day, that a night shot would be a good start. So we headed out to The Scout for photos. The Scout is a sculpture of a Sioux indian, and has been watching over Kansas City for 100 years. Originally The Scout was just supposed to be passing through KC, but a campaign called "The Kids of Kansas City" raised $15,000 to keep The Scout here. It was really cold out that night and the wind did me no favors both by making it colder and by making it hard to keep even the tripod still, but I did come away with a shot that I liked of downtown and The Scout. |
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So to start you are going to need certain gear to take lightning photos, starting with the tripod. A good tripod is an absolute must as you will probably be dealing with longer shutter speeds when you are taking these shots. Also, you will be in a storm which usually means there is wind present. So you need that tripod to resist the wind and handle the long shutter speed. Next you will need remote for your shutter release. You need the remote because pushing down the button on the camera will cause camera shake and you are trying to avoid that. You could use the timer on your camera, but if the timer is counting down and lightning strikes during that time, you will not be happy. The standard 24-80 lens will probably work best for your range. Finally you will want some kind of filter to make things darker, so that you can have a longer exposure time. Optional items: umbrella (rain is quite probable), lightning trigger (this just seems like downright cheating), cloth to wipe off lens (again, it might be raining), flashlight, and maybe a chair and some snacks.
Ok so now all your gear is assembled (be sure to keep it handy during thunder storm season, every second counts) what you will need is a good location. This gets tricky, ultimately you want a spot where thunderstorms will consistently go through, but unless you are a meteorologist, determining that can be difficult. I try to pick several spots in a small area, say 3-5 square miles. That way you can move between spots if your current location is not getting much lightning. Ideally your location will have a good view of the sky, and something interesting in the foreground. Statues, skylines, monuments, lone trees on a hill, and barns all work well for this. Scope these sites out in the daytime, and know where you want to stand and how you want your picture framed. This way you aren’t walking around in the rain while all the good lightning is striking while you are still trying to scout the location.
When the time comes to shoot photos of lightning, the technique is pretty simple. Use the filters to increase the length of your shutter, set your ISO as low as the camera can go, and set your aperture to the range of f16 – f22. When I take lightning pictures with a cityscape, I can usually get a 20-30 second exposure time. If you are shooting out in rural areas, there is probably very little light around, and you can probably increase that exposure time into the minutes (which is helpful). Focusing your lens will be tricky. In the city, there is probably enough lights off buildings that you can use them for focus, in rural areas you either need to bring a large flashlight to light up a target while you focus (if you have your camera on autofocus, set it to manual after you focus in on your target). Without a target that you can light up to focus on, use the focus scale on your lens. Turn the focus ring so that the infinity symbol is selected in the focus scale. That’s not a perfect solution, but setting to infinity combined with the f22 aperture should get you in focus. Then it’s a matter of using your remote to have a “constant expsore”. Trip your shutter and listen for the shutter to close in 30 seconds (or whatever your shutter speed is set to) and then trip the shutter again. Trying to react to lightning is not going to work. So you just constantly take photos until the storm is over or you are out of memory. It is not a very glamorous way to take the photos, but you should get a good show to watch and hopefully you come away with several good pictures as well. Only pause your photo taking to wipe the lens off (a good lens hood could help your lens stay dry).
So that’s lightning photos in a nutshell, just remember that no photo is worth your life, so be careful when trying to take them!
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1. When you first get the camera, leave it on automatic! Don't touch all those fancy buttons, just leave them alone. I'm serious about that too, photography is more about finding the right thing to shoot as opposed to the proper technical settings. If you feel like you absolutely must play with settings, then go with white balance. No, I don't mean take pictures using the manual kelvin scale, way too complicated. If it's bright and sunny out, set your white balance to the little sun, if it's cloudy then the cloud setting, and so on. Really I mean this, just get used to looking through the lens and how angles can change everything. Stay in automatic for bare minimum 6 months, and I mean six months of heavy shooting. If you don't shoot that often, then a year or more.
2. Once you are ready to play with settings more, you want to go to "A" or "S" modes. My first step into the non full auto mode was in "S" mode because I was taking waterfall pictures a lot back then, however I expect most photogs to go to the "A" mode. They stand for Aperture priority and Shutter priority. Aperture is depth of field, so when you see a photo where only the subject is in focus, they used aperture to attain that effect. What you need to know for aperture is that the smaller the number on your camera, the smaller the depth of field (when you read articles and they talk about using a large aperture setting they actually mean a small number. I understand that this scientifically correct, but it's confusing and stupid if you ask me.). So when you use the aperture setting you choose how much of the photo you want to be in focus and the camera choose the shutter speed to go along with that choice, it's semi-automatic. So I am taking you up in steps. Shutter priority, does the same thing as Aperture priority, its just that in shutter you select the shutter speed and the camera selects the aperture. Shutter speed comes into play for night photos, blurring effects in photos (such as the water falling in a waterfall), etc. Now you are paying attention to the angles of your shot, and one setting on your camera (two if you are playing around with white balance).
3. Finally you will think you are ready, and you can throw that camera in to "M" mode, which is the much revered Manual mode. Full manual, there is no help with this one, and there is no faster way to screw up your pictures! There is also no better way to have full control over your photo either. Manual mode requires a lot of thought for each photo and you should always think about what you want the photo to look like and then try to achieve it. Just remember that these days you have it easier. You can look at the camera's viewfinder and tell immediately if you got it right or not. Film days were terrible, you took a picture and hope you had things like you wanted.
So that's my advice to newbies. Take it slow and in steps. If you try to take on too much at the beginning, it will overwhelm you and you won't have fun. If you don't have fun, you won't continue working at it.
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1. This is practice. The reason I say that is almost every zoo has rules that you cannot take pictures there and use them for profit. So if you are looking to take pictures of lions and then sell them, well that's not going to happen at a zoo. At least not legally.
2. Get there first thing in the morning or if the zoo stays open late, get there near sundown. The animals are more active early and late in the day and you will be able to get pictures of the bear when he doesn't look like a rug at the hunting lodge.
3. Check the zoo's webpage for events ahead of time. For example, I know a lot of zoos are starting to do events where they run the cheetahs. Showing up and taking pictures of a cheetah cruising along at 40+ MPH is always a fun experience. It's also pretty hard and helps you learn the techniques for moving targets.
4. Telephotos rule. Bring the longest lens you have. However you should keep in mind that most zoos are very nicely landscaped, so you might bring along your macro lens for flowers as well.
5. Be patient. Sometimes sitting half an hour at one pen is going to get you the shot you want. In the wild, you will be sitting at one spot most of the day and waiting for animals to come to you, so learn to be patient.
So that should get you started, just remember zoos can be a lot of fun. I used to get a year pass to the local zoo, and when I had saturday mornings where I had no plans, I would just go to the zoo for a few hours and enjoy the kangaroos, elephants, turtles, deer like creatures (seriously who knows the names to all the four legged deer like mammals?), and otters. BTW....taking pictures of otters swimming is probably harder than the cheetahs running, so good luck!
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Take the photo that I loaded up on this post for example. It is a pretty fall scene, with some colorful leaves and a small waterfall. If I were to describe it I may say that its tranquil or serene. It may conjure up thoughts of the deep woods, or some small little grouping of trees in a large field somewhere. The camera will mislead you into believing that, it is lying to you. This creek could be in the middle of the city. Fifty feet to the right of that falls could be a parking lot for the local shopping mall, you can't tell because it's out of frame. Maybe there isn't a mall next to it, maybe directly overhead is the overpass of a busy interstate. That tranquil waterfall now is loud and obnoxious because of all the car noise. The camera lies.
Why is this important to know? Well for one thing you can use those lies to your advantage. If this creek is next to a mall or interstate people won't know that fact if you frame the picture correctly. Adjusting the angles and viewpoints can change your picture greatly. So remember that when you want to take pictures but don't have time to drive all over. Good pictures can be around the corner, it's just how well your camera lies.
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