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Sepia effect and Macro from Santa Monica

Explain some photography concepts.

Focal length
Focal length is the most obvious way in which a lens affects a photo: it controls the angle of view, and hence how much of the scene is included in your photo. The reason that it is measured in focal length rather than degrees, is that the angle of view yielded by a certain focal length depends on the size of the camera's image sensor.

So doubling the focal length is just like cropping the photo to half of its width and height and blowing up the result to full size, except without the loss of resolution that would occur if you did that in Photoshop. Everything else about the picture remains exactly the same.

A landscape at 18mm, the white box marking 1/5 of the width and height	The same landscape at 90mm: the focal length is 5 times longer so the area marked by the white box fills the whole scene

Shutter speed

The shutter speed is considered an exposure setting because opening the shutter for twice as long lets in twice as much light which increases the exposure of the whole scene by a stop. However you can also use it aesthetically: faster shutter speeds freeze a moving subject, slower speeds record a motion blur. Neither is 'correct': a photo of a stream with a 1/800 second shutter would record each sharp sparkling droplet of water frozen in mid-air, whereas a 4 second exposure would render the stream as a softly flowing ethereal smoke. Either can look beautiful.

A shutter speed of 1/800 second freezes this baseball in mid-air.	A 10 second exposure produces streaked lines of headlights and a ghost of a car that was parked for half of the exposure.

Aperture

Lenses have an aperture to control the amount of light entering them. This is an iris that can open and close to allow more or less light in. Aperture is measured in 'f numbers' – written f/x where x is the ratio of the aperture width to the focal length. Low f-numbers mean wide apertures letting in more light. Aperture has a reputation for being complicated so some guides suggest that you just memorize the f-number sequence and ignore the internal details. Being a geek, you'll find it much simpler when you understand why it is measured like this.

The first supposedly confusing thing about aperture is that it is not measured as a width but as a ratio of focal length to width. This makes more sense if you consider that the scene you're photographing is a light source. Recall that doubling the focal length will half the width and height of the bit of the scene that you project onto the camera plate. Therefore at double the focal length, only 1/4 of the scene area is providing light, so the aperture area must be 4 times as large to compensate (i.e. the aperture width must double). A constant f-number means a constant amount of light entering the aperture regardless of the focal length.

The next supposedly confusing thing about aperture is that the f-number sequence goes in stop increments: 1, 1.4, 2, 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22, 32. There is a logic to this. A 50mm lens with a 50mm aperture will have an f-number of f/1 (the ratio of the focal length to the aperture diameter: 50/50 = 1). If you want to halve the amount of light reaching the sensor you must halve the area of the aperture. To half the area of a circle you divide the diameter by 1.4 (give or take), and since diameter is the denominator in the f-number equation, this means that the f-number is increased by a factor of 1.4. Each f-number is 1.4 times the previous one and lets in half as much light. When someone says "close", "reduce" or "step down" the aperture, they mean increase the f-number.

Like shutter speed, aperture affects the look of the photo, specifically the depth of field. At narrow apertures the whole of a scene will be in focus, whereas at wide apertures only the bit of the scene that you focus on will be on focus; as is clear in the case of these cheap fake flowers:

At f/16 the background is distracting	At f/1.4 the background is reduced to a blur, but not all of the subject is in focus either.

ISO

ISO is a measurement of a digital camera's imaging sensor's sensitivity. Digital cameras with high ISO capability are better able to take low-light images and pictures of fast moving objects.

Sony Cybershot DSC-H5

DSC-H5 Major Features:

• Sony 7.2 Megapixel effective CCD image sensor
• Carl Zeiss 12x Zoom (36-432mm equivalent in 35mm photography)
• Super SteadyShot Optical Image Stabilization fights motion blur, even during longer exposures at full zoom.
• MPEG Movie: 640x480 VX Fine w/audio at 30fps (Memory Stick Duo Pro required),
  640x480 VX at 16fps, length limited only by media
• Auto, Program AE, Aperture Priority or Shutter Priority, Manual Exposure
• Live histogram display in capture and playback
• 3 Area Multi-point AF; auto or selectable Spot AF point
• 3.0" color (230,000 pixels) LCD Screen with Auto Brightness
• ISO Sensitivity: Auto, 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1000
• High Sensitivity Mode (ISO 1000) allows you to shoot with great results in low-light conditions
• Adjustable color saturation, contrast and sharpness
• Noise Reduction: Automatically cleans up long exposure images
• 14bit A/D Conversion - allows a wider dynamic range from highlight to shadow
• Built-in flash with Auto Fill, Red Eye Reduction and Slow Synchro
• USB 2.0 high speed Auto-Connect to host computer
• Powered by two AA rechargeable battery
• 32MB internal memory plus Memory Stick Duo / Duo Pro compatible
• DPOF and PictBridge direct-print USB compatible

The Cyber-shot DSC-H5 is a compact and stylish 7.2-megapixel camera with an extra-large, three-inch LCD screen, a powerful Carl Zeiss 12x optical zoom lens (36-432mm in 35mm equivalence). The H5 incorporates Sony’s Super SteadyShot optical image stabilization to help reduce image blur caused by hand movement. Because the camera features high-light sensitivity settings up to IS0 1000, fast-moving cars and distant subjects can be captured with considerably less blur and graininess. Sony’s Clear RAW™ noise reduction technology minimizes picture noise, making it easier to shoot at faster shutter speeds.

These anti-blur technologies are an advantage when shooting in low-light conditions, such as outdoor shots in the evening or inside dark museums. These shots can be taken without a flash, resulting in naturally-exposed images that truly capture the drama and atmosphere of the moment. And, you can get as close as you want with the camera's significant macro mode of just three-quarters of an inch.

The new H-series cameras are substantial, without feeling bulky, and feature a comfortable grip with controls easily accessible by your thumb. You can count on detailed image previews using the brilliant 3-inch, high-resolution color LCD screen thanks to Sony’s Clear Photo LCD Plus™ technology. The LCD features high-quality color reproduction and displays pictures with vivid clarity.

Instant Camera

I want to introduce instant camera which is out of date for a long time. The best company of that product is POLAROID, but Fujifilm is now the only remaining supplier of instant film in the United States.

Types of Polaroid instant cameras

Polaroid cameras can be classified by the type of film they use. The earliest Polaroids (pre-1963) used instant roll film, which has since been discontinued. Roll film came in two rolls (positive/developing agent and negative) which were loaded into the camera and eventually offered in three sizes (40, 30, and 20 series). Later cameras utilized "pack film," which required the photographer to pull the film out of the camera for development, then peel apart the positive from the negative at the end of the developing process. Pack film initially was offered in a rectangular format (100 series), then in square format (80 series). Later Polaroids, like the once popular SX-70, used a square format integral film, in which all components of the film (negative, developer, fixer, etc.) were contained. Each exposure developed automatically once the shot is taken. SX-70 (or Time Zero) film was recently discontinued but had a strong following from artists who used it for image manipulation.

600 series cameras such as the Pronto, Sun 600, and One600 use 600 (or the more difficult to find professional 779) film. Polaroid Spectra cameras use Polaroid Spectra film which went back to a rectangular format. Captiva, Joycam, and Popshots (single use) cameras use a smaller 500 series film in rectangular format. I-zone cameras use a very small film format which was offered in a sticker format. Finally, Mio cameras used Mio film, which was a film format smaller than 600, but larger than 500 series film.

Polaroid One600 Classic Instant Camera

Prices:

Buy new from $58.48

Buy used from $63.53

Prices of Film :

Polaroid 600 Film Twin Pack

by Polaroid

Buy new from $24.99


If you are interested in instant cameras, contact me and I can help you to make a good deal.

Quick tips for Great Photos

Quick Tips for Great Photos by Russ Burden

Who doesn't love a Top 10 list? In this case, Russ Burden decided to step up and give us a baker's dozen of quick tips for great photos

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Most people have a top ten list for many subjects - movies, CD’s, sports plays, actors, etc. Feeling generous, I feel the urge to give you a dozen. Being a good friend of a baker and knowing he always throws in one for free, what the heck! It’s Valentine's month and I “FEEL THE LOVE” so here are thirteen quick tips to get you on the path to becoming a better photographer. In no specific order:

1) Bracket Tricky Exposures: As most of you have probably gone digital, I suggest you bracket in 1/ 2 stops. What used to hold true with regards to slide film whereby photographers bracketed in 1/ 3 stops, this small amount is easily recoverable in Photoshop so expand this range to acclimate to digital.

© 2008 Russ Burden

2) Depth Of Field: Use apertures wisely. Open up the lens (f4) to help throw a background out of focus and stop down (f22) to increase your depth of field. Get out there and shoot a scene both ways. With Digital, it’s easy to see the difference right away. Make sure you have a strong foreground, midground, and background so you’ll be able to see the differences.

3) Steady as She Goes: Use a Tripod: Not only will it almost guarantee you sharper and steadier shots, it slows you down so it forces you to think more about fine tuning your composition - this is BIG!

4) RTM = READ THE MANUAL: As much as we all want to think we’re smarter than our camera and can figure it out, there are so many features imbedded in the menus, you may be depriving yourself of not knowing that your camera has the ability to do....... and how cool it would have been if you only knew you could have applied.... to a long gone situation.

5) Hyperfocal Distance for Focusing: To maximize the depth of field in any image, in a simplified explanation, focus one third into the frame. Hyperfocal settings are more precise and can be found on line, but in a pinch, the one third rule works.

6) Rule of Thirds: Imagine a tic tac toe board placed in the viewfinder. The most strategic location to place a main subject is where the lines intersect. If you’re shooting with a horizon and the sky is interesting, have it take up the top two thirds. If the sky is mundane, place the emphasis on the foreground.

© 2008 Russ Burden

7) Experiment: If you’re shooting digitally, try something new and different. It doesn’t cost anything except a few more minutes of edit time.

8) Time of Day: The warmest and most appealing color of light occurs around the time of sunrise and sunset. Most subjects are enhanced when shot during these hours. Textures are revealed when sidelit and patterns and shapes are more defined.

9) Histogram Check: As a quick check, I keep the LCD screen set to show the flashing highlights but to really know if I’m nailing my exposures, I use the histogram. Every scene will read differently so there is no such thing as an overall ideal histogram that can be applied to every situation. Avoid spikes on the sides to prevent losing shadow or highlight detail.

10) Shutter Speeds: Try slowing down your shutter to create special effects. A common situation is shooting water for longer than one second to get a cotton candy effect. But don’t limit yourself to this. Whenever a subject is moving, play around with different settings to intentionally show the motion. And try panning for some cool effects.

11) Active Focus Point: Always be aware of what focus point you have active in the camera especially if you’re shooting wide open. If the active focus point is reading a spot on a different plane than your subject, the result is a blurry subject and a sharp foreground or background.

© 2008 Russ Burden

12) Loosen Up: Not every time you go out with your camera will you come home with a winner. There are times when I make two hour drives only to have the light be flat and ugly and I don’t even raise the camera to my eye. Try to make the best of the situation and find something to photograph, but if you come home with no winners, it’s not the end of the world.

13) Shoot, Shoot More and Then More: Like anything else, the more you practice, the better you’ll become. Even if it means heading to a local park or going into your backyard, take pictures every week to keep the photo gears greased.