Pro Techniques

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George Schaub  |  May 28, 2014

Human visual perception is a wondrous thing—it allows us to see a wide spectrum of colors, with all the subtleties and shades, lights and darks, pastels and richness of the earth and the heavens. To see in black and white is an abstraction of that world, one that perceives luminance, or brightness, without the benefit of hue. Yet hue, or color, and its shades, often determine what tones, or grayscale values, will be seen in black and white. If one were always to see the world only in black and white it would be considered a deficiency of vision. But to see that way occasionally, and to be able to render what we see in a monochrome fashion, opens the door to different perceptions and feelings about the world, and yields a unique form of expression in the bargain.

Jim Zuckerman  |  May 28, 2014

I have always been fascinated by a photographer’s ability to turn a common subject into a work of art. Being a photographer means seeing the artistic potential in the elements that surround us on a daily basis. I travel all over the world seeking out amazing things to shoot, but I also find them at home—in the kitchen, in my backyard or even in my office. It’s always an exciting discovery to work with a subject to which I never gave a second thought, and then one day it turns into something that is visually arresting.

Jim Zuckerman  |  May 28, 2014

The pearlescent colors that appear in soap bubbles are endlessly fascinating if you take the time to look at them closely. It is chaos at its most beautiful—a random mix of color that, unfortunately, we can’t freeze with our mind to examine any one instant in time. With a camera and flash, however, we can capture these amazing works of art and examine every detail, even though each design lasts only milliseconds.

George Schaub  |  May 28, 2014

The image color of even a conventional black and white silver print is rarely black, white and grayscale shades. It may be warm (golden) or cold (blue) neutral or toned (sepia, magenta). Over many years print makers and chemists developed paper and developer combinations, as well as after-printing toners, to add additional color to monochrome silver prints. For example, using a warm-tone paper such as Agfa Portriga and a warm-tone enhancing developer, such as Selectol Soft, could alter image color. This yielded brownish blacks and creamy whites. A cold-tone paper could be developed in Dektol and after fixing toned in a mild dilution of rapid selenium toner for added “snap”, resulting in a “harder” bright white/deep black effect.

Suzanne Driscoll  |  Jun 20, 2014  |  First Published: May 01, 2014

Known as a master of combining art in the traditional sense with photography, Chiarenza has been making pictures for five decades. He started out with tightly framed, documentary-style photographs that sparked a lifelong interest in abstract images and landscapes. But since 1979 he has been making collages out of scraps of paper, foil, can lids, and whatever else he finds or people send him. He then photographed the collages with Polaroid positive/negative film, always in black and white. Using light, shapes, forms, and surfaces, the results are very unique images that encourage the viewer to let his or her imagination do all the interpretation.

Maria Piscopo  |  Jun 20, 2014  |  First Published: May 01, 2014
What is “stock” photography, and how can it be a source of revenue? First, let’s define some terms. In most cases, rather than selling an image in the stock photo market think “license,” as stock images are not really sold—they are licensed for a particular use. The larger agencies all license Rights Managed (RM) images and many Royalty Free (RF) agencies will offer a “removal from market” option if an exclusive license is needed by the client.
Blaine Harrington  |  Jun 24, 2014  |  First Published: May 01, 2014

The roads I follow as a travel photographer mostoften lead me to landmarks and landscapes, festivals and events, people and cultures. But not always. As you can see from the photos here, I consider photographing wildlife one of the requirements of a successful travel photographer.

Lorin R. Robinson  |  Jun 27, 2014  |  First Published: May 01, 2014

The skies have been a source of fascination for humankind since our earliest days. But only in the past 100 years or so has photography provided tools to enable people to capture, view, and enjoy the astonishing images astronomers were privileged to see in their elaborate telescopes.

Jim Zuckerman  |  Apr 24, 2014

Photography has taught me to be aware of color, design and patterns, and I am always looking for something interesting to photograph. A few years ago when my wife was making a marble cake, I was drawn to the design in the swirling chocolate and thought it would make a successful abstract shot. I liked the images I took, but I felt more color would make the pictures a lot more interesting.

George Schaub  |  Apr 24, 2014

The print completes the creative circle you began inscribing when you first viewed the image and snapped the shutter. The beauty of black and white printmaking is that you can share that vision through interpretive techniques that include expressive use of tonality, artful contrast and exposure control. Yes, digital images can be viewed on a screen and shared through the Internet to a worldwide audience. But nothing quite matches the intimate beauty of a carefully produced print, one that can be hung on a wall in your home or a gallery.

Maria Piscopo  |  May 15, 2014  |  First Published: Apr 01, 2014

While you as the photographer own the copyright to images you create, this does not negate the privacy rights of any recognizable individual in your photo. Knowing when you can sell or lease that image with or without a model release is important. In this article we cover that ground as well as the impact of social media and new technology on privacy rights and model releases.

Jason Schneider  |  May 20, 2014  |  First Published: Apr 01, 2014

Given that the physical and perceptual experience of making a photograph is shaped by technology, and that technology is also embedded in the resulting images, one of the chief and perhaps most profound changes in how we make an image has been the changes in focusing—and recently autofocusing—technology. There’s a reason that the documentary photojournalism of Lewis W. Hine (shot with a ponderous 5x7 view camera or a 4x5 Graflex SLR) has a qualitatively different feel from that of Alfred Eisenstaedt or Henri Cartier-Bresson (shot with pocket-sized 35mm rangefinder cameras). It’s not only framing—it’s responsiveness, spontaneity, and, perhaps, repose, that underlies what these image-makers showed us.

David Zimmerman  |  May 23, 2014  |  First Published: Apr 01, 2014

There’s nothing more discouraging than making great shots in the field only to discover that they are nowhere to be found on your memory card when you get to your home or studio. That’s why we were happy to receive this list of mistakes to avoid when dealing with memory cards from David Zimmerman, CEO of LC Technology, a company that supplies data management and recovery solutions to a wide variety of companies within the field.—Editor

Jack Neubart  |  May 30, 2014  |  First Published: Apr 01, 2014

Architectural photography normally involves shooting exteriors and interiors, ranging from residential to corporate and industrial. Hospitality photography moves in a different direction. John Bellenis explains: “I would define hospitality photography as shooting hotels, resorts, cruise lines, spas, and destinations. It’s a niche market that encompasses a range of photographic disciplines: architectural exteriors, interiors, lifestyle, food, and travel. I enjoy it because it keeps things fresh and the demands are varied photographically.

Chuck DeLaney  |  May 30, 2014  |  First Published: Apr 01, 2014

Charles Marville: Photographer of Paris, on view at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art through May 4, 2014, features nearly 100 photographs and marks the first American retrospective of this Parisian-born (1813-1879) member of photography’s very first generation. Marville’s photographs are remarkable as images and also provide invaluable documentation of the transformation of Paris from a medieval city to the world capital we know today. The show is highly recommended for photographers, students of history, and everyone who loves the “City of Light.”

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