Photography on the beach - part 1

Do you find sunbathing a bore? Well, why not use your time on the beach to gather lots of pictures during your summer holidays this year?

People on the beach are usually there to enjoy themselves – and it’s always easier, and more fun, to photograph people when they are relaxed. But it’s not just people that should be catching your eye – what about all that wonderfully tacky stuff outside the gift shops. Kitsch is everywhere in these seaside shops and everything is deliberately colourful: naughty postcards, silly hats and sun specs; its all there for close-up pictures. Sea walls, beach huts – and the people who use them - promenades and piers have lots of visual possibilities to offer.

No matter if the beach is crowded or nearly deserted, often the best way to start is with a general picture showing the whole beach. If the beach is packed with sunbathers, try using a long telephoto lens to foreshorten and squash up the perspective. This will make the beach appear even more crowded by giving the illusion that the distance between each sunbather is much less than it really is.

Try to find one particular person who will make a good focal point and ensure that he or she is nicely in focus. Then wait for them to do something interesting – throwing a ball for their dog, or setting up their deckchair, for instance. This will help bring vitality to your composition. If you are photographing on a sunny day there will be plenty of light and you will be able to use a fast shutter speed; so freezing the action and avoiding shake with that long lens should not be a problem.


Top photograph
This picture, taken in Bermuda, was very easy to capture, it was just a matter of anticipation. There was no need to disturb the man; he could not see me behind him. Neither could he see the little bird running across the sand. I simply pre-focused on the man and waited for the bird to dart across behind his chair

Middle photograph
Don’t be nervous about moving in close to photograph people. If these two sunbathers had opened their eyes and spotted me taking their picture I would first have pressed the button again to capture their expressions then given them a great big smile and told them what a wonderful photograph they had helped to make

Bottom photograph
There’s no reason why a photograph of the general scene should be just a straight, boring view. Pick out a particular subject, focus on them and wait until they do something interesting before pressing the button. In this case, it was very easy because the lady was throwing sticks into the surf for her dogs

More about beach photograph next…

Telephoto for people

I have mentioned before my frequent use of a small telephoto lens when for photographing people in real-life situations, especially when you want to remain slightly detached, yet fully able to observe the action and what is going on in front of you.

The picture here illustrates what I mean. It was taken on a 180mm f2.8 Nikkor lens. It’s worth saying that in all my travels I cannot remember when I ever carried anything longer. However, a 135mm (or equivalent) is pretty much spot-on for this type of situation when the subjects know full well that you are busy photographing them, but you do not want to get so close to them that your presence becomes obtrusive or, even worse, part of the action itself.

Beside the practicalities of handling yourself in these situations, the small telephoto lens can actually bring a real visual bonus. It can enable you to pick out selective action from the whole scene and - if you get your timing right - bring extra power and impact to your photographs. The limited depth of field of the telephoto does, of course, tend to isolate the main characters and focus your viewer’s attention on the most important aspects of the drama as it happens.

You will always run the risk when using any telephoto of having people move between you and your subject. I can be a risk well worth taking because these ‘intrusive’ elements can often add a feeling of depth, relevance and extra interest. So you must be very aware of what is happening all around you and be prepared to move quickly and decisively to either include of exclude other people.

Obviously, the main subject and focus of interest with this shot is the camel driver and the camel’s growling head. It revolves around the centre of the frame. But there are elements to left and right that add to, rather than diminish the interest of the scene. They give the impression that the action is taking place in a busy, crowded place, and that there are other people involved in the controlling of the camel. And so there were. It is an accurate portrayal of what is going on.

In my next post I’ll show you the exact opposite effect – by using a wide-angle lens during the same event.

Photographing live gigs - part 2

I arrived at the theatre early, well before the start of the show so that I could check out shooting positions and angles. The stage had very limited access to the wings and as the best shots are often taken from the side of the stage, this would make things quite difficult.

The only way to get into this position would be from the front of the stage, so the band had to be happy for me to move up there between songs. Access to the back of the stage, where I could shoot from behind the band, was easy and I checked out all my routes from one position to another while all the house lights were on. I had put a small torch in my pocket so that I would not be stumbling around in the dark when I went back stage during the performance – it would be very dark there then.

I even managed to gain access to a small lighting gantry above the audience from where I could use a telephoto lens for frontal close-ups of the band. During the show, I dodged from one position to the next, and often back again.

As I was on the move and adapting to the different light conditions and positions of the performers, I left my bulky camera bag safely locked in a dressing room and operated with two camera bodies and two lenses.

With the stage lights constantly changing intensity direction and colours, you may find it useful to use the Aperture Value (AV) exposure mode. Remember, this is more correctly called the Aperture Priority (AP) mode. Just set a wide aperture and let the camera decide on the shutter speed. However, I prefer to use the basic M (Manual) mode whenever possible, so that I can change the exposure myself as the lights change. It is also more reliable if shooting directly into bright stage spots – a situation that can confuse any automatic metering mode.

ISO
I set my ISO to 800 with the certain knowledge that I would need the fastest shutter speed possible to stop any action. This would result is some loss of quality, but that was a price worth paying.

EXPOSURES
Most of the shots were taken at between 1/60sec and 1/125sec at f2.8 or f4. Of course these shutter speeds are pretty slow for stopping action, and there were some failures when I pressed the button as the subjects moved, so it was important to take lots of pictures so that these could be discarded. The camera’s LCD illuminator is invaluable when checking settings in the dark in the dark.

WHITE BALANCE
You will never win completely when the stage lights are changing from bright blue to deep red. I simply set AWB (Auto White Balance) and let it happen. Any adjustments I made later in Photoshop.

LENSES
The most useful lens proved to be the 17-35mm f2.8. With this I could get really close from the side of the stage and include the stage lighting in the shot for dramatic effect. For the long shots from the lighting gantry I used a 70-200mm f2.8 zoom. I don’t often bother with lens hoods, but in these conditions, with lights shining into the lens at an angle, I made sure I had a hood fitted to avoid flare

Top photograph
Doug Carroll may not be as famous as Mark Knopler, but he is one of the most gifted guitar players in the UK. I wanted to get a picture that really summed up his total immersion in his music when he played solo. I liked his natural pose with the spotlights shining down on him through the stage smoke. Stage lighting is mostly from front and back of the performers, so if you are photographing a band from the wings you will not be shooting directly into the light

Lower photograph
From the lighting gantry just above the audience I was able to use a telephoto lens and get reasonable close-up shots of the band. The light behind Mary was flashing on and off and changing colour so there was an element of luck involved in getting a good facial expression with the right light backlight




TIP
Earplugs are essential for photographers working directly in front of a powerful sound system. It’s LOUD. Over the years, I've covered dozens of rock bands' live gigs - from the Rolling Stone’s, Rod Stewart, Freddie Mercury. I hate to admit this, but I've covered The Beatles as well – and my hearing has never been the same.

If you want to know more about Doug, Mary and the The Mary Barclay Band - or buy their music - go to...
http://www.sensationalmarybarclayband.com/
http://www.myspace.com/sensationalmarybarclayband

Photographing wildlife

Photograph by Ken Terry

I just couldn't resist showing you this lovely photograph by my student Ken Terry. He has just posted it on the photoactive_photographers group and I think it's gorgeous. It is one of his series taken on his big Canon 500mm telephoto lens while he was here in Galloway over the weekend.

Beautiful timing, lovely angle - it has tremendous appeal.

Ken and other students of mine have got lots of pictures in the photograph albums on the group, and it's well worth taking a look. The group is actually open to anyone. You are welcome to join in and certain of a warm welcome among friends.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/photoactive_photographers

How to use a telephoto lens

Here is another simple example of using a small telephoto lens - in the case a 135mm equivalent - to capture candid pictures of people. I've had some photographers take me to task for daring to use a telephoto for 'street' photography. These purists believe it is only possible to take real 'street' pictures if a lens of 35-50mm is used. They are talking twaddle.

Perhaps they are secretly obsessed by the notion that they are following the example of Henri Cartier-Bresson who, they believe, was able to make himself invisible, get in close to all his subjects without being seen, and capture them all on a Leica with just a 35mm lens.

The story goes that the 'great' Cartier-Bresson tried this method while covering Winston Churchill's funeral for The Sunday Times. Apparently he did not produce a single photograph worth printing.

A small telephoto can actually add a lot to the 'feel' of a candid photograph by throwing the background slightly out of focus and isolating the most important elements of the picture. This frees the viewer's eye to concentrate on what really matters in the picture.

Of course it also gives the photographer the added advantage of remaining just that little bit less obvious.

Canon G9 vignetting - answers

Yesterday I posted a question on photo.net regarding the post about vignetting when using attachment lenses on the Canon G9. Having only had the camera a short time and not yet having used it a great deal, I felt unqualified to answer fully, however, I did express the view that ‘inexpensive’ lenses might be at the root of the problem. It turns out that this might not be the case, but that the camera needs setting up properly.

The link below should take you to the forum page where several members responded. However, you may have to join the group to gain access. I can recommend that you do. This forum is huge and very useful.

http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00OK88

Denise D from San Francisco pointed out that even with the Canon wide angle and tele adaptors can produce vignetting unless you go to the settings menu and the into the ‘converter’ option. There are two options – one for tele and one for wide angle. You must select the correct option.

In fact there are three options, the other one is 'none' for normal shooting.

So, I hope this helps our anonymous friend who posted the original question, and my sincere thanks to those who responded on Photo.net

The pictures show the menu of the G9 and the two options for the Converter.
Hope this helps.

Photographing people in the street - part 1

The most easily accessible location for photography is right outside your own front door – in the street if you happen to live in town. Out there people are coming and going about there daily lives, and the houses, buildings and surroundings themselves can make really worthwhile subjects. Yet so many photographers get into a sweat at the very thought of taking pictures in the street. Quite understandably, they feel self-conscious and a bit nervous about pointing their cameras at perfect strangers. This is normal, and if you feel that way, you are not alone. You probably also feel as if you are being intrusive. Well, in a way, you are and because this type of photography brings you into contact with total strangers it does not suit everyone. However, you don’t always have to tackle your subjects head-on - there are many more subtle ways of capturing pictures of people than simply sticking a camera in their face

The first and most important thing to remember is that you have a perfect right to take photographs in a public street. It is a right you should use.

It can help if you start by taking photographs of public street events or parades, where everyone participating and watching will expect lots of photographs to be taken and will readily accept the presence of photographers. A good training ground can be a busy tourist town – again, people will be expecting photographers to take pictures. You could try back views of people to begin with so that they may not even know they have been photographed and will not question you. All this will help you gain confidence.

Eventually someone will turn round and see you taking their photograph. Rule Number One – press the button again, smile broadly and say something pleasant. Tell them what a great picture they have helped to create, how good they looked and how you could not resist taking it. Laugh – be happy! Go forward and show them the picture on the preview screen if they are interested. Let’s face it, you would not have taken the person’s picture in the first place if you felt the subject looked at all threatening, so who knows, you may gain a friend, or a least a ‘tame’ subject who you may be able to ask to ‘do it again’. This approach can lead to countless happy encounters with strangers and many great pictures. Just don’t expect to be an expert overnight, it takes time to build technique and confidence – especially confidence.

Man on ladder
Gain confidence by photographing people without them knowing – call these candid shots if you wish. If subjects have their backs to you, then you can shoot away to your heart’s content. This chap had no idea he was being photographed – nor could he see those jackdaws above his head on the roof. They really helped make the picture

Top photograph
You can progress from shots of people’s backs to full frontals quite easily. Use a medium telephoto lens – the equivalent of a 180mm is fine. Once again compose your picture carefully without people in it. Get everything set then simply wait until a likely subject strolls along and press the button. Minimum 1/250sec to stop the subject and reduce camera shake. You can assess your potential subjects well in advance and if you don’t like the look them just wait for another one

Bottom photograph
You need a clear view of a busy gateway or entrance for this exercise; somewhere people will have no choice but to walk through the gap. Find a good out-of-the-way spot overlooking the spot and get comfortable; a bench where you can sit down is ideal, or stand in the shadow of an alleyway where you are unlikely to be noticed. Don’t rush. Take your time framing and composing your shot. Set the exposure. Now everything is ready and your trap is set. All you have to do is wait for the right person to walk into shot and press the button at the right moment – you have taken your first candid shot and the person you photographed knew nothing about it

Tomorrow I’ll give you a list of TIPS and answer some FAQs about street photography

Photographing people - inhibitions

Self-consciousness is probably the main reason for holding back the talents of so many photographers. The thought of taking out a camera in public and pointing it at another person fills most photographers with dread. Why?

Maybe I was lucky to have had every inhibition knocked out of me at a very early age when I was an apprentice on a local newspaper. Even at the age of 15 I was expected to stand in front of a crowd of people and organise them into a group photograph – all this while using a 5 x 4 glass plate press camera and a flash unit with wet cell batteries I could barely lift. The first time I did this ‘solo’ was at a Christmas Fair in a school hall. The highest vantage point was the stage, and beneath the stage was laid out a table full of cakes and goodies. My boss, the chief photographer, stood at the back of the hall watching my performance.

In a voice barely broken by puberty, I yelled for attention and got a group of people herded near to me so that I could look down on them from the stage. You must bare in mind that in those days, the mantra of a local newspaper was ‘faces sell papers’. In other words, the more people you get on the photograph, the more newspapers will sell. I had gathered together perhaps 40 faces.

The very edge of the stage had a lethal sloping edge. You guessed it – just as I got everything set I slipped down the edge and skidded onto the table below. I watched my boss cover his face in shame as I waded ankle-deep in cream cakes and blancmange. However, the results of this spectacular fete of ineptitude was that everyone laughed – and I got the happiest photograph ever used in the newspaper.

Since that day I realised that it doesn’t matter a tinker’s cuss what people think of you at the time – provided you get the picture that matters. In actual fact all the ladies in the group rushed to offer me their motherly care – once they had stopped laughing.

---

Viv asks do I think black and white works best for people photographs, or is it my newspaper background? Well, Viv, a bit of both really. I love black and white. It has a power that colour can never quite equal. I do happen to have a library of b/w negatives numbering around 150,000, so I have plenty to go at. But that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy shooting colour. Just to prove it I have posted a couple of colour ‘people’ pictures.

The shot of the couple lying on the beach was taken with their consent. I saw them from some distance and took the first picture with a short telephoto lens, but I wanted to get right in close with a wide angle. The camera was glued to my eye as a walked carefully forward and spoke to them – ‘You look absolutely wonderful, please don’t move and let me take a photograph’. I was actually taking photographs as I spoke. They were a lovely, happy couple and delighted with the result when I showed them the picture.

So throw aside those inhibitions and take more photographs.

I’ve posted the photograph of the farmer to show that I’m quite happy to shoot colour for street portraits.

Photographing people in the street

I read on one of the photography forums recently a claim from a photographer who stated that true ‘street’ photography should not be done with a telephoto lens. It should only be done with a lens with an equivalent focal length of between 35-50mm. This is utter nonsense.

The correct lens for photographing people in the street is the lens that enables you to get the picture you want, and a photographer who hog-ties himself to this sort of narrow-minded work practice will miss an awful lot of worthwhile photographs.

I do not have a favourite lens for my street photography. I am just as likely to use a 24mm wide angle or a 180mm telephoto – rarely anything longer purely because of the inconvenience of carrying large lenses about. Quite apart from its effect of isolating your subject with its limited depth of field – as in the photograph above - a small telephoto sometimes enables you to remain just that little bit less conspicuous. I am perfectly happy to move in very close with my wide angle when I feel the picture needs that sort of approach.

When GlenF commented that photographing people in less-developed countries is still a delight, I have to agree. I’m not sure I agree that people in Western countries are more suspicious, though – perhaps they are just less civilised. I’m sure someone will correct me if I’m wrong, but when Mahatma Ghandi was asked what he thought of Western civilisation, he answered, “I think it will be good when they get it”.

Thanks to Saw Lady for her comment about paying street performers when you want to photograph them. I’d love to come over to NY to photograph you at work, and I think your blog is great. I suspect you get an awful lot of snappers photographing you already.
www.sawlady.com/blog

Photographing wildlife

Wildlife photography is a subject that has always interested me, but somehow I have never had the time to learn enough about it. Mostly because I have been too busy earning my living in other branches of photography - in the newspaper, magazine and commercial worlds.

To succeed professionally in wildlife photography you must be not only knowledgeable about your chosen subjects and their habits and habitats, you must also be totally committed. That can often mean sitting huddled up in a hide for hours, sometimes days, or even weeks at a time in order to get that unique shot. Very few photographers possess that level of patience – and I am certainly not among them.

There is, however, an aspect of wildlife photography that is still open to photographers like me. It’s a bit like street photography in that it calls for good anticipation, camera craft and fast reactions, and like street photography, it’s can be done while you are on the move. So there’s no need to be cooped up in a hide. You will also find that some of the old tricks used when photographing people in street photography come in very handy.

The technique involves capturing photographs of wild creatures within, and as part of, their own environment I suppose you might turn the idea on its head and say it is a type of landscape photography with animals in it. It can produce some very beautiful photographs, and they will not lack a powerful focal point. Now I know that a real wildlife photographer should be able to do this AND have the ability to sit in a hide, but I’ve already confessed to my shortcomings in that direction. If you feel the same, it might be worth a try.

As an example I have posted the picture of the stag in the forest.

I was walking along with the forest ranger just after dawn. As we approached a clearing in the trees he mentioned that he'd often seen deer cross this open space. That was all the warning I needed to be prepared. Sure enough as we looked across the clearing a stag appeared moving very quickly and with no obvious intention of stopping. Now its an old press photographers trick to shout out loud in a situation like this. You’ve got nothing to lose and there’s always a chance that the subject might just turn to look where the shout came from. Much to the ranger’s surprise, I yelled ‘STOP!’.

The stag stopped mid-stride and looked in my direction just long enough to get the picture. You see – street photography in the forest.

The photograph was taken on a 300mm lens. 1/500sec at f3.5, ISO 800. The centre of the image has been enlarged considerably.

How to photograph people -simple portraits 3

I've been enjoying showing you some of these black and white images of mine. This time I’ve chosen a photograph to demonstrate the importance of good composition within a simple portrait.

The picture itself is pretty simple. A telephoto lens was used, and this has foreshortened the perspective and pressed the farmers together from front to back. This in itself has had a powerful effect on the composition by making all three heads the same size. It has flattened the perspective into three layers.

Lines of composition do not need to be obvious. The horizontal line created by the top of the metal gate, which runs along the bottom third of the picture, is a pretty obvious line of composition. So, too, is the diagonal line made by the man’s forearm. This line is extended upwards across the lighted side of his face. The area of the hand and face has become the focal point. Diagonal lines of composition can be very effective and appealing.

The less-obvious line of composition is the eye line of all three farmers. This follows the line of the arm towards the bottom right of the picture. There is little to satisfy the eye down there and it is drawn back into the top third of the picture by the light on the man’s hand and face. Then the whole process starts again – the eye is being drawn around the picture in a cycle, gathering information as it goes, but always coming back to the focal point.

People photography, candid

Are you nervous about photographing people? Do you feel as if you are intruding when you point your camera at someone? Yes? Well you are not alone. One of the subjects we tackle on the photography holidays in Menorca is ‘people’. It is the subject most of my students say they are most nervous about.

I explain that it is important to realise that you are not just ‘taking’ when you point a camera at someone. You can also ‘give’ a great deal too.

It is possible to make a subject feel special if you go about it in the right way, and I’ll be giving you lots of tips in the future.

By the end of the week in Menorca, I can guarantee that most of the photographers in the group will be a people photography addicts. It’s not for everyone, but once you overcome your inhibitions about taking pictures of complete strangers, it can be tremendously liberating… and it can certainly produce some fantastic photographs.

TIP FOR TODAY
Once you have been spotted taking someone’s photograph. DO NOT drop the camera like a hot potato. Keep your camera to your eye and keep taking pictures. It is so often the response to being photographed that makes a wonderful picture. Very, very rarely will subjects become angry when they spot a camera pointing at them. If they do, lower the camera, hold up your hands and SMILE. With practise, you will soon learn where NOT to point a camera.

It was his response to spotting my telephoto lens pointing at him that produced the extraordinary expression on the farmer’s face when I photographed him at a sheep sale.

Photographing the wind

Living on the west coast of Scotland offers plenty of opportunities to photograph the effects of strong winds. Wind-bent trees make fantastic subjects, and my students often photograph them when we head off along the coast to take landscapes.

There are two basic methods of showing the wind actuality blowing – one is to use a fast shutter speed to freeze the action, and the other is to use a slow shutter speed to allow the movement to blur. Both can be highly effective when done well.

The practical difficulties of actually putting the camera on a tripod and using a long exposure in strong winds can be hard to overcome. Camera shake is the biggest problem. Yes, even when the camera is on a tripod, it can still be subject to vibrations and movement when the wind whistles around it. A good heavy tripod is one answer, but failing that you might try weighting the tripod down with a plastic bag full of stones or sand. Anything will do. The last thing you want is for the camera and tripod to get blown over. Most tripods these days have a hook onto which you can hang a weighty bag.

For the picture of the waves, I used a 200mm lens to compress the perspective and pull the waves closer together. 1/350sec was used to freeze the action.
The shot of the wind-blown grass was done with the camera on a tripod – a heavy Benbo. A slow shutter speed of two seconds was used to show the movement in the grass as the wind blew through it. A wide angle lens was used to fill the foreground – because that is where the action is.