Shooting Digital? Choose The Right Film!

For me, this is what I find as the BIG TRAP of digital photography, and I fall into it myself.  Either you just start shooting and forget, or you figure it is digital and I can just fix it later.  The fact of the matter is that choosing the right settings (film) is just important in digital photography.  Sure you can fix it later if you shoot RAW, but if you shoot JPG no matter what you do you are throwing away information and quality, and why would you want to do either?  One just wastes time, and the other throws away quality, why did we spend the money on an expensive DSLR then.

When we shoot film, we choose it specifically for the job.  Want your colors to POP pick out a contrasty slide film like Velvia, shooting portraits grab something much smoother and finer.  We can do the same for our digital photography.

Personally when I am shooting landscapes, cars, or motorcycles, give me it all.  I turn everything up to get the color to scream.  Here are my settings for this on my Nikon D80:

• Image Sharpening: +2 Medium High
• Tone Compensation: Auto
• Color Mode: IIIa
• Saturation: +
• Hue Adjustment: 0

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR

Focal Length: 40mm

Shutter: 1/60

Aperture: f/5.3

ISO: 100

Flash: SB-600 (w/ Gary Fong Lightsphere)

As you can see, the only items I haven't changed are Tone Compensation and Hue Adjustment, and Tone Compensation may get changed, but so far it has worked well at Auto.

Now for shooting people this is a horrible setting.  For people I run something more like this:

• Image Sharpening: -1 Medium Low
• Tone Compensation: Auto
• Color Mode: Ia
• Saturation: Auto
• Hue Adjustment: 0

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR

Focal Length: 40mm

Shutter: 1/60

Aperture: f/5.3

ISO: 100

Flash: SB-600 (w/ Gary Fong Lightsphere)

So for people we need to run the subdued colors of Ia and a lot of sharpening pulled out.  Saturation is set to Auto, and you could go further and set it to - to really reduce it, but Auto seems to work well.

If you have been reading this blog you know that I am a firm believer of getting the shots straight out of the camera.  It saves me time not having to constantly fool and adjust every image.  I do shoot RAW+JPG (which some consider foolish, but space is cheap) but the RAWs are there specifically as a backup or if I just utterly screw up (I am human :-) ).  I use the RAW file usually only if the color still wasn't loud enough for me.  If I do manipulate I only manipulate RAWs.

So you still want to manipulate JPGs?  In case you didn't know manipulating JPGs is DESTRUCTIVE.  Here we'll take a look at it.  For this case I will start off with an image that is over exposed.

So you can see that this image is pretty well blown out.  This histogram is all off to the right confirming this.  So from here you'd want to fix this in your favorite image editing software.  If you are fixing the JPG maybe you'd do something like this.

Much better.  But what are all those gaps in the histogram?  Well, in order to stretch the data that was there it had to cut gaps into your shot.  Also those blown out pixels in the water, well, they are still blown out.  But what if you had the RAW file to work with?

The NEF really helps out here because it has data that the JPG doesn't.  So stretching out that histogram here retains a lot more information, and hey, a lot more of those blown out highlights are there now!  Awesome.  But why did I just waste several minutes making a useable image, when I could have got it straight from the camera.

No nasty blown out highlights, no gaps in my histogram (so no data loss), and best of all, no waste of my time.  This goes for everything, exposure (which I used here since I had the pics handy), color saturation, sharpness, etc.  Post production of all these items is a second rate solution.

In the end you'll do yourself a favor by setting up your camera to get the shots how you want them straight out of the camera.  For me, not wasting time manipulating images on a computer means I can be out shooting more, and that is what it is all about.

Thanks for reading!

PSAM: Why I Settle For Nothing Less

So you just got your first DSLR and are ready for action, you are excited to take that first shot, so you toggle your new DSLR to "Auto" scene and run outside.  I did it with my first DSLR too.  Modern DSLRs give you several programmed scene modes just like every point and shoot camera, but unless you are just wanting bigger and better lenses on a point and shoot, why not learn the advanced features your new camera has to offer.

First off let me explain about something scene modes, they are nothing magic.  All that the scene modes are s the "P" mode with specific generic setting set for a specific scene.  For example, for a landscape scene it will run a tighter aperture and will make the image a little sharper, for a portrait it will open the aperture up to reduce depth of field and reduce sharpness and saturation.  We can do all this on our own, and more.

I started my photography in landscapes, black and white, and color.  So most of the time I used Ilford Delta 100 (for black and white) or Fuji Velvia (for color).  But when I shot people I usually grabbed Fuji Astia 100.  When you shoot film, you choose that film for what you want to get out of it.  If I were to shoot people on Velvia they would look horrible with red faces and way too much contrast, but Astia has reduced contrast and less saturation for smooth features.  Using the PSAM modes you have virtually any film at your fingertips.

For black and white I shot most landscapes with Ilford Delta 100 and an orange filter.  If you shoot with any of the scene modes, you are shooting color and that is it.  Sure you can black and white any image after the fact, and probably get a decent result, but my goal when I shoot is to get the image straight out of the camera, and not waste time in photo editing software later.  Shooting in PSAM I can do that, and can give my camera any film I want.  I can go into the "Shooting" menu, "Optimize image" and select BW and I have black and white.  I can even add some digital contrast filters on if I don't want to use real ones.  When I want to do color, I have the "Custom" optimization already set up for it, color mode pumped up, saturation pumped up, and others to get as close to Velvia as possible.

Changing your "film" is just one piece that you can use to get anything you want straight out of the camera.  And lets face it, if you are like me and go away for a 3 day weekend and come back with 2000 shots, the last thing you want to do is have to fiddle each one to make it usable.  So now that you know why you want to, lets learn about PSAM!

Shot with my DroidX in cruddy light, it sucks,
just here to show the selector.  :-)

PSAM are four settings:

• P - Program:  This program selects a shutter speed and aperture based on exposure value and usually focal length.  Generally, unless it can't help it due to lighting, it will stay a stop or two away from full open aperture and won't go tighter than f/11.  Your camera may be different, this is just a generality.
• S - Shutter Preferred (Tv - Time Value for you Canon folks):  In this mode you select the shutter speed to use and the camera, using a similar program to the Program mode, will select the aperture.
• A - Aperture Preferred (Av - Aperture Value for Canon folks):  This mode is the opposite of Shutter Preferred.  You select the aperture and the camera, using a similar program to the Program mode, will select the shutter.
• M - Manual:  This is no program at all.  You set the aperture, you set the shutter.  Now, there is a twist here.  If you have Auto ISO turned on, the camera will vary the ISO to maintain correct exposure for the selected shutter speed and aperture value.  I have heard this called a bug, but I have found it very useful and will explain it later in this article.

So what do I shoot?  95% of the time my camera is in "P".  When shooting landscapes, cars and bikes, or even fast action of people, it is the mode that just gets the job done.  Unless there is an artistic need or a technical need for something else, I use "P".

Camera: Nikon F4      

Lens: 24mm f/2.8 AF-D

Focal Length: 24mm

Shutter: N/A

Aperture: N/A

ISO: 100

Flash: None

When I am around water, that is when I move from "P".  I love shooting water, it is one of my favorite subjects.  And I love smooth flowing water.  I love waterfalls that just look like silk.  To get what I want I switch the camera to "S".  This allows me to take my VR 18-55mm to 18mm and close to my subject and crank off a hand held 1sec exposure standing in the middle of a river.  "S" is the way to go for this shot since my main concern is a slow shutter speed.

Camera: Nikon D80     

Lens: 70-210mm f/4-5.6mm AF-D

Focal Length: 145mm

Shutter: 1/80

Aperture: f/4.8

ISO: 100

Flash: SB-600

The next time that I always differ from "P" is shooting portraits.  I also change my "film" here to a much more subtle setting.  When shooting portraits I want to get the depth of field just right.  That means I want full control of the aperture, so "A" it is.  

And the final differ is actually a different mode, "M", which is convenient for this article.  I use this mode, with Auto ISO, to shoot my fiance's flag football games.  Why you may ask?  Well, I run an old 70-210mm AF-D when I am shooting these games and put myself in a position to have a full frame shot of the quarterback from the defensive side of the field at 210mm.  This allows me to track the action as it comes up the field zooming from 210 down to 70mm.  So to sufficiently stop the action and get decent sharp shots I want a 1/250sec shutter speed.  Part two is that I want a fairly decent depth of field and being that I am running 210mm on the long end, I like to run it at f/11 if I can.  Since Auto ISO will vary the ISO for me from 100-1600, I can just leave these set and go.  If shooting in the early morning I do need to run a little more open aperture and a little slower shutter to maintain the ISO in range, so I just monitor the ISO as I go and then work the aperture and shutter towards where I want them as the sun comes up.  For me, it is the only way to shoot football.

I hope this helps drive you to learn how to use these modes, properly used they can greatly improve your creativity.

Thanks for reading, and happy shooting!

VR (IS): Why You Want It On Every Lens

I'm not going to mince words here, VR (IS for Canon) is the absolute biggest advancement in photography in the last 20 years.  No other advancement has done anything to make your photos better.  Let me explain, every other advancement made has been an advancement in convenience, but they do not make your photos better.  Even digital, which is a huge advancement, only makes photography more continent, not better.  Sure, you can bring a tripod around, but why if you don't have to.  One of the hardest technical things to master will be shooting with very slow shutter speeds.

So for example, I can shoot reliably sharp photos with an 18mm lens at 1/10 a second without VR.  With VR I can shoot at 1 second and get it sharp.  To show the difference, here is a full size crop of fabric flowers at 1 second with no VR.

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: VR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G

Focal Length: 18mm

Shutter: 1/1

Aperture: f/5.6

ISO: 100

VR: Off

Flash: None

As you can see, the picture is useless, but now, the next shot all that is different is I flicked the VR switch on.  Still 1 second, still 18mm.

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: VR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G

Focal Length: 18mm

Shutter: 1/1

Aperture: f/5.6

ISO: 100

VR: On

Flash: None

That shot is sharp and good.

Now of course we could always use a big aperture instead.  For instance, I could use a 50mm f/1.8 instead of the VR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6.  At 50mm the 18-55mm will have an aperture of about f/5.3.  Now Nikon claims you can shoot 4 stops slower shutter speed with VR, but even 3 stops will allow you the same exposure value as the 50mm.  For instance, if we follow the wives tale of shooting no slower than your focal length then the darkest light we would want to shoot in with ISO100 is EV8 which we would be at with ISO100, f/1.8, and 1/60sec.  With the 18-55mm at 50mm our aperture is 3 stops tighter at f/5.3, but because of VR we now can shoot 3 stops slower at 1/8sec to make up the difference and still have proper exposure for EV8.

An added benefit is that we don't have to change out artistic impression of a shot due to light.  As we learned in Aperture: Using Aperture To Focus Your Viewer, opening up the aperture shrinks our depth of field.  With VR we are now not locked into have our aperture determined by available light.  For me, it isn't even an option, if VR is available, then VR it is.  For instance, the Nikon's 55-200mm G is available in non-VR and VR versions, and even though there is a significant price break, non-VR isn't even an option for me.

I hope these articles are informative, drop me a line and let me know.

Thanks for reading.

Aperture: Using The Aperture To Focus Your Viewer

In the articles Stops: What Are All Those Numbers and Exposure Triangle: How To Make Those Nutty Numbers Work we learned how the aperture is one of the ways we control light, but that isn't all it can do.

The aperture has a creative function as well, it can control the depth of field.  The depth of field is how much is in focus.  Now don't get me wrong, only the distance you are focused at will be absolute tack sharp focus, but the aperture along with focal length determines how quickly objects go out of focus as they get nearer or further than the focused distance.

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: VR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G

Focal Length: 55mm

Shutter: 1/60

Aperture: f/11

ISO: 100

Flash: SB-600

Great for us because we can use that to creatively modify a picture.  Lets look at the picture at the right.  This is one of my prized possessions, my Petri f/1.9 rangefinder camera.  Here we can see that focus is is perfect on the focus ring, but decent focus is maintained throughout, only getting soft on the nearest part of the lens but not so soft that you cannot read the shutter speed numbers.  But lets say we wanted to focus our viewers attention on the focus ring, maybe we are giving a lesson and the reader may be confused if they see the numbers on the shutter speed ring.  What we can do then is open up the aperture from f/11 to f/5.6 to reduce the depth of field.

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: VR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G

Focal Length: 55mm

Shutter: 1/60

Aperture: f/5.6

ISO: 100

Flash: SB-600

Here we have reduced the depth of field dramatically.  The focus ring is still in sharp focus, but the shutter speed numbers have been all but obliterated.  Even the knurled silver aperture ring just this side of the large black focus ring has softened as well as the leatherette covering which is now only sharply textured near the focus ring and softened toward the perimeter of the photo.

As you increase in aperture size this effect gets even more and more pronounce with f/1.4 lenses getting a depth of field that may only be a few millimeters deep.

For the artist, this article is complete, it is really all you need to know.  Practicing and knowing how and when to use short depths of field, as well as long ones will help you make your art more interesting and convey a specific message or thought.  If you are a tech head, by all means continue on...

Now as I mentioned before, there is really only one distance of sharp focus, everything outside of that point has some sort of circle of confusion.  So what is a circle of confusion, well, lets say we have a white wall with a 1 micron dot on it and we shoot it with a macro lens at 1:1.  At the precise focus distance, there will be a 1 micron dot on our sensor.  But as we move from that perfect focus distance that dot will grow since that pinpoint of light will no longer make a pin point, but a confused circle.  The further from the perfect focus distance we are, the larger that circle gets.

Now how quickly that circle grows as we move from perfect focus is dependent on the aperture and focal length.  As the aperture gets larger, or the focal length gets longer, the circle of confusion will grow quicker.  As the aperture gets smaller, or the focal length gets shorter, the circle of confusion will grow more slowly.

A thing of note here is that the circle of confusion is only affected by focal length and aperture.  So lets say you take the exact same picture but with three different cameras.  First a DX sensor camera with a 35mm lens, second a FX sensor camera with a 50mm lens, and lastly a medium format camera with an 85mm lens. All of these combinations will produce roughly the same framing with the same angle of view.  But, if we sot them all at f/2 the depth of field among them would be vastly different.  The DX with the 35mm will have a huge depth with almost everything in focus, while the medium format with the 85mm lens will have almost nothing in focus but the actual focus depth.

So if you are selecting a lens specifically for short depth of field, keep in mind that as your focal length grows there is less of a need for big f/1.4 apertures.  Also it is of note that as you combine large apertures and long focal lengths the unnecessary accuracy of your focus goes way up and proper AF calibration will become paramount.  Even a 50mm f/1.4 will show minute inaccuracies, so the wonderful 85mm f/1.4 will require even more accurate focusing.

Hope this helps you enjoy your shooting and gets you what you want.

Thanks for reading!

Exposure Triangle: How To Make Those Nutty Numbers Work

The Exposure Triangle is an important concept to understand especially if you do any fully manual shooting.  It defines the interactions between the 3 determining factors of exposure.

In the previous lesson Stops: What Are All Those Numbers we learned about stops, and the numbering systems of Shutter Speed, ISO, and the Aperture.  Now we are going learn one other concept to help see how they interact together.

This concept is Exposure Value or EV.  The easiest definition of of EV is a value of light.  EV15 defines the light level of a typical sunny day.  Every EV value is separated by, you guessed it, a stop.  So EV16 is one stop more light (double the light) than EV15, EV14 is one stop less (half the light) than EV15.  So you can use EV to describe a light level.  To give us a reference point, EV0 = ISO 100 @ 1 sec @ f/1.  But EV0 does not have to be ISO 100 @ 1 sec @ f/1, but any combination that produces the same exposure.  If we increase the ISO to 200 we would now be at EV1, to get back to EV0 we need to change either the shutter speed to 1/2 sec or the aperture to f/1.4.

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: 24-50mm f/3.3-4.5G

Focal Length: 34mm

Shutter: 1/250

Aperture: f/4

ISO: 1600

Flash: None

Now lets see this in action. It isn't hard to see that even though the subject is the same, these two photos are drastically different. These shots were taken one after the other in the exact same conditions, but using the Exposure Triangle allows the manipulation of the shutter speed to either stop the water, or to have a nice smooth flow.

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: 24-50mm f/3.3-4.5G

Focal Length: 34mm

Shutter: 1/15

Aperture: f/4

ISO: 100

Flash: None


So the first shot is taken at ISO1600, 1/250sec, f/4 which is EV8.  To get to 1/15 of a second we need to slow the shutter speed by 4 stops (1/125, 1/60, 1/30, 1/15).  But just slowing the shutter speed won't do the job.  Since we slowed the shutter speed by 4 stops we are now 4 stops over exposed and are now adjusted for EV4.  What I chose to do was slow down the sensor by 4 stops (ISO: 800, 400, 200, 100) to get the exposure correct again and back to EV8.  I could have also reduced the aperture by 4 stops (f/5.6, f/8, f/11, f/16), or a combination of the two.

In this case our light level being EV8 gives us numerous options, these are some of the options for EV8:

• ISO100, 1/15sec, f/4
• ISO200, 1/30sec, f/4
• ISO200, 1/15sec, f/5.6
• ISO800, 1/30sec, f/5.6

All these provide the same exposure level but can dramatically effect the picture.  Look for the next article Aperture: Using The Aperture To Focus Your Viewer.

Thanks for reading!

Stops: What Are All Those Numbers

If you are new to photography, or maybe just new to more advanced cameras, you may have noticed something about the numbers on that camera.  They don't go evenly do they, some of them double as they get larger, and well the f/stops, well they're just funky all together.  The reason for all this numerical nuttiness is called stops, and everything in photography is measured in stops.  To understand stops you have to understand that photography is all about light, and more importantly, how much light is hitting your sensor.  All cameras have a sensor, be it film or electronic.  In order to get a properly exposed photo you have to have the proper amount of light reach the sensor and you do that by adjusting the light.

So what is a stop?  A stop is a measurement of light.  As you increase the light by a stop, you have just doubled the amount of light hitting the sensor.  As you decrease the light by a stop, you have just halved the amount of light.  That is the simplest definition.  But this will help you understand the numbers you are seeing.

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: VR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G

Focal Length: 55mm

Shutter: 1/60

Aperture: f/5.6

Flash: SB-600

The easiest number to understand is the shutter speed.  The numbers you will see are 1, 2, 4, 8, 15, 30, 60, 125, 250...  but this is only the denominator half of the number, so the real shutter speeds are 1/1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/15, 1/30, 1/60, 1/125, 1/250.  These indicate how long the shutter will stay open in seconds and they are separated by stops.  So if your set at a shutter speed of 1/60 and you decrease the shutter speed to 1/30 then the shutter will remain open twice as long and doubling the light (one stop).  If you change your shutter speed from 1/60 to 1/125 of a second then the shutter will only remain open half as long and halving the light (one stop).  Clear as mud right.

Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: VR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G
Focal Length: 55mm
Shutter: 1/60
Aperture: f/5.6
Flash: SB-600

If you've shot with film, and probably with digital you've seen ISO numbers, even if you haven't known you have.  ISO 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600...  There are those doubling numbers again.  The ISO number tells you how fast your sensor responds to light.  This higher the number, the quicker the sensor responds to light. So lets say you are shooting ISO 400, if you move to a slower sensor of ISO 200 you will require twice as much light, if you move to a faster sensor of ISO 800 you will only require half as much light.

Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: VR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G
Focal Length: 55mm
Shutter: 1/60
Aperture: f/5.6
Flash: SB-600

The confusing number is the aperture or f/stop.  These numbers will look like 1, 1.4, 2, 2.8, 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22, 32.  These reference an adjustable hole (aperture) in the middle of the lens.  These numbers represent the diameter of the aperture.  Divide the focal length of the lens (i.e. 50mm) by the number and that is the diameter of the aperture.  So at f/2 the diameter in a 50mm lens will be 25mm.  At f/4 it will be 12.5mm.  And these again half and double the light.  If your lens is set to f/2.8 and you open it up to f/2 you just doubled the amount of light hitting the sensor, go from 2.8 to 4 and you just halved the light.  Simple.

But here is the absolutely best part of this article.  None of this junk matters!  While in future articles we will delve into the more creative aspects of shutter speeds and aperture settings this is just a primer.  I know when I got my first camera I was inquisitive and wanted to know what the heck all those numbers meant, and while there are reasons to know them, it isn't a requirement.  So if you aren't understanding them yet, don't worry about it, in the end it doesn't matter.

Next in the instructional series will be the Exposure Triangle: How To Make Those Nutty Numbers Work

Thanks for reading!