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exposure

How To Make the Jump To Manual Mode

January 15, 2013 by Steve Berardi 10 Comments

At first, manual mode can seem a little intimidating. Finding the right exposure just doesn’t seem as simple as finding the right f-number, does it? That’s probably why most photographers start with Aperture Priority mode before jumping to full manual.

But, shooting in manual will put you in complete control of the image making process. And luckily, there’s an easy way to make the jump to manual mode, while still treating it somewhat like aperture priority mode. Here’s how: [Read more…] about How To Make the Jump To Manual Mode

Filed Under: Tips Tagged With: aperture, av, camera, canon, exposure, histogram, m, manual, mode, priority, program, shutter, shutter speed, slr

How To Photograph Birds In Bad Light

December 10, 2012 by Vic Berardi 19 Comments

Photo by Vic Berardi
Photo by Vic Berardi
You’ve probably said it yourself and you’ve heard it said many times, “I decided to stay home today because the lighting was so awful.”

If you’re like many beginning bird photographers, then you check the weather forecast hoping it calls for sunny blue skies. But, then you get depressed when the forecast calls for “mostly cloudy skies” and a chance for rain or snow. You begin to wonder why you have all that expensive camera equipment!

But don’t fret too hard about it! Yes, it’s true that deep blue skies can be great for photographing birds in flight, but it’s actually cloudy skies that create the lighting situations for the most dynamic or dramatic photos, especially those of perched birds. [Read more…] about How To Photograph Birds In Bad Light

Filed Under: Tips, Wildlife Tagged With: birds, clouds, cloudy, dark, exposure, flight, handheld, hawk, light, low, overcast, perched, tripod

There’s No Such Thing As Bad Light

September 17, 2012 by Steve Berardi 9 Comments

California Poppy / Photo by Steve Berardi
California Poppy / Photo by Steve Berardi
In photography, there’s always a lot of talk about “good light” and “bad light.” Especially when it comes to specific subjects (like that popular rule that says the only “good light” for photographing landscapes is at sunrise or sunset).

But, as I create and look at more and more images, the more I’ve realized that these “rules” always have exceptions. There’s really no such thing as a type of light that’s always bad for a specific subject.

For example, it’s often said that the best light for photographing wildflowers is under overcast skies (I’ve even said it myself here on PN!). And, for a long time, I would only photograph wildflowers under overcast skies (or with some kind of light diffuser). But, then I started seeing all these great images of wildflowers under bright sunlight. I really liked how the bright sunlight helped “light up” the inside of the flower, so I started looking at wildflowers differently ever since then, and now I have numerous photos of wildflowers under bright sunlight (like the one above). [Read more…] about There’s No Such Thing As Bad Light

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: bad, bright, condition, exposure, good, landscape, light, lighting, overcast, sunny, wildflower

How a Light Diffuser Can Help Your Close-Up Photos

June 19, 2012 by Steve Berardi 7 Comments

In a previous post, I talked about how you can build a light diffuser out of a shower curtain and wire clothes hanger. You can use this diffuser to help cast a soft light on your subjects, which helps eliminate harsh shadows and really makes the colors of your subject pop. It’s especially helpful for photographing wildflowers.

Here’s an example of the difference this diffuser can make: [Read more…] about How a Light Diffuser Can Help Your Close-Up Photos

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: balanced, blown, close, close up, control, curtain, diffuser, exposure, flower, harsh, highlights, light, Macro, out, shadows, shower, soft, wildflower

Why You Should Always Shoot Lots of Photos

May 29, 2012 by Steve Berardi 8 Comments

Creosote Bush / Photos by Steve Berardi
Creosote Bush / Photos by Steve Berardi
There seems to be a common habit among photographers to take just one shot of something and then immediately move on.

Although you can definitely get good shots this way, I think it’s also beneficial to slow down a little bit and take lots of photos of your subject. Here are a few reasons why: [Read more…] about Why You Should Always Shoot Lots of Photos

Filed Under: Tips Tagged With: bracketing, capture, changing, composition, exposure, golden hours, landscape, light, lots, photos, sharp, sharper, sharpness, shoot, shots, take, Wildlife

3 Ways To Prevent Posterization

January 31, 2012 by Steve Berardi 18 Comments

Creosote (Larrea Tridentata) / Photo by Steve Berardi
Creosote (Larrea Tridentata) / Photo by Steve Berardi
One of the most annoying problems in digital photography is posterization (as seen in the photo above). It can turn your beautiful sunset photos into a jagged mess. But, luckily there are a few ways to prevent this ugly problem: [Read more…] about 3 Ways To Prevent Posterization

Filed Under: Tips Tagged With: 16-bit, 8-bit, adobe, degradation, distortion, exposure, gradient, histogram, methods, photoshop, pixelation, post processing, posterization, prevent, processing, rgb, smooth, ways

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