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How To Take Photos From a Kayak

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Photo by Jim Braswell
Photo by Jim Braswell

Note from Steve: Today I’m excited to introduce another new contributor to PhotoNaturalist: Jim Braswell. Jim is a great wildlife/landscape photographer from Missouri, and his first post is all about taking photos from a kayak! Enjoy!

Want to have some real fun? I was turned on to photographing wildlife from a kayak by a friend of mine a few years ago. After a lot of convincing (yes, I had a lot of concerns about taking my expensive camera equipment in a small vessel, over open water), we loaded up two kayaks and headed out to photograph at a Conservation Area. After a day of photographing American white pelicans at pretty close range, I fell in love with the thrill of kayaking the backwaters, where human intervention is rare and the wildlife abundant.

So, then I purchased my own kayak and have since been out hundreds of times, capturing some pretty unique wildlife encounters. [Read more…] about How To Take Photos From a Kayak

Take Only Pictures, Leave Only Footprints

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Chocolate Lily / Photo by Steve Berardi
Chocolate Lily / Photo by Steve Berardi
Now that we’re well into spring here in the northern hemisphere (and getting ready for summer), there’s lots of wildflowers in bloom. This is one of the best times of year for photography because the wildflowers also bring a lot of other cool stuff to photograph (such as butterflies and other insects).

With so many exciting subjects, sometimes it’s easy to forget that this is also one of the most fragile times of year for the natural world. So, it’s important to “leave no trace” when you’re out on the trail.

Leaving no trace means you leave the wilderness just as you found it (or maybe a little better by picking up any trash you find). It means the only thing you take away is photographs, and the only thing you leave behind is footprints. But, you should also be careful just where you leave those footprints.

To ensure you leave no trace, here are a few guidelines to follow when you’re out on a trail: [Read more…] about Take Only Pictures, Leave Only Footprints

How To Add Contrast To Landscape Photos

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Sunrise in the Mojave / Photo by Steve Berardi
Sunrise in the Mojave / Photo by Steve Berardi
Adding contrast to a landscape photo is one way to make it a more compelling image. When we think of the word “contrast” we usually think about contrasting colors or brightness. But, there’s also another type of contrast that you can capture in your images: subjective contrast.

Here’s a quick look at the different types of contrast and how you can capture them in your images:

Color Contrast

The most common way of adding more contrast to your images is photographing a scene with strong contrasting colors. With landscape photography, this is usually pretty easy to do around the “golden hours” — where you’ll likely have some of your scene in the shade while the rest of the scene is extra saturated with that warm light of sunrise or sunset. [Read more…] about How To Add Contrast To Landscape Photos

How to Reduce Noise in Your Photos

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Noise is that ugly discoloration that makes your photos look “grainy” (like in the image on the right, where the noise has been exaggerated to make it more clear). It’s one of the most annoying things you’ll have to deal with in digital images.

Although you’ll never get rid of noise completely, there are a few things you can do to reduce it so it’s barely noticeable by the viewer: [Read more…] about How to Reduce Noise in Your Photos

How To Protect Your Photos Online

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In a previous post, I talked about the benefits of sharing your photos online. But, even after reading about these great benefits, you might be worried that someone will steal your photos if you post them online.

Well, luckily there’s a few things you can do to help protect your images:

#1 – Add Watermarks

Photo by Steve Berardi
Photo by Steve Berardi

[Read more…] about How To Protect Your Photos Online

Benefits of Sharing Your Photos Online

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Photo by Steve Berardi
Photo by Steve Berardi
One of the great things about being a photographer today is the ability to easily share your photos online, making them publicly viewable by lots of people.

You might be hesitant to share your images online, with the fear that someone might steal them. But, there are some great benefits to sharing your images: [Read more…] about Benefits of Sharing Your Photos Online