Essential Gear (Thoughts after four shooting classes)

We recently finished a series of four shooting courses here at Light and there is one piece of gear that is consistently needed.  Regardless of subject, technique, camera, etc. the HoodLoupe is a must have.

I did a video last summer regarding the HL (HoodLoupe Video) and every shooting session reconfirms. 

There is such critical information available to us on the LCD whether in Live View before the shot or when reviewing images/histograms after the shot; try not to pass it up.  The loupe will help you eliminate distractions and overcome bright lighting conditions to focus on the LCD.

As you know, I am always a full disclosure guy.  Hoodman does not compensate me for endorsing their gear.  It is just the best stuff out there. 

If you do not have one yet, just do it.

Fiat Lux!

Bull

The Torn Edges Border Effect

In Adobe Photoshop CS5 there are countless ways to get creative with your photography. One of my favorite ways to make an image stand out is to use a cool border effect. One style a lot of people like is the "Torn Edges" look.

We'll start by opening a new image in Adobe Photoshop. In the layers panel double click on the Background Layer and rename the layer "Border Effect," and hit OK. The layer is now unlocked and editable. Next, add a layer mask to the Border Effect layer by clicking on the Add Layer Mask icon located at the bottom of the layers panel; the symbol looks like a square with a small circle in the middle. You should now see a white layer mask appear on the right of your layer thumbnail.

Select the brush tool from your tools panel or tap the 'B' key. Be sure to set the foreground color to black and the background color to white. Next, go to your Brush panel (if you do not see it go to Window> Brush, Or, click the panel button 

 on the left side of the options bar. With the Brush panel open you'll see a list of brush setting displayed on the left. Start clean by unchecking all of the brush setting options. Click on 'Brush Tip Shape' located at the top. Displayed on the right will be several brush tip shapes, select a soft, round brush from the menu. In the brush options find the Size slider and make the brush between 120-125px in diameter. Be sure that hardness is set to 0% and spacing is at the default of 25%.

Go back to the brush settings list and select Dual Brush (when selected a check mark will automatically appear next to Dual Brush). In the dual brush settings select the 60px Chalk brush, leaving the brush options set at their defaults. In the brush stroke preview at the bottom of the Brush panel, you'll see your brush shape change from a soft round brush to a textured, rough edged brush. For now hide or close the Brush panel.

Now that the brush is configured to give uneven edges and texture, go back to your Border Effect layer. On the Border Effect layer click on the layer mask thumbnail to be sure that it is selected. Be sure that your brush tool is still selected and that you are painting with black. Move your cursor into the image and begin to paint along all four edges of your picture. You will see the edges of the image turn rough and uneven. The beauty of using a layer mask to create the border is the fact that it's non-destructive.

If you look at the border and decide it's not quite what you had in mind you can paint with white on the layer mask and reveal more of the original image. You can always modify the brush by changing the size and opacity. You can also experiment further with the brush shape by going back to the Brush panel and adjusting the spacing, scatter or count settings of the Dual Brush. Once you have found a brush you like save it as a preset! At the bottom right of the Brush panel you'll see a New Brush icon (this looks just like the New Layer icon in the Layers panel) Click on the New Brush icon and give your brush a distinct name like "Torn edges." You'll now be able to find the brush you created in the Brush Presets panel and use it whenever you need.

To finish the effect, create a new layer and fill with your color of choice (or leave it transparent) and move under your background in the layer stack.

You can follow these steps to create a variety of brush presets to use for creating fun and original borders for your images. You can also use the other Brush Settings in conjunction with Dual Brush to make even more styles of brushes.

If you have any questions about this or any of the tips you see here on the Light Workshops Blog contact us at info@LightWorkshops.com

Fiat Lux!

Light Classroom Photosynth

Playing around with Microsoft Photosynth today and shot a few images of the Light classroom.  This one was just a test so I could figure out how to really make these cool.  Look for more soon.

A Photography Filled Weekend

This weekend was filled with photography! We had our Beginning DSLR workshop with Hal Schmitt Saturday and Sunday. It was a huge success with a full house of 15 participants. Our students learned essential tips and techniques from Hal on how to use their new DSLR to its full potential. Saturday we took the class to Morro Bay Harbor for some shooting practice and also met up with our Meetup members for a fantastic sunset. Check out the Photo Album!

​Morro Bay Harbor Meetup © Hal Schmitt 2011

Sunday morning we went back down to the Embarcadero for some more practice. Students were able to photograph birds, seals, boats and everything else Morro Bay has to offer. We came back to the school in the afternoon to finish up with a discussion on flash integration and our essential gear list. We had an awesome weekend with great weather and a wonderful group of students. 

Thanks to our workshop participants for joining the Light family, and thanks to our members for another great Meetup!

Fiat Lux!

Geotagging Safety - A Few Things to Think About

As many of you know we at Light strive to educate our clients as much as possible so they can make the best choices with their photography, gear, software, workflow, etc. In the same spirit, I attached a relatively recent Army training presentation concerning Geotagging safety.

There are some amazing advances in technology these days and they have been applied fairly aggressively with social networking and sharing applications. Cool stuff but sometimes there are some things going on behind the scenes that you may or may not want.

The discussion below is from an operational, military perspective but it applies to most folks. I have shown it to a few people so far and most made some immediate changes to their phones, cameras, and more.  Not trying to make anyone paranoid but good information.

Feel free to shoot me an email at Hal@LIGHTWorkshops.com if you have any questions, comments, concerns, or feedback.

GeotaggingSafety Army



Fiat Lux!

Farewell to Photographer Don Gale

We are sad to hear of the passing of photography icon Don Gale. Don was an award-winning photographer who earned national recognition for his stunning nature and landscape photography. He is  remembered as a talented and generous teacher, who loved to share his passion with his students. Our deepest condolences to Don's family and friends.

Farewell Don, you will be greatly missed.

Fiat Lux

Early Bird Price Extended to January 14th for Introduction to The Photo Essay with David Wells!

If you missed out on the Early Bird pricing for David Wells' Introduction to The Photo Essay workshop February 28-March 4, we're giving you a second chance! We've extended our Early Bird pricing to January 14th. This is an incredible opportunity to work with one of the most respected photographers in photo journalism.

David will define and guide you through the necessary steps to creating a powerful visual narrative.You'll then be set loose on your own assignment with David by your side to provide valuable input as you go.

Join a master of the photo-essay for a one-week exploration of the simultaneously disciplined strategy and magical process that turns a bunch of simple pictures into a powerful photo-essay.

Take a look at David's current project "Foreclosed Dreams" and visit TheWellsPoint.com to learn more about David and his incredible adventures!

We love to have David here and are so excited to be offering this course

Register Today!

Fiat Lux!

Glaciers Up Close

I was putting together a new PDF for our upcoming Alaska cruises and came across this image.  The staff had never seen it and thought it was pretty cool.

I took the shot from a small zodiac-like boat as I headed to shore for some different vantage points.  The shot below is a quick pano I took from the bluffs overlooking this glacier and fjord.  I am sometimes prone to hyperbole but this experience was life changing.

​The yacht isn't even in the image.

It seems as the boat is right next to the glacier in the background but is, in fact, about 1/2 mile away.  The face of the glacier is over 500', just an unbelievable scale up there.  As you might expect it is not at all safe to get any closer to the face.  There are huge calving events and also ice launching up from the depths as well.  We normally only think about the glacier calving above the water but it also splits below the water line.  When the submerged ice breaks free it shoots to the surface and sometimes launches airborne.

Fiat Lux!

Happy New Year!

We're just three days into the New Year and already our 2011 January and February workshops are filling up!

We've got some great beginning courses scheduled for anyone with a new camera. We're also bringing back two of our most popular workshops Coastal Discoveries and The Best of Light! These courses are designed to get you out shooting all day on the beautiful Central Coast.

This weekend is Sea Pines Golf Resort's 3rd Annual Snow Day. The Crew from Light Workshops will be there taking some fun family portraits and enjoying the festivities. The fun goes from 3-8p, bring the whole family and get a great picture to take home!

If you want to stay up-to-date on all the great events happening at Light this year sign-up to receive our monthly newsletter. Get free tips from Director Hal Schmitt, special offers, and all the updates on the events happening at the Second Annual California Photo Festival October 12-16, 2011!

Check out last week's newsletter. "A New Year of Photographic Adventure is Here!"

Fiat Lux!

Guest Blogging on Rick Sammon's Site

Doing a little guest blogger duty over at Rick Sammon's blog.  Check out the link below. Rick Sammon's Blog

Fiat Lux!

A Foggy Moon Eclipse

Last night my 3-yr old daughter and I were able to get a few snaps and a few videos of the eclipse. Though it was a light foggy night I was able to get a couple interesting shots of the moon getting covered up.

Reagan tried to get a few with her little Xsi and 85mm but she was not pleased with her results.

I set up the Canon 7D with a 100-400mm on an Induro CT-313 tripod and the BH-55 from Really Right Stuff with a Canon Cable Release (easy for a 3-yr old to handle as well). So actually, I guess Reagan took the majority of the photos!

Most everything was taken as stills during the video recording. Once I get the video put together I'll try to get something up so you can see the fog blowing by the moon. It was pretty spectacular to watch.

For this collage I opened several images from Lightroom as layers. I doubled the length of the canvas size and created a black background.  I masked the moons so that I could minimize the black area around them  (making it easier to grab them with the "auto select" tool option on my move tool as well as making the document size a bit smaller). That way when I click on each moon it automatically selects the moon I want. I then put each moon into a "lightening" blend mode...I chose Linear Dodge just to see how it looked and stuck with it. I'm sure there are others that would work just as well.

I then used guides to line up each of the moons so that they are centered on the document as well as in line with each other. I cropped any excess canvas off and Voila! A beautiful moon pano ready for Christmas!

Keep shooting! Even when you think it's too cloudy!

-Victoria

A Festive Meet Up with Light Workshops

This weekend we had a fun and festive Meet Up with our members here at Light Workshops. Our original plan had been a sunset shoot out at Montaña De Oro, but the weather kept us indoors. We made the best of it with a few different macro setups, yummy snacks and egg nog!

We brought out the Canon 100, 180 and 65mm macro lenses and captured some fun images of a lovely poinsettia, household spices, and our school Christmas Tree. While normally you might not think to take pictures of cinnamon and sugar or the ornaments of a Christmas Tree, but with a macro lens these subjects become much more interesting and beautiful.

 We also introduced a new assistant to our members Saturday. Miss Reagan Schmitt was at the school giving advice to those who needed help with proper exposure and focal length for their subjects.

This was our last Meet Up of 2010 but we'll have many more in the new year. If you would like to join our Meet Up group visit the Light Workshop's MeetUp.com Page. If you're already a Light Workshops member and have any ideas for future Meet Ups, don't hesitate to share them. Also visit LIGHTWorkshops.com for our most current list of photography workshops.

Happy Holidays Everyone!

and...

Fiat Lux!

David Wells is returning in 2011!

We're very excited have David Wells returning to Light Workshops in 2011!

​©2010 David Wells

David is a free-lance photographer, based in Providence, Rhode Island. He specializes in intercultural communications and the use of light and shadow to enhance visual narratives.

His photo-essays have been funded by fellowships from Nikon/National Press Photographers Association, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, the MacArthur Foundation's Program of Research and Writing on International Peace and Cooperation, the Alicia Patterson Foundation and the Fulbright Foundation.

David will be bringing his expertise in Photo Journalism to Light Workshops with his "Introduction to the Photo Essay" course February 28-March 4, 2011.  During the week you will be following an assignment from start to finish and get incredible input and review as you go! You'll learn what makes a good story and how to create a visual narrative with your photographs.

You can register now for this incredible experience!

To learn more about David and his work visit 
http://davidhwells.com/index.html
http://thewellspoint.com/about/

Meet Up with Light Workshops this Saturday for a Coralina Cove Sunset!

Weather permitting we'll be hosting another Meet Up this Saturday, December 18th. We will first be meeting here at the school at 3:45p to get a good carpool together. We'll try to get on the road by 4pm and head into Montaña De Oro to Coralina Cove via the Bluff Trail (just past the MDO Visitor's Center).

If the weather doesn't cooperate and we get rained out, we have a back-up plan! We'll switch gears and put on a great flick from National Geographic called "The Presidents Photographer." This movie is about the photographers who have commemorated the everyday events and momentous occasions experienced by American presidents during a 50-year span. For more information or to join this meet up click here!

If you are new to the Light Workshops Meet Up Group, it's really easy to join. Just visit http://www.meetup.com/LIGHT-Photographic-Workshops/ and click "Join Us" at the top right of the page. Once you're a member you can RSVP for our latest Meet Up. You can also get notifications about our Meet Ups by following us on Twitter.

We try to host these meet ups twice a month. It's a great opportunity to meet and shoot with other local photogs in the area. You'll also have a chance to meet the crew at Light Workshops and get help with your camera/workflow questions.

We look forward to seeing you!

Fiat Lux!

The Beauty of the Virtual Copy (No Pixels were Created or Harmed in the Making of this Post)

One of my favorite things about Lightroom is the Virtual Copy feature.  Referencing the same source file (negative file) Lightroom allows the user multiple versions of an image.  Even better, since the whole process is procedural (very simply, no pixels pushed) this can be accomplished quickly and without much additional storage space or processing power required.

​Fake Infrared Preset

To create a Virtual Copy, select any image (if multiple images are selected ensure the image you want to "copy" is active) and then right click with your pointer over the image thumbnail.  From the flyout menu choose "Create Virtual Copy."  You could also use the keyboard shortcut of CTRL (Win) / CMD (Mac) + '.

The Virtual Copy (VC) will appear immediately after the original preview and is automatically stacked.  The VC is easily identified by the upturned page effect on the lower left corner of the Grid View or Filmstrip thumbnail.

​Fake IR with Color Preset

To experiment with another version send the VC to the Develop Module and optimize again with different settings.  This is a great way to play around and find other solutions to creating images with drama, impact, and wow factor.  To push even further, make multiple Virtual Copies and optimize as many ways as you can dream up.

The series of images on this page were created very quickly by copying the original (at the very top) three times and then applying  the following presets: Fake Infrared, Fake Infrared with Color, and Fake HDR.  I will talk more about these presets and show the settings in future posts.

​Fake HDR Preset

2011 schedule is filling up and will be completely posted soon.  Hope to see you here or at the California Photo Fest in October.

Fiat Lux!

Ice Crystals do Cool Things to Light

Evening up here in Alaska and there are ice crystals hanging in the air.  The light from different ground sources is channeled up as if it was carried via fiber optic cable.  Makes some interesting images.  These shots were handheld with a Canon 5D Mk II and an EF 24mm f/1.4L.

​Prudhoe Bay Concert Lights Under the Full Moon

Fiat Lux!

An Epic week with Hanson Fong

Last week we had Hanson Fong, internationally known portrait and wedding photographer and Canon Explorer of Light come for 4 days to teach the art of Lighting and Posing. We had limited the class to 8 people and were able to create an incredible learning environment for the students.

The first day was spent learning Hanson's tips and tricks to making your everyday client look fabulous. We reached out to the local community for our models and selected individuals and families who represented your everyday customer looking for a great portrait.

Over the next few days students learned how to use facial features and body type to their advantage when posing and lighting their subjects.  

It’s very rare to be able to have such hands-on experience and hands-on learning with such an incredible instructor. It has always been a treat to have Hanson here at Light, and the workshops get better with every visit. To Learn more about Hanson Fong visit  http://www.hansonfong.com/

Don't miss Hanson at our Second Annual California Photo Festival October 12-16, 2011. Registration opens January 15th!  

CaliforniaPhotoFest.com/

Curious what's happening next at LIGHT? Visit LIGHTworkshops.com

As Hal Says...Fiat Lux!

Before the Blow

In the arctic for a bit longer and there is a blizzard raging outside, about -40 wind chill right now and expected to get worse for the next couple days.  Up here the general term for the type of weather we are experiencing is a "blow."  Not too surprising as the wind is howling.

I was able to photograph a few things during the couple of hours of daylight and before the wind kicked up.  The shot up top is a single image from my Canon 5D Mk II and 24mm f/1.4L.  Processed with Lightroom and Photoshop CS5.  If stuck inside tomorrow I'll put up the image progression from start to finish.

The second image is a four shot stitched panorama.  Images were processed in LR and stitched in Photoshop CS5.  After the stitch I returned to Lightroom to complete the illustration effect with one of my presets.

Fiat Lux!

Quick Tip Over at Rick Sammon's New Blog

Quick tip from Hal over at Rick's blog. RickSammon.com

Fiat Lux!

Meet Up this Weekend for a Group Shoot

The Light staff will be getting together Saturday afternoon at 5 PM to photograph the sunset and more down in Morro Bay.

To let you know where we'll be on a more regular basis we created a Meetup.com group.  Although it sounds like a dating site, Meetup provides a simple way to meet other photographers and digital artists to share our work, ideas, stories, and have some fun.

The following link will take you to the Light group at Meetup.

Light Meetup

Hope to see you on Saturday!

Fiat Lux!