My next landscape photography workshop will be on Monday 28th December 2009 for all those wishing to escape the overindulgence or need an excuse not to go to the sales!
This will be a dawn to dusk workshop, for those who are keen to start at 6am near Hathersage. Those who like their beds can join us at breakfast in Hathersage a bit later. Sunset is around 4.00pm so I am happy to stay out until about 5pm to get the best of the days light.
The day will be spent capturing the waterfalls in Padley Gorge along with the moorland landscapes around Hathersage - hopefully with some mist, lovely soft winter light and maybe even some frost thrown in. Sadly, one thing I can't control is the weather!
I am limiting the group to five to ensure all get personal attention and help. The cost will be £65 per person and this includes breakfast (but not lunch or drinks later in the day).
It will be ideal for camera users of any ability. I will help you get the most out of your kit be it a compact through to a top end DSLR. The one thing you really will need is a tripod to make the most of the day.
We will be able to set up a laptop during breakfast so we can review images taken and to demonstrate workflow and basic techniques using Photoshop (and Elements) and Lightroom.
My aim is always to spend time with each student giving help specific to your needs. I am happy to hear from you in advance by email on things you specifically would like me to cover with you.
There will be some walking and light 'clambering' so while you don't need to be an athlete or mountain climber you will need to be able to get do some walking.
If you would like more information or would like to reserve a place, please drop me a message via my website at http://www.dougchinnery.co.uk/ or drop me an email.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Photographing Stars
Firstly, this image is a composite. I don't mind composite images, as long as the photographer is up front about it.
My reason for using two shots for this image is that while my wife and I climbed up to The Old Man of Storr on Skye in the night in order to photograph the dawn, the position of the Milky Way was wrong.
So the shot of the Old Man was taken at night (early hours of the morning before sunrise). The Milky Way image was taken a few days before near Gairloch and I have combined them.
To photograph the stars I set the camera to f2.8 (depth of field is irrelevant when photographing stars so the wide aperture keeps the shutter speed as fast as possible.).
I upped the ISO to 800 - some noise is not really an issue as it makes the stars look denser.
I sed a wide angle lens to capture the sweep of the galaxy - 16mm in fact.
The shutter speed was 30 seconds - this was long enough to records the stars but fast enough so they haven't moved much. If you zoom in to 100% you can still see they have moved a fraction. But at 30 seconds on a tripod they still record as dots of light, not streaks.
I also tweaked the white balance to bring up some of the colour in the sky, deepened the blacks in Lightroom and used a screen blending mode in reduced its opacity in Photoshop to bring out the full glory of what I had witnessed.
If I had used the stars as they were in the actual shot it wouldn't have made such a good image and the light pollution from Portree spoiled it too.
Some will feel this makes the image invalid. Some will feel there is no problem with it. I have no issues with it, as I said, as long as the photographer is up front about it and doesn't claim to have captured something they haven't in order to boost their 'status' or whatever.
My reason for using two shots for this image is that while my wife and I climbed up to The Old Man of Storr on Skye in the night in order to photograph the dawn, the position of the Milky Way was wrong.
So the shot of the Old Man was taken at night (early hours of the morning before sunrise). The Milky Way image was taken a few days before near Gairloch and I have combined them.
To photograph the stars I set the camera to f2.8 (depth of field is irrelevant when photographing stars so the wide aperture keeps the shutter speed as fast as possible.).
I upped the ISO to 800 - some noise is not really an issue as it makes the stars look denser.
I sed a wide angle lens to capture the sweep of the galaxy - 16mm in fact.
The shutter speed was 30 seconds - this was long enough to records the stars but fast enough so they haven't moved much. If you zoom in to 100% you can still see they have moved a fraction. But at 30 seconds on a tripod they still record as dots of light, not streaks.
I also tweaked the white balance to bring up some of the colour in the sky, deepened the blacks in Lightroom and used a screen blending mode in reduced its opacity in Photoshop to bring out the full glory of what I had witnessed.
If I had used the stars as they were in the actual shot it wouldn't have made such a good image and the light pollution from Portree spoiled it too.
Some will feel this makes the image invalid. Some will feel there is no problem with it. I have no issues with it, as I said, as long as the photographer is up front about it and doesn't claim to have captured something they haven't in order to boost their 'status' or whatever.
Just a couple of things...
Just a brief blog to catch up on some stuff from this week.
First of all, the Macro Photography Masterclass on Monday 30th November is now fully booked. If you would like advance notice of my workshops in different areas of photography please contact me via my website at http://www.dougchinnery.co.uk/ or send me a Flickrmail, or leave a message here with your contact info.
Next, I came across a photographers website this week, the quality of whose images astounded me. I was astounded I hadn't heard of him before either. I always encourage the students on my workshops to spend time where they can learning from images created by others. This photographers name is Marc Adamus and you can see his website here - http://www.marcadamus.com/index.php
If you only have a couple of minutes go into his personal favorites gallery. It took my breath away... and made me a bit jealous of those photographers who live in the Pacific Northwest of America. I love Scotland, Wales and all the other beautiful locations of the UK but Oregon, Washington State and Montana just seems to have landscapes and light on a different level.
We have been planning our 25th wedding anniversary holiday for a couple of years now and we settled on this area. It is an expensive trip with flights, accomodation, car hire and all the rest so we have been saving a little each month for two years and have another 18 months to go. I am going to try and get three weeks over there. If I come back with just a couple of images close to Marcs, I will be a happy chappy.
I also wanted to thank the Worksop Photographic Society for being brave enough to invite me to speak to them at one of their meetings. They are an enthusiastic and knowledgeable group with some superb photographers. Ages there ranged from around 12/13 to well, shall we say over retirement age with everything in between. Men and women who obvioulsy love photography and are keen to learn and improve. I hope I wasn't too boring.
I spoke on 'Making Money from Photography' and 'Perfecting Landscapes'. They have invited me back next year. Gluttons for punishment.
If you want to improve, whatever level you feel you are at now and whatever camera you have, no matter how basic, you will find them friendly and keen to encourgage you. They have their own website at http://www.worksop-photo-society.co.uk/ and you can pop along to a meeting to join - you are sure of a warm welcome.
On a final note, I would like some feedback on the kind of workshops you may be interested in to see if I can meet what people want. Would any of the following be of interest?
1. A workshop on either the 28th, 29th or 30th December - probably landscapes out in the Hathersage area - to escape the overindulgence or to be an excuse to miss the sales?
2. A workshop on workflow - from getting it right in camera, through downloading and backing up to using Lightroom and Photoshop or Elements to process your images and how to prepare them for print, the web etc?
3. A landscape workshop for the disabled or older photographer with mobility issues? Most landscape courses involve walking possibly a bit of hill climbing and so on. I am wondering if a day where you can work from a wheelchair, your car even or where just a few steps are needed from the parking spot would be of interest?
4. A photowalk workshop. I wondered if anyone thought a good idea for a workshop would be a walk where we all travel quite light along a route and photograph as we go, combining some exercise with photography - so whatever is along the route we capture, landscapes, wildlife, architecture, people - whatever, with me giving help and instruction as we go?
I would also be interested to hear if you have ever thought, "I could do with help on...." - maybe I can develop a workshop to meet a need that is not being met at the moment.
I appreciate you taking the time to comment and look forward to hearing your thoughts.
I had some prints delivered this week - off to put them in frames now, the exciting bit! I always leave my images on the wall too long. A case of the cobblers children having no shoes. I am a photographer and yet don't rotate my images often enough. (I also have to confess, very embarrasedly, that I even have some Ikea photos on the wall in the kitchen - they were supposed to be up there just for a few weeks when we moved in and I just haven't got round to taking them down and replacing them with my own. Imagine how embarrasing it is when visitors ask if they are mine. Hangs head in shame. Now they must go!)
Happy snapping
Doug
First of all, the Macro Photography Masterclass on Monday 30th November is now fully booked. If you would like advance notice of my workshops in different areas of photography please contact me via my website at http://www.dougchinnery.co.uk/ or send me a Flickrmail, or leave a message here with your contact info.
Next, I came across a photographers website this week, the quality of whose images astounded me. I was astounded I hadn't heard of him before either. I always encourage the students on my workshops to spend time where they can learning from images created by others. This photographers name is Marc Adamus and you can see his website here - http://www.marcadamus.com/index.php
If you only have a couple of minutes go into his personal favorites gallery. It took my breath away... and made me a bit jealous of those photographers who live in the Pacific Northwest of America. I love Scotland, Wales and all the other beautiful locations of the UK but Oregon, Washington State and Montana just seems to have landscapes and light on a different level.
We have been planning our 25th wedding anniversary holiday for a couple of years now and we settled on this area. It is an expensive trip with flights, accomodation, car hire and all the rest so we have been saving a little each month for two years and have another 18 months to go. I am going to try and get three weeks over there. If I come back with just a couple of images close to Marcs, I will be a happy chappy.
I also wanted to thank the Worksop Photographic Society for being brave enough to invite me to speak to them at one of their meetings. They are an enthusiastic and knowledgeable group with some superb photographers. Ages there ranged from around 12/13 to well, shall we say over retirement age with everything in between. Men and women who obvioulsy love photography and are keen to learn and improve. I hope I wasn't too boring.
I spoke on 'Making Money from Photography' and 'Perfecting Landscapes'. They have invited me back next year. Gluttons for punishment.
If you want to improve, whatever level you feel you are at now and whatever camera you have, no matter how basic, you will find them friendly and keen to encourgage you. They have their own website at http://www.worksop-photo-society.co.uk/ and you can pop along to a meeting to join - you are sure of a warm welcome.
On a final note, I would like some feedback on the kind of workshops you may be interested in to see if I can meet what people want. Would any of the following be of interest?
1. A workshop on either the 28th, 29th or 30th December - probably landscapes out in the Hathersage area - to escape the overindulgence or to be an excuse to miss the sales?
2. A workshop on workflow - from getting it right in camera, through downloading and backing up to using Lightroom and Photoshop or Elements to process your images and how to prepare them for print, the web etc?
3. A landscape workshop for the disabled or older photographer with mobility issues? Most landscape courses involve walking possibly a bit of hill climbing and so on. I am wondering if a day where you can work from a wheelchair, your car even or where just a few steps are needed from the parking spot would be of interest?
4. A photowalk workshop. I wondered if anyone thought a good idea for a workshop would be a walk where we all travel quite light along a route and photograph as we go, combining some exercise with photography - so whatever is along the route we capture, landscapes, wildlife, architecture, people - whatever, with me giving help and instruction as we go?
I would also be interested to hear if you have ever thought, "I could do with help on...." - maybe I can develop a workshop to meet a need that is not being met at the moment.
I appreciate you taking the time to comment and look forward to hearing your thoughts.
I had some prints delivered this week - off to put them in frames now, the exciting bit! I always leave my images on the wall too long. A case of the cobblers children having no shoes. I am a photographer and yet don't rotate my images often enough. (I also have to confess, very embarrasedly, that I even have some Ikea photos on the wall in the kitchen - they were supposed to be up there just for a few weeks when we moved in and I just haven't got round to taking them down and replacing them with my own. Imagine how embarrasing it is when visitors ask if they are mine. Hangs head in shame. Now they must go!)
Happy snapping
Doug
Monday, November 2, 2009
Macro Masterclass Workshop
I am holding a Macro Photography workshop on Monday 31st November at my home close to junction 31 of the M1 / the junction of the A57 with the A1.
If you have ever wanted to master macro photography or would like to use a macro lens for the first time (I will have three spare lenses for students to use for the day) this will be the workshop for you.
The atmosphere is relaxed and the discussions are kept as simple as possible - I aim to help you at a pace and level you find understandable. So if you are a novice or experienced camera user you will find the workshop helpful.
Macro photography is ideal for wet, dull days when you can't get out and shoot, or when you need to stay at home.
Working with natural light, studio lights and flash on a wide range of macro subjects we will look at how to perfect your macro images both technically and compositionally.
I provide a selection of high quality items ideal for macro images including flowers, shells, leaves, fossils, metal surfaces and so on.
We will look at floral photography using the maro lens, abstract and fine art macro photography, how to use things from around the home to produce stunning images. We will cover how to work in full manual mode as well as working in aperture priority and spend time demonstrating how depth of field affects macro images.
We will also look at the benefits of working in RAW and how to process your macro shots in Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Elements or Adobe Photoshop. I also cover how to have a workflow to maximise the quality of your images and how to concentrate on processing your very best shots. I also aim to look at how to convert your images into stunning black and white for that fine art look and how to use textures to further develop artistic effects.
A buffet lunch is included in the price of this relaxed and easy to follow workshop. My aim is for you to go home not only with a memory card full of stunning images, but also a solid understanding of how to keep making high quality macro images yourself.
Course participants are limited to four so that you can all have plenty of personal attention and help.
The day will start at 10am and finish around 3 to 4pm depending on your needs. The cost includes lunch and all the macro subjects we will photographing and use of a loan camera (There will be a Canon 5d and a 1ds mk2 available with Sigma 105mm macro lenses. I also have a third Canon fit Sigma 105mm macro lens available if you have a Canon Camera) and macro lens if you need one (just bring your own memory card so you can take the images home with you.) It would be best if you had a tripod to make the most of the day, although I have two tripods which will be available on loan if required.
The day will cost £55, payable on the day. Please use the 'contact us' form on my website to book a place at www.dougchinnery.co.uk
I hope you are able to join us.
PS. This workshop is now fully booked. If you would like advance notice of future workshops please just contact me via my website at http://www.dougchinnery.co.uk/ and I will email you as new workshops are announced.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Plagarism in Photography
I feel very uncomfortable with posting this image. I felt uncomfortable making it.
This is because I knew it is very similar to (but not nearly as good as) Joe Cornish's iconic image from the same location that graces the front cover of his superb book 'First Light'. Even the light, colour and tones are not disimilar to Joes. You can see a Joes image here on his website - www.joecornish.com/products/view_product.asp?catid=408&am...
It feels like plagarism.
So should I have taken it? Should I have posted it? Should I sell it?
I went to the location like just about every other photographer who goes to Skye, because it is such a stunning place. The Cullins are actually much closer to the shore here than most images indicate. Our use of wide angle lenses pushes the mountains into the distance in the image. It was this that struck me most when I first came round the hairpin bend into the small fishing village. The Cullins loom up and dominate the senses.
The 'beach' is boulder strewn in front of low cliffs. At dusk, if the weather blesses you, the Cullin look superb, ominous, splendid. All lenses point towards them in an effort to catch the mood.
Many who go there are thwarted by cloud and rain cloaking the hills, coming away with nothing. Yet the place is so powerful we return again and again in an effort to capture the view.
You will often find a gaggle (or should that be 'a click'?) of photographers all bent on the same mission. On this visit of mine there was at least ten photographers scattered along the foreshore.
So here it was I set up my tripod. As soon as I saw the small layered cliff and the beautiful lichen covered spherical boulder I knew I was standing where Joe did. I understood straight away why he had composed the image as he did and could do no more than make a similar image myself.
Now this bothers me. That my 'take' on the scene was so similar to his. I tried other compositions, some better than others, but this is the one I favored. I do have three or four other images made on the same evening but none I like as much as this one. I think Joe got it dead right, but I would much rather have found something of my own.
So my dilemma is this. Should I have made the image? If I made it (as I did), should I have kept it for my own viewing only or is it okay to display it here and on my own website? Would it be right to offer it for sale to my customers? Is it plagarism?
I once did plagarise an image on purpose. I had seen Pete Bridgewoods image of an old factory in Hull and adored it. I was up in the area and just had to have a go myself. I set out to stand where he stood and then try to process the image as he did - it is a heavily processed image. This was done to learn technique, and because it was an image I love. I let Pete know about it, sent him a copy and it is on my website and here on Flickr. Pete was okay with me selling it, but I am not. It is an almost identical copy of his and while I love it and am pleased to have made it, I will not sell it.
This image is different. I went there, not because of Joe, but because of the place. I didn't set out to get an image so close to Joes. In fact, I was hoping for more stormy, ominous weather with more dramatic lighting to be honest.
I have stood at the side of the River Coupall at the foot of the mighty Stob Dearg and tried to capture the wonderful shape of that mountain with the river and tree in the foreground. So have countless others. We all, well nearly all, go there because it is such a magnificent view and many of us display and sell the results of our trip. It has become a cliched image but why do I not worry about selling my images of it?
I think it is because that while the view is iconic, I have no idea who made the view famous. Who first set up their tripod there, who discovered it? I have no idea and so it doesn't make me feel uncomfortable.
How do you feel about this? Should we view the landscape as ours, 'unplagarisable'? The clouds are never the same, the light is always unique, the waves change - any image, while it can be similar will never be identical in the way text lifted from one writers work and dropped into a students homework is. It is not a copy and paste excercise.
Or, once a particular composition has been captured and made famous by a photographer does that put it off limits as a commercial composition for the rest of us? Should we respect their skill and art, perhaps make a private image for ourselves, but for ourselves only?
How many will be heading up to the Old Man of Storr now the winning image of the Landscape Photographer of the Year 2009 has been announced? How many will try and make a panorama from the same viewpoint. (I climbed up there last week in the dark and have come back with some images I am reasonable happy with. Just hours later at a cafe, the owner gave me my first glimpse of the winning image in the local Skye paper - I am relieved to say the composition is totally different to mine and yet while I was up there I saw a photographer moving his tripod around from the very area where the winning shot had been taken. Coincidence? Or, had he seen the image and was now trying to recreate it? I have no idea. Whatever, I just hope his horizon is straighter! :) ).
I would really appreciate your thoughts on my issues here. I haven't made up my mind and could do with some wise guidance.
This is because I knew it is very similar to (but not nearly as good as) Joe Cornish's iconic image from the same location that graces the front cover of his superb book 'First Light'. Even the light, colour and tones are not disimilar to Joes. You can see a Joes image here on his website - www.joecornish.com/products/view_product.asp?catid=408&am...
It feels like plagarism.
So should I have taken it? Should I have posted it? Should I sell it?
I went to the location like just about every other photographer who goes to Skye, because it is such a stunning place. The Cullins are actually much closer to the shore here than most images indicate. Our use of wide angle lenses pushes the mountains into the distance in the image. It was this that struck me most when I first came round the hairpin bend into the small fishing village. The Cullins loom up and dominate the senses.
The 'beach' is boulder strewn in front of low cliffs. At dusk, if the weather blesses you, the Cullin look superb, ominous, splendid. All lenses point towards them in an effort to catch the mood.
Many who go there are thwarted by cloud and rain cloaking the hills, coming away with nothing. Yet the place is so powerful we return again and again in an effort to capture the view.
You will often find a gaggle (or should that be 'a click'?) of photographers all bent on the same mission. On this visit of mine there was at least ten photographers scattered along the foreshore.
So here it was I set up my tripod. As soon as I saw the small layered cliff and the beautiful lichen covered spherical boulder I knew I was standing where Joe did. I understood straight away why he had composed the image as he did and could do no more than make a similar image myself.
Now this bothers me. That my 'take' on the scene was so similar to his. I tried other compositions, some better than others, but this is the one I favored. I do have three or four other images made on the same evening but none I like as much as this one. I think Joe got it dead right, but I would much rather have found something of my own.
So my dilemma is this. Should I have made the image? If I made it (as I did), should I have kept it for my own viewing only or is it okay to display it here and on my own website? Would it be right to offer it for sale to my customers? Is it plagarism?
I once did plagarise an image on purpose. I had seen Pete Bridgewoods image of an old factory in Hull and adored it. I was up in the area and just had to have a go myself. I set out to stand where he stood and then try to process the image as he did - it is a heavily processed image. This was done to learn technique, and because it was an image I love. I let Pete know about it, sent him a copy and it is on my website and here on Flickr. Pete was okay with me selling it, but I am not. It is an almost identical copy of his and while I love it and am pleased to have made it, I will not sell it.
This image is different. I went there, not because of Joe, but because of the place. I didn't set out to get an image so close to Joes. In fact, I was hoping for more stormy, ominous weather with more dramatic lighting to be honest.
I have stood at the side of the River Coupall at the foot of the mighty Stob Dearg and tried to capture the wonderful shape of that mountain with the river and tree in the foreground. So have countless others. We all, well nearly all, go there because it is such a magnificent view and many of us display and sell the results of our trip. It has become a cliched image but why do I not worry about selling my images of it?
I think it is because that while the view is iconic, I have no idea who made the view famous. Who first set up their tripod there, who discovered it? I have no idea and so it doesn't make me feel uncomfortable.
How do you feel about this? Should we view the landscape as ours, 'unplagarisable'? The clouds are never the same, the light is always unique, the waves change - any image, while it can be similar will never be identical in the way text lifted from one writers work and dropped into a students homework is. It is not a copy and paste excercise.
Or, once a particular composition has been captured and made famous by a photographer does that put it off limits as a commercial composition for the rest of us? Should we respect their skill and art, perhaps make a private image for ourselves, but for ourselves only?
How many will be heading up to the Old Man of Storr now the winning image of the Landscape Photographer of the Year 2009 has been announced? How many will try and make a panorama from the same viewpoint. (I climbed up there last week in the dark and have come back with some images I am reasonable happy with. Just hours later at a cafe, the owner gave me my first glimpse of the winning image in the local Skye paper - I am relieved to say the composition is totally different to mine and yet while I was up there I saw a photographer moving his tripod around from the very area where the winning shot had been taken. Coincidence? Or, had he seen the image and was now trying to recreate it? I have no idea. Whatever, I just hope his horizon is straighter! :) ).
I would really appreciate your thoughts on my issues here. I haven't made up my mind and could do with some wise guidance.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
An inspirational photographer
As always I love to see the work of other fine photographers and came across John Cornforth - his website displays some breathtaking landscapes and wildlife imagery - please hop over there and immerse yourself in beauty
http://www.cornforthimages.com/
http://www.cornforthimages.com/
How do I find out if my pictures have been on the front page of Explore?
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