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Nine Reasons to Manually Focus When Taking Pictures (Part 1)

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Most Digital (and film) cameras today offer a nice feature called Manual Focus.  This has not always been the case. The older more experienced folks remember that in the good old film days there was a big excitement when auto focus was introduced as a new feature.

There are many reasons to use Auto Focus – it is fast, accurate, and let you, the photographer concentrate on composition, lighting, framing and other technical and artistic factor of your picture.

However, there are still many situations when Manual focus can give better results than auto focus. [image cc by dalantech][Read More…]

Having Fun @ The Pool #3

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It has been quite a long time since the last post of fun at the pool, but now with summer kicking in big time, it is time to take a nice refreshing Ice Tea Beer and hang out in the pool.

In the last few weeks it was a great joy for me to see how the DIYP group is evolving into a group that shares more then pictures that show how to build stuff. Of course, pictures of how to build stuff are always welcomed, but posting images of fine art, extreme lighting, portraiture, and more are a great way to leverage the group to a place where photographers can talk, share and interact together (and of course, the discussion panel is always open). I also had great fun watching the at my home contest submissions accumulate into the pool, as great images and lots of fun. Again, thanks for everyone who participated.

Lastly, if anyone knows of a way to create the mosaic below by using a tag, I’ll appreciate it if you share this data in the comments. I’ll greatly improve the time it takes me to round the pictures into a post.

Nothing Like The Morning Cup Of Coffee by DownTown Pictures smoke fire by morrmota Gota de agua by bajolagua.es Yummy! by AlexCampagna In life, as in art, the beautiful moves in curves. by sharaff
Flower by Dean Pemberton P1110440 by generalsahab Circled round by Epa by NAPIE CURIOSITY by Adam Melancon Mean Machine by nickwheeleroz Big White Boxes by auer1816
The Vortex by DownTown Pictures There is not one blade of grass, there is no color in this world that is not intended to make us rejoice by sharaff by Bz*Em Bannister by unevieboheme 002009060908 copy by taylorjonesphoto Emerge Into Life by Jon Neftali
ryan, tom and max by kryss martin Sunbath by beldyga.com slow suicide by Latente | Fa una cazzo di caldo LIFE by mahooya by wyzard Anna by akosphoto
Warp Speed by auer1816 For Mothers Day by DownTown Pictures by rsplatpc I Am Legend by DownTown Pictures Neon Egg by Mr_M_Montgomery Step Into My Life by DownTown Pictures
Pay Me! by rsplatpc DSC_2063 by Charles Key Floating on Air by Darren C. Chrome Spokes by auer1816 Pinhole Pier by Darren C. Macrophotography Setup by Opo Terser
Silhouette by akosphoto No Yellow Submarines In Sight... by DownTown Pictures by rsplatpc Green? by Charles Key The Watcher 0015 by keyholeprod Silky smooth by Matthew Stones
Daisy Chain by Only This Midori Shocker by Bald Monk IMG_4429 by kcgarrison_1999 If I Had Wings, I'd Never Walk... by DownTown Pictures Stag Beetle by Squirrel_bark Tender by mahooya
Hockey Head by nickwheeleroz Break Free by nickwheeleroz The good times of today, are the sad thoughts of tomorrow. by sharaff Katie by George L Smyth Chelsea by Jon Neftali Hold On by **CRT**
The Blowout Kit by rsplatpc Splash in a whisky glass by robgr85_PL the fairy collector by Lady Twiglet Red Porsche - 200_5120 by unclerichy Daylie by Ninja Medic Elspeth Ring Flash Portrait by nickwheeleroz
48Straight 83 by serczh1 A Yellow Rose by Fomo by HampusBovbjerg Somer by Ninja Medic A Mother's comfort by Dr|g Poor Man Strip Light by funadium
Words, don't come easy by sharaff

More Photodumps:
– Having Fun @ The Pool #2 – What a Splash
– Having Fun @ The Pool #1

Make sure you don’t miss out on the next article – Register to the RSS feed or the newsletter.[Read More…]

Having Fun @ The Pool #2 – What a Splash

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It has been about 20 days from when I asked DIYP readers to jump in the group pool. Well, you made quite a splash. In less then 20 days the pool has grown to more then 2000 members. Actually we are at an interesting point where the pool is three members short from matching the number of members to the current year. (Making it as the 2008th member on 2008 is known to grant three wishes to the user).

Slowly but surly the pool is becoming a rejuvenating dip. While great DIYP projects are still being submitted to the pool, I see and interesting (and blessed) change where photographers (Pros and amateurs alike) are also submitting great pictures (1,110 and counting). There are still one or two favs here from my contacts, who did not submit their photos to the pool. If anybody knows how to search for favorites within a pool, please ping me at the comments.

We are choosing hope over fear. by sharaff Bright Eyes by LeggNet Desert Junkyard by zebthepilot Shine by www.intofotos.com 2 lillies by Rob1690
Smiles and Rubiks by walkersharpe greetings, human by a.m.n Ethereal by like_shipwrecks hand by FotoKong Prambanan by r_o_n_n_i Spectacular strawberry splash by robgr85_PL
read lines by rsplatpc Fly portrait by robgr85_PL smurf by FotoKong smena macro by second_color tracks by rsplatpc lighting experiment by tim rudder
Stop and Smell the Flowers by auer1816 Im flying... by NAPIE -13 by mmhappypants Hidden Emotions by heckcare_der Man on Subway by rsplatpc D Street by auer1816
Veering Left by Darren C. DSCF8180 copy by Charles Key May You Find Some Comfort by Only This What's Your Poison by nickwheeleroz 080420-Boxing-513 by c71clark gloriosa macro by gnackgnackgnack
Scanner Photography 19 by pyuri Spoons 2 by Bald Monk Vini #2 by kos_mos No Smoking by Justin Elbert by justin_elbert You Big Wet Drip by nickwheeleroz After the storm by Gilad Benari

More Photodumps:
– Having Fun @ The Pool #1

Make sure you don’t miss out on the next article – Register to the RSS feed or the newsletter.[Read More…]

Creating That Dave Hill Look

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Nick Wheeler, one of my all times Flickr favorites, just uploaded a new picture to DIYP pool. (And yes, it is the same Nick who brought you The DIY Strip Light and the Floor Lit Table Top Studio).

The posing on this picture is great, but the first eye catcher of this image is the Dave Hill post processing look it has.

If you don’t know Dave Hill, please, sit back and treat yourself to an hour of fine photography. Dave is known for two things: You can not forget his portraits ones you’ve seen them – the visual impact is very strong. And you can not ignore his unique post processing look, what has become to be known as “The Dave Hill Look”.

It looks like the web is all over Dave this month, as both the Stobist mail-tiviewed him and Scott Kelby gave a great tip on how to create a Dave Hill look in Lightroom.

I wanted to play a little and gave the Dave Hill look a try with a technique found in the Strobist threads. Thanks Omar for putting the thread together. (Click any of the images for bigger view)

[Read More…]

4 Steps for Choosing Your Next Lens

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Every once in a while comes that moment when you decide to get a new lens. For me this moment arrived about three weeks ago, when I decided that I deserve a nice photography treat my wife finally said yes, you can buy what ever you want, just stop talking about lenses all the time. (If you just want to learn what my winning lens is, go here and look at the second lens).

I would like to share the process I went through for selecting my next lens to purchase. I am not sure if the process was the best process that one can do to choose a lens, I post it here to help others in their choices. Please hit me in the comments if you find this process can be improved. So here is the tale of the duel between Sharpy (85mm/1.8) and Shorty (60mm/2.8 macro).[Read More…]

My Next Portrait Lens

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DIYP readers, please save me! The boss of the family just approved a purchase of a new lens

I would like to buy a good portrait lens and I am torn by two great Nikon options – the Nikkor 60mm f/2.8 and the Nikkor 85mm f/1.8. I did a full web tour and saw the sample shots, and heard just a bit about user experience. Both Lenses look razor sharp and both are well built, light weight and compact enough.

What I would to ask is for your own experience with any of those lenses. Are they comfortable for portrait work? Do you have warm feeling to any of the two? Has anyone tried the new 60mm f/2.8 ED?

Nikon 60mm F/2.8 (the new ED version)

It was hard to find comments about this lens and most comments I got were on the older f/2.8 non ED version of this lens. Anyone got some hand on with the new ED version?

My main concern is about the 60mm (equivalent to 90 on my Nikon D70) working distance. I find the Nikkor 50mm of mine just a bit too short for most of my portrait work.

I am not such a keen macro photographer either do the macro feature is a nice bonus but not a main drive.

Nikon 85mm F/1.8

nikkor_85_1_8.jpgCurrently the first runner up. This one look like it has a good working distance of 85mm (127mm equivalent on my D70). And I really love the bokeh.

If some uses this lens in the studio and can share about working with this lens in terms of working distance it will be of great help.

Any one uses this lens on a regular basis? I’d love to hear some first hand thoughts.

If anyone has both lenses and can tell which is his/hers favorite and why, I’ll be forever in their debt. Oh, If you thin I should include a third lens to consider please SHOUT it in the comments.

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[Read More…]

Just a Washer And a Bolt – An Ingenious Camera Stabilizer

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It is amazing what you can do with one 1/4" bolt, a washer and a piece of string.

With less then 1$ at Home Depot, you’ll get a tiny stabilizer for your camera. The maker of this flick claims to gain 3 stops. I’d bet on around two, but it is good enough for 1 buck.

If you are grabbing this with RSS, you can get the full video here.

For a more complete guide, check out the String Tripod over at DIYP group at instructables. Be warned, though, over there you might end up with a two dollars expense bill as they use more part and get more stabilization.

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More DIYP Instructables:
– Muslin Photography Background
– Great Way To Build a Ringlight
– Photo Studio Compression Pole
– Altoids To The Rescue – The Minty Strobe

[Read More…]

Five Simple Steps To Get a Great Shot

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This post is all about not getting the wrong images? What are wrong images? Wrong images are images that could be great images, but were trashed for not paying attention to one small detail or another.

Before you hit the road, make sure you are not falling in one of the 5 Most Common Digital Photography Mistakes. Or practice on of the 7 Bad Habits of Digital Photographers. Those two posts inspired me to share my pitfalls. As a matter of fact, I’ve fallen so many times, that I now recheck the five steps every time that I take a shot or push the on knob of my camera.

I would like to share five simple steps that taken before you click the shutter, will transform your images from good to great.

[Read More…]

Light up the Floor – A Floor Lit Table Top Studio Project

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I always keep my eye on the strobist flickr pool. It is one of the best places to get your lighting ideas. The other day, I saw a cool Corona shot there made by Nick Wheeler. Nick was so kind to share his lighting technique with DIYP readers. So, the following article is a guest post by Nick Wheeler, If you like this tutorial as much as I did stop by Nick’s flickr stream and say “Hi” (You’ll also get a nice dose of fine images).

Just recently, I became the proud owner of a new dining room table. Not a massively exciting announcement you might think (and you would be right), but what was getting me excited was the fact that it had a frosted glass top. While my significant other was wondering where to put it and what to do with the old table, I was thinking “I wonder what would happen if I stuck a flash underneath it?”

The answer at first was a little disappointing but after a while I was getting some pretty good results, particularly with bottles and containers of liquid. I was finding that with light coming from underneath it was helping light up the liquid and giving it a nice glow. The only problem I was having was the table top itself. The glass was dimpled, not smooth, and while that gave a nice effect, it was not ideal for every shot. The answer of course was a spot of DIY!

floor_light_00.jpg

[Read More…]

Speed Links for 12-20-2007

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It has been busy in the photography blogosphere – here is some stuff I found to be interesting.

  • 6 methods for perfectly focused self-portraits
    PhotoDoto
    Great article about nailing them unfocused self portraits. Of course – once you are in focus, you have to make sure you’re having a good hair day.
  • The DIY Flexible Flash Arm
    The Global Photographer
    Some DIY competition – a great step by step tutorial on building a flexible flash holder arm thingy. Keep up the great work, Matt.
  • What Makes Good Composition?
    Annual Report Photographer
    every article by David is a reason to celebrate. In this series, David explains the ins and outs of the perfect composition. In this article – aiming the viewer toward your subject.
  • Pictures of the Year 2007
    Reuters
    Every year Reuters releases their Pictures of the Year. 2007 is no different. Reuters is releasing hundreds of thousands of pictures each year – every picture that made it into the list is a great moment catch, a unique lighting, a rare moment, a feeling to treasure.
  • Photoshop case study: from picture to Christmas card the final
    All Day I Dream About Photography
    A three step tutorial on converting everyday image into a Christmas card fiesta.

This is one video that left me shocked. A camera that captures you when you smile. The next thing to invent is a camera that takes your picture when they tell you won the lottery. (I think I have one like this no my desk – didn’t fail me yet).

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Related Links:
– Speed Links for 12-11-2007
– Speed Links for 11-20-2007

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