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Progression of an idea in a photo session – cosplayer

October 11, 2014 Neil vN 17 Comments

Progression of an idea in a photo session - cosplayer, Ger Tysk

For me, there's always some anxiety before a photo session - especially when you have the opportunity to photograph someone quite unusual and photogenic like Ger Tysk, a cosplayer. (She also creates cosplay outfits for others, and has published a book on Cosplay.) Her latest outfit is Black Widow (from Marvel.) Now, the stressful part before a photo session like this, is that there is the pressure of having a great opportunity, and then having to create a photo series that is worthy of the moment. Even if you don't quite  Read more inside...

Full-frame vs Crop-sensor comparison : Depth-of-field & perspective

October 9, 2014 Neil vN 126 Comments

ull-frame vs crop-sensor comparison

Full-frame vs Crop-sensor comparison :  Depth-of-field & Perspective

When the differences between full-frame and crop-sensor cameras are discussed, there is an inevitable question about whether the crop sensor multiplies the focal length. Whether a 50mm lens on a crop-sensor acts like a 75mm lens (on a 1.5x crop sensor) or 80mm lens (on a 1.6x crop sensor). The answers given on the photography forums are confusing - yes, the focal length effectively increases. No, it doesn't. Two answers that are polar opposites. The discussion (which tend to devolve into arguments) are  Read more inside...

Nikon D750 – high-ISO noise performance

September 27, 2014 Neil vN 33 Comments

Nikon D750 - high-ISO noise performance

The two things everyone is most curious about with the Nikon D750  (B&H / Amazon), is the auto-focus performance and the high-ISO noise performance. Here's a quick preview of what the D750 does at higher ISO settings. Specifically, 3200 ISO and 6400 ISO.  (A more complete comparison has since been posted here: review: high-ISO performance – Nikon D750 vs Nikon D4S / D4 / D810 / D610) To put the Nikon D750 (affiliate) through its paces for the (upcoming) review of this camera, I met up with NYC model, Glass Olive for a  Read more inside...

Various scenarios: Balancing flash with ambient light

September 16, 2014 Neil vN 11 Comments

Various scenarios: Balancing flash with ambient light

Adding flash to ambient light - its's a topic that can appear to be confusing. With advice that ranges from under-exposing the ambient light by a stop or two ... or dialing FEC down for fill-flash, or advice that you should be metering for the background ... it all appears confusing and contradictory. What we do, and the thought-process we step through, depends on the (lighting) situation we find ourselves in. There isn't one blanket do-all method. No single piece of instruction that will fit every occasion. So let's try to  Read more inside...

Boudoir photography: Couples boudoir – gesture and connection

August 28, 2014 Neil vN 13 Comments

Boudoir photography: Couples boudoir - gesture and connection

With portraits of a couple, the way they connect with each other is often the main factor whether the image is compelling. It could be through gesture and touch. The gesture might even be subtle - if a couple snuggles in, they don't have to look at each other - it's entirely possible to give that sense of connectedness, even with a downward glance. As long a it looks like they are concentrating on each other or responding to each other, it works. With the image at the top, Olena and Austin are directly looking at each  Read more inside...

Using interesting available light & White Balance options

August 22, 2014 Neil vN 15 Comments

Finding interesting available light & White Balance options

It's always a feel-good moment to discover interesting available light while out on a photo shoot. Something unusual to add a new flavor to a different sequence of images. While photographing a model with Tilo Gockel and Mike Silberreis (both from Germany on a visit to NYC), we started off with off-camera flash to help with the strong sunlight. (You might remember Tilo from a recent guest article on product photography on a budget.) Then, while positioning Olena, I saw part of her dress had a patch of bright light  Read more inside...

Photographic composition – A few guidelines, (but no rules!)

August 1, 2014 Neil vN 9 Comments

Photographic composition - A few guidelines (but no rules!)

“There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs.” - Ansel Adams For me, if a photograph is intended for an audience, and not just my own records and memories - then its success hinges around impact. Does the photograph make you stop for a few seconds at least to take it in? Then you're at least in part successful already with the portrait. With portraits so many elements kick in to make a photograph resonate with us: The moment. The expression. Gesture. Movement. Pose and position.  Read more inside...

Gelling your flash, and post-processing for deep blue skies

July 30, 2014 Neil vN 10 Comments

Gelling your flash, and post-processing for deep blue skies

The warm light from the nearly-setting sun, accentuated with gelled flash. Towards the end of the recent photography workshop, we were shooting on the rooftop - the warm tone of the sunlight contrasting beautifully with the blue sky. To punch it even more, we added gelled flash via an off-camera speedlight in a softbox. We had to gel the speedlight of course, to make sure the blue color balance of the flash didn't kill the natural light. We used a 1/2 CTS gel here which brought the flash's WB down to around 3700K. (This  Read more inside...

Studio photography – Image projection effects for creative backgrounds

July 7, 2014 Neil vN 10 Comments

studio photography - image projection effects for creative backgrounds

Studio photography - Image projection effects for creative backgrounds

Working with an idea in mind in the studio - a moody B&W portrait with a stylized cityscape as background. Using the Light-Blaster again in the studio, this final image was a progression of that idea. I knew I wanted to use the cityscape background of one of the metal gobos that came with the Light-Blaster kit. Because I wanted the final photograph to be black and white, I set my camera to Monochrome so that I'd have a good idea during the shoot what the final image would look like. Since I shoot in RAW,  Read more inside...

Will flash freeze movement at slow shutter speeds?

June 26, 2014 Neil vN 25 Comments

Will flash freeze movement at slow shutter speeds?

Does flash freeze motion at slow shutter speeds (in low light)? The answer is ... maybe. Perhaps. It depends. There are several factors which will determine whether flash will freeze motion at slow shutter speeds. It is difficult giving a definitive answer because it depends on the scenario. In short - if your subject isn't lit by much available light (with ambient light 4 stops or less than your flash exposure), then flash will freeze the action ... if there is no bright background. Probably. But it depends on the type of  Read more inside...

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