Quick Links
ColdSnap Photography is proud to announce two all new weekend workshops!
|
|
These workshops are perfect for the beginner to intermediate photographer. They are low cost ($349), 2 day weekend workshops and limited to 8 participants. For more information or to register click on the links above or call us at (218) 834-0756. |
| Waterfront Gallery
|
|
Waterfront Gallery announces the Bluefin Bay Resort Photo-Calendar Exhibit!
Opening Reception January 17, 2009 4-6pm. This event is free and open to the public.
Come check out our great selection of books, artwork, jewelry, ceramics, and more! |
|
Featured ColdSnap Photography Workshop Links:
|
|
Newfoundland workshop currently has only 4 openings left!
Art of Seeing, Bloomington Workshop is half full!
Complete Schedule can be found here:
| |
Greetings!
Well, I survived the holidays. We had a wonderful Christmas tree; a beautiful Douglas Fir that my daughter and I cut down from our property. I will hate to undecorate it and haul it outside to the brush pile but all things must pass. Winter is settling in up north. So far this year we have had approximately 3 ½ feet of snow at my place. Tonight and tomorrow the forecast is for another foot. The woods look very picturesque with pillows of white decorating every branch. The temps have been quite cold as well. A significant portion of Lake Superior, down in the narrows near Duluth, is already frozen with large patches of ice. This is rare for this early in the winter. I am looking forward to many opportunities for photographing crisp clear winter light. It is one of my favorite subjects--fortunately for me considering where I live. Along these lines of thought, I have written a couple of articles this month about Clarity. I hope you enjoy them. I welcome your suggestions. The snowshoeing, skiing, snowmobiling, dog-sledding, and of course winter photography are fantastic up here this year. If you come north make sure you drop by the Gallery-the teapot is always on.
Sincerely,
John Gregor
|
|
Clarity Of Vision
Most artists and photographers seek clarity of vision. How can we achieve greater clarity of vision? Photoshop, the image software editing program, offers us a nifty little slider in the Camera Raw processing mode-if we move that slider to the right and increase the value of the clarity setting perhaps we can create images with greater clarity? I wish it were that easy.
Photography offers us the challenge of understanding our inner vision, as well as understanding a complex technology that offers us hundreds of tools that can personalize and clarify our expression, or hopelessly muddle it. The difference between someone who takes pictures and someone who creates photographs is a subtle and sometimes fine-line. But if you study the medium for very long that difference quickly becomes apparent.
The "snap-shooter" is a slave to the medium. They are not aware of the expressive and manipulative tools offered by the medium, either contained within the camera or after image capture; through software programs like Photoshop, or conventional photo-finishing and printmaking techniques.
A photographer realizes the power of the 2-dimensional image. A photographer will create compelling images that engage the viewer. Great photographers will achieve this with images that are clean, crisp, and devoid of anything but those elements that support the intent of the vision conceived of by the photographer.
A "snap-shooter" will create a photograph and accept or reject it based upon the sketchiest of information-these days that can mean a simple glance at the back of a digital camera. If there are imperfections they are accepted at face value without regard to whether they can be corrected or even whether they should be corrected. For the "snap-shooter" the critical analysis of the final photograph is usually equal to the fleeting thought that they put into making the photograph. Without critical consideration of the original subject matter (either before or after the act of making the photograph) the resulting photographic image cannot communicate with any depth or clarity of vision.
Photographers create their best work when their images reflect careful consideration and thoughtful decisions both before and after the act of making the photograph. Clarity is achieved when the photographer is thoughtful about all steps in the image making process:
Subject Selection
Subject Depiction Within The Photographic Composition
Subject Depiction Within Printmaking or Post Processing
|
Creating Image Clarity using Photographic Technique
Some thoughts on image clarity and perceived image sharpness in relation to; Subject Sharpness, Color Value, Image Contrast, and Localized Image Contrast.
Subject Sharpness is the result of several factors including the camera focus, depth of field, camera support, and proper shutter speed relative to subject motion.
Subject Sharpness cannot be altered by any post processing tool or fix. The image sharpening tools found in Camera RAW or Lightroom should not be considered an acceptable manner of "fixing" subject sharpness. Subject Sharpness is a result of the decisions made at the time of capture. Get it right in the camera!
Color Value is the amount of detail or separation of color values within an image. It is primarily dependent upon the bit-depth of the image capture. A j-peg format image is 8 bit color, this means that each color has 256 distinct color values. An image captured by a Canon 40d in RAW image format is 14 bit color and has 16,384 distinct color values.
If properly processed a 16 bit image will always be perceived to be sharper than its 8 bit counterpart. My good friend and excellent digital photographer, Jeff Morgan, disagrees with me on this point, but if you (or he) were to visit my studio I can show you results of image tests that prove this. Capture your images in Camera RAW format and learn to use a conversion software, your images will have greater clarity.
Image Contrast is the overall contrast or range of density values from highlight to shadow detail. Images of high contrast have dark blacks with little or no detail and bright highlights with little or no detail.
Image Contrast is best controlled in the "Basic" module of Camera RAW or Lightroom. The sliders that control overall image contrast are: Exposure, Recovery, Fill Light, Blacks, Brightness, and of course Contrast. Adjustments here are as individual as the photographer's vision and subject. There is no absolute right or wrong with respect to proper image post processing. Generally speaking, however, large corrections usually leave some kind of tell-tale defect in the image, which if you print the image larger than 5x7, becomes immediately apparent. A philosophy of "Less is More" will serve you well when using these tools.
Localized Image Contrast is the separation of color values in the image. Images with greater Localized Contrast have a more pronounced separation of color or density values within a given color or density range, Localized Contrast can be increased without changing the detail in the shadows or highlights.
Localized Image Contrast is also controlled within the "Basic" module by the Clarity, and to a lesser degree the Vibrance and Saturation sliders. The Clarity adjustment will increase or decrease the tonal separation of color within your image. The Vibrance adjustment will increase or decrease the intensity of neutral or mid-tone colors before increasing more vibrant colors like bright reds, yellows, or oranges. Therefore the Vibrance adjustment can be perceived to increase Localized Image Contrast . The Saturation adjustment can increase or decrease overall color saturation-it effects all colors equally regardless of their brightness or hue. Again-the "Less is More" philosophy will help you keep your clarity of vision.
If you capture your images in j-peg format you have surrendered all of the above (with the exception of Subject Sharpness) aspects of image clarity to the default settings of your camera's image processor. By taking this route you have predetermined most of the thoughtful decisions that are available to you to in the post processing phase of image making.
Localized Image Contrast is also controlled in the "Detail" module by the sharpening tools, however, I will leave that discussion to next month's newsletter.
|
|
|
|
About Us
ColdSnap Photography offers premier photographic workshops in Minnesota and locations through-out the world. For more information feel free to contact us via email at john@coldsnap.com, or call (218) 834-0756. |
John Gregor
ColdSnap Photography
632 First Ave
Two Harbors, MN 55616
Phone (218) 834-0756 |
|
|
