As photographers, we’re not bound to the same creative limitations that most other visual artists face. Where most artists are forced to work within the restraints of their medium, our modern cameras can show everything in perfect detail, and this is not always a good thing.
Simply reproducing the world that exists in front of our lenses rarely results in compelling imagery. Showing every single element of real life, exactly as it happened doesn’t necessarily make for good art.
What makes for engaging imagery is showing only part of your scene and inviting the viewer to dive in and imagine the rest of the scene. This allow them to engage their brains and piece together the overall message of your story by filling in the blanks of what’s NOT there.
In addition, by abbreviating your subjects, your communicate a more concise message that emphasizes the very ideas and emotions that drew you to the scene in the first place. The goal with good photography is not merely to show the subject, it’s to translate your own feelings about the scene to your viewer and evoke similar feelings in them when they look at your photo.
You can do this much more easily with a simple composition that shows very little, more so than if you show too much. Remember the term “Less is More?” That’s why.
If you’re interested in more in-depth video lessons that go beyond simple tips, check out my Photography On The Brain course. In that exclusive series, I discuss aspects about creativity and photography in a deeper level and give you monthly assignments that challenge you to think about your photography in new ways.
Dan Bailey's Adventure Photography BlogPosted on by Dan
I’ve long been fascinated with the concepts of how our evolution as human beings plays a part in our artistic tendencies and creative habits.
Throughout the span of human history, we humans have expressed ourselves with artistic representations and depictions of our lives and our world, and a significant element of our creative endeavors is geared around the use of color.
As with many of the behaviors and tendencies we exhibit our lives, our use of color is closely tied to both our biological evolution and our cultural history, which reflects thousands of years of evolution.
Consequently, our brains grew much more powerful to the point where 30% of the of neurons in our cerebral cortex are devoted to visual processing, and 80% of all visual processing done in our brains is devoted to color recognition.
Color recognition played a big part in our big brain evolution, and in fact, it’s one of the most fundamental aspects that separates us from most other mammals.
Where the majority of mammals on the planet can only recognize two of the primary colors in what we know as the visual spectrum, we humans evolved with what’s called Trichromatic Vision. Possessing three types of cone cell receptors in our eyes that are geared towards recognizing the colors red, green and blue.
RGB. Do these letters sound familiar?
The man difference is that evolved with the ability to easily recognize the color red. Given that many of the things in nature that are red are either things we can eat or dangerous things that we tend to avoid, our ability to quickly spot red played a huge role in helping us stay safe and well fed.
Combining Biology with Culture
In addition to our genetic evolution, we humans are also heavily influenced by our rich cultural history that spans thousands of years of civilization. Color has always played a large part in our cultural traditions and moods, and when you combine our biological and societal history, it’s easy to see the important role that color plays in nearly every aspect of outlives.
USING COLOR to EVOKE MOOD
There is multitude of ways we can use color in our photographs to evoke certain moods and visual response from our viewers. Here are a few essential tips to get you started.
Blue
Technically, there is almost nothing in nature that is the color blue. However, due to the ways that we perceive the scattering and diffusion of short blue light wavelengths, we associate blue as being the color of the sky and the ocean. And glaciers.
For this reason, blue is perceived as being a noble, highly dignified color that projects feelings of calm and tranquility.
Green
The predominant color of nature, grass, and vegetation, green evokes a timeless feeling in your images.
If you combine green with blue, you’ll create a serene, subdued image that projects endless tranquility.
Red
Red is the color of blood, the distinctive marking on a black widow spider and things like berries, apples and ripe tomatoes. Red incites energy and an immediate sense of heightened emotion.
As I mentioned above, our ability to see red so clearly marks one of the fundamental characteristics of our advanced human visual systems. Using a small splash of red in your photos will catch the attention of your viewers and draw them right into the image.
For this reason, red is very eye catching in photos. You can’t avoid looking at the red thing, even it’s just a small part of the image. However, due to a specific chemical depletion in our cone cells that occurs when we view large amounts of red for a long period of time, too much red will incite eye fatigue, and create weird optical illusions.
This isn’t to say that you should never make photos with an all red color palette, you just need to do it sparingly and use an effective composition. If it’s done right, it can generate a powerful viewer response.
Note, like red, orange can also be used as an effective spot color.
Yellow
Yellow is the brightest color in the spectrum, and it’s the most stimulating and fatiguing color to look at. Even more so than red.
Things in our world that are yellow are meant to be looked at, like school busses and warning signs. For this reason, you can use yellow as a spot color and visual target to draw your viewer’s eye right into image.
Pink
Lying between hot red and cool violet on the color wheel, pink is perceived as a warm color. You’ll find that you can be very bold with pink. It commands a lot of attention but it doesn’t incite the same level of eye fatigue as red does.
In landscapes, pink is often the color of sunset light and it can add a lot of richness to your photos, even when used in large amounts. I love using pink in my photographs, especially my mountain aerials.
You’ll find that orange behaves much like pink in the sense that you can use it in large amounts without inciting eye fatigue.
COLOR COMBINATIONS
You can combine colors in your image to achieve powerful visual effects. Anytime you use primary or secondary colors together, or if you use complimentary colors together, (opposites on the color wheel), you’ll create please images that retain the viewers attention.
These kinds of colors are highly attractive to us, and so we want to see them. When used correctly, then can command an equal amount of attention, and this creates strong visual relationships that draw our eyes back and forth across the image.
With all of the colors in our world, there is an endless variation to how you can arrange them in your photography. As with any compositional technique, it takes practice to get a feel for what colors work well together and how to position them in your frame for maximum visual impact.
Keep in mind, there are no hard and fast rules here, so feel free to experiment with your use of color and see what works for you in your quest to communicate your creative ideas.
Dan Bailey's Adventure Photography BlogPosted on by Dan
Today’s lesson is called “How I Hold My Camera.”
I realize this might seem like a rudimentary topic, but I’ve actually heard from more than a few photographers who are struggling with this, especially shooters who have recently switched from DSLRs to Mirrorless. I received one email from a gentleman who was having problems with cramps in his hand when he was trying to shoot.
Given that DSLRs are often twice as big and twice as heavy as mirrorless cameras like the Fujifilm X-T3. My guess is that they’re having a hard time adapting to the much smaller and lighter bodies.
So, I’m going to play show and tell and let you know I hold my camera. If you’re having a hard time getting comfortable with the camera, then hopefully you’ll find these tips to be useful.
Left hand
Under the lens. Always. I’ve seen people hold the camera with the left hand over the top of the lens, but that’s not the best way to hold the camera. Aside from making you look a bit amateurish, it doesn’t offer you the same level of stability and functional control.
If I’m using both hands, then I always hold my camera with my hand cradled under the body, not holding hard, just resting it there, and this puts your fingers in the right place to operate the focus and aperture ring. This also gives you a much more steady grip if you’re using a bigger lens.
Right hand
My right hand grabs the molded grip in an easy, natural way. Not tightly at all. It’s just there to help keep the camera steady and keep my finger on the shutter.
By not holding it very tightly, my right hand is also free to operate the other controls, like the dials on the top deck and various buttons and the focus joystick on the back.
In fact, when the camera is up to my eye, it’s hardly holding the camera at all, it’s a surprisingly loose grip that offers me that that extra stability.
Of course, there are some times when I’m shooting one handed. I’ll grip the body a little more tightly, but I’m not squeezing very hard at all. Most of the stability comes from just resting my fingers and thumb on the contours of the body, and this puts my finger right there above the shutter.
I realize that everyone’s hands are different size and shape, so it might take some practice for you to get a feel for the best, most stable one-handed grip.
However, in most situations, I’m just doing this little back and forth dance between my two hands, but neither hand is holding very tightly at all. Sure, I might have a little firmer grip with a bigger lens, or when using the battery grip, but again, I’m never squeezingvery hard.
Natural Tripod
When I’m shooting handheld, especially when I’m using slightly slower shutter speeds, or if I need added stability, I usually try to hold my camera up to my face and suck my elbows into my chest. This creates a natural tripod between my elbows and my face.
When I’m about to shoot, I’ll slowly let my breath out, the right when it’s at the bottom of my breathing cycling, when my body is the most still, that’s when I press the shutter.
The Strap
Security
This is a big one with me. I always use a strap. Always. There’s never a time when my strap is not on the camera. It’s always there, and I use it for security, safety and stability.
It ensures that I won’t ever drop the camera, and because I know it’s always there, it allows me to keep that relaxed grip on my camera, because I know I can always just let it drop safely back down. I’m so used to having it there, that it feels completely natural.
Funny story. No… It’s actually a scary story. There was one time a couple of years ago, when I was shooting right next a glacier pool. The tripod was precariously perched on this little incline right by the water, because that was the vantage point I wanted.
At one point, I accidentally kicked the tripod and it started tipping forward. Without even thinking, I just threw my hand across and snagged the strap with my forearm, and saved the whole rig from falling into the iceberg filled lake. Yikes!!!
Stability
I often shoot using the live view mode on my LCD screen. If I’m holding the camera away from my body, then I’ll use the strap to help brace the camera and give me extra stability.
I do this a couple different ways. Pulling it tight against my neck gives me an extremely stable grip. This method is very effective for ensuring the kind of sharpness you seek in your images. I’ll often shoot down to single digit shutter speeds and still get sharp images using this method.
I can do this same thing down at my waist, just by flipping the screen up. By pulling tight on the strap, I get that extra degree of steadiness.
If I’m shooting one handed, I’ll grab and hold the strap with my left hand. This gives me that same level of stability and it also allows me to shoot at different vantage points, like over my head, using the flip screen, or holding it down below while shooting from a low vantage point.
So, again, I can’t accentuate enough how important the strap is in my life with the camera. It offers steadiness, and it offers freedom. And if I need to get it out of the way, I just sling it around my shoulder.
Freedom
The strap offers me an incredible degree of creative freedom and liberation from always being tethered to your tripod.
I know that there are some photographers out there who never use the strap. These are usually people who almost always shoot with the tripod, and they don’t want it to get in the way. If you’re one of those people, then I can’t force you to use the strap, but I don’t see why you wouldn’t. I just think it makes life so much easier and more fun.
Think about it, this means you can never just walk around with the camera around your neck as you’re looking at the world and surveying the scene. It also means that whenever you take it out of your bag, you have to grab it and hold it with this level of desperate security, so that you won’t accidentally drop it. And really, how fun is that?
If you really don’t want to have the strap on your camera when it’s on the tripod, then you could get one of those quick release straps so you can take it off once you’ve got it securely fixed on the tripod.
I know that some people like that Black Rapid sling style strap. If it works for you, then that’s great. I just prefer the regular old-school strap. Always have. It’s a very simple design, but it’s extremely functional in the widest variety of settings. Either way, I highly recommend using the strap.
Dan Bailey's Adventure Photography BlogPosted on by Dan
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Dan Bailey's Adventure Photography BlogPosted on by Dan
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Dan Bailey's Adventure Photography BlogPosted on by Dan
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Dan Bailey's Adventure Photography BlogPosted on by Dan
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