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Building Performance Photo/Video Editing Computer 2015

Building Performance PC 2015

Tower CaseThe first quarter of 2015 has passed and we can safely say that now is the perfect time for our annual installment of “Build Your Perfect Performance Photo/Video Editing Workstation” – the 2015 edition. If you happen to follow PC technology over the last couple of years or even read our previous PC building articles, you will remember that there wasn’t anything new or exciting in terms of building your own workstation. However, with introduction of Intel x99 chipset and DDR4 memory in late 2014, things have shaken up quite a bit. Continue Reading

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Working with Harsh Light

Working with Harsh Light

Imagine that it’s a beautiful overcast day. You head outdoors with your model hoping to make a few shots for your portfolio. All of a sudden, the sun breaks out, changing the light altogether and putting cold water over your plans. Harsh sunlight is a photographer’s nightmare. If you are a beginner, you would think that more light is better for photography and certainly abundant sunshine is the right ingredient for great images. I have seen amateur photographers asking their subjects to stand facing the sun so that they can get properly ‘illuminated’ faces. The result is not always proper though, with squinting eyes, deep shadows under the nose and chin making the images look far from great. Continue Reading

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Capturing the Moment

Capturing The Moment

Having just bought a new DSLR camera and a nice lens to match, as well as having read almost everything that you could about exposure and composition, there would finally be a moment when you have to take the leap of faith – your first foray into serious image making. Except, that the results from that initial effort would be far from what you had ever envisioned; a monumental failure, especially so if you’re very critical of your own work like I am. You get that guilty feeling brewing up inside you, having spent a pretty penny for something that could have been achieved with your smartphone. Take a moment to reflect on where did you go wrong exactly. Is your lighting wrong? Have you misjudged it or wrongly metered for it? Did you shoot in the proverbial P mode and expected the camera to take care of all the other silly things? Or did you make a premature foray into the intimidating manual mode without first mastering the aperture mode as the first logical step? It could be all of the above or something else entirely. It could be something that you may have not paid any attention to, yet. Continue Reading

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Some Tips for Shooting While Traveling

Travel Photography

Having booked your dream vacation to India, for example, you have been patiently waiting for the day to come when you will be boarding your flight to Mumbai / New Delhi. You can almost hear your heart beating in anticipation as the day approaches. There’s a slight bit of trepidation, but overall you are looking forward to the trip, having waited for it for probably quite some time. And as any photographer will attest, you cannot wait to take some pictures while abroad. Continue Reading

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Knowing What To Charge Clients

Knowing-what-to-charge-your-clients-cover

If you have decided to start your own photography business you will be faced with the daunting question of what to charge clients and how to calculate a fair price for the work you put out. When I quit my job in 2013 to start my photography business I took a couple of months to basically shoot for free to build a better portfolio. People aren’t going to want to pay for what they can’t see. A diverse portfolio of some of your better work goes a long way. Another quick tip to new photographers is that learning to curate your work goes a long way as well. Instead of a gallery of the same subject from different angles and edits try a variety of subjects at a variety of angles or edits. Think of your work as a meal with a variety of courses that entice the senses. Continue Reading

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How to Balance Ambient Lighting with Flash

How-to-balance-ambient-lighting-with-flash

One of the biggest challenges faced by photographers when shooting outdoors is when the background is at a different level of illumination from the subject in the foreground. This happens mainly in backlit situations, such as when you are photographing a model at the golden hour. The background is brilliantly lit with all different hues and the subject, unless she is standing facing the light, is silhouetted; giving you a nightmare of a situation to correctly expose for. Continue Reading

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Taking Your Camera Out of the Auto Mode

Taking-your-camera-out-of-the-auto-mode

Taking your camera out of the auto mode is a big leap, but one that is necessary if you are going to fully realize what your camera can do. It’s just like the first time you learned how to drive and took over from your driving instructor. A lot of DSLR owners never manage to use the manual modes on their DSLR cameras. They end up never fully realizing the potential that their camera has got to offer. It’s like buying a Porsche and only driving it 5 miles to work. Continue Reading

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How To Improve Your Newborn Photography

How To Improve Your Newborn Photography

Children are the most beautiful gifts and cherishing the beauty as innocent and raw as theirs is the goal of newborn photography. Professional photography is all about doing your best for clients and when it comes to parents being clients, it gets even more important to deliver perfect images, as children are the most important thing in their lives. Any photographer who has ever attempted to photograph children knows that the aspect of “unpredictability” with kids makes them a really tough subject to shoot perfectly and when it comes to newborns, the assignment of getting the perfect moment and posture becomes even more challenging. With so many things that can go wrong during the newborn photoshoot, preparation and careful planning is required to tackle all the uncertainties. In this article, we shall discuss a few techniques and tips that will help you take your newborn photography to the next level. Continue Reading