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Working with Models: How, Where and How Much

working with models

If you have never worked with a model before, hiring one might seem like a daunting task. You might feel reluctant to approach people with your request and keep on postponing, making excuses like “I am not ready, I don’t have the right equipment, or I wouldn’t know what to do”. In reality, there is nothing complicated about hiring a model for a photoshoot, it’s a major part of the industry and the sooner you get involved, the faster you’ll improve your skills. Today I would like to discuss all the aspects involving finding a model, locations, compensations and other concerns. Continue Reading

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5 Tips to Capture Better Street Photos

5 tips to capture better street photos

Make no mistake, street photography is not everybody’s cup of tea. When I started out, I was just like every other newbie, scared at the prospect of having to point my camera at a stranger. Coming from a conservative place where aiming camera at a stranger is usually frowned upon I had often found myself short of the confidence to practice images out on the streets. Even if your immediate environment is more accommodating, learning how to guise yourself and get away with good images is an important skill, one that is worth learning and practicing. You never know when you would be forced to use that. But with that you will also need to focus on some of the key aspects of street photography. This article aims to highlight some of those. Continue Reading

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Canon 5DS and 5DS R Announcement

Canon 5DS and 5DS R

Today Canon announced the next iteration of the 5D line, splitting it into two models, the Canon EOS 5DS and Canon 5DS R cameras. What has probably been one of the worst kept secrets for the past few weeks, Canon is introducing a whopping 50.6 MP full frame (35mm) sensor. With such high megapixel count Canon is hoping to attract landscape, architecture, studio enthusiast and professional photographers who have either switched or consider switching to its direct current competitor – the Nikon D810. Canon 5DS and 5DS R will have a surprisingly low ISO range of 100-6400 (expandable to 50-12800) but this might actually be a good sign, since low ISO sensors usually tend to perform very well with color accuracy and provide low noise level images. However, it is expected that the dynamic range of these cameras will be similar to 5D III. Canon 5DS and 5DS R will also offer 61-point AF system, with 41 cross-type points, which promises to provide exceptional focusing in any situation. Even though neither 5DS or5DS R are sports focused camera, both will be able to burst at 5 frames per second and offer the ability to do in-camera crop of 1.3x, 1.6x and 1:1. At its highest 1.6x crop this camera would output 19.6 MP stills. The only difference between the two cameras will be built in Low-pass cancellation filter in Canon 5DS R and thus its higher price point. Continue Reading

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Casting Lifestyle Product Shoot with Appropriate Model

casting lifestyle model

Being a product photographer can be a very lucrative field. However, there will come a point where you will be asked to cast models along with the product or products you are shooting to create an environmental/lifestyle feel for your images. Your client wants to show potential customers the product in action so that those same customers can picture themselves in similar situations. Continue Reading

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Better Landscape Photos in 5 Steps

If you type the words “better landscape photography” in Google, there would be more than 8 million results. That’s a whopping number when it comes to landscape photography tips. With all that information you might think that the world knows how to take better landscape images. Unfortunately, the story is not quite what it seems. Most of the times a photographer is unsure of the basics of composition, exposure and framing; the key ingredients for any good landscape photo, and for that matter any good photo. So what you get is a plethora of bad exposures, harsh tones and lost details. Photoshopping isn’t the answer to all your woes. You need to be able to get as much of the image correct in-camera as possible. Continue Reading

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Getting Your Money’s Worth From Photography Workshops

Photography workshops are popping up everywhere these days, covering just about any kind of topic you can imagine. There’s some good ones out there, surrounded by plenty of mediocre and bad ones. Sometimes I wonder if there’s more workshops currently being offered than photographers to attend them all. So when MyPhotoCentral.com asked me to write about workshops, I cringed and privately wondered, “How can I get out of this assignment as fast as possible?” But after giving it some thought, and looking back over my years as both a workshop attendee and host, I’ve decided there’s so much that can and should be said…

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Introduction to Location Scouting

introduction to location scouting

Location is one of the biggest things a photographer needs to think about. A sunrise over a hill as a stallion gallops toward you, a sunset wedding in May, night on the streets of New York – these are all glorious images that require one thing; location!

If you’re tasked with shooting a certain project all you really need to do is think hard and look around your neighborhood first. Each town has its own history, people, and locations. There are a million hidden gems that would look fantastic in a camera lens if you think about them for your project purpose. Remember; more often than not you only need a glimpse of a setting to let the audience know where you are. Continue Reading

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High-key and Low-key Photography

low-key-and-high-key-photography

Both high-key and low-key techniques are used to illuminate a scene / model / object. They tend to serve specific purposes, for example low-key lighting lighting renders a dark and mysterious look to a scene. It can also define shapes, accentuating them. Low-key lighting is also the key to make dynamic portraits. This lighting technique is used to capture sorrow, mystery, low profile, winter and other moods and scenes. On the other hand, high-key lighting is used for creating bright and vibrant images. High-key is synonymous with happiness, peace, fresh beginning, summer etc. Continue Reading

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Creative Photography with Neutral Density Filters

The most common use of neutral density filters is for shooting creative photos of nature. Landscapes, waterfalls or any scene where there is a difference in luminance across the frame, neutral density filters can help you balance the exposure and get a good images. But that’s not all they can be used for. Neutral density or simply ND filters are also often used to shoot at slow shutter speeds, for a very creative effect. But what are neutral density filters exactly and how do neutral density filters work? Read on to find out. Continue Reading