Respect Your Subject

Several years ago, my friend from National Geographic, Sarah Leen, gave me some good advice on photographing people: "Respect your subjects and they will respect you."

I thought I'd share this quick tip with you because it is so very important.

I photographed this Buddhist monk in Cambodia. The respect I showed him helped me capture exactly the picture I had in my mind's eye. Basically, he let a total stranger into his life - and trusted that stranger - for a few brief minutes. I think you can see the trust in his eyes.

Explore the Light - and respect the subject,
Rick

Follow Your Heart And Listen to Your Ears

First, click to enlarge this pair of pictures that I took in Cuba.

The bottom image is blurry - due to accidentally using a very slow shutter speed.

Hey, I made a mistake. What can I say? It was the first time ever :-)

I jumped in this car at a moment's notice because I really wanted to get a photograph of this cute couple. It was hot as hell and I knew I had to shoot fast. I was not thinking. I forget to boost the ISO and reset my aperture. I had been shooting in the Av mode (as usual) in bight sunlight.

I might not have gotten the top photograph, my favorite from the trip, if I had not "listened to my ears," hearing the sound of the slow shutter speed. Upon hearing that sound, I boosted my ISO and selected a wider aperture, which resulted in a faster shutter speed and a sharp shot.

In photography, it's good to follow your heart - photographing what you love. It's also good to listen to your ears - listening to the sound of your camera's shutter. It's also good to listen for the focus confirmation beep.

And here's some more advice, given to me by a guide on an African safari: Go where you are looking. :-)

Explore the light,
Rick
P.S. Any one remember the Minolta Talker camera? "Too dark, use flash."

Rare Photograph: Jaguar at Midnight

Any photographer of big cats knows that it's extremely difficult to get a nicely composed and properly exposed picture of a jaguar deep within the jungle at night.

Click here to see one from National Geographic. Now that's a cool rare image.

My attempt is the image you see here.

Like the look of the big cat at night? Well, you can achieve it, too.

You see, I took the picture in the Belize Zoo during the day - and then added the Midnight filter in Nik Color Efex Pro. What fun - and I did not have to stay up 'till midnight.

Click here to get a discount on all Nik Plug-ins.

Explore the Light,
Rick

Double Take of 007

A recent article in the Los Angles Times on the use of Photoshopped images reminded me of an ad I ad seen in a magazine and a video I had watched on YouTube - and how different the subject looks in the ad.

Here's the link to the ad.

Here's the link to the video. Watch the entire video.

Just something to think about....

Explore the light,
Rick
P.S. Hope to see you at a future Photoshop World.. where I demo Photoshop techniques :-)

Boring Snapshots Can Bring Back Fond Memories

My son is going off to college next week.

I remember when he was born, and when he spent most of the day resting in his crib. What a joy to watch.

I remember holding his hand and taking care of him when he needed me. Talk about feeling important.

I remember his early steps and his first words. Of course he was the smartest person ever born in the history of the world. (Hey, he's going to Johns Hopkins, so the kid ain't stupid.)

Recently, he has not been around much - hanging out with his friends, as it should be. When he is home, he spends a few hours a day alone at his computer - IMing, emailing, etc.

I have lots of boring snapshots that I took of him growing up. I'd share them, but to you, they would be boring. Rather, I share these snapshots with you, which illustrate each of the aforementioned developmental points: resting, needing, first steps, being alone.

I sure am glad I have those snapshots of my son. They bring back great memories of a time that went way too fast.

So the point of this homily: Sure, make the best possible pictures. However, don't overlook the importance of snapshots. Take them, too.

And here's a photo tip: Always have a camera with you! My Canon G10 is my constant companion. Top two shots were taken with that camera.

Rick
P.S. I kinda like these boring snapshots. They bring back nice memories of watching a "Bambie" growing up in my back yard. (Believe it or not, I posted a "Bambie" picture recently on Facebook and got hate mail. Someone wanted to kill all the deers in my area because of Lyme disease... which I have had 2x. Please, no hate mail :-)