Good Portraits

I found a great portrait photographer, perhaps one of the best in the world! He lives in Escheburg, Deutschland and his name is Markus Schwarze. Here are some photos of his. He mostly uses a 5D and 35mm f1.4. Here are a whole bunch of his photos http://www.flickriver.com/photos/wefwef/popular-interesting/ but here are a few I liked in particular.

 

 

Canon T2i Test Shot in HDR

This is my first HDR photo ever. I used Photomatrix Pro 3.2. Clearly there are some things I need to work on. First off, I need to use a tripod. While the software aligns the photos, it does not do a super job. Also, the biggest flaw is the photo is the depth of field. The right side is clear and in focus, however, the left is not. I shot this at 2.8f. If i shot it at 7f or 9f not only would it be slightly sharper, but everything would be in focus. This, I feel is one area where a shallow depth of field is not a good thing. Anyways, I just got my T2i today and it’s been awesome so far. I am very impressed with the photo and video capabilities.

Windows Photo Gallery Vs. Lightroom 3 for Photo Noise Reduction

It’ been about two weeks since I sold my Canon Xsi to buy a T2i. According to UPS tracking information, my camera shall arrive tomorrow morning (of course, ill be at school). Anyways, here are two photos my friend Lucas took with my Xsi this past winter. This is a comparison of the noise reduction in two different programs.   This photo was taken at 1600 ISO, 5.6f and 105mm. The noise was relatively bad so I plopped it into Lightroom 3 beta two and fixed that noise problem. The top photo without a watermark is the photo that I used noise reduction from Windows Live Photo Gallery and the bottom photo with the Oliver Sholder watermark is edited with lightroom to remove noise. Viewing the larger photos will show a major difference between the two. The conclusion: lightroom is significantly better in terms of noise reduction. This, however, did not come as a surprise since the program costs more than the other free program, plus it has a much more complex algorithm.

5D Mark II

My dad has a film professor from Boston University staying over at my house. He stayed for two days. During his stay at my house, he brought with him, his Canon 5D Mark II. This is a $2800 camera. He uses it to shoot video only, but he let me try it out. When I tried it, it was late in the night, around 11PM. I put on my 50mm at 1.8f and at 5000 ISO, the picture looked good. Keep in mind, this is super dark. I messed with the ISO settings and was surprised at the noise. The biggest difference between my cameras and this expensive one was the feel – this felt so high quality. It was much bigger too, giving it a nice feel. The magnesium alloy and grip felt like it was made for my hand. It was nothing short of what I expected. I took some nice shots with it – like my dad and the professor and his wife and then just random things around my house.

In the mean time, waiting for my camera has been painful. I am dyeing for my T2i. I am having dreams of taking out my camera and shooting video at 6400 ISO. Anyways, I have also been editing some of my older shots taken with my XSi. There are plenty of good shots and here is one that I liked especially. It was an interesting shot to begin with. After turning the saturation down all the way except for certain areas in Lightroom, it gave it a look i felt satisfactory to upload online. It’s currently on my facebook fan page as well as my Flickr account. Here is a link to my Facebook fan page – please become a fan and “like” me if you do in fact, like my work.

Camera Deprivation

May 6th (or before) is the when my new T2i will arrive. I am pumped for this and really can’t wait. It’s a solid upgrade from my Xsi. The biggest reason is the HD video, but I will talk more about that once I get the camera and try it out. For now, I have been looking back at my best photos from older shoots – specifically, the one where I took my nifty 50 (50mm 1.8f lens) downtown and took some great photos.

Taking photos in Public

Taking photos in public of people and other things has always been murky waters for most photo takers. I have done it before and I'v seen everything from smiles to fingers (middle fingers). Once i was downtown taking a photo of my friend and there was some lady in the background, she asked me if she was in it. Being honest, i said yes. She yelled at me to delete it. Us photographers must stand up and use our rights! Here is some advice from an professional photographer.

The Ten Legal Commandments of Photography

I. Anyone in a public place can take pictures of anything they want. Public places include parks, sidewalks, malls, etc. Malls? Yeah. Even though it’s technically private property, being open to the public makes it public space.

II. If you are on public property, you can take pictures of private property. If a building, for example, is visible from the sidewalk, it’s fair game.

III. If you are on private property and are asked not to take pictures, you are obligated to honor that request. This includes posted signs.

IV. Sensitive government buildings (military bases, nuclear facilities) can prohibit photography if it is deemed a threat to national security.

V. People can be photographed if they are in public (without their consent) unless they have secluded themselves and can expect a reasonable degree of privacy. Kids swimming in a fountain? Okay. Somebody entering their PIN at the ATM? Not okay.

VI. The following can almost always be photographed from public places, despite popular opinion:

* accident & fire scenes, criminal activities
* bridges & other infrastructure, transportation facilities (i.e. airports)
* industrial facilities, Superfund sites
* public utilities, residential & commercial buildings
* children, celebrities, law enforcement officers
* UFOs, the Loch Ness Monster, Chuck Norris

VII. Although “security” is often given as the reason somebody doesn’t want you to take photos, it’s rarely valid. Taking a photo of a publicly visible subject does not constitute terrorism, nor does it infringe on a company’s trade secrets.

VIII. If you are challenged, you do not have to explain why you are taking pictures, nor to you have to disclose your identity (except in some cases when questioned by a law enforcement officer.)

IX. Private parties have very limited rights to detain you against your will, and can be subject to legal action if they harass you.

X. If someone tries to confiscate your camera and/or film, you don’t have to give it to them. If they take it by force or threaten you, they can be liable for things like theft and coercion. Even law enforcement officers need a court order.

Intro

This is a new blog dedicated to photography. It's my second and i have learned somethings so hopefully I won't make the same mistakes. I guess i referred to my self as a shutterboy in the name because well, am no photography expert but on the other hand, i know a good deal about photography. Some of my good photos go on Flickr! and here is my stream: http://www.flickr.com/photos/olirv/