Photography Handbook · Page Introduction This ebook is a subsection of a larger photography book...

Photography Handbook

Russell D. Wills

Last Update: May 30, 2014

Contents

Introduction: The Effective Photograph 1Technical Skill 1Composition and Form 2Post-Processing 2Presentation 2

Using Your Camera 3Equipment 3How Does a Camera Work? 3Exposure 4

Proper Exposure 5Achieving Proper Exposure 5

Creative Exposure 9Overexposing 10Underexposing 10

Other Camera Controls 11ISO 11White Balance 12

File Formats 12Tripods 13Flash 13

Problems with Flash 13Proper Use of Flash: Fill Flash 14

Learning Your Camera 15Full Manual Mode (M) (Recommended) 15Aperture Priority (Av) 15Shutter Priority (Tv) 15Full Automatic 15Partial Automatic 15Sports Mode 15Landscape Mode 16Portrait Mode 16Nighttime Mode 16Using a Camera with No Manual Mode 16

Composition 17Balance and Visual Tension 17Elements of Design 18

Line 18Shape 19Space and Size 20Value 21Texture 22Color 22Using the Elements of Design 23

Rule of Thirds 24Vantage Point 26

Communication 29Types of Photography 31

Documentary 31Art for Commerce / Advertising / Marketing 31Fine Art 31

Subject Matter vs. Actual Subject 31Narrative vs. Form 32Communication through Narrative 32Communication through Form 33

Post-Processing 35Common Post-Processing Needs 35File Formats 35Non-Destructive and Destructive Editing 36Common Techniques 36

Contrast 36Cropping 37Spotting 37Black and White 38

Tools 39Photoshop 39Photoshop Elements 39Lightroom 39iPhoto 39

Workflow 39Software Workflow 39Editing Workflow 40Saving Your File(s) 41

Presentation 42Paper and Printing Choices 42Showing Work on the Web 42Displaying Your Work 43Artist Statements 43

Samples, Tips, and Critiques 45

Appendix: Quick Guide 48Communication 48

Subject Matter 48Actual Subject 48Narrative 48Form 48Attention to Detail 48

Technical Skill 49Exposure 49Depth of Field 49Aperture 49Shutter Speed 49ISO 49Tripods 49Flash 49

Composition 50Balance 50Visual Tension 50Elements of Composition 50The Rule of Thirds 51Vantage Point 51

Post-Processing 51File Formats 51Non-Destructive Editing 51Image Contrast 51Cropping 51Spotting 52Black and White 52Color Spaces 52

Presentation 52Bibliography 53

IntroductionThis ebook is a subsection of a larger photography book that

is still in the draft phase. Please forgive all typos and errors. Your feedback will be tremendously appreciated!

Many images will be used to illustrate concepts throughout this book. Students are expected to be considering ways to use these concepts in their own work. Students are not expected to copy the style of the these images. Instead, students should view the examples and ask, “How can this technique/idea help me to communicate my thesis?”

Please refer to the course syllabus for specific information about the course or the assignments.

©2014 Russell D. Wills This book and all images contained in this book are copyrighted and are the property of Russ Wills unless otherwise specified.

The Effective Photograph

Defining a “good” photograph can be very subjective. Many people decide whether or not a photograph is good by whether or not we like it. This judgment is based purely on personal taste.

A better way to evaluate a photograph is whether or not the photograph is effective. A photographer creates a photograph for a reason. The reason may be merely to show people what a child looks like or where the person went on vacation. The reason could also be far deeper. For example, the photographer could be attempting to call people to action to fight injustice, to present a new idea for consideration, to challenge the view of what “good” art is, evoke an emotion, or to make some statement about the world. This list, of course, is far from conclusive.

The point is that the effectiveness of a photograph can be evaluated by how successfully the photograph achieves the goals of the pho-tographer.

The most effective photographs are packed with several layers of meaning. As you begin to understand the surface level meaning of the photograph, you realize that there is an entirely new layer of meaning beneath it. And perhaps another layer of meaning beneath that one.

Not only are multiple layers of meaning present in a strong photograph, but every detail of the photograph, no matter how minute, helps to communicate the message.

To achieve an effective photograph, there are several key elements to keep in mind.

Technical SkillThe photograph should be strong at a technical level. Is the photograph focused in the most important areas? If not, is the photograph unfocused intentionally to communicate the message, or does it look accidental? Is the photograph exposed properly?

Composition and FormIs the photograph composed well? Does the composition lead the viewer’s eye around the frame? Are there elements of the composition that draw the viewer’s eye out of the frame, causing the viewer to lose interest? Are line, shape, texture, value, color, size and space all used to communicate the message of the photograph?

Post-ProcessingDoes the final image look “finished”? Does the final image communicate the message properly? Are there dust spots in the photograph, or objects in the scene that distract from the message?

PresentationIs the photograph matted and framed? Does the frame chosen for the image fit the message of the image? Should the photograph be framed at all, or does a dry-mounted or loose photograph communicate the message more effectively? Is the final print bent or cut incorrectly? Does the width/height ratio of the photograph fit the message? Is the size of the photograph too small or too large to present the message effectively?

Learning to work each of these details into a photograph takes time, but the resulting photographs are well worth the time spent.

Please be aware that reading this book will not you make a great photographer. To become a strong photographer, a person must create photographs. As Julia Cameron suggests in The Artist’s Way, to become a great artist, you must first be willing to be a bad artist. To create great photographs, you must grab your camera and make photos, make mistakes, make more photos, make more mistakes, and fall in love with the process.

This book is meant to be a guide on a potentially transformative journey. Your job is to take that journey and have as much fun as possible along the way.

Using Your CameraThis book assumes that you are using a camera with

manual controls. Photography students are expected to use a camera with manual exposure control for all class projects. (If you don’t know what “manual exposure control” means, don’t worry, just keep reading.)

EquipmentDue to the number of questions about what camera to buy, I provided some advice on cameras and accessories. This document is available on the course website.

Not all cameras have the same controls. Many point-and-shoot cameras eliminate the ability to control shutter speed and aperture in an attempt to simplifying the process of creating a photograph. While fully automatic cameras are simpler for general photography, creating effective photographs becomes far more difficult, and sometimes impossible, in certain lighting conditions and when the photographer is seeking a particular look.

This book will assume a digital camera with manual controls of shutter speed and aperture. With very exceptions, the information is accurate for film cameras as well. This book will also assume fairly standard options on the camera, such as a built-in light meter and a variety of shooting modes.

Because every camera is different, the process of accessing the specific settings will vary. For example, to set the camera to “manual” mode, most cameras have a dial that needs to be turned until “M” appears next to an arrow or some other selection indicator. A few cameras may require users to access the manual mode through a menu. Be sure to become very familiar with the instruction manual that came with your camera, as this will usually be the simplest way to learn how to use the settings described in this book. Nearly all camera manuals can be found online.

How Does a Camera Work?Photography is recording light.

People in the ancient world discovered a fascinating charac-teristic of light. Imagine standing in a dark room with only one window and no other source of light. Outside the window is a small glower garden with a tree in the center of the garden. Cover that window with a thick, black sheet of paper so no light can enter the room at all. Then use a pin to poke a very small hole in the paper. Light will, of course, come through that hole. The fascinating part is how light enters the room through that hole.

Light reflecting off of the low flowers in the garden reflects upward through the pinhole and reaches the top of the wall opposite the pinhole. Light reflecting off the top of the tree travels down toward the pinhole and appears at the bottom of the wall opposite the pinhole. Light reflecting from the middle of the scene outside the window travels through the pinhole toward the middle of the wall. The result is that an image of everything on the outside of the window appears upside-down and reversed on the wall opposite the pinhole.

Eventually this discovery allowed artists to create the “camera obscura.” A painter, for example, could go out into a field and enter a huge box large enough for a person. The artist would create a pinhole to allow light into the box. The light from the landscape outside of the box would travel through the hole

and would project an inverted image of the landscape on the opposite wall. The artist could hang a canvass on that wall so that the image appeared on the canvass. The artist would trace the entire scene that was projected on the canvass. When the painter turned the canvass rightside up, the entire scene would be traced on the canvass in perfect proportion and ready for paint.

Humans can see only because light reflects off objects, and this reflected light reaches our eyes. Our eyes work just like the camera obscura. Light reflects off objects and enters our eyes through the pupils. This light lands on the back of our eyes, forming an inverted image of whatever is in front of us. Our brains recognize that the image is upside down and is able to compensate so that we process the image rightside up.

A camera works exactly the same way, except that some light-sensitive material like film or digital light sensors will record the light that enters the camera. Every camera has some sort of opening that will let light into the camera and some sort of shutter that will stop the light from coming in. When the shutter is closed, no light can enter the camera. When the shutter opens, light is allowed to enter the camera through the hole. The film or digital sensors react to the light that enters the camera for as long as the shutter is open.

Photography truly can be that easy. Light sensitive material (like film or digital light sensors) is kept in some sort of enclosure that prevents light from reaching the material. At some strategic point, a small opening in the enclosure allows light to reach the light-sensitive material. The opening is closed again once enough light is recorded.

Fancy, complicated cameras offer many options for recording this light and for processing the image after the light is captured. In time, photographers will learn and use many of these features, and they will cease to seem complicated. But every camera, no matter how complicated, is merely a box that allows light to reach a light-sensitive material for a specific amount of time. Understanding this will make photography far less daunting for beginning students.

ExposureExposure is the amount of light the camera’s light sensors (or film) are exposed to. A “proper” or “correct” exposure means the correct amount of light reached the camera’s light sensors to make the image appear the way it should. In general, a “well exposed” photograph is a photograph that is not too light and not too dark.

If the light sensors were not exposed to enough light, the image will appear darker than it should. Such an image is “underex-posed.”

If the light sensors were exposed to too much light, the image will appear very bright, and will often have areas that are completely white. Such an image is “overexposed,” and the completely what areas are considered “blown out.”

The theory of capturing the proper exposure can be a bit daunting at first, particularly while learning the language of photography. The practice of creating a well-exposed image, however, is quite simply in most cases, since cameras will calculate the proper settings for you.

Even though the camera can automatically calculate the proper exposure and even change the camera’s settings for you, you will have far greater freedom to create great photographs by taking the time to understand exposure and the corresponding camera settings.

Properly exposed photograph

Overexposed photograph

Underexposed photograph

Proper ExposureAllowing the correct amount of light into the camera is the essence photography. The challenge is to expose the film or digital light sensors to exactly the right amount of light.

Photographers have done studies to determine what the right amount of light is for most photos. The photographers collected hundreds of photographs that they considered to be well exposed. They created a scale of gray values and assigned numerical values to each range of gray. Next, the photogra-phers examined each photograph in the study and measured the amount of gray in each of these ranges. In a vast majority of these photographs, the average gray value turned out to be eighteen percent gray. Eighteen percent gray became known has “middle gray”.

Photographers can now determine the proper exposure for an image by using a special tool called a light meter to measure the dark and light values in any scene. The light meter tells the photographer how to set the camera in order to make the gray values in the scene measure eighteen percent.

Most cameras today have a built-in light meter. The light-meter will then adjust the camera’s settings (in automatic mode) or tell the photographer what settings to use (in manual mode) to make the average value of the scene equal to eighteen percent gray. Eighteen percent gray is considered “middle gray”.

Achieving Proper ExposureThere are two settings on the camera that work together to allow the correct amount of light into the camera: aperture and shutter speed. (Technically there are more than two, but these are the two that are vital to understanding how to use a camera.) The aperture is the opening that lets light into the camera. The shutter blocks this opening. When the shutter is closed, no light can enter the camera. When the shutter is open, light comes into the camera and is recorded by the film or digital sensors. The shutter speed is the amount of time the shutter remains open.

There are two main steps in setting the camera for a proper exposure. First, set either the aperture or the shutter speed to the desired setting. Second, the camera’s light meter will provide the correct setting for the other control. For example, if you set the aperture to the desired setting, the light meter will provide the shutter speed that would result in an average gray value of eighteen percent.

ApertureWhen a person walks into a dark room, the person’s pupils widen. The eyes react to darkness by dilating the pupils to allow more light into the eye so that we can see well without as much light present. When moving from that dark room to the outdoors in the middle of a bright afternoon, the pupils contract. The smaller pupil lets less light into the eye so that we are not temporarily blinded by the amount of light flooding into our eyes.

The camera’s aperture works very much the same way. The aperture is the opening that allows light into the camera. This opening can change in size from small openings to large openings to allow the right amount of light to enter the camera. A large opening will allow more light into the camera at once than a small opening.

Effects of Aperture

In addition to allowing more or less light into the camera, the aperture determines how much of the scene will be in focus. A very narrow (small) aperture will result in most or all of an image being in focus. This is very useful for landscape photography, as most photographers desire to keep everything in a landscape photograph focused.

A wide (large) aperture keeps only a small section of the scene in focus. Anything outside of that small range will be blurred. This is useful, for example, in portrait photography, where the subject’s face is focused and the background is blurred.

Effects of a wide aperture (f/5.6) Effects of a small aperture (f/36)

Measuring Aperture

Aperture is measured in “f-values” or “f-stops.” The f-value is often written as “f” followed by a number, such as f11. These numbers, however, represent fractions. f11 actually refers to f/11. As the number represented by the fraction gets closer to 1, the lens opening becomes wider. As the number represented by the fraction gets farther from 1, the lens opening becomes smaller. For example, f/5 is closer to 1 (a larger number) than f/22. (If seeing the fraction with “f” is confusing, think of it with a 1 instead of f. 1/5 is larger than 1/22.) The aperture f/5, therefore, is a wider lens opening than f/22.

The numbers become a bit confusing because most cameras don’t have room to write a fraction, so the aperture setting appears on a camera as f5 or f22.

Don’t panic if the numbers sound complicated. Just playing with these settings for awhile will allow you to get used to what numbers do what even if you never think in terms of fractions. f/1 would be (in theory, at least) the widest possible lens opening. As the fraction gets smaller (f/2.8, f/9.0, f/18, f/22, etc), the lens opening gets smaller.

Depth of Field

The “field” is space that will appear in a photograph. For example, when making a photo of a person sitting on the bench, the field includes the person, the bench, the grass, the trees in the background, and the flowers in the foreground.

The depth of field refers to the part of the field that is focused. If the person’s face is in focus, but the flowers, grass, and trees are all blurred, there is a narrow depth of field. If everything appearing in the photograph is in focus, there is a wide depth of field. Aperture determines the depth of field of a photograph.

Shallow or narrow depth of field Wide depth of field

Shutter SpeedThe shutter speed is the amount of time the shutter is open allowing light to enter the camera.

Effects of Shutter Speed

When discussing the effects of shutter speed, it is important to remember that photography is entire about recording light. A camera does not take pictures of trees or people. The camera only records the light reflecting off of the trees or people. The camera will continue to record all the light that enters the camera. If the shutter speed remains open for, say, thirty seconds, then all of the light reflected toward the camera for those thirty seconds will be recorded.

Imagine setting your camera on a tripod overlooking a field. The shutter speed is set to thirty seconds. You press the button to open the shutter. The camera is recording all the light from the field. A few seconds into the exposure, a deer walks through the frame from one end of the frame to the other. After the deer leaves the frame, the thirty seconds are up and the shutter closes. Where will the deer appear in the resulting image?

Light had been reflecting off every object in the field into the camera for the entire thirty seconds. As the deer walked into the frame, the light reflecting off the deer was also recorded. The deer continued moving, and as the deer moved, the light reflecting off the deer in the new position was recorded. This process continued until the deer was out of the frame. The resulting photograph, therefore, would not show a deer. Instead, the photograph will show a streak of light where the deer was walking.

This streak of light is known as “motion blur”. When light reflected off of moving objects is recorded by a camera over time, motion blur is the result. This blur is usually unwanted, though motion blur can also be created intentionally to create some beautiful artistic effects.

Choosing a Shutter Speed

For extremely sharp photos, partic-ularly when photographing sports or fast moving objects, choose a fast shutter speed. 1/500s is usually fast enough to capture quickly moving objects, but as you experiment with different settings you will learn when you need 1/1000s and when you can use 1/250s.

For general photography, values between 1/60s and 1/250s tend to work well. Any time the camera is set much slower than 1/60s, the camera should be placed on a tripod or held firm by some other stable object. Below 1/60s, the extremely subtle shaking of our hands is enough to create blurry photos when holding the camera by hand.

For blurred motion, or for recording scenes without any movement in low light, values below 1/30s are often required. Many of my abstractions, for example, require shutter speeds ranging from 4s to 20s or slower. These slow speeds are generally unusual in photography, though, and most shutter speeds are small fractions of a second.

Measuring Shutter Speed

Shutter speed is measured in seconds. Most shutter speeds are a fraction of a second. The shutter speed for photos tends to be around 1/60 of a second (usually written 1/60s) to 1/250s. Many cameras allow shutter speeds as fast as 1/2000s and as slow as 30 seconds. When holding the camera by hand, it is best to stay above 1/60s or higher to avoid blurry photos.

ReciprocityAperture and shutter speed work together to create the proper exposure. The relationship between aperture and shutter speed is called “reciprocity”. “Reciprocity” is just a fancy word referring to this relationship between aperture and shutter speed.

A wide aperture lets in a lot of light at once. To compensate for the amount of light flooding the sensors at any given moment, a fast shutter speed is used to prevent too much light from flooding the film or sensors.

A narrow aperture lets only a small trickle of light into the camera at any given moment. To be sure enough light is recorded to create a proper exposure, the shutter must remain open longer.

The same is true when starting with shutter speed. If a long shutter speed is used, light will be recorded for a long time. In order to prevent too much light from flooding the camera and overexposing the image, a narrow aperture should be used.

If a short shutter speed is selected, light will only enter the camera for a short time. A wide aperture will allow a lot of light to enter the camera during that time to obtain a proper exposure.

Understanding this relationship between aperture and shutter speed is the basis of photography. This relationship can be confusing at first, and it often takes new students some time to fully understand. At some point, though, the relationship becomes fairly intuitive. When students reach that point (and they do!), the creative side of photography becomes more possible than ever before.

The quickest way to reach the point where aperture and shutter speed become intuitive is to continually create photos with different aperture and shutter speeds and carefully examine the results.

A show shutter speed allows the light reflecting off several waves and drops of water to create a cloud-like effect. In actuality the photo was created on a clear, sunny afternoon.

A wide aperture allows the photographer to keep the nearest eye in focus while blurring the background.

Relationship between Shutter Speed and Aperture:

1/500s at f/5.0 1/250s at f/7.1

1/125s at f/11 1/60s at f/16

1/30s at f/22 1/15s at f/29

1/10s at f/32 1/4s at f/32 (This image is brighter than the previous image because the aperture did not change.)

Selecting the Best Camera SettingsTo select the best settings, a decision must be made based on the effects of aperture and shutter speed. What kind of photograph are you creating? How much of the frame must be in focus? Is the subject moving? If so, should the image of the subject have a bit of motion blur, or should it completely frozen in time?

If every part of the image must be completely in focus, begin with a narrow aperture, such as f/22. (Different camera lenses will have different minimum and maximum apertures, so be sure to know the limits of your camera and lens.)

For portraits and other photographs where the subject should be very sharp but the background should be blurred, begin with a wide aperture, such as f/4.5 or larger.

To record the light from moving subjects without any motion blur, begin with a fast shutter speed, such as 1/500s.

For low light situations using a tripod, or to create motion blur, begin with a slow shutter speed.

Once you select and set the first control, simply allow the light meter in your camera to show you where to set the other control for the amount of light available.

Creative ExposureI have been referring often to the “proper exposure.” The camera uses a light meter with mathematical formulas to calculate the proper exposure in any given scene. In reality, however, the correct exposure is the exposure that will make the photograph appear the way the photographer desires.

A light meter, including the light meter built in to cameras, reads either the aperture or shutter speed and then calculates the setting required to make the gray values in the frame average eighteen percent. While eighteen percent gray normally creates a well exposed photograph, there are times when this formula will not work properly.

OverexposingConsider, for example, a photograph of a field on a snowy day or the bright white glow of rough water. Nearly the entire scene is white. When the camera averages out the values in the scene to middle gray, the beautiful white snow all averages out to gray. The light being reflected back should be much more than middle gray, but the camera sets the average value to 18%. The photograph of the snow ends up a dull gray instead of a vivid white. In this case the photographer must “overexpose” the photograph. The photographer lets in more light so that the average value is higher (whiter) than middle gray.

This photo of rushing water was mostly all white. The camera was set to intentionally overexpose the image in order to preserve the whites. Using the camera’s “proper” exposure setting results in a very gray representation of the water.

UnderexposingConsider the opposite scenario - a sunset. The sun has just set, and the remaining light is a brilliant reds, pinks, oranges, blues, violets and black silhouettes. The camera’s light meter averages the values in this scene and finds them too low, so the camera lets more light through the lens to

brighten up the scene at match middle gray. The resulting photograph will be a bright sky without many of the vibrant colors. The silhouettes fail to stand out as well, and the sky looks just like any evening sky, not the brilliant sky the photog-rapher saw through the viewfinder. In this case, the photogra-pher needs to “underexpose” the shot in order to tell the camera that the average value of the resulting photograph should fall below middle gray.

Using the camera’s recommended exposure would have increased the overall value of the image, resulting in a loss of color in the sky. Instead, the camera was set to intentionally underexpose the scene to preserve the dark colors.

A “properly” exposed photograph as determined by the camera’s light meter ensures that the gray values average out to 18%. In this case, the technically correct calculation shows detail in the statue and trees, but it also loses the color of the sunset.

By intentionally underexposing the image, less light is recorded, resulting in a silhouetted statue and the deep reds, oranges, and purples of the sunset.

Other Camera ControlsISOI noted earlier that there are technically more than two factors in setting the correct exposure. One of these additional factors is the ISO. ISO (an abbreviation for the International Organiza-tion for Standardization) is the speed of the film in the camera.

In film cameras, the film is coated with light-sensitive chemicals. These chemicals change when they are exposed to light. These chemicals can be produced in ways that make them react to light very quickly or very slowly. The speed at which these chemicals react is called the “film speed”. In the past, the film speed was measured in a unit called ASA. Now the measurement of the film speed is called ISO. Lower ISO numbers react slowly to light, while higher ISO values react faster to light. For example, a film with an ISO of 50 reacts very slowly to light. When pho-tographing an outdoor scene on a very bright afternoon, ISO 50 film would work quite well. The slow reaction to light will allow the photographer to use a fairly average combination of shutter speed and aperture without too much light entering the camera. In a dark room lit only by a few candles, this slow film would take an extraordinarily long time for enough light to reach the film. Instead, a much faster film would work better, such as ISO 800 or ISO 1600.

In film cameras, the film itself determines the ISO value, as the film speed measures the physical chemical coating on the film. When shooting outdoors in bright sunlight using ISO 100 film, a photographer cannot simply come inside in low light and shoot at a different ISO. Instead, the photographer must finish the roll of film and insert a new roll of faster film.

One advantage of digital cameras is that because digital cameras simulate ISO, the ISO setting can be changed from photo to photo. A photographer with a digital camera can go outdoors and create a few photos at ISO 100, then come inside and change the camera’s ISO setting to ISO 800.

Pros and ConsHigher ISO values allow you to shoot in lower light without making the shutter speed longer or the aperture wider to let enough light into the camera.

There is a downside to using faster ISO values. In both film and digital photography, faster film speeds produce something called “grain”. In some cases, grainy photographs can look quite beautiful in film photography. One downside to digital photography is that grain from high ISO values almost never looks good. In fact, grain in digital photograph generally looks so bad that it is called “noise” instead of “grain”. As cameras advance and digital noise reduction improves, it is becoming possible to shoot at higher ISO values without too much noticeable noise in the image, particularly on higher end cameras. On lower end cameras, though, noise is still a big problem. On many low end cameras ISO 800 and higher produces too much noise to be useful.

The general rule of thumb, especially in digital photography, is to use the lowest possible ISO that will allow you create the photograph you need. When shooting outdoors on a bright day, keep the ISO set to 100 or 200. When shooting indoors where light is often fairly dim by photography standards, try keeping the ISO to 400, and go up to 800 if absolutely necessary.

Many photography teachers recommend setting the camera at ISO 400 and just leaving it there. Students who have a difficult time understanding ISO would be wise to take this advice. With just a little effort, though, ISO is not too difficult to understand, and changing the ISO will provide far greater creative freedom in many instances.

White BalanceAll photography is recording light. White light is light that contains every color frequency in equal amounts. True white light is just theory. In reality, every light source allows some light frequencies through more than others. Our brains compensate for these variations and convince us that the light is actually white. However, if a person were able to see sunlight, light from a florescent bulb, and light from a tungsten bulb in one scene, each type of light would have a different color cast to it.

Florescent lights generally have a green cast. Tungsten bulbs usually have an orange cast. Light that has a red, yellow, or orange cast is generally considered warm light, while light with a blue cast is considered cool. The type of light is measured in a unit called Kelvin and is referred to as the temperature of light.

The white balance setting on your camera allows you to tell the camera what type of light you are recording. If the camera is set to record afternoon sunlight and instead records florescent light, the photo will appear very green. By setting the white balance to the florescent setting, the camera is able to match the colors correctly for florescent lights.

The white balance setting produced an overly cool color cast.

An accurate white balance setting.

The white balance setting produced a warm color cast.

In general, most cameras do a very good job determining the temperature of light. If the photos appear to have a blue, green or orange cast to them, however, it is most likely happening because the white balance is not correct. White balance problems are relatively easy to fix on a computer, but it is best to get the setting correct in the camera, particularly when your camera records the image as a JPG file.

File FormatsThere are two main file formats that digital cameras use to save the image files: JPG and RAW.

When a digital camera records a photograph, all of the information about the photograph is used to create a digital file. If the camera is set to save the photographs as JPG files, the camera will compress the image to save space, apply noise reduction, effects, and other enhancements, and save the JPG file with only the most important data in the file. All other information is lost. If the camera is set to save the files in RAW format, the camera saves all of the available information about the image into the file. The actual pixels that created the image are saved in the file (unlike the compressed versions in a JPG file), along with the camera settings the photographer selected. Because all the original data is saved, the photographer can alter many elements of the original photograph without actually changing any of the original pixels. In addition, RAW files allow a wider range of colors to be saved than JPG files. The great advantages of RAW files come at a price, though, as RAW files take up two or three times as much space as a JPG file. The camera’s memory card will fill up far more quickly when saving the files in RAW format.

JPG files are the standard for photo files. Not all computer software can read RAW files. When posting finished images for viewing on a screen, RAW files must be converted to JPG files. The conversion is easy, and can be accomplished in Photoshop, in the software that came with the camera, or with many other free and paid photo editing tools.

Not all cameras support RAW files. When using a camera that supports RAW files, I recommend setting the camera to save files in RAW format. Spare memory cards are consistently getting larger and less expensive. For any serious photography, the advantages of shooting in RAW format are worth the extra few dollars for a couple extra memory cards. (I recommend using extra memory cards anyway, regardless of the file format.)

TripodsWhile slow shutter speeds can be used artistically, they can also create problems. Shooting a photo with a hand-held camera below 1/60 of a second (often even faster) will nearly always result in a blurred image because people’s hands are shaking. Blood is pulsing through the fingertips causing movement. Muscles shake ever so slightly, especially when supporting an object like a camera. Regular exercise, healthy diet, and avoiding caffeine can help reduce this shaking, but the shaking will always be there. This is simply a result of our biology.

As a rule of thumb, use a tripod for any shot taken at a shutter speed of less than 1/(maximum focal length). For example, if the lens can zoom to 105mm, avoid shooting at less than 1/135 of a second. (Since most cameras don’t have a 1/105 setting, use 1/125.) When using a 300mm lens, don’t shoot slower than 1/300s without a tripod. Even with a close lens (such as 18mm), however, avoid shooting at less than 1/60s without a tripod.

There are a couple things a photographer can do to reduce or avoid camera shake at slow shutter speeds. The first and perhaps the best way to keep the camera perfectly still is to use a tripod. Even on a tripod, pushing the shutter button can introduce some amount of movement, so use remote or the camera’s self-timer when possible.

Another way to avoid camera shake is to set the camera on a solid surface such as a floor or table. Many photographers set the camera on a wallet or a bean bag to position the camera at the correct angle for the shot, then use a remote or a self timer to open the shutter. This keeps the camera still in situations where a tripod is unavailable or cannot be used.

If neither of these options is available, look for a wall or solid object to lean the camera against. Holding the camera against a wall or door frame will steady the camera more than holding the camera by hand.

Finally, if the camera must be held by hand at a slow shutter, be sure to get into a proper position. Put the viewfinder to

your eye, tuck your arms in to your chest to allow your chest to support your arms. Take a deep breath to allow oxygen into your blood, then, just as you begin to slowly exhale, take the shot. (Some people teach that you should hold your breath while taking the shot to avoid movement in your lungs and chest. Other people teach that holding your breath actually causes your body to react to the interrupted airflow by shaking more, not less.)

FlashSometimes there is simply not enough light available to capture the subject effectively. In these cases a flash or other artificial light source may be used. With a few exceptions, flash should be used sparingly as a last resort.

Problems with FlashHarsh ShadowsOne of the main problems with flash is that most on-board flash units result in very harsh shadows on and behind the subject.

Intensity of LightIn addition to the hard shadows caused by flash, the intensity of light from flash units decreases very rapidly. Most flash units are only effective for a few (six to twelve) feet. The light from the flash bounced off of the subject and back into the lens. Other light from the flash travels beyond the subject, but drops in intensity. This light reflects off of the background

and reflects back into the lens, but the intensity of this light is drastically lower than the light reflecting off of the subject. The result of this use of flash is a well-lit subject with a very dark background. At times parts of the foreground will be too bright as well. This lighting is undesirable in photography unless there is an artistic reason to create this effect.

Red-eyeLight leaves the flash unit, bounces off the subject, and travels back into the camera’s lens. Some of this light from the flash will reach the subject’s eyes. The pupils act as lenses for people’s eyes; light from the flash actually enters the inside of a person’s eyeball and reaches the back of the eye. This part of the eye (the retina) is filled with blood vessels, which are lit up by the flash and reflect back into the camera’s lens. This creates the phenomenon called “red-eye”.

Many cameras have red-eye reduction modes. Usually the camera will emit a very bright and long flash or a series of quick bright flashes before opening the shutter. Pupils react to bright light by getting smaller (similar to a small aperture in a camera lens). The bright flashes of light emitted by a camera’s red-eye reduction, then, cause the pupils to shrink, reducing the changes of red-eye.

Even though red-eye reduction can reduce the changes of red-eye, the result is usually a smaller amount of red-eye, not an absence of red-eye. There is still light entering the pupil and reflecting back off of the retina.

The two best ways to eliminate red-eye completely are 1) avoid using a flash or 2) when a flash is required, keep the flash as far from the camera’s lens as possible. A build in flash unit cannot be moved, but an external flash unit may sit far enough from the lens to avoid red-eye even when mounted on the camera, and many external units can be moved off of the camera and held by hand or on a tripod at an angle to the subject. Many external

flash units can be angled at the ceiling or a wall, allowing the light to be diffused and avoiding harsh shadows.

Other ways to avoid red-eye include shooting from a different angle. If the person is not looking directly at the camera, the flash will not be directed straight back at the retina. A diffuser may also work. While most built in flash units do not have diffusers, the light from the flash can still be diffused with a piece of trading paper. A mirror can also be placed in front of the flash to redirect the light from the flash at the ceiling or a wall. This will avoid harsh shadows and will diffuse the light, but the flash will also lose intensity before reaching the subject.

Proper Use of Flash: Fill FlashFlash in low light, while sometimes necessary, can ruin a photograph by introducing unwanted shadows and red-eye. Flash in well-lit areas, on the other hand, can sometimes make a shot much better. Late afternoon sun tends to case hard shadows on people’s faces. A very dark shadow from a person’s nose, cheeks, and eye sockets may ruin an otherwise excellent photograph. A flash can fill in these shadow areas with light, allowing the photographer to capture the scene without these distracting shadows. This is known as “fill flash” and is used very frequently in outdoor settings.

The subject in this image was completely back-lit by the bright afternoon sun. A fill flash allows the subject to be seen instead of being a silhouette.

The background in this image was also very bright with hard shadows in the camel’s face. A fill flash filled in the hard shadows and allows the camel’s head to be properly exposed.

Diffusing LightSome flash units and photography lighting kits include large umbrellas. The flash or lighting source is aimed at the inside of the umbrella, which reflects the light back at the subject. The light that reaches the subject is no longer the harsh light from the lighting source, but light that has been diffused (softened) by reflecting off the inside of the umbrella and spread out.

External flash units that mount on the camera often have built in diffusers. Flashes that do not have diffusers built in may be diffused with thin paper like tracing paper or redirected to a wall or ceiling with a mirror. Diffusing light helps to soften the light, resulting in much softer shadows.

Learning Your CameraEvery camera is different. Creating a small section defining the controls you will find on your specific camera borders on impossible. The manual for your camera is usually your best resource for learning how to control your camera.

The following camera modes are fairly common, though they may have different names or icons and not all cameras will have all of these modes. Many cameras have a dial that the photogra-pher can turn to select specific shooting modes. Other cameras provide access to these through a menu. Refer to your manual for specifics.

The automatic settings on cameras will set the shutter speed and aperture on a camera automatically. Keep in mind, though, that the photographer usually knows better than the camera what the desired outcome should be. Avoiding automatic settings and shooting photos manually is the often best option, and is the option that provides the greatest creative control over your photographs.

For all photography courses, I require students to shoot in the camera’s manual mode.

Full Manual Mode (M) (Recommended)The photographer controls both shutter speed and aperture. Most professional photographers only shoot in manual mode. This mode is best for photographers who know exactly what they want the photograph to look like. Scenes with unusual lighting may require this setting to achieve good results.

Aperture Priority (Av) (Recommended as an alternative to Full Manual Mode)Aperture priority allows the photographer to set a specific aperture to achieve a specific artistic result. Whenever the aperture is changed, the camera chooses a shutter speed to compensate.

Shutter Priority (Tv) (Recommended as an alternative to Full Manual ModeShutter priority allows the photographer to set a specific shutter speed to achieve a specific artistic result. Whenever the shutter speed is changed, the camera chooses an aperture to compensate.

Full AutomaticThe camera determines the best aperture and shutter speed based on the amount of light available.

Partial AutomaticSame as full automatic except that the photographer is able to override some of the automatic settings.

Sports ModeIn order to capture fast moving objects, the camera is set to a very fast shutter speed. The aperture is opened wide to allow enough light in as quickly as possible.

Landscape ModeTo ensure the entire scene is in focus, the aperture is set very small. The shutter speed is then slowed to ensure that enough light comes in to the camera.

Portrait ModeIn order to keep a portrait in focus and the background blurred, a fairly wide aperture is used. A fairly fast shutter speed is used to compensate.

Nighttime ModeMost nighttime modes combine a long shutter speed with a flash. The flash emulates the shutter speed for objects in the foreground while the long shutter speed allows objects in the background to appear in the photo as well.

Using a Camera with No Manual ModeStudent who have a camera with no manual options will not get as much from the course and will not have as much control over the resulting images. However, the semi-automatic modes still provide some flexibility.

Most portraits are created with a sharp foreground and a blurred background. Portrait mode sets the camera with a wide aperture to create this look. Portrait mode can be used, therefore, to set a wide aperture.

Similarly, landscape photos are usually created with a very small aperture to keep as much of the frame in focus as possible. In situations where a small aperture is needed, landscape mode will work.

Sports mode is designed to capture athletes in motion by using a fast shutter. When a fast shutter speed is required, sports mode will do the job.

Nighttime mode is the closest option to setting a long shutter speed. In most cases, though, the flash will automatically fire

in nighttime mode. Because the flash is so powerful, the flash illuminates the subject in a way that simulates a fast shutter speed, defeating the purpose of a long shutter. You can get a long shutter speed by disabling the flash (if the camera allows this) or completely covering the flash with some dark object that will prevent the light from the flash from illuminating the subject. Keep in mind, though, that anything touching the camera that could move or vibrate (such as a hand) will cause blurring in the image with long shutter speeds.

CompositionWhile getting comfortable with camera controls,

photography students should also be focusing on learning to compose photographs well. A good composition could mean the difference between an average photograph and an excellent photograph. Learning to compose images well takes quite a bit of thought and practice. Even when you don’t have a camera, practice looking for the elements of design around you. Learn to see things you have never seen before in places you would not normally look. In time, though, compositing images well becomes second nature. After learning the rules, you will also begin to see when you should strategically break the rules to make a more effective photograph. Using the elements of design and following the rules of composition in every photograph will make your photographs effective, and the more you practice these things, the easier it becomes to create good compositions.

Balance and Visual TensionIn most cases, the goal of composition is to create an image that is both visually interesting and balanced. Imagine balancing the frame on a pin; would the image tilt to the right or the left? If so, the image is not well balanced. The following example represents a perfectly balanced image:

Even though this image is perfectly balanced, the image is fairly boring. Moving the dot toward a corner adds far more visual interest, often called “visual tension.” “Tension” is often seen as something to be avoided. In a composition, though, tension creates visual interest. The following example shows this visual tension:

Even though there is strong visual tension/interest, the image is very unbalanced. Unless you are inten-tionally trying to make the viewer uncomfortable, an unbalanced image is generally not successful.

One solution to balance the image is ensure that one side of the image is identical to the other side:

This solution is called “symmetry”. Symmetry is a very useful tool for composition, but symmetry can also be visually uninteresting. Symmetry solves the problem of balancing an image by removing visual tension. Since visual tension creates interest, removing visual tension

often removes visual interest. In most cases, a better solution is to balance the image while maintaining visual tension:

The problem the photographer, like designers and other visual artists, must solve is to create a balanced image that maintains visual culture. Photographers are obviously not working with simple shapes, but with real objects in the real world. A successful photo is usually one that

keeps the subject prominent while creating visual tension and then resolving the tension by balancing the image.

Elements of DesignTo begin learning about visual communication, an introduction to the elements of design is important. Certain visual elements provide a means of communication for nearly any visual message. These elements include:

• Line• Space• Size• Shape• Color• Value• Texture

LinePerfectly straight lines are rare in nature. Most perfectly straight lines are man-made. One of the few straight lines in nature is only seen from the beach. The horizon is a straight horizontal line, and aside from extreme weather is stable and unchanging. Other common experiences with horizontal lines include the floor and our bodies while we sleep. Straight horizontal lines are therefore often associated with stability, peacefulness, and rest.

Vertical lines have similar associations. When my family first moved into our current house, there was an evergreen tree

growing against an awning and causing damage to the gutter. One of my first jobs after painting and moving the furniture was to cut down this tree before it did further damage to the gutter or the awning. My biggest

obstacle was that I had no power tools. (This past summer I refinished my basement, but at that point I was lucky to have screwdriver.) I purchased a hand saw from a local hardware store and got to work. After about thirty minutes of cutting I was sore and exhausted, and in spite of the huge cut I made in the tree I was not even close to seeing it come down. I spent more time the next day; still no results. After several more attempts my Irish stubbornness finally kicked in and I made up my mind that either the tree or me would be down that night. And it was not going to be me. I cut so deep into the tree from both sides that I could not imagine how it was still standing, but even then I could not push the tree over. After cutting roughly 90% through the tree, the tree was still standing, refusing to even bend when I leaned on it. I actually had not cut nearly all the way through the entire tree before it came down, and even then I had to physically hang from the rope I had tied to it before it began to give. Before that job, I had no clue how sturdy a tree is. I have a whole appreciation for hurricanes that can blow over trees like nothing.

Trees are vertical lines. Vertical lines convey strength and stability. Vertical lines are not easily moved.

While vertical and horizontal lines are similar, especially in their suggestion of stability, vertical lines are the opposite. If a person is standing straight, it is generally not easy to knock the person over. If I lean far enough to one side, however, it won’t take much effort at all to knock me over. I might fall over on my own. Vertical lines are not stable. These lines create visual tension and help to create a sense of movement in the composition. (Visual tension, by the way, is a good thing. More will be said about visual tension in the future.)

Consider what line communicates the following image:

Repetition of dark vertical lines communicate strength. The dark, wide, solid horizontal line communicates strength and stability. The dark value of these horizontal and vertical lines, combined with our experience with the type of metal that forms these lines, reinforce the idea of a strong, stable barrier. Yet there is also a strong, dark vertical line of the same material visually cutting through these strong lines. This important line helps to create movement in the image. In addition, there are bright, curved lines behind these bars formed by nature. These diagonals also visually cut through the stable barrier. Are the barriers keeping the viewer away from nature? Is the barrier keeping nature away from the viewer? Either way, there is a strong tension created in the image separating the natural from the man-made. The tension created by the visual elements is one of the dominant ideas communicated in this image.

Learning to see and to use line in this way to communicate ideas is one step toward effective visual communication.

In your day to day travels, where do you see lines in nature? Where do you see man-made lines? How thin or think are those lines? Are the lines vertical? Horizontal? Diagonal? Some combination of these?

Examine these lines for awhile as you see them. What do these lines communicate to you? What emotions do they evoke? Would you use these lines to communicate peacefulness? Excitement? Joy? Sorrow? Science? Philosophy? Life? Death? How can you use line visually to communicate ideas in your next lecture?

ShapeAnother important element of visual communication is shape. If a horizontal line suggests stability and a vertical line suggests strength, what might a square represent? In many cases a square (or rectangle) combines stability and strength. If a diagonal breaks down stability and creates visual movement, a triangle can do so ever more powerfully. An upside-down triangle balanced on its pinnacle is very unstable. A circle is a constantly moving line with no beginning and no end. A circle is not necessarily unstable, but it is not likely to stay put. Circles create movement. In some cases circles can also represent eternity, or something that will never end, as a wedding ring represents never-ending love.

Space and SizeTwo other important elements of composition are found in the following photograph.

First, space is important to a composition. Space is often referred to as “positive space” and “negative space”. Positive space is usually what is in “front,” the subject matter. In this case, the positive space includes the person, the bench, and the rocks. The “negative space,” on the other hand, is the background. In this case, the negative space includes the sky and the distant mountain ranges. Notice here how large the negative space is compared to the positive space. This use of negative space is vital to communication in this photograph. Whether the negative space is large or small, noticeable or not, the use of negative space is very important to composition.

Along with negative space, one of the most noticeable elements in this photograph is that the background is huge, while the person in the foreground is relatively small. Size is an important element of visual communication. Size in this photograph contrasts the person with his surroundings. One possible way to interpret this photograph is that an individual is very small in

the grand scheme of things. Compare the way size and negative space are used in this image to the following photograph:

Here the child’s face takes up nearly the entire frame. Size here communicates a very different idea. Instead of showing how small we are in a large world, this photograph suggests that this child is larger than life. Our lives are not meaningless in this world, as suggested in the first photo; rather, the world seems to revolve in some way around this child.

As you view images (not only photographs, but advertise-ments, billboards, television and movie scenes, architec-ture, or even nature itself) consider the way line, space, size and shape all work

together. What do the lines communicate? The use of space? The sizes of the various elements of the image? The shapes? Is the image relaxing or energetic? Is the subject firm and strong or flexible and constantly changing or moving?

ValueIn the context of design and visual communication, value refers to how light or dark something is. Imagine stripping away the color from part of an image. The shade of gray that is left would be considered the value. The most obvious example of value appears in a black and white image. The following photograph, for example, uses value as a primary tool for communication.

This image presents very dark areas and very light areas. The contrast of dark and light values in this photograph create a visual energy that helps communicate the strength of the storm. If the contrast of values throughout the photograph were less extreme, the photograph would probably appear more dreary or gloomy rather than energetic.

The next image, on the other hand, shows a photograph with much lower contrast in value.

This image is in color instead of black and white, but this does not change the values. Imagine stripping away the color from this image; the contrast in values would remain unchanged. Because there is not a drastic difference between the lighter and darker areas, the photograph has a very serene feel to it.

In general, therefore, value can be used to create or reduce the visual energy present in a visual composition. High contrast in values will create more visual energy, while low contrast in value creates a more tranquil feeling.

TextureTexture is a very important tool for visual communication. Different textures will communicate very different ideas. Compare the textures in the following two images:

We know that if we were to touch the rose, it would feel soft. We know this in part because of past experiences touching flowers. Had we never touched a flower before, however, we would still perceive the subject of this image as soft. The lines are not hard and sharp, and there are no extremely dark and light areas side by side creating strong contrast. These visual clues convince us that the subject of the image is soft, even if we have never touched a flower before.

The image on the left, on the other hand, contains strong, hard shadows and sharp lines. When we imaging ourselves feeling this subject, we certainly do not expect a pleasant experience. The surface would be rough, not soft and smooth like the flower. Even if we had never experienced touching rough tree bark before, our brains understand the rough texture through visual clues.

ColorColor could arguably be the most powerful (and the most complicated) element of composition. Businesses spend massive sums of money hiring experts in color theory. Colors are packed with meaning and are constantly influencing each of us, often at a subconscious level. The perceived meanings of color are usually cultural and are strongly dependent upon the context in which the colors are used. Sometimes, however, color will have a physiological effect on our bodies. Fast-food restaurants, for example, nearly always use variations of red, orange and yellow to decorate their interiors. These colors have a physical effect on our bodies - they make us hungry. If a baby’s bedroom is painted orange, that baby is likely to eat a lot. Red is a very passionate, energetic color. If a baby’s room is painted bright red, that baby is likely to be very over-stimulated and is likely to cry excessively.

Providing meanings and physical effects of colors is far beyond the scope of this article. A careful search online will provide good resources for the meanings of colors.

Consider the following image:

The bright red in this photograph is a very strong color. Red is par-ticularly tricky, as red can communicate many different ideas depending upon its context and on how bright and saturated the color is. A very bright red often commu-nicates joy and celebration, and usually creates a sense of excitement. When the same hue becomes darker, the red remains very energetic, but can appear more foreboding, perhaps communicating blood or death. Consider the

use of wine as a literary symbol. Red wine is symbolic of joy and celebration in one context, while in another context red wine symbolizes blood, vengeance, and destruction. Likewise with the color red.

Compare this image to the same image with the colors altered:

Everything is the same in these two images except the color. When the color throughout the photo is cyan instead of red, the energy of the image changes, along with the ideas or emotions communicated. The interest level of the photograph is also affected. The red version grabs the viewer’s attention so powerfully that it becomes difficult to look away. The cyan version is far easier to look at, but it is also far easier to look away.

Using the Elements of DesignTake some time to look through pieces of advertising or marketing materials. Collect materials that capture your attention, whether in a positive way or a negative way. Once you collect a handful of samples, look through them carefully to find how each one uses:

• Line• Shape• Size• Space• Value• Texture• Color

For each dominant element of design present in the image, what ideas does that element of design communicate?

Do the ideas communicated by each element of design match the topic of that particular advertisement? For example, if you see a magazine cover using primarily bright, joyful red and black, utilizing high contrast in value, the elements of design will likely be communicating energy, joy, passion, and fun. Does the topic of this magazine match the visuals? If the magazine is about parties for college students or America’s busiest cities, the visual elements are likely communicating the same ideas as the text. If the magazine is about tranquil vacation spots, the visuals are probably detracting from the message.

What message do you need to communicate?

What visual elements can you use to help convey this message?

Answering these questions will help in every form of visual communication, from marketing materials, to PowerPoint slideshows, to decorative art for the hallway walls to architec-ture and interior design decisions. Remember that every visual detail communicates something. Be sure that every detail is examined carefully to ensure that the intended message is understood.

Color is used in this photograph to unify the various elements. The red text in the sign, the red dress in the advertise-ment, and the red uniform worn by the main subject work together to form a triangle. Color is used to create a shape, and these two elements of design draw the viewer’s eye strategically around the frame.

Rule of ThirdsThe “Rule of Thirds” is often referred to in photography, but is effective in nearly any visual genre. The gist of the rule of thirds is that if you divide your frame into thirds both horizontally and vertically, the most important elements of your image should fall at the intersections of the thirds.

Sunset photos make a very good example of the rule of thirds. Do a quick search for “sunset” in Google images (images.google.com). Roughly half of the images will show the sun and the horizon directly in the center.

Take the same scene and move the position of the sun within the frame to the intersection of one of the thirds and the image has a whole new life.

In this case, the sun falls right at the intersection of the thirds.

By placing the sun at the intersection of the thirds, the negative space in the image opens up leaving the viewer with plenty of room to take in the entire scene. The viewer is not left to wonder where to look. The eye is drawn to the sun, the brightest part of the image, but has plenty of room to explore the scene. There is no doubt that the image is primarily about the effect of the sun on the sky. The foreground (the mountains) are an important part of the photograph, but the photograph is primarily about the colors in the sky. Committing by using the rule of thirds makes the important part of the image clear to the viewer.

This next example, this time of a person, explores the rule of thirds.

Recall the elements of composition. The boy’s arm creates a distinct line in the image. The gaze of the eyes also create a virtual line, pointing to the exact same place as the line of the arm. The negative space creates a recognizable shape. The green in the background extends through the green in the shirt collar to the remainder of the background. The red in the shirt contrasts with the green in the negative space. Negative space becomes very important to the image largely because the boy is positioned to the side of the frame with the nearest eye at the intersection of thirds.

Imagine the same photo with the boy’s face centered. To the right of the eyes would be the back of the head and some blurred green from the background. No useful information would exist to the right of the image. There would be negative space, but that space would be largely wasted instead of contributing to the image.By keeping the boy’s nearest eye at the intersection of the thirds, the information contains only the useful information, drawing the viewer into the boy’s world.

Notice in the description of the image how several elements of composition work together to achieve a strong visual. The rule of thirds works with the other elements, not in isolation from them.

Employing the rule of thirds will make nearly all visual work stronger. Use this rule when creating PowerPoint slideshows, designing brochures, composing photographs, laying out elements on a website, and in nearly any visual endeavor. Remember the previous elements of composition and place the most important elements at the intersection of the thirds, and your work will be very likely to succeed.

Vantage PointVantage point, or viewpoint, is a very important element to consider when creating a photograph. Many people see something interesting and shoot of a photo of the thing without first thinking much about the best way to represent the thing visually. Is there a place to stand that would create a more interesting view of the subject? Will the place you are standing allow you to use the shadows, lines, textures, shapes, etc in a way that will best move the viewer’s eye around the frame? Are there branches, signs, wires, or other unwanted objects in the frame? Would standing somewhere else get these objects out of the frame? Should you be standing at all? Perhaps kneeling would give a better vantage point for the subject. Or lying down, or standing on a chair.

Each of the following photographs were created in the same location. Each photo shows the same scene from a different viewpoint. The only differences were the position the photo was captured from and the amount the lens was zoomed in.

I often challenge students to find a scene that inspires them to create a photo, but to resist shooting the photo right away. First, reflect on the scene. What about the scene makes you desire to take a photo? Once you know what the “magic” element of the scene is, find a vantage point that best brings out that particular element of the scene.

For example, consider the following waterfall scene.

The photograph is nice, but it is not really anything special. Asking yourself, “What about this scene makes me want to create the photo?” can begin to offer more options. In this case, the waterfall itself, not the surrounding landcape, is the most interesting part of the scene. The snow and the leafless/lifeless trees are distracting from the true energy of the scene.

By changing the vantage point, the photographer can go beyond simply showing a representation of the scene. Instead, the photograph can offer the viewer a deeper experience of the scene.

First, moving closer to the waterfall helps. In this case, though, there are still too many distracting elements to provide a strong experience of the waterfall.

Moving much closer to the water itself provides a greater experience of the beauty of the scene without the distracting elements.

The previous photo was created closer to the water, but from the same angle. Shifting to the side offers a glipse of the shapes of the rocks and the shape of the movement of water.

Creating a photo from still another angle provides an abstraction of the scene. In this case the photograph shows shape and movement

rather than water.

Vantage point is particulary useful when photographing children. When adults photograph children, usually they grab the camera, aim the camera at the child, and open the shutter. There is nothing wrong with this approach, especially when the goal of the photograph is to show people what the children look like or to record a memory of something the child is doing.

When all a person’s photographs of children are taken from this particular vantage point, a subtle and unintentional message is communicated: I see children as beneath me. I am the adult. The child is smaller, less powerful, and often helpless.

Many people who view the photos will not pick up on this subcon-scious message. We are so used to taking and viewing photos of children from this vantage point that we often don’t think about the image beyond admiring the cute child. Even if people do pick up on this unintended message, the message is accurate. Adults are bigger and stronger than children. There is nothing wrong about taking photos of children from above.

Consider how much more powerful photographs of children could be, however, when they are created from a different

vantage point. By simply moving the camera to the child’s eye level, the viewer is no longer looking down at a cute child. Instead, the viewer is invited to enter into the child’s world. The viewer can experience life along with the child and from the child’s point of view.

Bringing the camera down below the child’s eye level enhances the effectiveness of a photograph even more. Not only is the viewer invited to enter the child’s world, but the child is in charge. The adult is no longer looking down on a helpless child. Instead, the child gets to look down on the adult.

CommunicationQuite a few years ago my wife and I attended a friend’s

wedding in Albuquerque, NM. I had just purchased my first digital camera and had rekindled my love of photography. While my wife was helping to prepare for the wedding, I took the opportunity to wander the streets of the city with my camera. During my journey I stumbled upon a church building that caught my attention. The photograph of the church is not intended to be a strong composition or any artistic expression. This photo was merely documenting what I saw.

We are in the midst of a transition from Modern culture to whatever is coming next. Modern culture, informed by the En-lightenment, tends to embrace linear, rational thinking. Modern people use text heavily for mass communication.

The culture that is emerging from this transition is drastically different from Modern/Enlightenment culture in many ways. One of the more significant differences between these two cultures is that the emerging culture uses image and story to communicate rather than only text. Text is still a very important and powerful means of communication, but text is used differently than it was even fifty years ago. Text can be used to create mental images, and mass communication in this emerging culture tends to be more effective through image than through text.

Consider the image of the church building shown here. To a culturally Modern person, this church building is very welcoming. After all, the text itself affirms, “The first Baptist family welcomes you.” Modern-thinking (text-based) students who see this photo often affirm the welcoming nature of the sign. To a Modern audience, this church building is, indeed, welcoming.

People in this emerging, image-driven culture, however, see the architecture quite differently. An image-driven person will read the architecture and the overall aesthetics of the building before reading the sign. More importantly, an image-driven person

will see a drastic contradiction between the architecture and the text. This fact is, by the way, affirmed by dozens of Pillar College students. As a generalization, older students see this photograph and say that they would feel quite welcome in this church. Younger students, who tend to communicate through image first and text second, nearly always say that they would have no desire to attend this church. These younger students cannot often verbalize the reasons they would not attend this church, but the reaction is most often the same.

The first thing an image-driven person will notice is often the text itself. Remember, however, that people in this culture read the aesthetics before the text. They see the text first, but they do not read the text first. The text draws the eye because it is white, and the eye is normally attracted to the brightest part of an image.

The vertical lines in the doors will pull the viewer’s attention away from the text down toward the ground, perhaps pausing at the door handles on the way. The diagonal patterns on the doors are a nice touch, adding interest and movement, but when the viewer’s

eyes are moving from the text down, these diagonals continue moving the eye down toward the ground. Once the eye reaches the ground, the bright area in the bottom-left corner grabs the attention, again because this is a very bright part of the image.

As the eye continues to take in the aesthetics of the building, the viewer begins to notice other elements of the architecture. The siding of the building is brick. While the bricks and the red hues in the doors add warmth to the building, the bricks themselves have a very rough texture. Pause for a moment and imagine rubbing your hand along the side of the bricks. Our experiences with bricks tells us that this would not be an altogether pleasant experience. Bricks are hard and rough.

The shape of the light in the bottom-left corner creates an arrow that points the viewer’s eyes back to the doors. The doors are also hard. Imagine what it would feel like to try to open one of those doors. They appear heavy and inflexible. Imagine grabbing one of the door handles and trying to pull the door open. Not only would it take some effort to open those heavy, hard doors, but the handle itself is even harder than the door. The metal handle is inflexible, appears cold, and would hurt anyone unfortunate enough to trip and stumble into the handle. Some students have described this church building as a well protected fortress.

The awning appears much softer, but the awning is hung over the doors, out of reach. The awning is a very dark shade of green with quite a bit of blue mixed in. Blue is a cold color. This green, often a symbol of life, has been deadened by the cold mixture of blue and the dark value.

Most important to visual people, examine the placement of the light and shadows on this structure. This detail alone is the reason I felt the need to take the snapshot documenting what I saw. The sun lights up the phrase, “The first Baptist family.” The phrase “welcomes you” is left in the shadows.

Very few people, image-driven or otherwise, will consciously think about these things. If you ask an image-driven person why they have never attended this church congregation, very few will have any clue why they had no interest. But very few will have attended.

Please note that these characteristics are not necessarily bad. After all, many buildings have brick faces and large, heavy doors. My point is not that these things are negative, but that they communicate very powerfully. In this case, the message the aesthetics communicate do not match the message that the members of this congregation think they are communicating.

Imagine yourself in the shoes of an image-driven person walking by this structure. Even if you were to read the text, the impression you would most likely to get as an image-driven person is that this church congregation truly is a family. Specifically a Baptist family. But will an image-driven person feel welcome by seeing the outside of this church building? Absolutely not! I am not part of the family inside that building. The rough texture of the building combined with the solid, hard doors, the cold, hard door handles, and seeing “Welcomes you” in a shadow places this church building among the least likely congregations you will attend the following Sunday morning. The people in this congregation may be the most welcoming people in the country. A visual thinker may never find out.

Types of PhotographyThe ways you communicate through photography will vary according to your purpose for creating the photos. Three of the most common genres of photography are documentary, commerce, and fine art.

DocumentaryThe goal of documentary photography is to document something through images. In general, the photographer’s goal is to present an image of something to document exactly what was happening, who was there, etc. Photographs in newspapers are a good example of documentary photography. Something happened, and the photograph’s job is to show the news visually. Altering the photograph in any way is considered unethical in journalism, even if the editing is simply removing some litter from the ground. The photographer must take great care to present every photograph as an exact representation of the subject.

Art for Commerce / Advertising / MarketingCommercial photography is different from documentary photography. In commercial photography, the photographer is creating photographs for the purpose of making money. This could take the form of portrait photography, wedding and event photography, or creating stock photography to be used in ad-vertisements. The photographer’s job is to provide the exact image that the client desires. Heavy editing of the photograph is usually not only acceptable, but is often assumed. Photographs of people are edited particularly heavily. The more perfect a person looks, the more effective the photograph will be for sales.

Fine ArtFine art photography has a very broad scope and is difficult to define. A fine art photographer may be creating photos to

present a social message, challenge a worldview, make people aware of injustices, celebrate some aspect of life, and sometime just show viewers the beauty around them.

Determining the genre of photography you desire to pursue will help to pinpoint the reasons for creating the photographs and message you will communicate through your photos. This will also help you to plan your photos before shooting, as the end result of the photograph may be different for each genre and will require different types of post-processing.

Subject Matter vs. Actual SubjectThe person, object or place that you are photographing is often referred to as the “subject matter ”. The subject matter is what you see in the photograph.

The “actual subject” is what the photograph is really about. The actual subject may or may not be the same as the subject matter.

In this example, the subject matter is rotting pears in a broken container. The actual subject is death and decay, and more spe-cifically specifically miscarriage.

Narrative vs. FormOne way we refer to elements of images involves speaking of the narrative of the image and the form of the image. The narrative refers to the subject of the image. In other words, the narrative is what you see.

The form refers to the visual elements that create the narrative: line, space, shape, size, color, value, and texture.

The narrative of the image below involves a stream flowing through rocks with a waterfall toward the left side of the frame and some trees in the top-left corner.

The formal elements of this image are the contrast in value (light and dark) between the bright white areas and the dark gray or black areas, and the blue hue at the bottom of the image tying the image together with the similar green hue at the top of the image. Shape is a strong formal element in the image, as the gray areas form a series of triangles that are separated by the changes in value. The texture in the green area is contrasted with the texture in the gray area.

Notice that the description of the narrative refers to what we see and recognize in the photograph: rocks, water, trees, etc. The formal elements refer only to shape, texture, value, and contrast, not to water, trees, or rocks. For ease of communication we often refer to these elements using some combination of form and narrative. For example, we may refer to the texture in the rocks compared to the texture in the trees. Technically, though, the form of the image would refer to the texture in the gray areas and the texture in the green areas.

Communication through NarrativeCommunicating through the narrative of an image is generally fairly easy. The narrative of this photograph, for example, depicts chess pieces on a chess board. A careful examination of the image reveals that all but one of the chess pieces are kings, and only the fallen piece is a pawn. Most of the kings are reflections in small mirrors.

Keep in mind that the subject matter may not always be the actual subject. The most interest photographs are those that offer different levels of meaning. In this case, we know that each chess player only has one king. Why, then, are there so many kings on the chess board, and why are they all white kings? Why is the white pawn fallen, particularly when the king is on his side and is not in a position to capture the pawn anyway? Why are all but one of the kings reflections in mirrors?

Mirrors are not reality. Rather, the images in mirrors are reflections of the real thing, never the real thing itself. In other words, images in mirrors are illusions. According to the rules of chess, neither the real king nor the reflections are in positions to capture the pawn. The pawn has not been captured. The pawn has fallen on its own rather than at the hand of the king. Perhaps the pawn has fallen to the fear of the illusion of being surrounded by the king in every direction. Perhaps the threat to the pawn is nowhere near as severe as the pawn perceives.

The subject matter of this photograph is chess pieces. The actual subject is human beings surrendering and falling to illusions of danger rather than seeing clearly enough to rise up and overcome our struggles.

Communication through FormJust as strong communication through the narrative of an image often involves the use of metaphor, the formal elements of an image are also metaphors. The formal elements must work together with the narrative to present a message effectively.

The previous image of the chess pieces is relatively dark. The overall dark value of the image suggests the sense of doom we often feel when confronted with our own illusions of danger. Using value this way enhances the metaphor. The form and the narrative work together to present the message.

Consider the formal elements of the image below. The most dominant formal element here is color. Color demands the attention of most viewer before anything else. Line and shape are also very powerful in the image. The shape in the dark areas tells us that there is a person walking by. The bright, happy colors throughout the image, combined with the bright values, suggest a happy place. Often the use of bright primary colors suggests a place where children would be, a place of playfulness and joy. Yet the dark areas represent-ing the legs suggest something completely opposite. The narrative and the form seem to contract one another. Why?

As we mentioned in the last chapter, the horizontal and vertical lines in the image suggests strength and stability, but in this case the strength and stability seem to either be keeping us out or trapping someone in. There is an element of mystery, danger, and even oppression or slavery suggested in the formal elements.

By presenting this apparent contradiction in the formal elements, the image is forcing the viewer to reconcile this con-tradiction. Is this a happy scene, or something more sinister? Both are suggested in the formal elements.

Certainly the narrative suggests a place where children play. But the formal elements suggest something mysterious, even sinister. Is that shadowy person actually a stalker? A kidnapper or predator of some sort looking for prey?

We are left wondering and forming the story in our own minds. The results of the story are inconclusive, but the formal elements make it clear that this is not a safe place to be. This is not a photo we would use to advertise our new daycare center!

Closing ThoughtsConsider the following illustration from Asa Berger in Media And Society: A Critical Perspective:

During the Iran-Contra hearings that made Oliver North a national celebrity, Democrats learned what it meant to “lose control of the pictures.” Steven Spielberg, the Hollywood director, was visiting Washington during the televised hearings. As he watched the hearings with some Democratic congressmen, he offered them a lesson in camera angles. “Watch this,” Spielberg said, as he turned down the sound then directed the congressmen’s attention to North’s image on the screen. “The camera on North is shooting up, from about four inches below his eyes. This is the way they shot Gary Cooper in the western, High Noon, to make him look like a hero.” When the camera panned to the committee members questioning North, Spielberg pointed out, the lighting was dim. Seen at a distance, they looked sinister. “It doesn’t matter what Oliver North says. He has already won the battle, because he looks like the hero and everyone else looks like the villain.” This realization shocked the congressmen.

Images communicate. Images also lie and deceive, intentional-ly or unintentionally. For example, before reading a paragraph about the effectiveness of a product, most people will pre-judge the product by the appearance of that textual description. What kind of paper is the description printed on? What typeface was used? Is the paper old and crumbed? Is the paper cheap and flimsy? Do the colors or shades of gray make the product look exciting or boring? Elegant or trashy? People do not ask these

questions consciously, but the answers to these questions largely determine whether the viewer will take the product seriously. The appearance of a mere description of a product using only text on paper will subconsciously sway a potential buyer one way or another before ever reading the text. Many people, as I learned, will not even read the text. The best product in the world could fail simply because people don’t see how great the product is.

Post-ProcessingNearly all photographs need some post-processing.

Post-processing is a fancy way to referring to touching up the photographs you created. Many photographers who shoot using black and white film choose to develop and enlarge the photographs themselves in a darkroom, as this provides the greatest creative control over the image. Most people shooting in color will have the film developed in a lab and will often scan the negatives with a good quality high resolution scanner so they can do post-processing digitally. Photographers shooting digitally generally do all post-processing on a computer. While most of the techniques done on a computer can also be done in the darkroom, including many of the fanciest effects, this book will assume a digital camera and digital post-processing.

Common Post-Processing NeedsA digital camera is a camera with a built-in computer. The camera uses light sensors instead of film to react to light, and these light sensors record light numbers that are saved by the computer.

When shooting with film, the film is developed to make the chemical changes permanent. Next, the person making images from the film will shine light through the negative onto light-sen-sitive paper (photo paper). This paper works much like film in that the paper is coated with chemicals that react to light. To make the image as strong as possible, the person creating the photo print will use a variety of techniques to ensure that the values and/or colors are correct with the desired amount of contrast, that cropping is correct, and that other details of the image will appear in the final print exactly as they should. When necessary, the developer will use special materials to touch up the image on the negative before making a print or correct areas on the print itself.

I mention all this to point out that some editing (post-processing) is necessary whether shooting film or digital. Digital cameras record light as numbers, but those numbers may not always be the best or the most accurate presentation of the image you are trying to create.

One of the most common edits to a digital photograph is enhancing the contrast in the image. Most digital photographs are a bit bland as recorded. The computer inside the camera does some editing for you depending on your camera settings, but in a vast majority of photos you will do a better job than your camera at achieving the results you want, even without years of experience.

File FormatsWe already covered file formats, but some basic information is worth repeating here.

The most common file formats for digital cameras are JPG and RAW. RAW is the recommended format for recording photos on your camera, though not all cameras support RAW files. JPG is the standard for finished digital photographs. This is the only image format that some web browsers and applications will read accurately. In addition, JPG images are compressed in a way that reduces the file size a great deal without compromising too much of the image quality. When given the option between setting the camera to shoot JPG or RAW, some photographers choose JPG because the file is in a usable format directly from the camera and because more images will fit on the camera’s memory card.

There are downsides of having your camera save your photos in JPG format. When recording a photograph, the computer inside your camera reads the numbers representing the amount of red, green and blue light from each of the light sensors and saves that data. The camera also saves all sorts of data, including the white balance settings, the desired file size and quality, the date, the camera model, and lots of other information. To store the image

as a JPG file, the computer in your camera also needs to do the required post-processing on the image and then strip away any information that is not vital to the image to reduce the file size.

In other words, the computer in the camera is making a lot of decisions about how your photograph should look, making the required changes, and then saving the file with those changes made permanent and all other information lost forever.

Shooting in RAW format preserves all the information from the camera without discarding any information at all. The file size of RAW images is much larger than the equivalent JPG images. Because memory cards are consistently getting larger and less expensive, the file size is not as important as it used to be. The freedom to edit your images with all the original data and achieve the final results you desire without losing image quality is well worth the cost of a spare memory card. Whenever possible, therefore, I recommend shooting in RAW mode.

When importing your images to your computer (see your camera manual or your software manual for instructions), most photo editing software will default to the camera settings selected in the camera. If you happen to like the photo straight from the camera with the camera’s processing, you will have it. In nearly all cases, though, a bit more editing is necessary. Shooting in RAW format allows you to have the camera’s settings as a starting point for editing. You can work from that starting point or change the appearance of the photograph altogether without losing any image quality either way.

Non-Destructive and Destructive EditingWhen you edit your photos, you are changing the appearance of the photograph. For many types of changes, the software will have to change the actual pixels in your photograph. This is called “destructive” editing because the original image is affected. Once you save the file, you can never get the original pixels back.

Other changes will not have to change the original pixels. Instead, the software will make changes by basically copying the original pixels and changing the copied pixels while leaving the original pixels untouched. You can go back to the original pixels at any time. This is called “non-destructive” editing.

When possible, use non-destructive editing. Preserving the option to go back and create a new version of your photograph from the original pixels is always desirable.

When non-destructive editing in not possible, be sure to create a copy of the original file before making any changes.

One further advantage of shooting in RAW format is that RAW files provide far greater non-destructive editing options.

Common TechniquesContrastAs I just mentioned, enhancing the contrast in an image is usually necessary, both in film and digital photography. Adjusting the contrast generally means making the dark values a bit darker and the light values a bit lighter. This not only affects the values throughout the photo and adds more energy to the photo, but it can also help bring out the colors as well.

This is the image directly from the camera.

This is the same image after some very basic post-processing, particu-larly to increase the contrast.

CroppingCropping an image is a very common technique in the darkroom as well as on a computer. Cropping refers to curring parts of the images away from the edges in order to frame the image exactly the way you want it.

This is the original photo after some basic post-processing, but before cropping.

This is the same photograph after cropping.

SpottingRemoving dust spots and unwanted objects in a photograph is often referred to as spotting. Dust gets on a camera’s lens fairly often, and eventually dust gets inside the lens and on the camera’s sensors. (This happens in film photography as well.) The dust creates small blemishes in the photos. In addition, small areas like a piece of litter on the ground in a landscape photo or an unflattering scar or pimple on a person’s face can be removed very easily.

In order to be sure every detail of the image helps to communicate the intended message, examine the image carefully to find and either edit or remove details that hinder the message.

The photo above is the final image after spotting.

This is a close-up of the bottom-right corner before spotting.

This is a close-up of the bottom-right corner after spotting.

Black and WhiteSome people like to set the black and white mode in the digital camera to create black and white photos. I recommend that you never do this, especially if you are not shooting in RAW mode. (If you shoot in RAW mode, all the original information is preserved, so you are not stuck with a poor black and white conversion.)

Remember that the computer in your camera records the light coming into the camera. This light is recorded as a set of three numbers - the amount of red light, the amount of green light, and the amount of blue light.

When you set your camera to black and white mode, the camera’s computer records the image in color and then uses a predefined formula to convert the color image to black and white. Each color pixel is assigned a gray value. The file is saved with only the gray values stored. If the computer does a poor job with this conversion, you are stuck with a poor black and white photograph.

A much better way to create black and white photos is to shoot in color (as a RAW file when possible) and then convert the file to black and white yourself instead of allowing the computer in your camera to blindly do the conversion for you. You will nearly always achieve a stronger black and white image. And every now and then you will desire to see what the photo would have looked like in color. By shooting in color mode, you maintain this option.

This series of images shows the original color version of the image along with different black and white interpretations. The top-right image is probably closest to what the computer inside your digital camera would produce when shooting in black and white mode. Shooting in color and converting to black and white in post-processing allows for a variety of interpretations, often resulting in a stronger image than your camera can produce.

ToolsThis list contains the most common and effective tools for editing digital photos as of spring 2014. These tools have been standards in the photography industry for a very long time. Even though technology is constantly changing, these tools are not likely to be replaced any time soon.

When considering purchasing any of these tools, be aware that significant student discounts are available for many of these tools. You will save significant money by purchasing the software while you still have a valid student status rather than waiting until after graduation.

PhotoshopFor anyone serious about photograph, Photoshop will eventually become a necessity. This has been the standard editing tool in the photography world for many years, and so far there is nothing in the market that does a better job for less money. Photoshop is quite expensive, though, and there is a bit of a learning curve to the software. The basics of editing a photograph in Photoshop are not difficult to learn once you become familiar with the software and allow yourself to experiment a bit.

Photoshop ElementsPhotoshop Elements is basically a stripped-down version of Photoshop that includes most of the basic tools you will need for Photography. The full version of Photoshop is a far better tool, and Photoshop includes many useful features that are not included in Photoshop Elements, However, photographers who cannot afford Photoshop or who are very new to editing and only desire to do very basic editing will be fine with Photoshop Elements.

LightroomPhotoshop Lightroom, often referred to just a Lightroom, combines Adobe’s Camera Raw editor from Photoshop with a

photo library. Lightroom is inexpensive and does an excellent job with basic and even some advanced digital editing. There are limitations to Lightroom’s editing, particularly when compiling colleges or altering parts of a photo in any significant way beyond normal spot removal. But for editing the image as a whole, Lightroom is an excellent tool, and makes storing, sorting and finding your photos quite simple.

iPhotoiPhoto comes with Apple Macintosh computers and is only available for Mac. iPhoto is more of a photo library than an editing tool, but it does allow some basic editing and it makes this basic editing fairly simple. Anyone with a Mac who is new to digital editing may desire to use iPhoto for awhile before investing in another software package.

WorkflowA photography workflow generally refers to the steps you go through to touch up your photographs. There is no one “correct” or “best” workflow. Whatever works for you is fine. There are some best practices to be aware of.

Software WorkflowThe software workflow I use begins with Adobe Lightroom. I use Lightroom to import my photos from my camera to the computer and I allow Lightroom to sort the image files so I can find them easily. I do all my basic editing in Lightroom and label the images that I desire to keep and use.

Once I determine which images I desire to use, I open those images in Photoshop and do a more thorough job editing each image. I eventually save a finished, fully edited copy of the images I am most happy with in a specific folder on my computer, and I use iPhoto to provide a quick link to those images. Because iPhoto can automatically sync with my iPad and with common websites, iPhoto has become a great tool for

quickly showing people the photos that best fit my portfolio. I could also accomplish this in Lightroom, but using iPhoto for this purpose helps me to separate my large collection of images from my smaller collection of final portfolio quality images.

This is not the “right” or “best” workflow; it is simply what works for me. Other photographers have much different methods to accomplish the same goals.

Editing WorkflowThere is no single workflow for editing photos, largely because every photo will need to be edited differently. As a broad starting point, though, the following workflow is generally effective and adheres to the best practices for editing.

Step 1: Create a copy of the fileIf you are shooting in RAW format, this step is not necessary, as the original RAW file will never change. However, even when working with a RAW file in Photoshop or Photoshop Elements, you will need to save your file in a different format after doing some editing. I recommend saving the file in Photoshop format, as this will give you tremendous control when editing.

When shooting in JPG format (or editing an original JPG image) Do not edit your original JPG files. If you make a mistake (as the best photo editors do all the time), you will be stuck with that mistake in your JPG file. By making a copy of the JPG file for editing, you can always go back to the original to correct mistakes, to start over, or to create an entirely different inter-pretation of the photo by using different editing techniques.

I recommend renaming your original file by adding “-original” to the file name and naming your edited file by adding “-edit” to the file name. The names you choose are irrelevant as long as you will always know which file was the original and which files were edited.

Step 2: Perform the basic overall editingBegin by performing as many of the overall changes to the image as possible. If you are planning to covert the image to black and white, do that first. If possible (depending on the software you are using) be sure to experiment with the color sliders when converting to black and white to be sure the black and white settings look as good as possible. For example, if there is a lot of red in the image, the red slider will determine how dark or bright the gray appears in the parts of the black and white image that had been red.

This first step is also a good time to crop the image if necessary so that the rest of your edits can be done with the final framing of the subject in mind.

Increase the contrast in the image, apply sharpening to the image if the image looks a bit soft, apply noise reduction, apply lens corrections, and apply overall effects or filters.

Step 3: Perform more detailed editingUse tools like the healing brush and the clone stamp tools (in Photoshop) to fix or remove unwanted blemishes in the photograph. Remove dust spots, litter, and other unflattering elements of the image.

Step 4: Change the color profile if necessaryColor profiles is a more advanced topic than I desire to delve into here. In general, most cameras use a profile called “sRGB” by default. For most beginner photographers, sRGB is fine, and you do not need to worry about this step. Those who want to ensure the most accurate colors in your final prints should read on.

Every pixel of your digital photograph is set to a certain value for red, green, and blue. (This is true of black and white photos as well, only in black and white photos all three numbers are identical.) Your computer knows the number, but what the number should look like is a bit subjective. If you go to a store that sells televisions and look around, you will notice that each

television set displays the colors a bit differently. Some will show pure red as a darker red than others. Some will show pure red is very bright. Some televisions will show very bright images, while others show darker images.

Each television sets the pure red pixels to what it thinks pure red should look like. But who determines what pure red should look like? Each television will display red just a bit differently than others.

The same is true with computers. Your digital photos may have areas of pure red, and the computer will read that number and display it however it wants.

A color profile contains a set of instructions that helps the computer to know what that red value should look like. The computer is still at the mercy of the display attached to the computer, but a color profile at least ensures that computer will do everything it can to display the color properly.

The color profile that most computers and computer software understand consistently is called sRGB. If your photograph is intended for display on a computer or a projector, and your software allows you set the color profile, be sure to set the color profile to sRGB.

If you intend to print your photograph, you should generally leave the color profile alone or convert the file to a profile that contains more color options before you do any editing. Most cameras are set by default to shoot in sRGB. In this case you will not gain much benefit from changing the color profile, though changing to a profile that includes more color options (referred to as “gamut”) will allow better quality in the editing process.

The recommended color profiles for photography that have a higher gamut than sRGB are “ProPhoto RGB” and “Adobe RGB (1998)”. If you change the profile to anything other than sRGB, be sure to change the profile back to sRGB for files that will be viewed on a computer screen or projector, as many software packages, including web browsers and word processors, do not recognize the other profiles and are likely to display the colors incorrectly.

Saving Your File(s)You should be saving your files throughout the editing process in the file format recommended by your editing tool. Lightroom and iPhoto save your changes for you as you work. Photoshop and Photoshop Elements require you to save the file. When you begin working, I recommend that you create a copy of the file in Photoshop format, as the Photoshop format will allow you to create and edit layers with different edits and other visual details that can be changed later on. Layers also allow most of your changes to be done non-destructively.

Once you are ready to produce your final image, you will most likely be saving your file as a JPG file. Most software will offer you options for the amount of compression. I recommend choosing the best quality. The file will still be compressed, resulting in a smaller file size, but the quality of the image will be very good. If you have changed your color profile or if you camera is set to use a different color profile from sRGB, be sure to change your color profile to sRGB before saving your JPG image.

PresentationThe presentation of your finished photo is a very

important element of the effectiveness of the work. Not all photographs need to be framed or matted. The decisions you make in the presentation of your work can lead to great success or can be detrimental to an otherwise excellent photo.

Paper and Printing ChoicesMany people bring the memory card from their cameras directly to a local pharmacy, upload the files, and print them directly from the card. Making prints this way is not recommended. First, your ability to touch up the image is very limited compared to what you can accomplish on your computer with the right tools. Second, the machinery used in most of these types of stores are often maintained and calibrated (or not) by people who do not understand the equipment and will not recognize when colors are printed incorrectly or small defects exist in the prints.

A better option would be to research professional photo printers. Online options are available, though if you can find a local printer, the printer will often help you prepare your images effectively for printing while you are learning about post processing. Photo printers will also often convert your photos to a specific color profile for their equipment and they properly maintain the equipment to ensure that your colors will match you expectations as closely as possible.

For photographers who will print photos fairly often, purchasing a photo printer is cost effective and gives the photographer greater control over the appearance of the prints. There are downsides to this option, though. Although photo printers are not very expensive, ink is fairly costly. Using generic ink cartridges saves money, but the ink is generally a lower quality and will not match colors properly. Some generic ink is often

known to clog print heads. Most photo printers will only print up to 8.5x11. In addition, only high-end (and far more expensive) photo printers will print using archival quality ink, meaning the photos are not considered gallery quality and would hinder the sale of prints for those wishing to make money from their work. When selling prints, it is best to have the photos printed by a photo lab or use a photo printer with archival quality ink.

Showing Work on the WebIf your work is intended to be printed at a large size, showing your photos on the web can reduce the effectiveness of your work, especially when viewers look at your work on a tablet or a phone. Often, however, photos will look fine on the web. The web is also a great tool to allow far more people to see your work that would have the opportunity to see printed photos.

Keep in mind that the resolution of your files (the number of pixels/dots that make up your photo) will affect the presenta-tion of your work. A high-definition screen will be able to show 1920 pixels horizontally and 1080 pixels vertically. If your photograph contains more pixels than this, the extra pixels will not be displayed and will not make the image look any better. In addition, someone using a high-definition screen may not have their browser set to full-screen mode, meaning the viewable space for the image is probably much smaller. Some software is able to scale images well, but other software is not, and may end up showing only part of your photo if the resolution is too high.

When showing your work on the web, therefore, you should always keep two files. Keep one high-resolution master file for printing and for future editing, and keep a lower-resolution file for the web. Be sure to convert the low-resolution file to the sRGB color space if the file is not already set to sRGB. Using a different color space may cause the colors to change on some computers and in some software programs. (See the Post-Pro-cessing section for information about color spaces.)

Displaying Your WorkMy thesis project, Metamorphosis, deals, among other things, with the transformation from imperfection to completeness. With the idea of completeness comes tremendous freedom. Because the image is about completion, wholeness, and ultimate freedom, placing a frame around these prints would symbol-ically place a boundary around our freedom. Framing these photographs would have the exact opposite of the intended meaning. Instead, I have chosen to dry mount the prints on Gator Board and attach them to the wall in a way that causes the photos to protrude about an inch from the surface of the wall. This presentation gives the appearance of unbounded freedom, as the floating photo has no boundaries around the outside, front, or back.

Dry mounting prints is generally accomplished by gluing the print to a hard surface. Foam board is the most common surface and tends to be quite effective. Gator Board is more expensive and a bit more difficult to find, but it is worth the effort. Gator board is much like foam board, but much more solid. Foam board dents easily, especially on the corners. Gator Board is less likely to be damaged and provides a very strong surface for the photograph. Other options include wood, Plexiglas, or any number of other surfaces. Be sure to use acid-free adhesive when gluing the photos to the surface. Acid from most adhesives will eventually soak through the paper and cause discoloration of the photo.

If you choose to mat and/or frame your prints, be sure the photograph itself remains the focus of your final presentation. Fancy frames as well as colored frames and mats can distract from the print. The colors, the type of wood or other material, and the patterns and textures used will all communicate something to the viewer. Be very careful that every detail of your final presentation, right down to the mat and frame you choose, communicate your intended idea. When in doubt, go with a neutral colored mat (white or off-white are very common) and a simple frame. A simple, neutral mat and frame will look nice while leaving the attention on the print itself.

Another consideration is whether or not to use glass with the frame. Glass will protect the print from damage, and some glass will reduce UV rays from sunlight that will cause the print to fade over time. On the other hand, glass will cause a glare that will affect the viewer’s impression of the print. Glass over glossy paper can cause extra glare, as the glossy paper will often create a glare as well.

Artist StatementsTo understand many works of art, the viewer needs to understand the context of the piece. In some cases the context is self explanatory within the work itself. In other cases something outside the work needs to be understood for the work to make sense. Understanding postmodern artwork, for example, is very difficult without understanding that postmodernism is largely a reaction against modernism.

In some cases titles provide enough information to understand the image. In other cases some historical or cultural background is necessary. In still other cases the work is based on an idea that requires some explanation. The artist statement provides that information.

The artist statement should not explain away the work. Instead, the artist statement should provide just enough detail to help the viewer understand what the work is about so that the viewer can then comprehend the message of the work itself.

An artist statement is not necessarily required, and there is no set length for the statement. In general, the statement should be long enough to provide sufficient context for the work, what remaining short enough that the viewer will read the work. In addition, the statement should be well written (be sure to proofread!) and should capture the viewer’s attention. The viewer should be bored by the statement. If the statement requires much more than a few paragraphs, you may need to consider whether the artwork is communicating effectively.

The following is the artist statement for the Metamorphosis series.

Understanding Metamorphosis without an artist statement is difficult, as the images are all form-based abstractions.

Metamorphosis: Juice Package

Metamorphosis: Plastic Easel

Metamorphosis Russ Wills

Metamorphosis is a series of abstract photographs based initially on familiar, mundane, or even damaged objects. Each of these objects undergoes a metamorphosis, revealing the extraordinary from within the ordinary. Every photograph in Metamorphosis is a metaphorical portrait of a person who has undergone this completion, and each step in creating the photograph suggests the transition each of us can experience.

Many years ago someone asked me, “Who are you?” I have spent years attempting to answer this question. How do I define “me”? Am I the sum of my experiences? Am I defined by my career, economic standing, ethnicity, sexual preference, or religion? Some of these attributes of who I am change over time. If I am a different person today than I was a year ago, and I will continue changing into a different person a year from now, who am I? Is identity a mere illusion? Or is it possible that a person may be defined by something more substantial than we understand in the West? What if we are not merely the sum of our experiences? What if a person is not defined by who he or she is at this moment, but who he or she will become?

Most major religions teach that a person is made of body, soul, and spirit. The combination of these defines who we are. Many major religions also anticipate a resurrection, not only of our souls, but of our whole selves. What if the most accurate definition of who I am is not the person I am at this moment, but the person I am created to be, and will become when this metamorphosis is complete? Perhaps the real “me” may only be revealed outside of the constraints of time.

Metamorphosis contemplates this transcendent understanding of a self. Each photograph in the series undergoes a sequence of carefully planned and executed steps, each of which plays a part in a larger metaphor. A preliminary photograph is created as a representation of a person. This photograph is then projected as light and distorted through glass. The finished and fully transformed photograph retains only the essence of the original. The spirit of the original image gives life to the finished image, yet the finished image will leave little or no trace of the original. The metamorphosis is complete. The broken, commonplace and imperfect are no more; all that is left is the beauty.

Samples, Tips, and Critiques

This section introduces critique by providing interpretations of selected images, pointing out what works and what does not in these images, and showing samples of common mistakes in photography.

The image on the right is a street scene from New York City. The photo presents a playful, humorous commentary on the people in the city. Red grabs our attention very powerfully, so our eyes are drawn to the red signs. Since we are used to reading from top to bottom, we will usually read the signs in that order. “Desire” and “Give in to it” become prominent. Meanwhile, as we take in the rest of the frame, we find a man looking into the garbage can, apparently ready to give in to his desire.

There are several things working together in this image. First, the image takes advantage of the power of presenting things in threes, with three dominant red objects - the top sign, the lower sign, and the woman’s sweater. These help to draw the eye from the top/left of the image down to the bottom. After our eyes reach the woman’s read sweater, the brightness of the mans’ blue shirt grabs our attention. The eyes, therefore, are led stra-tegically around the frame in a way that leads us to the overall message of the photo.

There are several aspects of the photo that are hindering this message. First, The woman toward the bottom/right of the frame is also wearing bright clothes, and that bright area of the frame tries (often successfully) to pull our attention from the man looking into the garbage. In addition, she is looking at something outside of the frame, and her gaze creates an implied line that can lead our viewer’s eye out of the frame as well. The image would be much stronger if the man were wearing a red shirt instead of the woman to compete the series of three red objects. The text “Begin April 3” is also very bright and steals the viewers attention away from the more important details.

The photograph to the left has some strengths and weaknesses as well. The use of symmetry leads the eye to the most important area of the photo, the cross. The form, especially the bright white lines created by the railings, lead our eye to the cross. The texture in the rocks creates visual interest helps to suggest a more difficult and dangerous journey to the cross than the same photo with a soft, grassy path would have suggested. Keeping the cross very high in the frame helps to elevate the cross itself, along with the symbolic meaning of the cross, above everything else.

There are some weak areas of this photograph. First, and perhaps most important, the white cross disappears into the white clouds. Because a photograph records a three dimensional scene in two dimensions, the distance between foreground and background is not as obvious as in real life. In this case, the shape of the cross gets lost as the cloud becomes part of the shape. Bright areas also capture our attention. The cloud is the brightest area of this photo and pulls our attention away from the more important elements of the photo in the foreground. Merely waiting a short time for the clouds to move could have provided a far stronger composition by allowing the clouds to frame and balance the image without interfering with the cross.

Speaking of balance, this image is almost perfectly symmetrical. Yet there is far more green on the right side than the left, leaving the photo feeling a bit unbalanced. More important, symmetry often strips much of the visual interest from the photo. By removing visual tension, symmetry suggests a calm, peaceful setting, but often in a way that is perceived as somewhat boring. Yet the high contrast in the texture of the rocks communicates the opposite of this. The formal elements are contradiction the message of the symmetry in the image. Perhaps creating the photo by shifting the camera to the left would create a stronger composition by placing the cross in the top/left corner of the frame with two converging lines from the railings still pointing the viewer to the cross, but from different angles. The diagonal from the railing on the right would then create movement and visual tension that complements the texture of the rocks and creates a more interesting composition. Lowering the camera almost to the ground would move the horizon from the center of the frame to add to the contrast, either revealing more sky or preferably more of the foreground leading to the cross.

The Dome of the Rock is one of the most important sites in Islam, and is very prominent in Jerusalem. Most people who visit Jerusalem end up taking pictures of the site. Although the Dome of the Rock is large enough that it can be seen from many places inside and outside of Old City Jerusalem, there are only a handful of places that most tourists visit where the vantage point is really ideal for the photo. Most images of the Dome of the Rock, therefore, look very similar. Photographs of this subject have quickly become fairly cliché.

This particular photo offers a new slant on photography of an overused subject. A shallow depth of field (created by using a wide aperture) blurs the Dome of the Rock, presenting the Dome of the Rock as part of the background of the image. Yet the Dome of the Rock is still immediately recognizable by most viewers. The bird in the foreground of the photograph becomes the primary subject matter of the image. Instead of merely showing viewers what the Dome of the Rock looks like, this photo is telling a story and allows the viewer to engage with the photo on a new level. The gaze of the birds eyes seems to be at (or at least in the general direction of) the Dome of the Rock, combining the two most important elements of the frame.

Slight repositioning of the camera would have helped strengthen this image. Blurring the background helps to reduce the busy feel of the background, but the background is still fairly cluttered. Some areas within that clutter are hurting the overall composition a bit. For example, the satellite dish in front of the Dome of the rock is a recognizable shape, and the darker value of this object compared to the objects around it make this shape stand out to the viewer more than it should. Repositioning the camera may lead to a vantage point where the satellite dish is not in the frame. If moving the camera this far is not possible, perhaps lighting the shape a bit in Photoshop could help.

Two very dark objects appear in the background just in front of the bird’s breast. The dark object to the left is distracting because the value is so different from its surroundings. The one to the right blends right into the shape of the bird. The light area created by a tomb in the background is popping out of the bird’s back, and a slight halo exists around the bird’s head from other

elements of the background. Shifting the camera just a couple inches could solve many or all of these problems. Whatever dis-tractions cannot be removed by shifting the vantage point could be solved in Photoshop.

The bird’s eye is the most important visual element of the photograph. Using a vantage point that would place the bird’s head entirely against a lighter part of the background would also enhance the image. The bird’s dark head, and therefore the bird’s eye, would become far more prominent in the photograph if contrasted against a light background than against the dark green background that sits behind the bird’s head in this photograph. If creating the photograph from this ideal vantage point is not possible or introduces other visual problems, another option is to lighten the value of the trees behind the bird’s head in Photoshop. Be sure with this option to ensure that the final photograph does not appear too heavily edited.

Appendix A: Quick Guide

This Quick Guide will cover the essential elements of photography presented in this book in a very concise manner for a quick reference.

CommunicationThe best photographs are generally the photographs that communicate one or more ideas effectively. The message of the photograph can be anything, but the most effective messages tend to be messages that challenge the viewer in some way, whether the challenge involves a worldview, cultural practice, lifestyle, or a call for action in a social justice issue.

Make a practice of planning ahead of time what you desire to communicate through your photo. Next, brainstorm to list a variety of ways to communicate this idea visually. Once you have done these things, then create the photographs. This is not the “right” way to create images, but over time this practice will enhance you communication skills and make you a stronger photographer.

Subject MatterThe “subject matter” is what photograph is “of”. The subject matter could be a person, an animal, a landscape, litter, or even color itself.

Actual SubjectThe “actual subject” is what the subject is about. For example, in a photo depicting a bird hatching from an egg, the bird would be subject matter. The actual subject may be birth or life. Sometimes the subject matter and the actual subject are the same, but more often the subject matter becomes a metaphor for the actual subject.

NarrativeThe “narrative” of a photograph (or any visual art) is what you see. The subject matter is part of the narrative. In a landscape photograph, the narrative could refer to trees, grass, hills, sky, and clouds.

FormThe “form” or “formal elements” of a photograph (or any visual art) refers to the elements that give the illusion seen in the narrative, such as line, shape, texture, value, color, size and shape. The formal elements of a landscape photograph, for example, could refer to texture, green and blue colors, contrast of the size of elements of the subject matter, and contrast in the value (light and dark areas).

Attention to DetailEvery detail in your image and overall presentation communi-cates something. Your job is to learn to see all the details and ensure that only the details that correlate with your intended message are present in the final image. The positions of shadows, the presence of “blown out” (overexposed) areas, the presence of litter or sign posts, and other elements of your photograph will either help or hurt your message.

Examine photographs frequently (your own work and the work of other people) and search for details that do not belong in the image. The more you practice this skill, the stronger your photographs will become.

Technical SkillBe sure your photographs are exposed properly and the most important elements of the photograph are perfectly focused. Blurry areas, if they exist, should be intentional and should help communicate the intended message.

Be as familiar as possible with your camera. Two of the best ways to know your camera are 1) to read your camera’s manual in its entirely, and 2) to use your camera consistent-ly. For the quickest learning and the most creative control, practice using your camera in manual mode.

ExposureExposure refers to the amount of light the digital sensors or film are exposed to. If too much light enters the camera, the image will be overexposed. If too little light enters the camera, the image will be underexposed.

Depth of FieldDepth of field refers to the area of the image that is allowed to be in focus. Most landscape photographs have a wide depth of field, meaning a large area of the landscape is in focus. Most portraits have a narrow depth of field, meaning that only a small portion of the scene is in focus, usually around the subject’s nearest eye.

ApertureAperture is the size of the opening in the camera that allows light into the camera. A small or narrow aperture lets in less light, and a large or wide aperture allows more light into the camera.

A narrow aperture creates a wide depth of field. This means that as the aperture becomes smaller, more of the frame will be in focus. As the aperture becomes wider, less of the frame will be in focus.

Shutter SpeedThe shutter blocks the opening in the camera (the aperture) to prevent light from coming into the camera. When the shutter opens, light is allowed through the hole. Shutter speed refers to the length of time the shutter remains open so light can enter the camera.

Photographs created with fast shutter speeds appear as though the scene is frozen in time. Photographs created with slow shutter speeds will cause any moving objects to blur or streak. Photographs created at slower shutter speeds (usually below 1/60s) will usually blur if the photographer is holding the camera.

ISOISO is a measurement of how quickly or slowly the digital sensors or film react to light. Low ISO values mean the sensors react very slowly to light. Low values are good for outdoor photographs on bright, sunny days. High ISO values mean the sensors react quickly to light and are useful for low-light photographs. The higher the ISO value, the more likely the photograph will contain noise (also called grain).

TripodsWhen creating photographs below 1/60 of a second (depending upon the equipment and the photographer), the photograph will most likely appear blurred if the photograph is holding the camera. To avoid this blur, the camera may be mounted on a tripod. For best results use a shutter release cable or remote, as the very action of pressing the shutter button may be enough to blur a photograph.

FlashAvoid using a flash whenever possible. One exception to this rule is using a “fill flash”. A fill flash fills in shadow areas with light to reduce harsh shadows. A fill flash is never the main source of light.

CompositionThe subject alone does not make a photograph strong. Two people can photograph the same subject at the same time and end up with one very strong photograph and one weak photograph. Composition is one of the keys to a successful photograph.

BalanceImagine hypothetically balancing the photograph on a point of a pin. A well balanced photograph would not fall to the left or the right. A well balanced photograph has the same visual “weight” on the left as it has on the right. The easiest way to accomplish balance is to use symmetry - making the left and right sides of the image identical (or nearly identical).

Visual TensionAlthough symmetrical images are balanced, most symmetrical images are visually boring. Creating visual tension adds interest to an image. This tension must still be balanced. The left and right sides of the image should be very different, with elements on each side creating an equal visual weight to balance the image.

Elements of CompositionLineHorizontal lines, like the horizon, tend to communicate rest, peace, and stability. Vertical lines, like trees and pillars, suggest strength, stability, and support. Diagonal lines, like a falling pole, suggest instability and movement. Thick lines appear strong, while thin lines appear more fragile.

ShapeShape, usually created by the use of lines, expands the ideas communicated by lines. Squares and rectangles communicate peace, strength, stability, and support, particularly when they are resting flat on a side. Triangles must have one or more

diagonals, and tend to suggest instability. Circles, with no start or end, and symbolize eternity and create visual movement. Since precise shapes are very rare in nature, amorphous shapes suggest a more organic, natural idea.

TextureWe can usually tell what something will feel like just by looking at the thing. Texture in an image refers to how the subject would feel. Soft, warm textures communicate very different ideas than cold, hard textures. Smooth textures communicate very different ideas from rough textures.

ColorColor is a very powerful element of composition and will alter the communication of a subject. Warm colors (reds, oranges and yellows) create a different emotional experience than cool colors (purples and blues). Colors have symbolic meanings as well. A careful search online for the meanings of colors can prove very helpful.

ValueValue refers to how light or dark something is. High-contrast images typically refer to images containing extremely dark areas and extremely light areas. Low-contrast images are the opposite, with most of the image appearing either dark, light, or somewhere in the middle.

High contrast images tend to communicate excitement, joy, danger, or movement, while low contrast images tend to communicate peace, solemnity, depression, abandonment, or boredom. Neither high contrast nor low contrast images are better than the other, and either presentation can evoke a positive or a negative reaction.

SizeThe size of the subject relative to the frame communicates something about the subject. A subject filling the entire frame of the image will communicate something different than a subject filling only a small corner of the frame.

SpaceSpace generally refers to an area of the frame.

“Positive space” refers to the foreground, usually the main subject.

“Negative space” refers to the background, especially areas of the background containing no noticeable objects. In a landscape photograph, for example, the sky is generally considered negative space.

Using negative space effectively is important to a photograph. The negative space can create recognizable shapes that add visual interest to an image. The negative space can also give the viewer’s eye room to breath while taking in the image. Avoid the temptation to fill in the negative space in a composition.

The Rule of ThirdsWhen visualizing a potential photograph, look through the viewfinder and imaging dividing the image into thirds both hor-izontally and vertically. Place the most important elements of the subject on those imaginary lines. Whenever possible, place those elements on the intersections of those imaginary lines. For example, the horizon can be placed on one of the lines, or a person’s nearest eye in a portrait can be placed at the inter-section of those lines. The more important elements that fall on these thirds, the better.

Vantage PointVantage point refers to where you position yourself and how you angle the camera when creating a photograph. Try a variety of vantage points, and be creative. Many photographs will be more compelling when shot from a vantage point other than the eye level of a standing person.

Post-ProcessingFile FormatsShoot in RAW format whenever possible if your camera allows.

When editing your photograph, save a master copy of your photograph in the format preferred by your editing software. For example, when editing in Photograph, save a master copy as a Photoshop (.psd) file.

When your are finished editing, create the final version(s) of your photograph as JPG files for the web or for printing. Be sure to keep the highest quality (lowest compression) setting.

Non-Destructive EditingBe sure to use non-destructive editing techniques whenever possible. Non-destructive editing refers to editing that changes the appearance of a photograph without changing the actual pixels. Destructive editing changes the actual pixels in the file.

Image ContrastOne of the most common touch ups for digital photography is increasing the contrast. Make the dark values darker and make the light values lighter. Refer to your specific editing software for instructions.

CroppingCropping the image refers to deleting pixels around the edges of the image. Many photographers leaves just a little extra space around the frame to help avoid accidentally leaving out part of the subject, and then cropping the image later to include only the desired area of the image.

Remember that cropping an image means deleting pixels. Cropping too much detail out of the image will reduce the number of pixels and could cause the image to be too small for printing.

Spotting“Spotting” refers to removing spots and blemishes from an image. Some spotting is usually required in photography. If your editing software allows it, perform all spotting in a non-de-structive manner or on a separate layer.

Black and WhiteAlways do your black and white conversion on your computer and not on your camera. Be sure to use a method that allows you to adjust each of the color values in the black and white image to ensure that you have the key elements of the image as dark or as light as you desire.

Color SpacesIf your camera is not set to use the sRGB color space, be sure to convert your file to the sRGB color space in your final image.

PresentationEvery detail of your final image communicates something to the viewer, including the how and where the photograph is displayed. Be sure every detail of your presentation communi-cates your intended idea.

Consider matting and framing your photograph. Be sure the mat you select complements the meaning of the photograph as well as the formal elements of the photograph. When in doubt, select a neutral mat. White and off-white mats are very common. The frame should also complement the meaning and the formal elements of your photograph. As with mats, select a frame carefully, and use a nice but simple frame that will not pull attention from the photo.

Other options include dry mounting your work on a hard surface like Gator Board, foam board, wood, or Plexiglas.

Be sure to use acid free adhesives and tape for anything that touches the photograph to best preserve the image.

Bibliography

Aimone: Steven. Design! A Lively guide to Design Basics for Artists & Craftspeople. New York: Lark Books, 2004.

Ang, Tom. Digital Photographer’s Handbook. 4th ed. New York: DK, 2009.

Berger, Arthur Asa. Media and Society: A Critical Perspective. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2012. Print.

Davis, Jack and Susan Merritt. The Web Design Wow! Book: Showcasing the Best of On-Screen Communication. Berkeley, California: Peachpit Press, 1998.

Digital Camera World (various issues and articles).

Digital Photographer. “Creative Portraiture” and “Monochrome Magic”. Volume Two. Imagine Publishing Ltd., 2007.

Dondis, Donis A. A Primer of Visual Literacy. Cambridge, MA: MIT, 1973.

Freeman, John. The Photographer’s Manual. Hermes House, 2003.

Goldberg, Vicki, Ed. Photography in Print. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1981. 422-430.

Koch, Roberto, and Jimena Bargados. Photo:box. New York: Abrams, 2009.

Hedgecoe, John. The New Manual of Photography. New York: DK, 2003.

Hedgecoe, John. The Book of Photography: Simple Techniques for Taking Better Pictures. New York: DK, 2005.

Hirsch, Robert, and Greg Erf. Exploring Color Photography: From Film to Pixels. Oxford: Elsevier Focal, 2011.

Hunter, Fil, Steven Biver, and Paul Fuqua. Light: Science and

Magic : An Introduction to Photographic Lighting. Oxford: Focal, 2007.

Krause, Jim. Design Basics Index. Newton Abbot: David & Charles, 2004.

Lauer, David A. and Stephen Pentak. Design Basics. Eighth Edition. United States: Wadsworth, 2012.

Long, Ben. Complete Digital Photography. Third Edition. Mas-sachusetts: Charles River Media, Inc., 2005.

Ocvirk, Otto G., Robert E. Stinson, Philip R. Wigg, Robert O. Bone, and David L. Cayton. Art Fundamentals: Theory and Practice. McGraw Hill Higher Education, 2009.

Outdoor Photography. (Various issues and articles.)

Peterson, Bryan. Learning to See Creatively. Revised Edition. Amphoto Books, 2003.

Practical Photography. (various issues and articles).

Rosenblum, Naomi. A World History of Photography. Fourth Edition. New York: Abbeville Press Publishers, 2007.

Rotenberg, Nancy and Michael Lustbader. How to Photograph Close-ups in Nature. Stackpole Books, 1999.

Siebert, Lori and Lisa Ballard. Making a Good Layout. Ohio: North Light Books, 1992.

Williams, Robin. The Non-Designer’s Design Book. Berkeley, California: Peachpit Press, 1994.

All photographs are property of Russ Wills unless otherwise noted. ©2014 Russell D. Wills.

Photography Handbook · Page Introduction This ebook is a subsection of a larger photography book...

Documents

Transcript of Photography Handbook · Page Introduction This ebook is a subsection of a larger photography book...