Photographing for your client.

One of the fun things about photographing weddings is basically the unpredictability of the day. You are never sure what kind of images you are going to be taking.

Well, you now to a certain degree. These would be the Getting Ready photographs. The Ceremony and then the Reception. The best part though is finding those gems amongst everything else that you will be photographing.

It is the constant search for the interesting guest's and the special moments that the couple will be taking when they think nobody is watching.

It is also about the beautiful formal photographs and the opportunity to make sure you get some really individual and special photographs that the couple will appreciate long after you have left.

On other occasions it is also really interesting to test your own creativity. What can you create with the model and the location that you are working in. What works well for one photograph might not always be appropriate for every other photograph in the same location.

For me finding the best photograph is not about clicking the shutter release button a million times. Rather it is about watching your client or model and knowing what you can expect when you ask them to do something. By knowing the reaction or even been able to anticipate the action you can be sure to capture the photograph you are looking for.

Do not be shy to ask questions because it is a great way to elicit some reactions from your models.

All collages created here can become some great wall art for you and your family. Just ask.

Enjoy your photography and think beyond just been the photographer. Rather think of it as the treasure maker and the collage creator or any other name that would be suitable for your chosen genre of photography.

Have a great day.

Denzil

A very good Wednesday to you all. 

I hope you are all starting to enjoy the beautiful Spring weather in your area. (If you had it for a while then fantastic. We are just starting to get some great weather here in New England.)

Today I want to discuss something that is often neglected and can be very frustrating for your Professor’s and classmates alike. That is, NOT reducing the size of your PDF files. When you upload your photographs for review it can become quite large and especially if you start adding additional files you land up having files in excess of 100MB.

For those students that have slower internet speeds, this just means we don’t download and critique your work. We just do not have the time to sit around and wait for large files to download. So how can you reduce the files, but at the same time make sure you have great detail and clarity in all your photographs?

Well it is very simple. Export your 300ppi, yes I know they sometimes want 150ppi or 72ppi because of the size, but to get around poor resolution export everything at 300ppi. (To do this in Lightroom I will discuss this in a later blog.) Once you have exported your contact sheets or final images for review you will then combine them into a PDF using Acrobat Pro version. The other versions do not have this option. There is a newer version for Acrobat on the market and because I am using Adobe Creative Cloud, that is the version I will discuss here.The principle and method is exactly the same for all the other versions as well.

In the following example I combined a contact sheet and nine images that I needed for my Creative Concepts course. I landed up with 15 files in the document which included my creative proposal, 9 final photographs for review and my contact sheets.  The final PDF size was just over 75MB.

I uploaded full resolution files for the detail and I had a 6 page Word document as well as my 4 contact sheets included. As you can see that is a very large file. So how do we reduce this file size. It is very simple. Under the tools menu in Acrobat, the location has changed for Acrobat CC, it is located on the left in Acrobat CC and on the right hand side in all the other versions. Click on the tools menu and select OPTIMIZE PDF.

Once you do this you then select the reduce file option on the menu bar.

In older version it says reduce file size in the right hand column. Click on the Reduce File Size option. Follow the instructions for saving and renaming your file. Acrobat will process all your photographs and files and make it easier for viewing on a computer screen.

If you check your file properties now you can see the change in file size. I have managed to reduce my file from 75MB down to 4.14MB

This makes it so much easier to upload to the class discussion area and I can vouch for it, your classmates will really appreciate the smaller file size.

I hope you found this tutorial useful. It makes such a difference when you are working late and that deadline is looming. Everybody appreciates it and you do not lose any detail from your photographs.

I am always willing to help so if you need additional help please send me an email or leave a message on the site blog. Where are here to help you.

If you have any suggestions for things you would like to see on the blog then also drop us a note and we will see about putting it into the roster of topics to discuss. As always I look forward to hearing from you and wish you all a great week with your assignments.

Denzil

Wednesday Ambassador.

Drat - I Missed It!

Driving home Saturday after a long, hot day of watching soccer games, I was coming up on a big corner when I noticed a lot of flashing lights in the West bound lands and I wondered what was up.  As I got closer, I slowed down a bit and saw two fire trucks spraying water, two or three police/sheriff vehicles (rural area), and a very black, very charred SUV.  There was no ambulance and no sense of urgency.  My guess is that somehow the engine blew and the SUV went up in flames.  It was not until five minutes later that I went, “DRAT!”  I had my camera with me, but I missed what could have been some good shots.

Last Fall my oldest son was slated to be the All State Running back, had a goal of rushing for 2000 yards and was just as amazing on the defensive side of the ball.  He is our #2 child out of 10, so I also had a nursing 2 month old at the time.  I had the privilege of photographing from the sidelines all the games and at halftime I would nurse the baby.  It was a pretty good arrangement. 

It was game 4, our team was kicking the opponent’s butts and my son was rocking their socks off.  A few people caught me at the beginning of halftime to chat so I did not get settled in the nurse the baby right away.  The second half started and I was sitting along the track nursing the baby, anxious to get back to the sidelines with camera in hand.  Mid-way through the third quarter, my son was suddenly down.  Way across the field so we could not see what was going on.  He had gone down with leg cramps before so we all were hoping that was it.  But there was a different feel in the air.  When the head coach and the Orthopedic Surgeon are the ones helping your son off the field, you know it is different. 

A trip to the ER and numerous x-rays revealed a an ankle that was not only broken, but would require surgery.  212 yards he had already in that game.  Nearly 1000 yards already on the season. He was being recruited by some pretty exciting D1 schools.  It was a season ending break.  And it was his senior year. 

I photograph the good the bad and the ugly, because it takes all parts to make the story.  I “assumed” by nursing the baby into the third quarter, I would only miss a few shots and we had half a season ahead then play offs and hopefully a state title (we were favored going into the season).  I missed all the action of his injury.  There was not another photo of him making a great play in his senior season.  At that time I was in “mom” mode and that was the mode I was most needed in (but I still wish I had those shots).

The only shots you miss are the ones you do not take. 

Drop me a line about a shot you might have missed or a question you have.  We are here to help any time!

It’s just another Manic Monday…..

Monday Ambassador