Monthly Archives: September 2011
My whole life pretty much revolves around photography. I try to spend every minute I can out shooting with my camera, but when I can’t be, I spend the rest of my free time searching the internet for inspiration and ideas.
One of my favourite things to do is follow the blogs of other photographers that I aspire to, they are always fun and so full of amazing, inspirational ideas and images, that really make want to go out, shoot some more and just become a better at what I love to do.
One blog post in particular has resonated with me more than any other this week, so I’d thought I would share it with you. Alex Beadon, is a wonderful, wonderful photographer and blogger, and her images are fantastically artful, beautiful and creative. If my work ever ended up as 1% of how good her stuff is, I’d be ecstatic.
A link to her post is here. Please, please check out her blog, it’s so full of wonderful information and images, it’s fantastic.
I’ll quote what she said below, because well, it’s exactly the way I feel, and she has been able to put in to words, exactly the kind of things that go through my head every day. This the exactly the way I’m motivated. This is why I carry on shooting,carry on learning and carry on improving myself. I thought I was the only one who thought like this?!
—
“What am I doing to up my game? How can I drastically improve what I’m already doing? How can I be a better business person? How can I be a better photographer? How can I create better art work? How can I push boundaries?
These questions literally keep me up at night. They swirl around in my head and never leave me alone.…
Using Photoshop, also known as Post Processing (PP) has historically been a bit of a sore spot for some photographers. For some, there is a belief that a photo can, and should only be the product of what was captured by the camera, and that any type of manipulation of colour or perspective is somehow altering how real the photograph is. Some photographers would put across that “back in the film days” there was no photoshopping, it was just straight out of the camera and all down to the skill of the photographer.
This subject can be a bit of a sticking point between photographers, and so I don’t want to go and upset anyone with blanket statement about what is right or wrong…..
…but they are completely wrong.
Post processing is as essential to a photograph as the buttons on the camera or glass in the lens. Even when using film, the developing process was a crucial part of what made the final image, and digital photography is absolutely no different.
A camera is a machine, and will be able to capture what you point it at, but that photo may not always represent what you saw with your eyes at the time, that original unedited photo may not represent how the photographer sees the scene in their mind. Therefore, it is the purpose of programs like Photoshop to allow the photographer full reign over the image, and to make it into what they truly intended.
Of course there is a fine line between processing an image to match the original idea, and photo manipulation beyond recognition. Sometimes you can save an otherwise boring or poor image it to something good with a lot of Photoshop, but honestly why bother? Post processing can enhance what’s good in a photo, not hide what’s bad in it.…
A couple of weeks ago, I took some photos of the Gloucester Docks 2011 Tall Ships Festival. Well, I decided to enter a few of my photos into a local competition set up by visit-gloucestershire, not expecting to win anything. I was just happy to share some of my photos of a great local event.
But…yesterday I was surprised to receive an email saying I’ve won 2nd place in the competition! Yeah!
Most people say they don’t expect to win anything when they enter a competition…but I honestly really didn’t, which makes coming second even better.
All of the entries in the competition were really good, and it’s clear everyone who entered took a lot of time and care over their photos, and really captured some of the spirit of the festival. A special thank you to all of the judges too, who took their time to judge the entries and provide some great prizes:
Eddie & Vanda of SoftData
Damon of Damon Cannard Photography
Tammy of TammyLynn Photography
I hope this will now give me a bit of a confidence boost to enter a few more photo competitions, and not be so hung up on what people might say about my images.
You can check out the other winners here.…
Macro photography is all about taking big photos of small things. And let me tell you, it is a whole lot of fun, and quite addictive. There is so much beauty and interest in the world that you never get to see, and getting in close with your camera opens up so many new photo opportunities!
The great thing about macro photography is that you can do it with almost any camera. Almost all good compact cameras will have macro mode, which alters the way the lens focuses and will let you get in pretty close to your subject. Of course, if your talking image quality and versatility, you probably have a DSLR, and there are a couple of different ways to attempt close up photography with a DSLR.
The cheapest options are to buy close up filters or lenses. These are just pieces of glass, that screw on the front of the lens, and simply magnify the image. (Just like a magnifying glass). Although cheap, the can also have a pretty dire effect on image quality. Another alternative is lens reversing. This where you mount a lens (a 50mm f1.8/f1.4 works best) the wrong way round on the camera, which reverses the optics and greatly magnifies the image. But that’s way to fiddly for me, and you run the risk of getting dust inside your camera sensor and/or lens.
Instead, I would highly recommend a dedicated macro lens. There are many popular choices for all makes and budgets. Nikon have recently released an awesome little 40mm macro lens for under £200. Sweet. Canon, Sigma and Sony all similar dedicated macro lenses, but be careful, some manufacturers will stick “macro” at the the end of the lenses name to make it sound better. This is just a marketing trick, ,and doesn’t mean you can get in close.…
Today I have been excited and inspired, by something so…normal. From the second I woke up this morning, I’ve had my eyes on the sky. You know up there. There was something in the air, that made me think I would have a good day. And it was. I finished work with a bundle of energy. I knew I wanted to go out and shoot. And 10mins later I was standing in a tiny forest in Painswick, just outside Stroud, in Gloucestershire.
The sun was shining, the light was magical, and my brain was overflowing with ideas. Excuse the pun, but it just “clicked”.
I just come alive, when I’m somewhere inspiring, somewhere interesting. It’s like being tanked up on coffee and red bull at the same time. I can feel the synapsis in my brain firing off like cannons, my eyes wide open at what I’m seeing. I’m not looking. But actually seeing. My finger is twitching on the shutter. My brains full of apertures and shutter speeds, but my heart is full of creative energy. God, it fills me with energy and optimism. Screw you world. Screw you life. Just let me be here and take pictures until my body aches or my memory cards are full.
I think I’ve taken some of the best images in a long time. I didn’t need to travel the world to find inspiration, to find somewhere beautiful. I just needed to drive a couple of miles down the road. Gloucestershire is full of beautiful, hidden special places. And I’m sure where you live does too, you just have to go out there and find them!
Inspiration Is Closer Than You Think.…
Bokeh (pronounced bo-keh) comes from the Japanese word “boke”, which means “blurriness” or “fuzziness”. In photographic terms, bokeh is the quality of the out of focus elements in a photo. Sharpness is where you choose to focus the camera, bokeh is the rest of the frame that isn’t in focus.
;
What Is It Used For?
Use of bokeh or background blur is used in all types of photography, but is most popular in portraiture or wedding photography, as it isolates your subject from it’s surroundings, and gives the photo a sense of depth or “3D” effect. Separating your subject from a messy or distracting background will bring the viewers attention straight to where the photographer wants it. By using background blur effectively, you as the photography can almost control where the viewers eye will go when they look at the photo.
…
Camera bags are important. They are the big, squishy, protective bubbles that protect your favourite cameras and lenses from total destruction by rain, snow, wind, air, kids, food, clumsy people, errant pigeons and even the silent killer…dust. Okay, maybe a bit over the top, but the point I’m trying to me is that when you invest heavily in any type of camera, it’s really important to not skimp on the bag!
However, choosing that “perfect” camera bag can be nightmare. In fact it’s impossible. No camera bag manufacturer creates a bag that will be perfect for all situations. Which is why, for me at least, I have 2 “perfect bags”.
The first, the ThinkTank Retrospective 10 is my everyday bag, for when I don’t want to carry all of my gear, with me wherever I go. It’s a small, discrete bag that holds just enough stuff to cover almost every situation, and provides quick easy access to my Nikon D700 and a lens or two. And then I have a second bag, one that holds everything I could ever want and more, that trades accessibility for sheer storage capacity, ideal for those times when I know I’m going to be taking a lot of photos. And that bag is the ThinkTank Streetwalker Pro.
The ThinkTank Streetwalker Pro, (despite the weird name) is an awesome camera backpack. Large enough to hold a vast amount of camera gear, including a Nikon 70-200mm f2.8 with hood attached, and easily deep enough for pro sized DSLR like the Nikon D3s. But, uh…I have neither of those. But here is what I can fit in my Streetwalker Pro.
- Nikon D700
- Nikon 24-70mm f2.8 (attached with hood)
- Nikon 105mm f2.8 VR Macro
- Nikon 50mm f1.4 G
- 2 X SB900 Speedlights
- A couple of wired/wireless remotes.
- A rocket blower.
…
ABOUT THIS BLOG
This is the blog of Chris Scuffins, a hardworking, creative photographer from Gloucestershire.
With years of experience in landscape and commercial still life photography, his focus now lies on capturing creative, natural and beautiful fashion and lifestyle portraiture, as well as a fun, relaxed approach to photojournalistic wedding photography.
FEATURED POSTS
- What To Look For In Your Wedding Photographer
Choosing your wedding photographer can be an extremely...
- Fine Art Wedding Albums By Folio Albums
I figured it was about time I did a feature on the...
- Wedding | James & Arjia | Milton Keynes
Way, way back on the 18th of August 2012, I had the...
- Wedding | Natalie And Andrew | Tewkesbury Park Hotel
A Gloucestershire Wedding | St Marks Church, Cheltenham...
POPULAR POSTS
- The 35mm And 85mm
Just a few short months after making the decision to...
- 30 Day Self Portrait Project Finished!
WooHoo! Today I have finished my 30 day self portrait...
- Wedding | Natalie And Andrew | Tewkesbury Park Hotel
A Gloucestershire Wedding | St Marks Church, Cheltenham...
- Why I Switched From Nikon to Canon
I’ll start of by being completely and utterly hypocritical....
ON FACEBOOK
BLOG CATEGORIES
- Camera Equipment (34)
- Engagement Portraiture (1)
- Everyday Photography (11)
- Inspiration (35)
- Photo Tips (17)
- Portraiture (4)
- Shooting Film (3)
- Weddings (5)
FOLLOW CHRIS:
- 500PX
- FLICKR
- PURPLE PORT
- YOUTUBE