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Composition: Five Pigeons On A Wire – The Rule Of Odds

A photo of five common pigeons on a wire illustrating the rule of odds

The Rule Of Odds

 

Sometimes, when it comes to photographic opportunities, you get something completely different than what you were trying to achieve in the first place.

That is what happened with this picture.

I had been out birdwatching, trying to get some good images of robins, but I had no luck this day. I only saw the bird a few times, and the photos I got was no good, blurry and from too far away.

That’s just how it is sometimes when trying to shoot birds or wildlife. You can wait and wait, but the opportunity you are looking for never occurs.

So I went home.

As I was parking my car by my house, I saw something moving in the rearview mirror.

This movement was a number of pigeons on the telephone and electrical wires across the street.

Although plain town pigeons are usually not that interesting there was something that caught my eye about these birds.… Read the rest

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Using A Camera Beanbag

Using A Camera Beanbag

You have probably heard that getting a good tripod is one of the best investments you can make to your photographic equipment arsenal to reduce camera shake.

I totally agree with that, but what about those times when a tripod is too difficult to bring along for whatever reason?

For example, if you’re hiking in difficult terrain and want to travel light, a tripod can be cumbersome (or just too heavy) to carry with you.

Other times you may want to use things from your surroundings as support like rocks, fences, branches or the ground, and you don’t want to damage your camera equipment (or yourself).

The solution for all this?

A camera beanbag.

Beanbags are lightweight, can be filled with different materials like beans (duh), rice, seeds, peas or Styrofoam beads.

These types of material absorb vibrations and reduce camera shake.

The bags you buy come in various shapes and sizes, or you can easily make one yourself to get exactly what you need.… Read the rest

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Macro Photography – Crushed Ice Texture

Macro Photography – Crushed Ice 

 

Macro photography is one of my favorite things to experiment with.

It opens up an entirely new world.

What is very small and tiny will be displayed very large on screen (or on paper).

This is the essence of macro photography. Displaying something small as something bigger.

In order to do that, we have to get in close. Real close. That’s why you’ll sometimes hear macro described as close-up photography and vice versa.

This is not always entirely accurate, but these two categories of photography are closely related.

To get a deeper understanding of the definition of macro, and the nerdy science and history behind it, look at this Wikipedia article.

 

How did I get the idea for this crushed ice macro image?

Well, this wasn’t one of those photos that took a lot of planning.

I was just walking across a grassy field in mid-November, and here in Norway, that means that it usually is quite cold.… Read the rest

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Why you should shoot using the RAW image format

Why you should shoot using the RAW image format

 

Have you ever taken a photograph that is too bright or too dark?

Maybe you have taken a photo that is both too bright and too dark at the same time (difficult lighting situation, too much contrast).

Then you open these images in your favorite photo editing software and try to correct them, but you get frustrated when you realize it’s not possible to bring back any detail in the shadows or highlights.

Chances are you are shooting in JPEG-format, which just don’t contain enough data for what you are trying to achieve.

 

The JPEG image format

There are many types of digital image formats, with JPEG being the most popular and common.

This is because JPEG has a good quality to compression ratio. The file sizes can be small, but still provide decent quality (here’s the nerdy explanation of the JPEG-format).… Read the rest

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How to use a CPL filter (in)correctly

How to use a CPL filter (in)correctly

This article contains affiliate links to Amazon.com. If you buy from them through these links, I may receive a commission.

 

 

Magic!!

That’s what it can seem like.

Under the right circumstances.

Turning the ring of a CPL filter, looking through the viewfinder to see what happens.

Watching the glare from foliage disappear, the reflections from water being removed, or the sky darken and the clouds and colors pop.

The situations are many, where the correct use of a CPL filter can seem to work like magic on the scene in front of you.

Let’s take a look at how to use, and sometimes overuse, the polarizer effect.

When to use a CPL filter?

A CPL, circular polarizing filter, or polarizer filter is a piece of glass you attach to the front of a camera lens, which filters out certain parts of the light from entering the lens.… Read the rest