Posts from the ‘art’ Category
You get what you get and you don’t get upset…you just try to learn for the next time
When it comes to photography there are many different styles and approaches. In my opinion candid (or street photography) can be one of the hardest to photograph simply for the fact that you are shooting in the moment and very rarely is there an opportunity for a redo.
Recently I had decided it was time for me to step outside of my comfort zone and place myself into an entirely new photographic situation. As a result I decided to attend the Mermaid Parade ( you can learn all about it by clicking on that link) and try my hand at photographing what may be one the most unusual events I have ever attended.
The results…. some great and not some great shots but that’s always to be expected. However as this was my first time attending the event I definitely learned some important lessons.
1. It’s always nice to ask someone if they wouldn’t mind having their picture taken. Bring business cards or a piece of paper with your email address offer to send them a copy of the photo that you have taken. Will you hear from everyone most likely not, however by taking those few moments to speak to the person you’re photographing you may have the chance to get them to pose for you and retake an image and that can make a difference.
2. The staging area offers some walls this can prove to be a great backdrop and can help to eliminate a lot of the chaos that is happening around you if that is the effect you are looking for. (This is something that I realized late in the game)
3. Bring suntan lotion and water….I can not stress this enough it’s going to be a long day, your carrying around gear and it will be hot.
4. Relax, have fun and go with the flow. Try not to take it so seriously and have a good time. This will come across in your photographs.
Below you will find some of the photos taken at this event. For a more complete listing you can check out http://junger.smugmug.com/People/Mermaidparade (if you don’t see a photo of you posted and I gave you my card please send me an email and I will get it to you.)
Too posed or Not too posed…
When it comes to photographing people for me personally there is no right or wrong way it’s about capturing a person at a specific moment that can best portray the emotions that they are feeling or evokes an emotion you want the viewer to feel.
Over the past few weeks I have been given the opportunity to shoot some portrait photography ranging from candid moments at a run and on the streets of NYC to a highly stylized photo shoot. Each situation brings it’s own positive aspects and hidden draw backs (not always a chance to get a do over shot as someone is running by).
My next few blogs will be discussing each experience in further detail as well as sharing some of the photos that I was able to capture.
My question or anyone that may be reading this though is there a such thing as being too posed or not posed enough in regards to portrait photography?
You can’t look at abstract art without thinking. (Patricia Cole-Ferullo)
Regardless of anywhere in the world you are if you stop pause and slowly turn in a complete circle looking around you, you are almost always likely to find at least one glimpse of a piece of architecture whether it be a barn, office,skyscraper or even a free standing sculpture. More often than not we may try to shoot around, or compose them so they fit nicely into a shot subtle blending in to it’s surroundings.
What if instead we look at this as an opportunity to embrace it and shift our focus allowing the architecture/structure to be our main focal point? Take an image like this for example
The above image is unedited taken with the Olympus E-PL3 camera (14mm, f/11, 1/200sec) at Flushing Meadow Corona Park in Queens, NY.
The first thing you may want to think about when shooting or editing an image like this is how to best frame or crop it. How can you best showcase it. A personal preference of mine is to crop the image to a square (using a 1:1 crop ratio) from that you can further tweak your images by choosing to rotate it as well as enhancing it through a well thought out edit.
A slightly different approach would be to look for and search out symmetry, a repeating line or pattern that can help visually draw a viewer in.
The above edited shot was taken on the Brooklyn Bridge using the Nikon D800. In this image you see a repeating pattern with the brickwork as well as both sides feature the same cable wires giving the appearance that if you were to fold the image down the middle everything would line up. Also something to consider when photographing/editing something like this is how close of a crop you want (does the skyline add anything, do colors detract or add to it etc).
Sometimes in life were so busy with the things going on around us that we forget to look up. By looking up we get a completely different view and perspective that we may normally have not seen.
The above image is part of a greenhouse roof. Something to consider when shooting like this is your exposure settings it is very easy to blow the sky out.
Pay attention and look at light you never know when your going to get that perfect reflection that may make your shot.
More importantly have fun with it! Don’t worry about the horizon, or making sure your shot is perfectly straight. It’s ok to shoot on an angle sometimes. The goal is to experiment and see what aesthetically works best for you!
J. Unger Photography 