Photo of the day.

Mr Jim Chapman M.D. Atlantic Ineertial Systems UK. Handing out prizes.

Professor David Baker (Principal) at the Marjon Prize Giving Evening.

These were taken this week (07/05/09) for a commercial photo shoot. This type of photography can go terribly astray very easily and is not really my favourite shoot. Red eye can become a real pain when using flash.

Tip of the day.

By diffusing the flash you can help reduce red eye. Red eye occurs when the brightness of the flash lights up the tiny blood capilliaries in the eye; hense the term ‘Red Eye’. The ‘pre-flash’ on some cameras is designed to make the iris of the eye (Which is opened up wide to combat the gloomy effect of a low lit room) shut down in order to reduce the redness. However, if you do get any red eye effects it can be easily spotted out in Photoshop by magnifying the photo and carefully painting a dab of blach onto the red spot of the eye.

Photo of the day.

Funfair

This was taken on Plymouth Hoe during the International Fireworks display.

Tip of the day.

When shooting in low light be sure to use a tri-pod and a long shutter speed, a high ISO (Digital) or a high ISO film and you could always use a good flash to freeze the action. There are two ways of preventing camera shake even if the camera is mounted upon a tri-pod and they are; use the self timer rather than the shutter button or try using a cable release to trigger the shutter. Camera shake can occur when mounted upon a tri-pod if you are slightly too keen or somewhat heavy handed. Trust me it does happen!!!!

The movement of the two rides are perfectly frozen because I used a high ISO a wide aperture and a moderate exposure time (ISO 1600 – F.4 @ 1/60th sec). However, because I have many years of experience I took this shot handheld but well braced against a solid object and I held my breath as I gently squeezed the shutter button.

Photo of the day.

Bird of prey.

I took these two shots at Powderham Castle. I was there on a job to photograph a guy demonstrating Fly fishing techniques (See above).

Tip of the Day: By using  a shallow depth of field when photographing the bird, the background is rendered out of focus and therefore the bird is the focus of attention. Always focus on the eye as you would when doing portraiture. Be sure to use a high enough shutter speed to give yourself a chance of getting the shot before the bird or animal moves; (1/350th sec @f.6.7 &  ISO 400).

If you look closely at the end of the fishing line you can see the orange fly. Also notice that the action is perfectly frozen. Again this was done with a high enough shutter speed (1/250th sec @ f.11 & ISO 400) .

Duncan’s blog

This WordPress Blog is where you will find my personal Blog about me as a photographer, tips on photography and Photo of the Day etc.

It is not an exhaustive blog, in that it is not jammed with too much techno speak, rather it is an attempt at being user friendly where learners can see examples of my work and where they can also find useful tips on how to create similar photographs or how to avoid taking bad photographs.

I am hoping to expand upon this Blog as time progresses and add to both the photo of the day and tips alike. Although I have yet to have any comments, or it seems, any feedback, I am hopefull that given time my Blog will help someone along the way.

The idea behind this Blog comes from my own experiences as an amateur photographer, where finding useful tips about photography were hard to find. Although there were photography magazines such as Photography Monthly available, the basic beginer tips were missing. I found this to be very confusing and had to fend for myself. This meant I had to cope with my own trial and error and copious note taking and the expense of many rolls of film wasted before I was fully able to get to grips with being fairly consistant at taking good saleable prints.

I was always affraid of formal education having had horendous experiences at school before I overcame that fear. Having matured and being in a better mind set about education, I took up a City & Guilds Photography course at The Plymouth College of Further Education (Now Plymouth City College) and for 3 years I developed my own prints (Mostly in Monochrome) and passed every assignment. This allowed me to look for work as a qualified photographer, which I slowly did.

Over the years I developed an interest in Portrature, Fashion and Glamour Photography but still had a desire to be a good Landscape photographer. My greatest aim was to be an Ansel Adams or another Andy Rouse but I never got the breaks, mainly due to a total lack of available cash and lack of propper paying jobs here in Plymouth. 

Having researched many photographers over the years both in book form and on the internet, I decided to attempt to make a user friendly blog for photography beginners. 

Many of the photographers I have admired are now sadly dead but they still influence my work as a photographer. However, I still admire many living photographers. The one man I admired the most was the late Bob Carlos Clarke. His glamour photography was simply stunning and inovative.    

Some of you will know already that I am now a photographer with over 25 years experience. I got the bug very early on when my elder brother and me went to see rock bands in London on a regular basis. Nowadays I am into many different types of photography.

I have now completed my BA Hons degree in Creative Media Practice at UCP Marjon where I was able to further my photographic skills as well as my Video making skills with higher professional qualifactions.  

Thse were taken at  winter time when the weather was just perfect for even lighting conditions.  I will add more samples of my work as this Blog progresses. If anyone wishes to comment please do.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.