Portrait Essentials 4 Volume Bundle

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Portrait Essentials 4 Volume Bundle Book 1 - Stunning Portrait Photography - Posing And Lighting, Book 2 Correcting Facial Flaws - And Other Photo Tips, Book 3 - 50 Keys To Better Photography, Book 4 - Model Release Templates By Dan Eitreim

Portrait Essentials 4 Volume Bundle: Book 1 - Stunning Portrait Photography Posing And Lighting, Book 2 - Correcting Facial Flaws - And Other Photo Tips, Book 3 - 50 Keys To Better Photography, Book 4 - Model Release Templates Copyright © 2018 by Dan Eitreim All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical or electronic, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Requests for permission or further information should be addressed to: Author: Dan Eitreim 10650 7th Ave. Hesperia, California 92345 Published by: On Target Publishing Published in the United States of America Please read the full disclaimer at the end of this book.

Table of Contents Book 1 - Stunning Portrait Photography - Posing And Lighting Introduction Simple system Arms - Avoid Elongating And Foreshortening The Plane The 4 Positions Of The Upper Arm The Forearm “Trap!” The Hand - Bold and Tapered Poses The twist: The break: Bold Hand Poses - Masculine Tapered Hand Poses - Feminine Eleven Ways To Pose The Hands! Use A Prop On The Chin At The Lapel Or Neckline On The Hip On The Opposite Arm On Top Of - Or Behind - The Head At The Waistline In The Pocket At The Side On The Lap Or The Knee Leaning On An Object

The Head And Shoulders Portrait Positioning The Head Full Face Profile Three Quarter Head

Directing The Model The Horizontal Turn Vertical Lift Or Drop Diagonal Tilt Correcting Facial Flaws With Head Position!

Photographing The Face Moveable Parts The Pupil/Iris 4 Ways To Avoid Squinting And Closed Eyes Shoot With The Light At The Subject’s Back Shoot Later In The Day 1 - 2 - 3! Bounce Or Diffuse Your Flash! The Mouth

Emotions

Happiness Anger Sorrow Fear

Lighting The Portrait! The Shadow In Portrait Photography The “Short Light” And The “Broad Light” Patterns Which lighting pattern should we use? The “Split Light” The “Loop Lighting” Pattern The “Rembrandt Light” The “Butterfly Light” Pattern The “Fill Light”! The “Lighting Ratios” The “Background Light” The “Hair Light” The “Accent Light” The “Three Light Set” Using One Light! Eliminate The Dreaded “Red Eye!” How to fix it? The “Photographic Ground Modification System”

Book 2 - Correcting Facial Flaws - And Other Photo Tips Introduction Photographing The Portrait Headshot Studying The Face The Better Side Here Is Some Science Look For Flaws! Make Your Model Comfortable Visually Minimize Flaws Positioning The Head And Shoulders Full Face Chubby Cheeks And Kids The Profile Three Quarter Head

Directing The Model The Horizontal Turn Vertical Lift Or Drop Diagonal Tilt

Correcting Facial Flaws With Head Position! Parts Of The Face Eyes Four Ways To Cure Squinting And Closed Eyes In Portraits! Shoot With The Light At The Subject’s Back Shoot Later In The Day 1 - 2 - 3! Bounce Or Diffuse Your Flash! The Mouth

Emotions Happiness Anger Sorrow Fear

Lighting Patterns To Minimize Flaws! The 2 Base Lighting Patterns: Narrow Light Broad Light 4 Essential Lighting/Shadow Patterns Split Light Loop Light The Butterfly Light The Rembrandt Light Additional Portrait Lights: The Fill Light The Separation Light

Let’s Use What We’ve Learned! Children The 18/18 rule Amateurs vs. Pros Be Decorative Show Your Creative Intent Incorporate Skill And Emotion Capture The Essence Of Your Subject Complement Your Subject

Finding Your Personal Style Developing Your Personal Style Muscles

Lets Get Creative Taking Risks

17 Portrait Compositional Tips Photo Exercise Book 3 - 50 Keys To Better Photography Introduction The Basics Of Photography Key 1: Photography Simplified Key 2: Aperture And Shutter Speed Key 3: Master Your Camera - Fast! Key 4: The Photographer’s Secret Weapon Key 5: Creativity Can Be Learned Key 6: A New Vantage Point Key 7: Put The “WOW” Factor In Your Photos! Key 8: Tell A Story Key 9: Exposure - How Your Meter Works! Key 10: How To Shoot In Black And White

Eliminate Camera Shake Key 11: Your Shooting Stance

Key 12: Tripod Tips Key 13: Use A Tripod - Like A Monopod Key 14: How To Use A Monopod Key 15: Hands Off The Button Key 16: Mirror, Mirror

Using On-Camera Flash Key 17: The Twenty-Five Foot Rule Key 18: Intensify The Colors In Your Photos Key 19: Eliminate “Red Eye!”

Outdoors/Landscape Photography Key 20: Create Better Landscape Photos! Key 21: Shooting In Bad Weather! Key 22: Two Horizon Photo Tips Key 23: More On Level Horizons Key 24: Stunning City Skyline Photography Key 25: Shoot Better Sunset Photos Key 26: How To Get Intense Sunset Photo Colors!

Using Photo Filters Key 27: Filters To The Rescue Key 28: The Indispensable Rubber Band! Key 29: Recovering The Ground! Key 30: Amazing Waterfalls! Key 31: Making Clouds “POP!” Key 32: To Buy Or Not To Buy Colored Filters Key 33: Storing Your Filters

Adding Color Key 34: Using Kodak Yellow!

Fireworks And Lightning Key 35: Fireworks And Lightning-Part 1 Key 36: Fireworks And Lightning-Part 2

Flowers And Spider Webs Key 37: Flowers and Spider Webs Part 1 Key 38: Flowers and Spider Webs Part 2 Key 39: Turn Around

Pet Portraits Key 40: Pet Portraits - Great For Camera Mastery Key 41: Better Pet Portraits In 3 Easy Steps Key 42: In Pet Portraits - The Ears Matter Key 43: Problem Animals

Improving (Human) Portraits Key 44: Tips for Improving Your Portraits Key 45: Two (More) Easy Portrait Photography Tips Key 46: The “Photographic Ground Modification System!” Key 47: Visually Lose Weight Key 48: The Ultimate Portrait Photography Tip Key 49: Size Matters Key 50: Basics Of Lighting Portrait Photography

Book 4 - Model Release Templates

Introduction MODEL RELEASE: ADULT MODEL RELEASE: MINOR MODEL RELEASE: NUDES PROPERTY RELEASE EXTRA CLAUSES Other Books By Dan Eitreim Fiction: Non-Fiction Book Bundles: Other Useful - Non Photography - E-books

Thank You Disclaimer

Book 1 - Stunning Portrait Photography Posing and Lighting! By Dan Eitreim

Introduction Message From The Author

Hello, I’m Dan Eitreim and I’ve been shooting photographs professionally for over 20 years. Before we get started, let me tell you a bit about me. Getting stunning images is almost automatic for me now, but it wasn’t always like that! I remember struggling to figure out what all the buttons and dials on my camera were for, and I remember the frustration at not being able to shoot the type of images I knew it was possible to produce. I think I own just about every photo technique book available and believe me, there is a lot of misinformation and downright useless information out there. Most photo books are written - not to really teach you anything new - but to show off the author’s photographs! In this series of e-books, I’ve tried my best to avoid that pitfall. While there are a lot of my own photos in here, there are also a lot of stock photos. The idea is to use the photos to demonstrate a point, not to show off my work.

Simple system

I’ve developed a simple, systematic approach that ANYONE can easily master to start shooting better photos – TODAY! Once you’ve completed this training lesson along your photo journey, “Stunning Portrait Photography - Posing and Lighting”, don’t lose your momentum! Keep reading the next lesson in the Portrait Essentials bundle... “Correcting Facial Flaws - And Other Photo Tips!”

Btw - If you haven’t yet gotten a copy of Volume 1 - “7 Secrets To Creating Stunning Photos!”, it’s a freebie! (but, it’s not listed with Amazon), check it out here:

http://www.OnTargetPhotoTraining.com It’s time YOU put the “WOW” factor into your photos! *************************

Let’s take a few pages and review “Strategic Posing Secrets - Hands & Arms!”

Many of you haven’t seen the previous training volumes, so this will be new material. But even if you HAVE covered these concepts before, they are so important it is worth rehashing and reviewing a little. This review is longer than most of them. The arms and hands are so vital to the look of a portrait, I’m going to include quite a bit about them here even though most of our portaits will be “head and shoulders” shots! While not visible, hands and arms have a huge impact on the finished portrait.

Arms - Avoid Elongating And Foreshortening While the legs form the base of the photograph, the arms are important too! Possibly, arms are even more important than the legs because their positioning is more noticeable in the finished picture. With the shoulder joint, the elbow and the wrist, an unlimited range of motion and possible positioning of the arms is possible. But unfortunately, most of them are not appropriate for a photograph. If the arm is pointed toward the camera, it can look foreshortened, enlarged - or even completely disappear behind the hand!

If the arm is pointed away from the camera, it can be elongated, lose its identity, or be dwarfed.

The Plane Ideally, we want the arms on the same plane as the camera. So there is tip #1: Keep the point of view of the camera in mind at all times - and be sure to keep the arms parallel to that viewpoint. I appreciate that this isn’t always possible, but keep this tip in mind and do what you can! Imagine the model standing in front of the camera with a large sheet of glass directly in front of her. Her arms can move to the sides or up and down, in fact she can complete an entire windmill like circle, but her arms can’t move forward

toward the camera.

Now, put a large sheet of glass behind her. This restricts the backward movement of her arms. What is left is the plane that we can work in - without any fear of foreshortening, enlarging, dwarfing and so on. Though these two pieces of glass are always facing the camera and “sandwich” the model, she can rotate within her sandwich. As long as her arm position doesn’t break the plane of the glass, we’ve avoided the distortion problems. The glass sandwich may seem quite restrictive, but as you can no doubt see, she has a LOT of options!

The 4 Positions Of The Upper Arm The general range of motion for the shoulder - within its pane of glass restriction is: up, down, out and in. Since the normal position of the arm is hanging straight down from the shoulderthat position would be “down”.

Next, when the arm is straight up, obviously, that is the “up” position…

Next is the “out” position…

And finally, there is the “in” position…

When you think of all the stops in between all these extremes, you have an almost unlimited number of possibilities. Consider that both arms can be posed differently and the sky is the limit. When the model is turned toward the side, the arm’s range of motion must still remain within the confines of the “glass,” so what was once “in” and “out” would now switch to “front” and “back,” in relation to the model.

The Forearm “Trap!” Since the elbow is a pivot point, the position of the forearm must be established after the upper arm is set. We still have the up, down, in and out - just like the upper arm. Keep in mind that

regardless of the direction the model is facing, the plane of movement of the forearm is still within the confines of the sheets of “glass.” Some points to consider when posing… When the arms are alongside the body (touching the body), they visually become part of the body. Depending on the clothing worn, they could blend in and make the body look very wide - visually adding pounds.

If the elbow is slightly moved away from the body - along the same lines - this creates an air space where the background shows through. This is called a “trap.” Note how having a trap makes the body appear slimmer than it would have if the arm was hanging straight down - without the use of a trap.

The Hand - Bold and Tapered Poses Consider the hand as one gloved mass (let’s not worry about the fingers). The mass has broad surfaces on the front and back, and two narrow edges that we will call the thumb and pinky edges. Hand position is controlled by the wrist. The wrist can move in two ways, it can twist and break. Within these two types of movement, we have several hand positions that can be achieved.

The twist: Actually, if you think about it, twisting the wrist doesn’t actually twist the wrist at all. Try it, your whole forearm moves. As your wrist twists, it flips the forearm over. The flip can be a full front to back or stop at some point in between.

The break: The wrist can break in four ways, forward and back or side to side. When the wrist breaks side to side, it can break in toward the thumb or out toward the pinky. When it breaks front and back, it breaks front when the palm is going toward the inner forearm and back when the palm is going away from the inner arm.

As these movements are combined, many hand positions are possible. Some, like any other posing positions, are better than others. The two main hand positions are bold and tapered.

Bold Hand Poses - Masculine Bold hands display the broad, flat palm, back of the hand or geometric shapes (such as a clenched fist). Bold hand poses are masculine and massive. They are used to indicate strength, authority, physical vibrancy or sometimes clumsiness and violence.

Tapered Hand Poses - Feminine Tapered hands display the long inside (thumb side) or outside (pinky side) of the hand, lengthening the arms and adding grace to the picture as a whole.

Since they are used to denote finer emotion and character, their message is relayed

with finer movements and positioning. Extreme care and utmost attention must be taken in posing them. “Bold” hand poses are typically considered more masculine and “tapered” hand poses are typically considered more feminine. It’s not a hard and fast rule, but if you break it, be sure you have a reason to do so. It’s OK to break the rules from time to time - as long as you KNOW you are breaking them - and why! Now for the age old question of what to do with the hands! Most subjects are at a loss and you will frequently be asked to answer that very question. In fact, it’s one of the MOST asked questions! Now, you will have an answer. Eleven of them to be exact…

Eleven Ways To Pose The Hands! First is using props, the next ten are what are called “hand stops.” A hand stop is simply a place where hands normally stop.

Use A Prop You can have the subject actually holding something. This gives them something natural to do with their hands. Since it is much more difficult to direct kids, using a prop works well with young children.

On The Chin

At The Lapel Or Neckline

On The Hip

On The Opposite Arm

On Top Of - Or Behind - The Head

At The Waistline

In The Pocket

At The Side

On The Lap Or The Knee

Don’t forget, you need to pose the hands and arms, even if they aren’t going to be in the photo. It alters the rest of the body.

Leaning On An Object

Now let’s move on and talk about the head and shoulders portrait.

The Head And Shoulders Portrait This is where the “rubber meets the road’ so to speak. When we look at a portrait, our eyes immediately go to the face and (more specifically) the eyes. So far in the introduction and in previous lessons, we’ve talked about the overall posing of the body, the feet and legs, the arms and hands, but they are all mainly accents to posing and lighting the head. The planes of the face change DRAMATICALLY with even the most minor of adjustments to the positioning and the way we light the portrait! So, we have to pay very particular attention to the way we direct our models. We can’t (or shouldn’t) just let it happen. The first two major areas of concern are the basic position of the head and then the expressions the face can generate. Keep in mind that all of the head’s movements - like all the other body parts we’ve discussed previously - are considered from the angle of the camera.

Positioning The Head The three most commonly used terms to describe the head’s position are; full-face, profile and three-quarter head. Obviously, the terms are pretty descriptive and easy to understand.

Full Face Full Face - simply means a straight on - full view of the face. Sometimes you’ll hear this referred to as; front view and full front view. This pose tends to make the subject’s face appear broader. It does tend to work well with children, but it is best to avoid the full face if you have a model with a wide or round face. Our modern concept of beauty is for the subject to have a longer, narrower face with high cheekbones. You CAN visually make the face appear longer, with higher cheekbones, by the way you light the portrait. We’ll cover the lighting patterns in a minute. Here are a couple examples of the full face position.

Profile The profile is considered the full side view of the head. It is sometimes called; side view, half view or 90 degree angle. In a profile pose, you will not be able to see the far eye or the far side cheek. Typically, the full profile is the least used of the three. It can be handy if you are trying to do a silhouette of the subject - since in a silhouette, it would “read” better than the other two. Another use of the profile would be if they have a major facial flaw of some sort and you are trying to disguise it. This could be one eye is substantially larger than the other (or missing) or there is scarring you want to hide. Or, you could use the profile for a reason that has nothing at all to do with the head. In the below photo of three dancers, they wanted to show off both the front and the back of the costume they were wearing so, a profile was the only way I could the middle girls face.

A profile pose could be used to add to the drama of a shot - like in the “praying” photo.

Three Quarter Head Both of the outer dancers pictured above are in a three quarter head pose. The middle one is in full profile. This is when the head is turned about 45 degrees to the side. It is sometimes referred to as a 45 degree turn or ¾ face. In reality, the turn doesn’t have to be 45 degrees - three quarter head refers (at least to most of us) to any degree of turn between straight on and profile.

Ideally in a three quarter pose, you will want to be able to see the entire eye on the further side of the face - and the tip of the nose should not extend past the cheek. This pose tends to be the most flattering for most subjects and you will want to consider this one first. Branch out to the other two only if you need to.

As previously mentioned, all of these head positions are in relation to the camera. Obviously, we could turn a three-quarter position into a full face or even a profile by telling the model to hold her position while we move our camera.

But, generally, the camera remains stationary while we direct the model to shift position.

Directing The Model To direct the model, we need to have names for all the various ways we will want her to adjust her head position. The primary ways she can turn are horizontally, vertically and diagonally. So we’ll refer to these as horizontal turn (to the right or left), vertical lift or vertical drop and diagonal tilt (to the right or left). The terms are pretty much self explanatory.

The Horizontal Turn When the subject’s body is facing towards the camera, with a straight on - full face view, their head can turn either right or left all the way to the shoulder (full profile).

That’s only half of it; the model can turn her body so that it is facing away from the camera. Then, the - full on - view would be of the back of her head!

Again the head can turn all the way to the full profile position.

Another example would be the photo of the three dancers - the center one is facing to the rear, the other two are facing three-quarters to the front with varying direction and degrees of head turn.

Vertical Lift Or Drop Vertical lift or drop is an upward or downward movement of the tip of the nose in relation to a perpendicular line drawn through the shoulder position. In the photo above of the three dancers, the young lady seated on the floor has no vertical lift or drop. The one in the middle has a pronounced upward vertical lift. In the two photos below, they are showing a vertical drop.

Diagonal Tilt Diagonal tilt is determined by drawing a straight line from the top of the head downward through the chin. If it is all straight, there is no diagonal tilt.

No diagonal tilt If the chin is off to one side or the other, there IS a diagonal tilt…

Diagonal tilt

Correcting Facial Flaws With Head Position! The way we pose the head can dramatically change the way our model looks as well as insert some feeling into the shot. For example - the diagonal tilt adds a feeling of interest to the face and helps to engage the viewer. A vertical drop can minimize an unfortunate chin. A vertical lift can help disguise a large forehead or receding hairline. An oval face can be lengthened and narrowed in three-quarter view and a long face can be shortened and widened with a full face view and the chin lifted. The slightest movement in the position of the head can make a huge difference! A prominent chin or forehead can be minimized by tilting it away from the camera. A receding chin can be improved by extending it toward the camera. (A receding chin is definitely NOT masculine and you will want to improve it for your male subjects!) The profile is good for hiding structural faults, but it tends to lose impact when trying to show an expression. It can be good to impart mood, or direct the viewer’s eye. To establish direct personal contact with the viewer, the full face view is the best. The downside is that it requires symmetry of features that are difficult to find. The ¾ view tends to be the most universally pleasing pose. It will lengthen and narrow the face while it still has enough of a view of the face to impart emotion and eye contact.

Photographing The Face Moveable Parts The face has many parts that can be moved - which help to express or project emotions that the camera can record. They are - of course - the eyebrows, the eyelids, the iris/pupils of the eyes, and the mouth. The eyebrows can move either together or individually, depending on the emotion you want to display. The inner brows can be brought together and down to express anger, together and up to express sorrow, upward and apart for fear, and upward in the middle shows surprise. Of course these are just the obvious movements. There are many other emotions that can be shown with micro movements. Eyelids can also play a part in the expression of various emotions, but the biggest concern most photographers will have with eyelids is keeping them open and not squinting! The normal photographic view should be both eyelids open equally and slightly wider or exaggerated than usual.

The Pupil/Iris The pupil/iris can rotate around in a complete circle. How many of us have had a teenager show disdain by “rolling” their eyes? It happens so often it is a cliché! Be careful in ¾ and profile views to have the iris showing, or it will look like a blank eye socket and ruin the photo.

4 Ways To Avoid Squinting And Closed Eyes

While some people naturally squint their eyes closed when they smile, in portraits, we want to be able to see them. Squinting can be caused by smiling habits (which can be overcome with practice in front of a mirror). If they just can’t smile without squinting, take the shot without a smile! A portrait can be stunning without a smile! (Check out most of the model portraits - they are rarely showing a smile!) More often, squinting is caused by looking at bright lights, or in anticipation of a flash. Constant reminders to keep the eyes open - wide - can help, but here are four methods to eliminate squinting from your photos.

Shoot With The Light At The Subject’s Back Shoot with a back-lit or “halo” lighting pattern. This is also called a rim light because of the way it “rims” the body. Aside from being a particularly stunning light pattern, it automatically eliminates one of the biggest problems we have as photographers - squinting and closed eyes! With the light coming from the rear, the face is in shadow. With no direct light, there is no need for the model to squint.

What if we want a more conventional lighting pattern and want to shoot with the light coming from the front or coming from the side? Here are a couple tips to help avoid the squinting problem...

Shoot Later In The Day We know that the light from the sun is more beautiful the closer it gets to sundown. The harsh white of midday turns into a nice golden glow. But it gets even better! It is not only PRETTIER to look at; it is EASIER to look at too! So the first step in getting rid of squinting is to shoot closer to sundown.

1 - 2 - 3! For some subjects, it is almost impossible for them to look towards the sun or a bright light. They have overly sensitive eyes and will almost always be squinting. I don’t know why, but for some reason people with lighter colored eyes - blue eyes, green eyes - seem to be more sensitive to light. Here is a tip that can help. This should only be used in cases where nothing else is working - it is difficult for the subject to pull this off and look natural, but it is better than squinting. With a bit of rehearsal, they CAN pull this off and you’d never know by looking at the finished photos. As photographers we are constantly counting to three and shooting. This is generally done to capture a smile, but the flip side of it is that it warns the subject that we are about to shoot. They often squint or close their eyes in anticipation. Good news! Counting to three can also be done to avoid squinting! Have your subject posed the way you want them and then have them close their eyes. You count to three, and they open their eyes and smile. They only have to have their eyes open for a second or so and if they can do it while looking natural it can be the difference between a truly great shot and another one for the garbage! Opening the eyes and looking natural - while knowing the sun or a flash is going to get you - can take a bit of practice. Take the time to run through it a few times and not only will you get better shots, but they will pass on this tip and every photographer that ever shoots them in the future will benefit as well.

Bounce Or Diffuse Your Flash!

Some subjects aren’t particularly sensitive to the sun or a constant light, but they are sensitive to a flash! They will tend to squint in anticipation of the flash going off. Clearly, the obvious solution is not to use a flash! But, sometimes we need one. Here is an idea - don’t aim the flash at the subject. Bounce it off the ceiling or an adjacent wall. Yes, I know there’s no ceiling outside, but there are plenty of adjacent walls. (The side of a van or truck will do the job!) Just be careful not to use a colored wall because that will put a colored tint in your photo.

BTW - bouncing a flash is always the preferred method, not just with “squinters.” An unbounced flash tends to be very harsh! You could also diffuse the light - to cut down on squinters as well as the harshness. You could also employ an overhead reflector held in place by a “helper” to bounce the flash.

With a reflector you can bounce more ambient light into the subject and may not even need a flash. Or you can use it as your bounce “wall.”

The Mouth The mouth is as elastic as a rubber band and gives a thousand and one shapes. It can open or close; its’ corners can be drawn together or stretched apart. The ends can be lifted or dropped. The mouth is capable of minute and extreme alteration.

It is every bit as expressive as the eyes. To get the shape - and thereby the expression - you desire, certain words and sounds are great at shaping the mouth.

Notice how the mouth has to be parted wide in order to make the “Ah” sound! You can have your model actually say “Ah” or you could have them saying words that end in the “Ah” sound, like hurrah! The humming sound of “Mmmmmm” closes the lips, Ooooh puckers them up and “Eeee” spreads the corners. (This is where the dreaded “Cheese” word comes into play. - Please don’t ask your models to say “cheese!”) Professional models are constantly saying ooohs and ahhhs. It gives a very provocative shape to the mouth. A picture tells a story - or at least it should - make sure your models face is projecting the correct emotions. Unless they are trained actors, it is often difficult for a model to project emotions that the camera can see. They think they are, but their face hasn’t changed. Practice making exaggerated expressions and when the time comes, it will be easier. By the way - all of the tips you are reading apply no matter what subject you are shooting!

Emotions The big four emotions that you might be working with are: Happiness, anger, sorrow and fear. Learning what creates these expressions can help you direct your models appropriately. The most used is...

Happiness Leave the eyebrows in their natural position. Happiness is expressed with a smile and through the eyes. They have to sparkle! The feeling can extend from a comfortable glow to ecstatic.

Anger Pull the eyebrows together and downward. The eyes flare and the mouth can go from tight lipped to wide open depending on the level of anger being displayed. You can go from slight irritation through rage and all the way into fury.

Sorrow Draw the brows together and let the eyes fill with sympathy and a longing to be removed from the burden. They are generally downcast. Sorrow can range from disappointment all the way through an utter tragedy.

Fear Lift and separate the eyebrows. The eyes reflect disbelief in what they are seeing. The many degrees of fear can extend all the way from worry to terror.

Here’s a few more…What do YOU see?

Lighting The Portrait! There are six basic facial lighting patterns you need to be concerned with learning: the “broad light”, the “short light”, the “split light”, the “loop light”, the “Rembrandt light” and the “butterfly light”. Once you have established your facial lighting pattern, you may want to include a “fill light”, and/or a “background light.” The background light is often called the separation light. You could also include a “hair light” - which can sometimes do double duty as a separation light, and accent lights. In the following sections we will discuss each of these and look into when and more importantly WHY we use each of them. We will also discuss the “catch light” and why it is so vital to a successful portrait. A catch light is simply the light you see in a person’s eyes. It brings the eyes to life! Without one, they are dead, lifeless, and uninteresting. Finally we will wrap up our discussion of light by showing you how to build a three to five light set - with one light! (Or even with no studio lights if you are using the sun.) The first two lighting patterns - the broad and narrow lights - are base patterns. By that I mean that you will use them as a base and layer the other lighting patterns on top of them. (Except for the “split light”. That stands alone and isn’t layered on top of the narrow or broad light patterns.)

The Shadow In Portrait Photography Flat lighting will ruin your portrait photography! You NEED shadows! Caution! An on-camera flash aimed at the subject will produce flat, shadowless lighting. Bounce the flash off the walls, ceilings, off a reflector, van or something else. Never aim it directly at your subject. It tends to be too harsh. Also, it can give you the dreaded “red eye” effect.

In animals, the red eye effect is often actually a blue or green.

While as photographers, we concentrate on the light, you need to add shadows to your portrait photography to create depth and realism. It is the 3D effect of shadows that makes our photography come to life and makes the model look like they are about to step out of the photo! If you use flat lighting - where the face is evenly lit and there are no shadows your portraits will look flat, lifeless and uninteresting. Plus it tends to make the subject’s face look wider and heavier - which is something worth avoiding. On the other hand, to be fair, flat lighting has it’s uses. It is a useful technique to tone down or eliminate acne or facial scars. Plus it decreases the intensity of wrinkles. Properly done, flat lighting can make a person look ten years younger. Why? It is the depth of the wrinkles that visually age us. As we get older, our wrinkles get deeper and deeper. How do we visually see this? The deeper the wrinkle, the darker the shadow in it.

If we lighten the shadow and fill it in with light, it looks less deep - therefore we look younger.

If you are dealing with wrinkles, it’s a good time to use a flat light. It’s better to tone them down in the camera rather than try to retouch them later. That is not necessarily true with facial blemishes. Acne and scars are among the few times that I recommend using Photoshop and “fixing” the photo after the fact. In other words, shoot using the best lighting pattern for your subject’s facial shape and remove the acne later!

The “Short Light” And The “Broad Light” Patterns The two main lighting patterns we should be using are “short lighting” and “broad lighting.” In a previous section, I said that you should generally have the subject’s head turned about three-quarters to the camera. If you are shooting straight on into the full face, it makes them look fatter. On the

other hand, more than a three-quarter turn is generally too much of a profile for most portraits. Here is an obvious, but key observation, turning the head also makes one side of the face closer to the camera than the other. To create shadows, your light has to be hitting your subject from the side generally in the vicinity of 45 degrees from the camera/subject axis. This is what will create one bright side of the face and one shadowed side. If the shadowed side is closest to the lens, it is called a short light. (Sometimes it’s called narrow light.)

If the shadowed side is furthest from the camera, it is called broad lighting.

Since the face is turned three-quarter to the side, creating short and broad lighting is simple, just move (or bounce) your light from one side to the other. By the way, don’t forget the sun. I’ve written this and the following sections using artificial light sources as my examples, but everything works with sunlight and reflectors too! You can’t move or adjust the positioning of the light, but you can move the model! The lighting patterns are not about the type or the source of the light, but about the angles from which it is hitting the subject. Try doing a portrait using a flashlight. It’s a fun experiment. Here’s one (admittedly not a head and shoulders shot), where I had her lying on a dark table in a dark room. I set my shutter to remain open and then I lit her by running a flashlight up and down her body.

Which lighting pattern should we use? How do we determine which lighting pattern to use? Remember that - visually - light areas in a photo tend to come forward and shadowed areas tend to recede. This is a key concept in making our models look like a million bucks! Short lighting - where the shadowed side of the face is closest to the camera - is great for making faces look longer and more slender.

The idea of what is beautiful changes in various countries, but for most of us, a long slender face is considered more attractive than a round, wider one. If your model’s face is wide, round, heavy - use short lighting to visually slim it down. On the other hand... While the world seems to be obsessed with fat and being overweight, there actually ARE thin people out there! Since they are already thin, short lighting could push it a bit too far. In this case, use broad lighting. It will - depending on the depth of shadow, angles and so on - visually widen the face and help to eliminate the too thin look.

Another good use for broad lighting is if they have a facial defect of some sort like one eye is bigger than the other, they have a scar, whatever - use a broad lighting pattern and put the defective area in the shadow! With a broad lighting pattern, the shadow will be to the rear and the added distance from the lens will further visually minimize un-photogenic areas. Plus, while minimizing the defect, it won’t look unnatural. By the way - the lighting patterns are named for what they visually do. Broad lighting makes the face appear broader. Narrow or short lighting makes the face look slimmer. Grab a flashlight - and a model. Have your model sitting in the dark and see what these patterns do to the face. Your portrait photography will dramatically improve, almost overnight!

The “Split Light”

This photo lighting pattern tends to go against most of our portrait photography posing “rules.” We began our lighting patterns discussion by talking about “broad lighting” and “short lighting.” While they technically are lighting patterns, we can think of them more as stylistic approaches to be used underneath our additional patterns.

In other words, decide on whether you want a broad or short lighting “style”, then decide on the lighting pattern designed to make the face look its best. That said, let’s toss both of them (and one of our basic posing rules) out the window and talk about split lighting. As we’ve covered previously, when posing a person for portrait photography, you don’t usually want their face to be straight on to the camera. It tends to make it look wider and fatter. In most cases, the ideal is to have the face turned about three-quarters to the side. Note: I said in most cases. Sometimes you will want to break this rule and have the subject looking directly into the camera which - makes both sides of the face equidistant to the lens! There is no side closer or further away - which is what defines short and broad lighting! Done well, having the face straight on to the camera can be a very dramatic pose and in some cases it is the best option. We then have two choices, we can leave the face evenly lit and not worry about it being visually widened…

Or we can use “split light” to put one side of the face in shadow to visually eliminate the widening and fattening effect. To the viewer, a shadow visually recedes in the portrait while highlights come forward. Even though both sides are equidistant away, it appears that the brighter side is closer. So it actually does add a bit of 3D depth.

Split lighting is a very easy lighting pattern to do. To create this lighting pattern, just have the light source at 90 degrees to the side of the subject. This will light the side of the face closest to the light and put the other side in shadow. Ideally, when seen from the camera, the face should be “split” exactly in half. Caution, one of the most vital elements in any portrait photo, whether it is human, animal, reptile, bird or WHATEVER, you need a catch light in BOTH eyes!

As defined earlier, a catch light is the light we see in the subject’s eyes.

In split light, obviously you are going to get a catch light on the brighter side, but if the light is positioned incorrectly you will not get a catch light on the shadowed side. You must have one - period. Eyes without a catch light appear dead and lifeless.

The ideal split light pattern has half of the face in highlight - half in shadow - and both eyes have a catch light. Set the light at ninety degrees to the subject to get the split (in a few instances depending on the shape of the model’s head, you may need to move the light slightly behind the subject to get the half and half split), if there is a catch light in both eyes - fine. If not, inch the light forward until there is! From time to time, the shape of a subject’s face will not allow an exact split with a catch light in both eyes. In this case find another lighting pattern, don’t skip the catch light. While using a “split light” portrait photography lighting pattern goes against most posing rules, there are times when it is the perfect choice. Grab your camera and practice this photo lighting pattern!

The “Loop Lighting” Pattern We began our study of lighting patterns for portrait photography with broad lighting, short lighting and split lighting. Now let’s move into “loop lighting!” In portrait photography, this one tends to be one of the most popular. It is easy to do and is flattering to most of our subject’s facial types. Remember that it is shadow that defines form in a photograph. This is such a key

concept, we even name all of the various lighting patterns by the shadows they create! While we always have to think about the light in photography - never forget the shadows! In a “loop lighting” pattern, we adjust our light so that the shadow of the nose forms a little “loop” on - the subject’s cheek, traveling down as far as the corner of the subject’s mouth.

In our previous studies of lighting patterns, we’ve been discussing the lights and shadows as if the light source was at the same level as the face. (The eyes to be more specific.) This creates a shadow with no upward or downward slope. In loop lighting, we want a slightly downward angled shadow (not too much) so we raise the light slightly above eye level. We want the end of the nose to cast a rounded - looped - shadow down from the nose to around the corner of the mouth. Or even a bit shorter.

The shadow goes off to the side; it is not directly under the nose. The area between the upper lip and the nose (the philtrum) remains unshadowed. Of course, shadows are cast directly opposite to the light, so to get a shadow going to the side and down, we need a light positioned on the opposite side and up. Start with positioning the light (or the sun, or a reflector) off to the side at approximately 45 degrees from the camera/subject axis. Then tweak and adjust from there. Depending on the subject’s face, the best angle may be a bit more or less than 45 degrees. Pose your model - set your light a bit above eye level, move it to about 45 degrees from the camera and see where the shadow from the nose is! If needed, move the light up and down and side to side until you get the desired shadow shape. Depending on the shape of your model’s face - and nose - this adjustment could go from 45 degrees to as little as 30 degrees. Or in some cases it could even go a bit past 45 degrees. Keep in mind that you want to keep this shadow small. The light should travel down the nose (with the opposing shadow between the nose and cheek) and continue from the bottom of the nose creating a loop shaped shadow running towards the corner of the mouth.

This lighting pattern is good for people with average, oval shaped faces. Because of the downward sloping angle of the “loop” it will visually lengthen the face. And, to a lesser extent can give the appearance of slightly higher cheekbones. Grab a flashlight and your favorite subject. Have them sitting on a chair and start experimenting with light and shadow. Figure out how they have to angle their face for short and broad lighting... Determine where the light has to be for split lighting, and then adjust it to create loop lighting. Which do you think is better for their face? Why? The concepts of “loop lighting” (and the other lighting patterns) may seem so basic and easy to understand that you will most likely want to skip the photo exercise, but don’t. Get comfortable with not only understanding these portrait photography photo tips, but actually doing them! That’s when the learning starts!

The “Rembrandt Light” “Rembrandt Lighting” is a great lighting pattern to use if you are going for a dramatic mood in your portrait. Not every face is ideal for Rembrandt lighting but it is a powerful addition to your portrait photography lighting arsenal! First, what is “Rembrandt Lighting”? Rembrandt lighting is a portrait lighting pattern that shows one side of the face in highlight and the other in shadow - but on the shadowed side, the cheek has a triangle of light. It is a continuation of the “loop light” the loop actually joins the shadow created by the cheek. It is called “Rembrandt lighting” because the Dutch artist Rembrandt frequently used it in his portraits. By the way... These photo tips are about ART, not just photography. They work for painters too! Art is art, it doesn’t matter what format it is in.

Notice the triangle of light on his far cheek? That is the defining characteristic of this lighting pattern.

Many budding photographers shy away from using these advanced lighting techniques because they don’t have any studio lights - so they think they can’t do them! Let this be a motivator for you. Rembrandt didn’t have studio lights either! (He didn’t even have electricity.) This - and all of the other lighting patterns - can be created with any light source, not just studio lights. Windows, the sun, reflectors - it just doesn’t matter. It’s the shape of the shadows that matter, not the source of the light creating them. While the portrait shows the pattern being used with a broad lighting pattern. It

can also be used on top of a short lighting pattern.

Remember, broad lighting is when the side of the face furthest from the camera is in shadow. Short lighting is when the side of the face closest to the camera is in shadow. Since shadow areas tend to visually recede, broad lighting makes the face look wider - more broad. That’s where the pattern’s name came from! Since most of us want to look thinner, you will most likely be using the Rembrandt lighting pattern with a short light base in most of your portrait photography. But, not always, so learn and practice creating it both ways.

How to create the Rembrandt lighting pattern? It is easy. Position your subject so the light source is to the side and higher than their head. Then have them turn slightly away from the light source. (Or move the light source if it is mobile.) One problem you may encounter is that if you are using light from a window or a large reflector, some of the light may be coming from too low of an angle and mess up your pattern. Just cover up the bottom part of the light source and block off the extraneous light. Problem solved. In the section onloop lighting, we discussed not letting the shadow from the nose touch the shadow on the cheek. In Rembrandt lighting they do intersect. That is what creates the triangle. Caution: Be sure that the shadowed eye has a catch light or it will look dead, dull, lifeless and any other nasty name you can think of.

Some subjects will have facial and/or nose shapes that don’t easily lend themselves to this pattern. In this case - make sure you are doing it right, and if it isn’t working - do something else. Another lighting pattern will be more suited to their face. The Rembrandt lighting pattern is a good one for adding drama to your portrait photography. It is also one of the classic photo lighting patterns and every photographer should be comfortable in using it.

The “Butterfly Light” Pattern We’ve been discussing photo lighting patterns where we place the light source to the side of the subject - split lighting, loop lighting and Rembrandt lighting - and create shadows that go off to the side. Continuing with our series of portrait photography lighting patterns, today’s photo tip discusses “Butterfly Lighting”!

See the “butterfly” shaped shadow under her nose? Let’s take a step back for a moment...

Keeping in mind that it’s shadows that create 3D depth and form in our photos, these lighting patterns are good ones to make our subjects come to life and “POP”. But, the flip side of shadows showing form is that they sometimes show things we may not want shown! Let’s quickly revisit what we’ve learned about age, shadows and wrinkles… For example, what if we are doing a portrait photograph of an elderly lady? I’m not talking about some moody character study; I’m talking about a nice photo of grandma. Everyone over a certain age wants to look younger. As an old dude myself, I can tell you that my outward appearance has absolutely no relationship with the way I feel inside and the way I wish I looked! In other words, I’m a 23 year old trapped in a 69 year old body. But, what makes us look older? It’s sagging skin and wrinkles that visually age us. The older we get the more - and deeper - wrinkles we get. If we could tone down the wrinkles, we would visually appear much younger. By the way, never COMPLETELY get rid of them, it looks fake and will make the portrait worse. Since it is the shadows that show form, it is the shadows that visually create wrinkles. The darker the shadow - the deeper the wrinkle - and vice versa. So, to visually eliminate or tone down wrinkles, all we need to do is lighten the shadows that visually created them. Obviously the way to do that is by shining a light into the wrinkles. To do that, means we have to have the light coming from straight in front of the subject - at the camera angle. A ring flash (a ring light is an on-camera flash, but completely circles the lens) can work.

In fact, we most often see ring lights used in modeling shots where they need an absolutely flawless skin. This is the ideal light for removing any sort of blemish or wrinkle, but it is a very flat light and really isn’t that good for portrait photography. It leaves an odd looking, unappealing catch light in the eyes too! (Photo by Howie Le from San Jose, USA)

Slightly better is the on-camera flash that is normally attached to the top of the camera. But we still have a flat light - and with both ring and regular on camera flashes we have problems with red eye. So, we take the light off the camera and - staying at the camera’s position, we raise it up. It’s above our head and we will actually be shooting from under the light. This creates the “Butterfly Lighting” pattern because it casts a small butterfly shaped shadow under the nose. It can be tiny and almost unnoticeable, or slightly larger - depending on how high you position the light. But, it is enough to add

some depth and life to the photo.

The butterfly lighting pattern fills in and lightens a lot of the shadows in the wrinkles - but not so much that it looks phony - and it will create a shadowed area under the chin too! This visually gets rid of that turkey neck wattle we old people get! True, this can be done in Photoshop - if you want to spend hour after hour retouching. Or you could spend 5 minutes setting up a butterfly lighting pattern. Your choice! The butterfly lighting pattern isn’t just for older people or to disguise wrinkles, etc. It is also great for elongating the face and - by casting shadows under the cheeks, it makes the cheekbones visually higher and more prominent. Notice in the samples how the neck is in shadow. That is how it hides the turkey neck “wattle.”

Grab your favorite model and a flashlight. Get out there today and experiment with this photo tip. Learn how to create a butterfly lighting pattern in your portrait photography! Your wrinkly older subjects (and acne ridden younger models) will thank you! PLUS your “regular” subjects will have the high cheekbones of a supermodel!

The “Fill Light”!

So far we have been discussing portrait photography lighting patterns. Short, broad, split, loop, Rembrandt and finally the butterfly lighting pattern. These are all named for the shadows they create and are the main light for our portrait. This section is about adding a second light. We will be controlling and modifying the lighting pattern’s shadows with a fill light. The fill light is in addition to the main light and it’s only purpose is to modify the main light’s shadows. It “fills” them in to a greater or lesser extent. Each of our patterns has their good and bad points and will be perfect for some faces and terrible for others. If you haven’t done any experimenting to master them, I suggest you make that your weekend project! These patterns are essential building blocks to mastering portrait photography. While it doesn’t matter what sort of light we use, it could be a studio flash, the sun, a window, a reflector even nothing more than a flashlight - it is important to have shadows to add depth and life to our portrait photography. But, when we look at portraits done by professional photographers, we note that they almost always have more than one light source. Typically they have three and as many as five or six!

Why? And how do we know when more lights are needed and where to put them? Again, it all goes back to the shadows!

Suppose you are using a short lighting pattern to help visually narrow the subject’s face. This works because - visually - shadows tend to recede and lit areas come forward. Since the shadow is closest to the camera, it makes the face look thinner. But, the color and depth of a shadow can impart emotions and feelings into a portrait that we don’t want! If we are using one light, we will have a sharp line dividing the highlight and shadow areas and we lose all the detail in the shadow area. The shadowed area can be very dark - which if we want a lot of drama and emotion in our portrait, that’s a good thing...

but what if we don’t want all the drama? Obviously, we need to lighten the shadow, while still maintaining our slimming light pattern.

To do this we add a second light, the “fill light”. It’s named for the fact that this light fills in the shadows! With a fill light, we can now have total control over the shadows! We can turn it off and have totally black shadows or we can turn it up and have the shadows virtually disappear - and anything in between! Note: if we have the same amount of light intensity on the fill light as the main light, the shadows will be gone. If we have MORE light on the fill light, it will cast a shadow on the (previously) lit side. If it does this, it becomes the main light and the other one is the fill light. In other words the fill light is always of equal or lesser intensity than the main light. In most cases, the fill light is positioned at and above the camera. It is (generally aimed straight into the subject. If it is not positioned at the camera, it is directly across from the main light (on the other side of the model). To get an understanding of the fill light and what it does, look through your favorite magazines and first try to determine the lighting pattern, then where the main light was positioned and whether or not they used a fill light. If they did use one, why? If not - why not?

The “Lighting Ratios” In portrait photography, the depth of the shadow is as important as the quality of the light and will make a huge impact on your viewer’s perceptions. Here is where we can start to add a bit of mood and drama to our portraits. We create the shadow with the main light. We lighten it with the fill light. One of our artistic decisions is how light or how dark do we want the shadow to be? This question involves lighting ratios. Unfortunately, I’ve got some bad news. There’s going to be (gulp!) some math involved! But don’t worry, it’s pretty easy. On one end of the spectrum, if there isn’t any shadow at all - it is very flat light and we lose most or all of our sense of depth and shape. Remember, it’s the shadows that define form. No shadows would be a lighting ratio of 1:1. The light

equals the shadow.

At the other extreme, if there is a shadow that is totally black, we lose all visible detail in the shadowed area. It is just one massive black area. This is a lighting ratio at or exceeding about 8:1.

We will generally be working somewhere in between these two extremes. There really isn’t anything wrong with any particular light to shadow ratio. They

all have their uses. A small ratio can help disguise wrinkles and acne - or just take the viewer’s attention off a model’s face and push it to the clothing. A large ratio can add drama and mystery to a photo. The important thing is to recognize that lighting ratios are important to the viewer’s experience and to consciously make the decision of what ratio to use. PLEASE! Make the decision! Don’t let your camera or the conditions decide for you! Here is how to calculate the ratio... As we’ve been discussing, in our lighting set up the main light establishes the lighting pattern we want - short, broad, flat, split, loop, Rembrandt or butterfly. The lighting pattern also determines the shape of the shadow. Our second light, the fill light - determines the depth of the shadow. Otherwise known as the lighting ratio. By the way, keep in mind that when I say “light”, the source could be anything. It could be an on-camera flash, off-camera flash, studio light, reflector, window, candle - anything! To determine the lighting ratio, all you have to do is first turn off or block the fill light and do a meter reading of the main light - all by itself. This can be an in camera meter or a handheld one. The key point is that you only measure the light from the main light. Next, turn off or block the main light and meter the fill light. Clearly, if the fill light is a reflector of some sort, you cannot turn off the main light or you will have nothing! When I say to block a light, I mean to block it from the meter. You want to be sure that whatever light you are measuring is the only one affecting the reading. The difference between the two is the lighting ratio! If you have a 1:1 ratio it means that the key light and the fill light are of the same light intensity. An 8:1 ratio means that the key light is 8 times brighter. Now for the - easy - math. Calculating the various exposure differences involves a factor of two. This goes back to the days of film.

A film (or ISO) speed of 200 is twice as fast as a film speed of 100. In other words 100 speed film requires one “stop” (twice as much) more light for exposure. It doubled the exposure value. An ISO of 400 (200 doubled) is twice as fast as 200, and so on. 400 is two “stops” more than 100. (100 - 200 - 400) A lighting ratio of 1:1 is the same. 2:1 doubles the light and is one stop difference. 4:1 is double 2:1 and requires yet another stop. 8:1 is 4 stops difference from 1:1. So to calculate the exposure differences, just multiply or divide by 2! A 5:1 ratio is 2 1/2 stops more than 1:1. See? It’s easy as pie. (The kind you eat, not the mathematical pi which isn’t easy at all!) This portrait photography tip is designed to get you thinking about the differences between light and shadow (lighting ratios) and how they affect the viewer. While it seems to be a simple concept, it is really quite advanced. Please practice! Be careful that your fill light does not create its own shadows! If you start getting shadows going both ways, it will ruin your portraits. By choosing our lighting ratio - we’re starting to take control of our portrait photography by deciding on what sort of mood we want to impart to the photo. We are now becoming artists, not snap shooters. This can’t happen with the camera on automatic! Now, let’s move into the third light in our setup…

The “Background Light” In this section, we will cover the “background light” - also known as a “separation light”. Deciding on the lighting pattern we want will determine where we place our main (key) light. Or where we place our subject in relation to a fixed light - like the sun. Then our second light, the fill light is how we determine the depth of the shadows we created with our key light. This is where we start to insert our creativity into a portrait.

In most portrait photography, we use a three light setup. We’ve discussed the first two, now for the third light - the “background/separation light”. The background light is designed to light and separate the subject from the background.

Not using the separation light is a common mistake that I see everywhere. Suppose you have a subject with dark hair and you are using a dark background. No matter how perfectly you illuminate the face with your main and fill, you are going to visually lose the top and sides of the head.

In this photo, there actually was a separation light, but it was aimed at the head and shoulders from behind. This would have worked better if it had been moved a bit to separate the entire head, not just one side. Put the subject in dark clothing and you end up with nothing but a floating face! If

you are going for a spooky horror film effect, that may be perfect. If you want good portrait photography, you need to separate your subject from the background. There are a few ways to do this. The obvious way is to use a lighter background if the subject has dark hair or is wearing dark clothing. In this instance, a background light may not be needed.

If you are using a separation light, it needs to be behind the subject, but there are two basic ways to position it. You can position it to strike the background (most common). This creates that lighter circle you frequently see on the backdrop in portraits and effectively changes the dark background to a brighter one and this “separates” the subject.

The below photo looks like it was shot with window light - it wasn’t. It is a studio

shot that looks like window light. And a pretty effective way of separating the model from the background.

By adding colored gels, you can actually make the background appear to be any color you want. Another placement option is to have the light aimed not at the background, but at the subject. Doing it like this will put a rim of light all the way around the subject. The background is still dark and the subject is still dark, but the rim of light separates them.

This is a bit harder to get right, but can be a very effective and dramatic lighting technique. You now know as much about portrait photo lighting as most professionals. Keep reading and you will soon surpass them! Check out any portrait photography you can find and notice how the “background/separation light” separates the subject from the backdrop. Try to find examples of both placements and even a sample of when a third light wasn’t used but should have been (they abound - even among professional portraits).

The “Hair Light” This portrait photography lighting section begins our discussion of specialty lights... specifically, the hair light. We will explore what it is, how to use it and some precautions. The above photo of a separation light could also be considered a hair light So far, in our study of portrait photography lighting, we’ve learned that the majority of the time we will use a three light setup - the main light, the fill light and the separation light. This will do for the vast majority of our portraits. In fact, many professional photographers will go an entire career and never use more than the basic three.

But, at times there is a need for additional lighting. That said... Caution: it is easy to get into the more is better mindset. Fight to avoid it! Just because you HAVE more lights, doesn’t mean you should use them! Every light you add to the mix exponentially adds to the possibility of messing up your portrait. But, on the other hand, properly used, specialty lights can add a lot! Our first specialty light - and the most commonly used - is the hair light. The hair light is just what it says it is - it’s a light that is used to light the hair. The hair light is positioned above and behind the subject. It can either be off to the side or directly behind your model, depending on your creative vision. As it shines down, it will create light on both the hair and generally on the upper shoulders - so this one is frequently used as a separation light, because it does actually separate the subject from the backdrop. Often, photographers will use a hair light to do double duty, particularly in a situation where a model has dark hair and is in front of a dark backdrop. There are a few cautions you need to take when using a hair light. First - the exposure value. This is where the vast majority of photographers mess up on the hair light. They make it too bright. This is particularly a problem with blondes! A hair light is meant to light up the hair, not blow it out! If your light is too bright, you just end up with a massive highlight blob with no individual hair detail. That’s not what you want. What you want is to be able to see the hair - not just a blob of light.

Set your light to be about the same exposure value as - or a bit less than the key light. Various hair colors absorb more or less light, so you can’t just use the same settings for everyone. You have to adjust. The following photo is OK, but the hair light is just a tad bit too bright.

It’s these little tweaks that will make all the difference. And it’s where shooting digital photography really shines! All you have to do is take a quick shot, review it and keep adjusting the lights until you get what you want. Back in the olden days of film, we had to get everything set up and then take a shot with Polaroid film to see if all the lights were correct. If we didn’t have a Polaroid camera (or a Polaroid film back for our camera), we just set everything up - and prayed.

Second - Our next potential problem with the hair light is that, since it is behind and above the subject, the light is pointed at the camera. The potential exists that stray light will make it to the camera and cause lens flare. Lens flare will ruin the shot! Be sure to watch for it. To avoid the problem, just tape a piece of cardboard over the front edge of the light to block any extraneous light. You want to focus all the light onto the subject. To block the light, professionals often use a “snoot” or “barn doors” on the light. These are just fancy photo gadgets that do the same thing as the cardboard.

I recommend you not buy them until you have a distinct need. The cardboard is cheaper and can do the job. Consider using a “hair light” in your portrait photography. It can easily set you apart from the run of the mill photographers in your area and possibly start bringing in the photo contest prizes!

The “Accent Light” So far, we’ve covered how and when to use 4 different lights. The basic three light set and the first specialty light - the “hair light”. This section will discuss the “accent light”. While I’m referring to it as an “accent light,” In portrait photography, we most often use it to put a catch light in the eyes - so you will often hear it referred to as an “eye light.” At times, it is also called a “kick light”. You will use kick lights to add a splash of extra light here and there in advertising - to accent a watch for example - or in still life photos. In portrait photography we rarely need them for anything other than as a catch light. By the way - you are not limited to just one! You could have an accent light for the eyes and others accenting anything you want! If for some unknown reason you want to accent these things, you could have an accent for her jewelry, her finger nails or even a certain point in the backdrop. Anywhere you want to drive the viewer’s eye - and attention. It’s like a mini spotlight. So while I say there are 5 types of lights, I’m referring to categories, not the number being used. Your set could literally have dozens of accent lights. (Technically, the hair light is an accent light- but we use it so often that it deserves its own category.) Keep in mind that the basic three light set will handle most of your needs. You should only add additional accent lights if you really need them. Every time you add an extra light, you increase the technical difficulty and the chances that it will mess up your photo. Like I said before, just because you have extra lights, doesn’t mean you need to add them. Why do we need an extra “eye light?” Sometimes you will have a lighting pattern that makes it difficult to put a catch light in both eyes. An example of this would be the split lighting pattern.

One side of the face is bright, and the other side is in shadow. If we want a deep shadow, we may opt not to use a fill flash, so there is no catch light hitting the shadowed eye! Or, you may have a subject with a large nose that blocks the light - or more often exceptionally deep set eyes that don’t let in a catch light. Catch lights are VITAL! You MUST have them! Without a catch light - in both eyes - the eyes look dead and lifeless and your viewers (and subjects) will NOT like the portrait. So, we add an “eye light.” BTW - pet portraits need a catch light too!

This is nothing more than a little light that is aimed at the eyes - or whatever you are trying to accent - and is blocked as much as possible from hitting anything else. Here is where using a snoot will come in handy. A snoot is a photo gadget that you slip over a light. It looks like a cone and it narrows the beam of light so it only hits whatever area you are trying to accent. In the case of the eye light, you would focus the beam on the face - in the area of the eyes. Caution: it is virtually impossible to have an eye light that is ONLY lighting the eyes. It will illuminate at least some of the face and in effect could increase the exposure value. Be careful that you don’t set it to be too bright!

Another problem with setting it too bright is that it could introduce another set of shadows on the face. That is a no-no. The only shadows we want should be from the key light. The good news is that since the eyes are literally a mirrored surface, it doesn’t need much strength. It can be very weak and still do the job. Another caution is to try to only have one catch light in each eye. We are trying to make the eyes look bright, intelligent and natural - multiple catch lights don’t usually look terrible - but it’s better not to have them. The below photo shows two catch lights in her right eye. I should have removed one of them.

Set up your accent lights in such a way that there is only one catch light. If you can’t do this, you will need to go into Photoshop and remove the extras. (They should be round, too!) Practice adding accent lights - particularly eye lights. The results are worth it!

The “Three Light Set” Using One Light!

We are going to wrap up our discussion of lighting with a quick overview and an example of how to build a set - with no lights! Just because you don’t have any studio lights, doesn’t mean you can’t shoot quality images. Here is a quick overview. Most good portrait photography requires three lights. Light #1 - this is the main (key) light and is used to establish the lighting pattern and overall exposure settings. Light #2 - this one is the fill light and is used to fill in the shadows created by the main. This one should be set at the same or less intensity as the key light so that it doesn’t cast its own shadows. Light #3 - this one is the background (separation) light and is used to visually separate the subject from the backdrop. It is placed behind the subject and can be aimed either at the background or at the subject. When aimed at the backdrop, it creates a lighter area behind the subject so they don’t blend into the background. Adding colored gels can make the backdrop any color you desire.

When aimed at the subject it creates a “halo” or “rim” of light around them. It’s this rim of light that separates the subject from the background. The exposure value is generally a bit brighter than the main light. The vast majority of amateur photographers never attempt the three light setup and their portrait photographs suffer because of it. Give it a try! Once you are comfortable setting up and shooting with a three light set, you will never go back. By the way, if you have been avoiding the three light set because you don’t have three lights - that’s no excuse! Here is an example of how to make a three light set

using the sun! First we set our model so that the sun is at her back (out of view of the camera). This will create a rim of light around her and visually separate her from the background. This is light #3 (the separation light). Then we use a reflector placed in front and to the side of her. This will reflect the light from the sun back into her face and - depending on where we put it - will create whatever light pattern we want, establishing the main exposure settings. A reflector can be anything from a white sheet all the way up to a mirror. We can move the reflector closer or further away from our model to get the exposure we want. Ideally this is an exposure - of half a stop or so - less than the separation rim of light. This is our key light - light #1. Another reflector set at the correct angle and distance from the model will fill in the shadows and become our fill light - light #2. The above three light set is easy to create - costs next to nothing - and will give you professional quality portrait photography. Add in the fact that commercially made reflectors can fold up to a very small size and you can toss a few into the trunk of your car and you will always have them available! Your mission - should you decide to accept it - is to give it a try. Practice this until you are comfortable working with a three light set. THEN go out and buy whatever lighting equipment you want. Your experience will give you a better sense of what you need and it won’t end up in the closet where you store all your unused photo gadgets that you bought on impulse! You don’t need actual lights to create a three light portrait photography set! Reflectors and the sun will do the job very nicely!

Eliminate The Dreaded “Red Eye!”

This section is about spooky, creepy looking eyes. We all know about the “red eye” effect ruining our photos! But have you ever seen the “green eye” effect? (Sometimes it is blue.) Those of you that HAVE seen the green and blue eye effect know that we are referring to pet portraits. In animals, green and blue eyes are the same thing as red eye in humans!

You most likely already know what causes it, but for those who don’t - red eye is a result of your flash being too close to the lens. When the light source is close to the lens, like with an on-camera flash, when the flash is fired, the light goes from the flash, into the pupil of the subject’s eye and straight back out into the camera’s lens. Light bounces the same way a billiards ball does. It reflects out at the same angle it went in. If it hits the subject at a steep angle - like 45 degrees, etc., it will bounce off at 45 degrees. In other words, light hitting a model from one side will exit to the other side. With the on-camera flash, the light hits the model with little or no angle at all! So it comes straight back and into the lens.

What causes “red eye” is that the light from the flash goes into the eye and reflects off the back of the eyeball. The red you are seeing is the red of the blood vessels and inside surface of the eye. Green and blue eye is the same thing - only in animals. When you are shooting dogs and cats, you will frequently run into the problem. I realize that dogs and cats don’t have green and blue blood vessels. I’m not a Veterinarian so I can’t say exactly why the effect is green or blue and not red, but it is.

How to fix it? Change the angle of the light so it doesn’t bounce off the back of the eye and straight back into the lens! Move the flash off the camera and away from the lens - tilt the flash so it bounces off the wall or ceiling and onto the subject or get rid of the flash altogether and use another light source. That’s why you frequently see photographers with their flash unit mounted on one of those big stalks off to the side of the camera. They are just eliminating a few problems caused by flash - one of which is red eye.

Many cameras have a “red eye” setting. If you haven’t tried it, what it does is fire off a series of pulses of light prior to firing the main flash. The idea is that this will cause the pupil in the subject’s eye to constrict becoming smaller - so the light can’t easily get in and back out. One “red eye fix” that I do NOT recommend is using the red eye setting on your camera! It doesn’t work - and worse it makes the subject squint! If you are shooting an animal, it will freak them out and you can forget getting any good shots! You’ll be doing good to even find them after they take off. At the very best, you’ve lost the moment and your work will suffer! I hope this photo tip helps you understand how to eliminate red, green and blue eye! Both your human and pet portraits will benefit.

The “Photographic Ground Modification System” Do you consistently use a special “photographic ground modification system”?

It will help you with your individual outdoor portrait photography as well as family outdoor portrait photography! Ok, I had to end this lesson volume on a tongue in cheek, humorous note. There is a trend towards making everything sound as fancy and as complex as possible - a garbage man is called a “refuse removal engineer”, a home maker is a “domestic goddess” and so on. I developed the “special photographic ground modification system” as a tongue in cheek play on that trend. Why? Most people are NOT accustomed to getting their portraits done. Most often they are nervous and uptight. The ability to look comfortable in front of the camera is why models make the big bucks! Anything you can do to lighten mood is golden. When I introduce my special “photographic ground modification system” it never fails to get a laugh and the rest of the session goes just that much better. Anything you can do to make your subjects relax and have a good time is a vital weapon in your photo arsenal! What is a special “photographic ground modification system”? When you are posing people on the ground (and you should for at least a few shots) they will often balk at the idea because they don’t want to get their clothing dirty. The way to handle it is to always keep several large, black plastic garbage bags in your camera bag.

Tell them what pose you want and - before they bring it up - tell them you don’t want their clothing to get dirty so you’ve developed a special photographic ground modification system! The more you can build it up and make it sound super important (with your tone of voice) the better. Then when you pull out a couple common, every day garbage bags, everyone will start laughing and you are going to get both their cooperation and a series of really nice photos. Black ones are easiest to hide so I think they are the best. Just have them sitting or lying on the bags and be sure to tuck them in so that they don’t show in the photos. Their clothes are protected and they are having a good time. They will remember you for it! So, if you want better outdoor portrait photography, introduce a special “photographic ground modification system”! This photo tip is one that could propel you to local fame!

On the subject of learning more… The section after the last book in this series is a list of other training e-books by “On Target Training” (me), check them out! (TWO of them are FREE!)

Book 2 - Correcting Facial Flaws - And Other Photo Tips By Dan Eitreim

Introduction I have to commend you! When we are exposed to new ideas and concepts, most of us tend to resist. Let’s face it; it’s only human nature to stick with what is comfortable. But, as a reader of this training series, you have taken another step towards photo mastery. Now just make it a habit to actually APPLY all that you learn and you are golden! This “On Target Photo Training” lesson will mostly be concerned with minimizing facial flaws -in the camera - so that our subjects look their best and our portrait photography is top notch. The goal here is to do our corrective work in the camera, not in Photoshop. In my opinion, one of the biggest drawbacks to the digital revolution is that photographers don’t have to pay anything for film, developing and printing. Back in the day (when film was king) my rule of thumb was that it would cost between $1.50 - $2.00 every time I clicked the shutter! That estimate included the cost of the film, processing, printing, gas for the trip to and from the lab to deliver the film, gas to pick it up, and on and on. With that sort of expense, we tried VERY HARD to make every shot count! Now, with digital - there is virtually no cost associated with shooting! Because of that, rather than study good photo techniques, photographers will literally shoot hundreds of photos, hoping one or two will be acceptable. Or, at least good enough to be “fixed” in Photoshop. It’s really sad. Our mastery of photo techniques is very rapidly dying off. Now, it is being replaced by hours and hours in front of our computers “fixing” our portraits in Photoshop. Question - did you buy your camera so that you could spend all your free time in front of your computer? Or did you want to get out there and create some ART! This volume will touch on using proper photo techniques to minimize or even eliminate many facial flaws - in the camera. Any Photoshop retouching will be relegated to where it belongs, making minor tweaks rather than major fixes. This e-book is not meant to be the end all for portrait technique or for fixing facial

flaws - but more to introduce the IDEA that you actually CAN get better results in the camera and to give you some pointers on what to do. A side benefit will be that this “On Target Photo Training” lesson will mostly be a quick review of past lessons and will be tying them all together - to show you how to get better results in your portrait sessions. I’m frequently asked why most of my course lessons concern portrait photography (by the way, there ARE volumes planned for landscape, wildlife, travel and stock photography). ed. note: ALL of the above volumes have now been written and are available on Amazon. I’m mostly accenting portrait photography for two reasons: First: With minimal training you can get in a car, travel to some scenic overlook and create great landscape photography - IF you are close enough to a scenic area, IF you have the right equipment (tripods, filters, lenses), IF the weather conditions are perfect, IF the time of day is right and so on. In other words, a lot of your contest winners will come about as a result of being in the right place at the right time.

If you doubt that, try winning a landscape photo contest with a shot that was done at noon on a cloudless day! Second: Portrait photography is one of the most exacting (and useful) areas of

photography. If you master portraits, most of that expertise will easily translate to other photo areas. Plus, if you should ever want to turn pro as a photographer, portraits are where the money is. If you have ever considered that option (turning pro), I suggest getting a copy of my e-book - “How To Pay The Rent With Your Camera - THIS MONTH!” It’s a three volume series and has been one of my best sellers for several years. It has literally turned dozens of amateurs into professional shooters. What’s even more important is that they are actually making substantial money! It’s all in the marketing - you don’t have to be another Ansel Adams, just competent. Check it out: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FN41F66 Third: There is no shortage of subject matter. You don’t have to get up before dawn and drive to some remote location, then lug your gear up some mountain trail. With portraits - everyone knows SOMEONE they can shoot a portrait of, even if it is only the family pet! AND doing a remarkable job has more to do with the photographer’s knowledge than with a fortunate confluence of time, weather, location, etc.

This is not to say landscape photos are not worth doing or don’t require skill! That is far from the truth! There is nothing more beautiful than a stunning landscape, I’m just saying that when you are LEARNING, you have more opportunities to practice and get really great photos with portraits.

This lesson is meant as an overview that will help all levels of photographer - from newcomers to budding professionals. It’s meant to help you put the “WOW” factor in your work and get portraits of your friends and relatives that will win photo contests. Note: I’m less concerned with showing lighting diagrams or before and after photos than I am with explaining the concepts and relying on you to actually grab your camera and experiment! This is meant as a learning tool not a lecture. By that I mean - I might say that if you shoot from a certain angle or if you light the face a certain way you can visually straighten a bent nose. In most cases, I’m not going to show you a terrible photo of a person with a bent nose, then another photo with it “fixed!” Instead, I’ll tell you what angle to position their face, and why. Or what lighting pattern to use, then why and how to set it up. I’ll count on you to find your own model with a bent nose! And then, to experiment with lighting and shadow so that you can SEE how it works.

You won’t truly learn these concepts until you put them into practice - yourself with your own camera! You can’t read the e-book and be a master - you have to actually DO IT! I found that when I was first learning, if there were before and after shots, I never actually got out there and practiced. I looked at the photos and it all made sense. I assumed I understood what to do. I didn’t. Then, I wound up doing tons of terrible shots and learning - on the job - so to speak. This is a mistake I want YOU to avoid. You have to actually do this stuff. There will be enough explanation so that even the most basic beginner can easily understand the various concepts and put them into play. Let’s get started…

Photographing The Portrait Headshot

This is where the “rubber meets the road’ so to speak. Whether it is a headshot or a full body photo, when we look at a portrait, our eyes immediately go to the face, head and (more specifically) the subject’s eyes. It’s our job to make our “model” look like you captured them on the best day they ever had! That’s true whether you are a professional photographer, thinking of going pro, or you just learned how to turn on your first camera. So far in previous volumes, we’ve talked about the overall pose of the body, the feet and legs, the arms and hands, and so on. They are all mainly just accents to the head, face and eyes.

Studying The Face The planes of the face change DRAMATICALLY with even the most minor of adjustments to lighting and positioning, so we have to pay very particular attention to the way we direct our models to pose. We can’t (or shouldn’t) just let it happen naturally. The major areas of concern when doing a portrait are; the basic position of the head, the way it is lit, magnifying the subject’s good points and minimizing facial flaws. Giving the photo a three dimensional feel so that is seems like our model could step off the page at any second is another goal we should strive toward. Too few of us are content with the 2 dimensional aspects of photography. Clearly, the main point in any portrait is the face and our first major axiom is that “We should work to eliminate any distractions that will pull the viewer’s eye off the face”. We want the viewer to look at the subject’s face and be so entranced, they can’t look away. The first thing we need to do is actually study the subject’s face.

This can be quite difficult - particularly for beginners. From childhood we have been chastened for staring at people, and now I’m telling you to do that very thing! It is ingrained in us to be uncomfortable. And it’s not just us! Our subjects will be uncomfortable with us studying their faces too! How many of us have seen someone being stared at and heard them sarcastically say something like “Take a picture, it will last longer!” People are uncomfortable with being scrutinized.

The only piece of advice I can give you is to just get over it. As a photographer it is your job to make your subject look better than they’ve ever looked before - and you need to study their face to do that. Personally, I’m fairy introverted and - for a very long time - had a really hard time with this! It helped when I finally realized that my models didn’t mind once they understood what was happening. I appreciate that most of the readers of this “On Target Photo Training” lesson are not professional photographers - and have no desire to ever become professionals. But, when you are shooting a photo, you owe it to your subjects to do the best job you possibly can! This applies whether you are a professional who has been shooting portraits for decades or a beginner with their first camera. Explain this to your model and they will not only understand, but they will cooperate. After all, they WANT to look good in the portrait. Here’s an interesting tidbit, the more demanding you become, the more professional you look and the more co-operation you will get. Good news - most photo tips are easy to incorporate into your arsenal of winning photography ideas, and this one - Studying Your Subject’s Face - is no exception!

Once we get past our own hang-ups it’s fairly easy to do, and your photography will improve immensely - almost overnight. Just do it, study your subjects face! I’d like to say it gets easier and less embarrassing with time, but for me it never has. Every time I do a portrait, I have to force myself to take the time necessary to study my model’s face and make sure that I am posing and lighting it to get the best results. Hopefully you will not have any similar hang-ups. Now, here is WHY you need to study the face…

The Better Side By “study your subject’s face” I mean, have them sit on a stool and then really LOOK at them. Have them turn their face to the right and to the left, find their facial flaws and decide which side is their “better” side. We’ve all heard someone jokingly say, “Be sure to get my good side!” There may only be a minor differences, but we all have a better and a worse side. (I’ve heard it was Charles Darwin who noticed the differences between the sides of the face and was the first one to write about faces being asymmetrical.) There actually has been quite a bit of study in this area and recently, a major change has come about… It used to be considered a rule of thumb that our better side is opposite our “handedness.” By that I mean that if you are right handed, your left side is the better side. If you are left handed, your right side is better. But that has been studied and disproved.

Here Is Some Science Researchers - after having done numerous studies - have come to the conclusion that the left side of the face tends to be the “best side” regardless of your handedness. In defense of our previous rule - that the best side is opposite our handedness - the majority of people are right handed so that would have made the left side the best. It’s no wonder we thought it had to do with the subject’s handedness!

Anyway, back to the science… Take two portraits, one showing the left side and another (of the same person) showing the right side, using the same basic pose, lighting and so on. Then, strip out the color and make both of them grayscale photos, so color has no influence. Show both versions to people, side by side and ask them to choose which image they like the best. In studies where the participants were asked to verbally choose which of two pictures of various celebrities they liked the best, the left side consistently won. The left side won both in studies where they verbally volunteered the information AND in studies where the participants’ eye pupil dilations were studied (this is an involuntary response). It was found their eyes dilated more (indicating a preference) when viewing portraits showing the left side. Some movie stars have been aware of this secret for a long time. Barbra Streisand is famous for only allowing herself to be photographed from the left side. Once when she was on the Rosie O’Donnell show she insisted that the entire set be flipped so that she sat with her left side facing the audience. In trying to determine why the left side tends to be our better side, scientists have posited that the left side of our face is controlled by the right cerebral hemisphere of our brain. The right side of our brain is what controls our emotions. In other words, our faces are better at displaying emotion on our left side than on our right and the photo’s viewers are responding to this increased emotional output. On the left side, smiles are just a little bit better, eyes are a tad more expressive, and so on. So, keep this in mind. When you are studying your subject’s face, chances are the left side will be the better side! Try to accent that side if you can.

Look For Flaws! But the left side is not always the best side! There ARE exceptions. The differences may be minor, but there are differences. Always! Don’t just automatically assume our “rule” to be true for all of your models. Aside from just the natural facial structure, some exceptions to the “left side is best” rule could be physical flaws. We all have them, some of us more than others. Look for flaws like acne or scarring (or those mysterious bumps we all have). Check for bent noses. Check for too large noses, or too small. Check the ears, the hair, the neck, look for one eye being noticeably larger than the other and so on, and so on.

Have you ever made it a point to do this? (Look for the flaws?) I don’t mean

studying your model’s face surreptitiously - I am asking if you have made it a point to out and out stare at them, move around, examine their face from all the various angles. Look for one eye being larger, look for bent noses, turn the face from side to side, tilt the head. Notice whether the light is casting shadows that magnifies or minimizes flaws! As I said before, this is a technique (studying the face) that is really easy to do, and you will be amazed at how much your portrait photography will improve - almost immediately! Once you’ve found the various areas to magnify and minimize, you can begin testing different lighting patterns and posing angles, all with the goal of minimizing flaws. You wouldn’t have even known to do that had you not studied the face. Once you start seeing the results in your finished portraits, you will be more than willing to look past the minor embarrassment for both you and the model.

Make Your Model Comfortable As a crucial part of the process of making our models look their best, we want to

make them comfortable. An uptight subject is not going to look their best in a portrait. Remember, studying the subject’s face is not only uncomfortable for us, but for our model too. Even before we start staring at them, most subjects are not comfortable in front of the camera! (That’s why models make the big bucks!) So, the technique of studying the face seems counter-intuitive. After all, your modeling subject is going to feel really uncomfortable being scrutinized in this way. Let’s face it; no one likes being studied for flaws! Plus there is a very good chance that no other photographer has EVER intensely studied their face, much less studied their faces while trying to pick out the flaws. BTW - this one tip is going to separate you from the crowd so fast it will make your head spin. Prepare them in advance by telling them what you are doing and that it is just so you can find all the best ways to photograph them and make them look like a million bucks! Put a good spin on it. Tell them you are looking for their best features, don’t say you are trying to find their flaws. Tell them that you want to magnify all their best points and you want to make this the best photo of them EVER!

They’ll intuitively know you are on their side. If you are sincerely trying to do the absolute best job possible, they will be co-operative and will be more comfortable when the shooting actually starts. When you direct them into certain poses, they’ll know there is a reason - it’s not just random. We can’t do the best portrait ever without “fixing” the various problem areas. And we can’t fix them if we don’t know what they are! Well, I’ve pretty much beaten that point to death, I hope you are getting how important this is.

Visually Minimize Flaws Once you have noted all the good and bad features (we all have them) you can employ photo techniques to magnify or minimize them. Got one side that is noticeably better than the other? Turn the head so that the “bad” side is further from the camera, toward the back. Or, put the lesser side in shadow. Is one eye - or one ear - larger than the other? All you have to do is turn the head so that the best one is showing. You can completely hide the offending one or put it in shadow to minimize it’s affect on the portrait. Crooked noses can be “straightened” by shooting from the side the nose curves toward. A too long nose can be fixed by shooting straight on - this will foreshorten it and minimize the size. A too small nose can be beefed up by adding some shadow and visually making it look bigger. A too prominent forehead can minimized with shadow or by slightly lowering the camera angle. Most wrinkles, scarring and acne can be handled by the way a portrait is lit. It’s the shadows they cast that make them look bad. So, just lighten or eliminate the shadows. You may not be able to completely remove their acne, but you can (by the way a portrait is lit) minimize it so that later retouching in Photoshop is a tweak to a successful photo. Not an attempt at salvaging something useable.

But you won’t know to employ these photo techniques until you study the subjects face. Enough said.

Positioning The Head And Shoulders Once you have decided which flaws to minimize and which good points to accent, your first considerations will be the positioning of the face, head and shoulders. The three most commonly used terms to describe the positioning of your model’s face are; full-face, profile and three-quarter headshot. The terms are pretty descriptive and easy to understand. Each has their uses…

Full Face Full Face - simply means a straight on - full view of the face. Sometimes you’ll hear this referred to as; front view and full front view.

Keep in mind that all of the head’s movements are considered from the angle of the camera. While the concept of what is beautiful changes from country to country and era to era, for the most part we now consider longer, thinner faces with high cheekbones to be the most beautiful.

If your model actually HAS a long thin face with high cheekbones, you are in good shape. She could probably get a job as a high fashion model. ********** Here is an interesting tidbit! Statistically speaking, a young girl has a better chance of becoming an astronaut than a nationally recognized model. Don’t lead a young lady to believe that simply letting you do her portrait will - all of a sudden - make her famous. There are two types of photographers out there that are rapidly ruining the reputations of us all - the ones that take advantage of young girls by doing fake modeling portfolios and the touchy feely photographers. (Frequently they are both!) Unless you REALLY do have contacts in the modeling industry, portfolios are

usually a scam. Stay away. AND there is never a reason to touch your model. Period. If you want to do a portrait of her because she is pretty say so, don’t try to con her into doing a “modeling portfolio”. ********** If their face is not long and thin - with high, razor sharp cheekbones - but is somewhat round and/or pudgy (most of them are), the full front view of the face with even proper lighting is not your friend. It tends to make the face look it’s widest and most round. You are better off selecting the profile or the three-quarter face pose.

Sometimes though, the full frontal face view works. It’s YOUR creative vision, these are just guidelines to best practices. On the other hand, there actually ARE people with faces that are thin! The widening effect of the full face view will benefit them!

In a book co-written by Steven King and Peter Straub there is a famous line that says, “A person can never be too thin or too rich!” Unfortunately, sometimes a person CAN be too thin (visually). Since it is our job to make them look as good as it is physically possible to make them look - we would photograph them with a full front view to add just a bit of visual weight. The head’s position isn’t our only recourse. We can add or take away visual weight by the way we light the portrait as well. We’ll cover that a bit later.

Chubby Cheeks And Kids Now for another exception - kids. With kids, we tend to like chubby cheeks. It makes children’s portraits adorable! (How many kids complain about Grandma pinching their cheeks?) So, the full frontal view - not minimizing the cheeks - is acceptable. Be careful though, eventually the kids grow up and pudgy cheeks are no longer an asset. Where you draw the line between an acceptable, youthful chubbiness - and an

older adolescent’s face being too wide - is up to your creative vision.

The above photo is more of a three-quarter pose than a full face pose, but it does show a rounder face that would NOT benefit from posing full face front.

The Profile We consider the profile to be the full side view of the face. It is sometimes called; side view, half view or 90 degree angle.

The profile pose is the least useful of the three head positions. But, at times it can be just the thing! If you have a subject that has a facial flaw of some sort, you can hide a lot of problems with a profile pose. Just pick the better of the two halves and feature that one while totally hiding the other. While it does work, this is not the only way to disguise facial issues - it can be done with lighting as well. I would suggest using the profile as a last resort, or when you have a specific reason to use it.

But it’s nice to know it is available. One use for a profile could be like in the above photo of the three dancers. I wanted a pose that would show the back of the costume and if she had turned her head much more to the front it would have looked odd and would also have introduced a lot of skin creases around the neck. In this case a profile pose worked very well. Plus, I literally took hundreds of pictures of each of these young ladies in various costumes - so this profile was not the only photo we did of her. She had hundreds of others showing her face and neither she nor her parents were concerned about not seeing her entire face in this particular photo. So a profile can be used as an option to be a bit unique, as well as hide facial flaws. One thing to be cautious of - if you are considering a profile pose, make sure your subject has a fairly normal or even a smallish nose. The nose is somewhat accented by this pose and If it is overly large, it can ruin the photo. You would be better off with a three-quarter pose and using your lighting to minimize any flaws. Or, you could use it in those rare instances when you WANT to accent the nose. Jimmy Durante, the old time comedian spanning from vaudeville in the 1920’s to television in the 1970’s - made an entire career out of his humongous “Schnozzola” and the profile pose would be (and was) perfect for him! (Actually, “The Schnozzola” was his nickname!)

Three Quarter Head This is when the head is turned about 45 degrees to the side. It is sometimes referred to as a 45 degree turn or ¾ face. In reality, the turn doesn’t have to be 45 degrees - three quarter head refers (to most of us) to any degree of turn between straight on and profile.

As mentioned, all of these head positions are in relation to the camera. Obviously, we could turn a three-quarter position into a full face or even a profile by telling the model to hold her position while we move our camera. But, generally, the camera remains stationary while we direct the model to shift positions. The three-quarter head is generally considered to be the most flattering view for most faces. Ideally, in the three-quarter view, you will want to show a little bit of skin between the far eye and the edge of the face. Plus, make sure that the nose does NOT break the plane of the face - it should be completely within the cheek line.

If you are tilting the head, the model’s hair will fall forward. Be sure that there are no gaps. The hair should be a solid block - if there are gaps, the eye is drawn to them and off of the face.

The photo below shows the sunlight going through a hole in her hair and hitting her neck. It is distracting and takes the eyes off her face.

Directing The Model To direct the model, we need to have names for all the various ways we will want him/her to adjust their head positions. The primary ways they can turn are horizontally, vertically and diagonally. So we’ll refer to these as horizontal turn (to the right or left), vertical lift or vertical drop and diagonal tilt (to the right or left). The terms are pretty much self explanatory but it would be worth the effort to take a second and show your model what they are - so that there is no confusion when you are shooting.

The Horizontal Turn Facing towards the camera, with a straight on - full face view, the head can turn horizontally either right or left all the way to the shoulder (full profile). That’s only half of it; the model can turn her body so that it is facing away from the camera. In that case, the full on view would be of the back of her head!

Once again the head can turn all the way from straight ahead (showing the back of the head) to the full profile position.

Using our three dancers, when directing the models, you could tell the one on the left side to turn her face horizontally to her right and tilt slightly to the left. The center girl would be told to turn her face horizontally to the right and vertically tilt it up. The bottom girl would be told to horizontally turn her face slightly to the left.

Vertical Lift Or Drop Vertical lift or drop is an upward or downward movement of the tip of the nose in relation to a perpendicular line drawn through the shoulder position. In the photo above, the young ladies on the right and left sides have no vertical lift or drop. The one in the middle has a pronounced upward vertical lift. In the below photo, the dancer is showing a vertical drop. See how the line through

the nose is going down in relation to the line going through the shoulders.

Diagonal Tilt Diagonal tilt is determined by drawing a straight line from the top of the head downward through the chin. If it is all straight, there is no diagonal tilt. If the chin is off to one side or the other, there IS a diagonal tilt…

No diagonal tilt

Diagonal tilt You will almost always want at least SOME diagonal tilt. A straight up and down face tends to be static.

Correcting Facial Flaws With Head Position! The way we position the head and face can dramatically change the way our model looks as well as insert some feeling into the shot. For example - the diagonal tilt adds a feeling of interest to the face and helps to engage the viewer. A vertical drop can minimize an unfortunate chin. A vertical lift can help disguise a large forehead or receding hairline. An oval face can be lengthened in three-quarter view and a long face can be made to look wider with a full face view and the chin lifted. The slightest movement in the position of the head can make a huge difference! A prominent chin or forehead can be minimized by tilting it away from the camera. A receding chin can be improved by extending it toward the camera. The profile is good for hiding structural faults, but it tends to lose impact when trying to show an expression. But it could be just the thing to impart mood, or direct the viewer’s eye. To establish direct personal contact with the viewer, the full face view tends to be the best. It allows for direct eye contact and gives a feeling of openness. The downside is that it requires a thin face and symmetry of features that are difficult to find. The ¾ view tends to be the most universally pleasing pose.

Parts Of The Face The face has many parts that can be moved - which helps to express or project emotions that the camera can record. They are - of course - the eyebrows, the eyelids, the pupils of the eyes, and the mouth. The eyebrows can both move together or individually depending on the emotion you want to display. The inner brows can be brought together and down to express anger, together and up to express sorrow, upward and apart for fear, and upward in the middle shows

surprise. Of course these are just the obvious movements. There are many other emotions that can be shown with micro movements. Other than a pleasant or happy look, for the most part we will not be too concerned with displaying emotion in our portraits, but watch out for conflicting signals. If the mouth is smiling, but the eyebrows look terrified, you are in trouble.

Eyes The eye can rotate around in a complete circle. How many of us have had a teenager show disdain by “rolling” their eyes? It happens so often it is a cliché! Be careful in ¾ and profile views to have some of the white of the eye showing, or it will look like a blank eye socket and ruin the photo. Eyes can also play a part in the expression of various emotions, but the biggest concern most photographers will have with eyes is keeping them open and not squinting! The normal photographic view should be both eyes open equally and slightly wider or more exaggerated than usual. The bane of photographers everywhere is closed and squinting eyes! Squinting and closed eyes can be caused by a number of issues. One of which is simply bad smiling habits (which can be overcome with practice in front of a mirror). Squinting can also be caused by looking at the sun or at bright lights. Or in anticipation of a flash.

Four Ways To Cure Squinting And Closed Eyes In Portraits!

Shoot With The Light At The Subject’s Back First: In a previous “On Target Photo Training” lesson I discussed shooting with the light at the subject’s back. This creates a “rim” lighting pattern. A rim light is also called an “edge” light or “halo” light. Aside from being a particularly stunning light pattern, the rim light automatically eliminates one of the biggest problems we have as photographers - squinting and closed eyes!

With the light coming from the rear, the face is in shadow. With no direct light hitting their eyes, there is no need for the model to squint!

But, what if we want a more conventional lighting pattern and want to shoot with the light coming from the front or coming from the side? Here are some more tips to help avoid the squinting problem.

Shoot Later In The Day Second: We know that the light from the sun is more beautiful the closer it gets to sundown. The harsh white of midday turns into a nice golden glow.

Good news, it is not only PRETTIER to look at, it is EASIER to look at too! So the second step in getting rid of squinting and closed eyes is to shoot closer to sundown.

1 - 2 - 3! Third: For some subjects, it is almost impossible for them to look towards the sun

or a bright light. They have overly sensitive eyes and will almost always be squinting and sometimes even tearing up! I don’t know why, but for some reason people with lighter colored eyes - blue eyes, green eyes - seem to be more sensitive to bright light. And because of that, they will be squinting in anticipation of a flash, not just during. I actually asked an optometrist why that is and he explained it to me. Unfortunately, his explanation was so far over my head that I was completely lost. Maybe YOUR optometrist can explain it to you in human language. I’ve had portrait subjects where I literally shot dozens of photos - and NONE of them showed their eyes as open! Until I discovered this… Here is a tip that can help. Note: this should only be used in cases where nothing else is working - it is sometimes difficult for your subject to pull this off and look natural, but it is better than squinting. As photographers, we are constantly counting to three and shooting. This is generally done to capture a smile, but it can also be done to avoid squinting. Have your subject posed the way you want them and then have them close their eyes.

You count to three, and they open their eyes and smile. They only have to have their eyes open for a second or so and if they can look natural it can be the difference between a truly great shot and another one for the garbage! Opening the eyes and looking natural - while knowing the sun or a flash is going to get to you - can take a bit of practice. Take the time to run through it a few

times and not only will you get better shots, but every photographer that ever shoots them in the future will benefit as well. With a bit of rehearsal, they CAN pull this off and you’d never know by looking at the finished photos.

Bounce Or Diffuse Your Flash!

Fourth: Some subjects aren’t particularly sensitive to the ambient light, but to a flash! They tend to squint in anticipation of the flash going off. Clearly, the obvious solution is not to use a flash! But, sometimes we need one, so here is an idea - don’t aim the flash at the subject. Bounce it off the ceiling or an adjacent wall. Yes, I know, if you are outside there’s no ceiling, but there are plenty of adjacent walls. (The side of a truck will do the job!) Just be careful not to use a colored wall because that will put a colored tint in your photo.

BTW - bouncing a flash is almost always the preferred method, not just with

“squinters.” Another idea is to use a reflector. That way you can reflect more light into the subject and may not need a flash. Or you can use it as your bounce “wall” if you decide to go the flash route.

Now, you can FINALLY eliminate closed and squinting eyes from your photos! Won’t it be nice to be able to “wow” all your relatives with some superior family portraits?

The Mouth The mouth is as elastic as a rubber band and gives a thousand and one shapes. It can open or close; its’ corners can be drawn together or stretched apart. The ends can be lifted or dropped. The mouth is capable of both minute and extreme alteration.

It is every bit as expressive as the eyes. To get the shape - and thereby the expression - you desire, certain words and sounds are great at shaping the mouth. Notice how the mouth has to open and the lips have to be parted in order to make the “Ah” sound! You can have your model actually say “Ah” or you could have them saying words that end in the “Ah” sound like, hurrah! The humming sound of “Mmmmmm” closes the lips, “Ooooh” puckers them up and “Eeee” spreads the corners. (This is where the dreaded “Cheese” word comes into play.) Most photos done for magazines, etc. (where the woman has to look sexy) will show her saying Ah or Ooooh. It positions the lips in a provocative way. Just be sure to have her avoid any voice inflections as she is saying her ooohs and ahs. You don’t want too much emphasis because that will show in her facial features where all we want is properly shaped lips.

Emotions A picture tells a story - or at least it should - make sure your model’s face is projecting the correct emotions. Unless they are trained actors, it is often difficult for a model to project emotions that the camera can see. They think they are, but their face hasn’t changed. Practice making exaggerated expressions and when the time comes, it will be easier. The big four emotions that you might be working with are: Happiness, anger, sorrow and fear. Learning what creates these expressions can help you direct your models appropriately.

Happiness Leave the eyebrows in their natural position. Happiness is expressed with a smile and through the eyes. They have to sparkle! The feeling can extend from a comfortable glow to ecstatic.

Anger Pull the eyebrows together and downward. The eyes flare and the mouth can go from tight lipped to wide open depending on the level of anger being displayed. You can go from slight irritation through rage and all the way into fury.

Sorrow Draw the brows together and upward (generally). Let the eyes fill with sympathy and longing to be removed from the burden. They are generally downcast. Sorrow can range from disappointment all the way through an utter tragedy.

Fear Lift and separate the eyebrows. The eyes reflect disbelief in what they are seeing. The many degrees of fear can extend all the way from worry to terror.

Here’s a few more…What emotions do YOU see?

Lighting Patterns To Minimize Flaws! There are two lighting patterns that will establish your base shadows and highlights that are commonly used in portrait photography. Then once the base is established, there are 4 other patterns that are layered on top of those two bases. All of them are basically designed for and used for two reasons… First: You need shadows in a portrait to make it appear 3D. Photographs are (of course) printed on a flat piece of paper and are two dimensional. We want our photos to appear as real and three dimensional as possible. We want it to look as if our model could step out of the photo at any given moment! It’s the shadows that do that. Second: We want to minimize any facial flaws and maximize the good points. The lighting patterns were designed to do that! My other portrait photography books go into great detail explaining these lighting patterns, this section will mostly just be a brief overview of what they are.

The 2 Base Lighting Patterns: As we mentioned in earlier sections, the most flattering view of the face is generally the three-quarters view, This is with the head turned ¾ to the side but with the nose not breaking the line of the cheek and with a bit of skin between the far eye and the far edge of the face. BTW - Be sure the hair is one solid block too! Holes in the hair can be very distracting and take the eye away from the face. Our two base lighting patterns are: the narrow light and the broad light patterns. How do we determine which one to use? And does it even matter? First, in positioning our model’s face, we want to be sure we have the best side as the closest side to the camera. Earlier we mentioned that the best side is generally the left side - but not always be sure to check. If your model has some facial flaws, you will want to disguise or at least minimize them either by turning the face enough so that they can’t be seen, or can be hidden

in shadow. Find the best side and have it closest to the camera. As you will recall, the initial reason for turning the face to the side is to make it look narrower. Long narrow faces are what most of the world currently considers beautiful. So we have visually narrowed the face by turning it to the side. Now we can further narrow it by the way it is lit.

Narrow Light Visually - in a photograph - shadows tend to recede and highlights tend to come forward. So if we light our models face so that the shadowed side is the closest to the camera and the lit side is furthest, it will look visually narrow. The lit side, while visually coming forward is further back and the shadowed side recedes. This is called the narrow or short lighting pattern. It’s named the narrow pattern because it makes the face look narrow!

Broad Light The broad light pattern is named because it makes the face look broader!

Sometimes this is beneficial - particularly if you have a person who already has a long narrow face. If you were to visually make it narrower, it would be too much. So the broad light pattern has the nearest side lit and the far side in shadow.

These are our two most used base patterns. Note that the shadow can be in various shades of darkness. Once you have established your base lighting pattern -broad light or short light - it is time to layer on your secondary lighting pattern. This is where you can visually minimize the facial flaws, while having your portrait come to life with the use of shadow.

4 Essential Lighting/Shadow Patterns There are 4 essential lighting patterns you should learn. They are the split light, the loop light, the butterfly light and the Rembrandt lighting pattern.

Split Light First let’s discuss the split light. This is one that isn’t generally used. It exactly cuts the face in half. Half in shadow and half lit. Overall, it is considered a masculine lighting pattern - but there are no hard and fast rules. This can be used to narrow the face a bit and disguise a flaw by hiding it in the

shadow. It is most often used as a technique to add drama to a photo. It’s not the most useful or flattering pattern and should only be used if you have a specific reason to do so.

The way to create the split light pattern is to have the light 90 degrees to the side of the subject. This will light one half the face and keep the other half in shadow. Remember, you don’t need a studio light setup to do this! Just position your subject so that whatever light source you are using (i.e. the sun) is to one side.

Loop Light Our next lighting pattern is the loop light. This is named because of the loop shaped shadow cast by the nose. You would create this lighting pattern by placing the light 30 to 45 degrees to the side of the camera. You have to have the shadow going down toward the corner of the mouth so be sure your light is above eye level. The ideal placement varies with each subject so put your light around 40 degrees to the side and raise it up and down until you get the shadow you want.

The loop shadow will be longer or shorter depending on how high you place the light - but you don’t want it to be too long. In loop lighting the shadow from the nose and the cheek do not touch. This pattern can be used to help visually lengthen a nose but mostly it is useful to visually lengthen the face. The downward shape of the shadow can also make the cheekbones look a little higher. One huge benefit - since it puts the neck in shadow, it disguises double chins and the turkey “wattle” we old timers tend to get.

The Butterfly Light The butterfly lighting pattern is named for the small butterfly shaped shadow under the nose. Where the loop shadow went off to the side, the butterfly shadow is directly under the nose.

The butterfly pattern is created by keeping the light at the same angle as the camera but raised up higher. The higher you go, the larger the butterfly shadow will be. This is useful to eliminate neck problems (double chins and wattles) like the loop light. Actually it is slightly better. But mostly we will use it for wrinkles and acne. When looking at people with wrinkles, it is the depth of the wrinkles that visually makes them look older or younger. (As we age, our wrinkles get deeper.) How do we visually determine how deep wrinkles are? By how dark the shadow is!

By having a light coming from directly in front - it fills in and lightens the shadows. Visually, this can take several years off your subject! But a light coming from the actual location of the camera (an on-camera flash) causes red eye and looks very harsh so we use a light source that is slightly higher to avoid these drawbacks. The same thing with scars and acne. It’s the shadows that determine how bad they are. By filling in the shadows, it lessens their visual impact.

The Rembrandt Light The Rembrandt lighting pattern is so named because the Dutch artist Rembrandt frequently used it in his paintings. In our discussion of the loop lighting pattern, we said that the shadow from the nose did NOT join with the shadow from the cheek. In Rembrandt lighting, we set it up basically the same way as loop lighting, but we make the shadows from the nose and cheek connect. This will create a little triangle of light on the shadowed cheek and whenever you see that, you know it’s the Rembrandt lighting pattern.

This pattern allows for more shadow and is useful to hide flaws in the same way as the previous patterns, but is also used to create and add a lot of drama to the portrait. Again, you don’t need studio lights to do this. A window light works just fine. Keep in mind that Rembrandt didn’t have an expensive studio lighting setup. He didn’t even have electricity! These lighting patterns are all created with what is called your “Main” or your “Key” light. As I’ve mentioned, you can use any light source - you don’t need studio lights. In fact, it would be worth your while to learn to create each of these patterns with sunlight and window light. Then when the time comes for you to get studio lighting, you will have a better feel for what you need and how to use it.

Additional Portrait Lights: The Fill Light The second light in your lighting arsenal is the fill light. This is a light - or a reflector of some sort - that is either at (and above) the camera position or to the side of the model directly opposite the main light. All this is for is to fill in some of the shadow so that the shadows aren’t too dark. Of course if you want totally black shadows you wouldn’t need a fill light. The strength of the fill light is the same as or less than the main light. (If it is

stronger, it then becomes the main light.) You can have the shadows be totally black or almost non existent, depending on your creative vision. Here is a loop pattern with the shadows almost completely filled in by the fill light…

Here is a loop pattern (that is almost a Rembrandt pattern) with no fill light at all…

The Separation Light The third light we use in our portrait lighting is called the separation light. It is used to separate the subject from the background. The separation light is behind the subject and can either be aimed AT the subject forming a rim of light around them - or it can be aimed at the backdrop to visually separate them from it. Here is a separation light used as a rim light…

Here is a separation light used as a backlight on the background material…

The main light, the fill light and the separation light are the three lights that almost every portrait calls for. You will want to practice and learn how to use them. The last light I want to mention is the “catch” light. This is a small amount of light “caught” in the subject’s eye. It will make the eyes sparkle and come to life. Without one, the eyes look dead and your portrait will fail. It will never be liked. It is vital to have a catch light! Generally it is provided by the main or fill light and you don’t need to worry too much about it, but if it isn’t, you need to either reposition your model, your lights or add an additional light just for that purpose. Ideally the catch light will be round and at the ten or two o’clock position. Plus there should only be one. Make sure you don’t have one from both the main and the fill light. Retouching the catch light is a good use for Photoshop.

Let’s Use What We’ve Learned! Ok, we’ve covered how to accent our model’s good points and minimize the flaws. Now, let’s get into the “And Other Photo Tips” section of this e-book. For the most part, I’m going to be talking about shooting children, but the same concepts apply to adults. I just focus on children because that is the most accessible model for most of us. In the various “On Target Photo Training” course lessons we’ve spent a great deal of time going over pretty much all the technical aspects of photography - such as the aperture, the shutter speed, ISO speeds and so on. We’ve also talked a great deal about light and the various ways it can be thought of and manipulated - such as with fingers, gobos, cookies, flags, soft boxes, diffusion screens, hot light, soft light and so on. We’ve spent a lot of time learning how to pose the feet, legs, hands, arms and heads, and everything in between - not to mention the overall body. Now let’s get into some various types of shooting we will encounter! We’ll start with children…

Children Whether it is at home with your own kids, doing a favor for a friend or relative, possibly even on assignment as a paid photographer, you WILL be shooting children! This can be an extremely lucrative area if you start shooting as a full time or part time professional. Thousands or possibly even tens of thousands of photographers have specialized in children’s photography and made very good livings indeed. Whether you ever want to shoot professionally or not, it is worth your while learning how to create stunning photos of kids. The portraits can range from naked babies, through to kids wearing everyday clothing all the way up to being dressed in their Sunday best.

The posing can run from sleeping to candid action shots, all the way through the formalized studio poses.

Ages can go from the newest baby through the most recalcitrant teen. In other words, children’s photography covers a LOT of ground!

The 18/18 rule Before I forget, let’s talk about the 18/18 rule. This one is NOT just a guideline, it is a hard and fast, inviolable rule. We all love shots of naked babies and toddlers. Everybody has them! And I’d venture to guess there’s even a few of them of YOU out there! BUT, how old is too old to be shooting nudes? That’s where the 18/18 rule comes in. Go ahead and shoot naked shots of your baby up until they turn 18 months old. Then, STOP! I think it would be creepy and more than a bit perverted for a parent to shoot nudes of their own children after they reach 18 years old, but I think it’s legal. After they turn 18 years old, they can go to any photographer they want and get nudes done. (Check with an attorney if you have any doubts.)

Under 18 months and over 18 years. Anything in between - EVEN IF THEY ARE YOUR OWN KIDS - will land you in jail. Don’t say you weren’t warned.

Amateurs vs. Pros So, whether you are simply documenting the growth of your own kids or creating photos for a profit or even fine art, children’s photography will be a big part of your shooting. This is an area where the amateur actually has a big advantage over the professional. You are around your kids all of the time, they already love and trust you. If you are constantly pulling out your camera and taking photos of your kids, they’ll get comfortable with the idea and pretty much not worry about the camera. You can get shots in those intimate moments that just can’t be duplicated by a stranger in the studio.

The key here is to constantly have your camera at hand so the kids don’t pay any attention to it any longer. They feel comfortable and won’t stop doing whatever it

is that you wanted to capture. Not only will your kids get used to and comfortable around the camera, you’ll be able to capture those real life moments without the “pretend the camera isn’t here” looks we so often see.

On the other side, if you only pull out your camera during birthdays and special occasions, your kids will freeze up as soon as they see you pointing the camera in their direction. And screaming at them to say “cheese” just won’t cut it. With film, shooting all the time got very expensive in a hurry. These days, with digital images and ready access to the delete button, it’s free! There is no reason why we shouldn’t be shooting all the time!

Don’t assume you need a lot of expensive equipment to get world class shots! Not true. Window light and a couple cardboard reflectors will produce images that can take your breath away. Children are works of art and it is your job to make the viewer see that! Every time you get your camera in hand, think to yourself, how can I interpret this scene to elicit some sort of feeling in the viewer?

Something made you decide you wanted to capture that image, what was it? How can you impart that same feeling to the viewer, to make them see and feel what you saw? Make them wish they had shot the image? Make it a personal goal to never do another “snapshot.” Find a way to make it special. Like any other new skill, at first it will be difficult, but it gets easier with time. Before you shoot, ask yourself, “Why am I shooting this picture? Is it for the family photo album? Is it to make a portrait to hang on the wall? Or possibly as an

art piece? Or is it to record a moment in history?

Webster’s Dictionary describes Art as: the conscious use of skill and creative imagination especially in the production of aesthetic objects. To this definition, let’s add that to be successful as art a portrait must; be decorative, show your creative intent, incorporate skill and emotion, capture the essence of your subject and complement your subject. If possible it should also tell a story.

Be Decorative Is the shot you are contemplating worthy of being hung over the fireplace mantel?

Will it stay there even as the child matures and updated portraits are added to the home? That’s art. Or is it just going to be set on a shelf or hung on a “photo wall”, only to be replaced by next year’s photo. While we want those images of our kids, they are just recording your child’s growth and don’t approach any sort of definition of art. Even if we ARE merely trying to record our child’s growth, don’t just start firing away, be conscious of what you are doing and try to turn every shot into a decorative item that can hang on the wall for years to come. You may surprise yourself at how often you will actually be able to get one!

Show Your Creative Intent If you start out with the intention to make a photograph that will surpass mere documentation and create artwork that expresses your subject’s true essence, you’ll probably succeed. On the other hand, if you set out to only create a functional representation of your subject you may fail to achieve either an artistic statement or a marketable portrait.

It rarely happens automatically, you have to consciously be “going for it.” The good news is that by trying to make every shot be as artistic as it can be, you will see your photography progress rapidly.

Incorporate Skill And Emotion To succeed, while a work must be well crafted, technical expertise alone is not enough to satisfy the definition of art. In addition to being skillfully executed, the work has to evoke some emotion in the viewer.

Capture The Essence Of Your Subject As previously discussed, an art portrait has to go beyond simply documenting the

physical appearance. We need to capture personality.

Capturing personality, those traits, habits and expressions that make each of us unique is essential. While the quality of personality may seem intangible, I think we all have an instinctive awareness of what gestures and expressions are genuine. It’s here that the “Say Cheese” portraits fall apart. While the mouth may be properly formed to resemble a smile, it’s not a realistic expression and we will never be totally satisfied with the portrait. Even strangers who don’t know our children will be able to tell that it isn’t a realistic expression. When you shoot photos of kids - If you aren’t constantly hearing things like: “Yes, you’ve captured the real him!”, or “You’ve really captured her natural expression!” you need to take a step back and try to figure out why.

Here’s a photo tip for you…contrary to popular belief, not every photo has to be smiling! Look through your notebook, chances are the photos you’ve been putting in there as your favorites have a high percentage of - not smiling - images.

Go for the mood being expressed rather than forcing a smile. You’ll be glad you did.

Complement Your Subject Be sure that all the colors, props, techniques, settings etc. enhance your representation rather than diminish or compete with it.

Finding Your Personal Style I’m sure there are several photographers who, when you look at one of their photos - even if you’ve never seen it before - you immediately know it is one of theirs. That is because they’ve developed their own personal style. Actually, we ALL have our own personal style; it is just that we’ve learned to recognize theirs. To further develop your own personal style it’s like bodybuilding. You already have the muscles, but you just want to make them bigger or more defined. You already have a personal style, but you want to make it bolder and more distinct. First, let’s define what is involved in personal style, then we’ll get into some stylebuilding exercises. Whenever you see a portrait, at least two people have been captured, the subject and the photographer. No matter how anonymous you try to be, your personal style appears in every photo. The more you are aware of that fact, the easier it will be for you to learn to enhance our style. Our personal style is comprised of several elements: Special vision - the way we see things is filtered and colored by our past experiences, philosophies, and attitudes. Feelings about ourselves, children, the universal experience of childhood, and our own personal childhoods. Reasons for making pictures of children: whether to convey a message, for display as an art piece, for our own personal use and enjoyment or as a way of celebrating childhood. The audience we are making the picture for: the subject’s parents, ourselves and commercial client, stock, etc.

Our technical strengths and weaknesses are elements of our personal style. Our ability to use and have access to various tools - such as lighting, props and etc., used to make creative images. Our personal and artistic strength and weaknesses come into play as well. Do you need a good technique to create a stunning photo or do you need the artistic vision to even know the various techniques exist?

Developing Your Personal Style Muscles Here are a few exercises to help develop your “personal style muscles”… 1. Follow your bliss. What are your favorite images of kids? Do you like the energy and vitality of childhood? If so, shoot kids in action - running, playing, dancing. Do you want to show the tender, vulnerable side of kids? Shoot candid shots of kids in a pensive, thoughtful mood.

2. Make your images personal. Don’t just “get the shot”. Interpret. Communicate your personal feelings about the kids and the photo itself. 3. Enjoy the photographic process. We all enjoy it when we’ve made a beautiful picture. But we should work to enjoy every aspect of the process as well. From developing the concept and recording who, what, when, where, why and how in our notebook to the actual execution of the photo. Selecting the right camera, lens, filters, and lighting to make our vision a reality. To metering the light to interacting with the child. All of it should be fun!

It should all intrigue and excite you, make you jump out of bed in the morning! If so, that excitement will come across in your photos and enhance your personal style. 4. Don’t hesitate to experiment. Give yourself hands-on experience with every technique and type of equipment you can get your hands on. When you like the results - refine it, master it and make it your own. If you don’t like the results, just toss it and move on. Even a failed experiment will teach you something. 5. Break the rules. You don’t always have to go for the ideal exposure, the perfect pose, the ideal lens. Try a stop or two of overexposure. You may like the ethereal light feeling. You may find a rich moody quality with a bit of underexposure.

Try various lenses and see what kind of feelings you are able to elicit. Try colored gels, selective focus, hand tinting, mixing light sources - and that is just a few of many possibilities. 6. With experimentation and pushing your boundaries, you are sure to have some failures. That’s ok! Don’t be afraid of failure. That is when you actually learn the most! Caution, don’t experiment when it is a vitally important shot. If you are a pro, experiment on your own kids before you offer the new techniques to clients. If it is a once in a lifetime sort of shot, be sure to get the shot before you start experimenting. 7. Your personal style will be constantly evolving, try not to over control or over analyze it. Indulge your joys and interests and let it happen. Remember, kids are not just miniature adults, they have their own personalities. Don’t be afraid of the messy hair, casual clothing, running and jumping. Don’t get stuck in the classic pose - with every hair in place - rut.

Lets Get Creative Photography has been around for a very long time, there really isn’t much that is really new. Sure, the digital revolution is new, but that is just a change in equipment, not in the creativity of the photograph. In fact, if you were to look at a photograph that truly moves you, it is impossible to tell whether it was shot digitally or with good old fashioned film. By the time anything that truly IS new trickles down to the general photo public, it’s been done to death by professionals. And since there is actually is a limitation on both the materials we use and the anatomy of our subjects (everyone has the same 2 eyes, 2 hands, 2 feet, etc.) many of us may despair EVER being able to create something truly unique and original. So to truly be original, it is the personal approach that you take to the subject that will make the difference. The simplest and most basic materials can create highly creative works when the photographer isn’t afraid to put him or herself in the photo without holding back.

Taking Risks This means taking risks. To make a truly creative work means going into uncharted territory. Without the potential for failure there is no originality.

Creativity means capitalizing on mistakes.

There’s an old saying, “A good photographer isn’t someone who never makes mistakes. A good photographer is someone who can repeat his mistakes.” Mistakes or accidents are the birthplace of virtually all the new and exciting techniques. Creativity involves both intuition and intent. Intuition involves subconscious insight and understanding. Intent gives us the conscious judgment and technical expertise to express our intention. In our quest for originality and creativity, it’s easy to mistake something new -

unusual cropping, different materials, new lighting techniques - as being something good. Is the following shot creative? Or junk? You decide!

Pictures that are different just for the sake of being different don’t generally work. Remember, we are trying to find new ways to show and better define our subject. Not new ways to bring attention to ourselves. Your initial goal should be to try to discover, and actually master as many techniques as possible. Learn them so well that when you are “on the firing line” you don’t have to think about it. When you can get so comfortable that you can just let it flow, that is when intuition kicks in and the magic happens. Here are a few compositional pointers to keep in mind. We’ve covered a lot on composition already, but these bear repeating.

17 Portrait Compositional Tips 1. Turn the camera. Ninety percent of all portraits should be shot in the vertical. This is true whether you shoot full body, mid range or head shots. In full body shots, the vertical lines are stronger and easier to define but though less obvious, they are there in headshots too. If you want to emphasize line and movement a bit more, you can even try shooting the child diagonally, but horizontal is usually not the best choice.

2. You don’t have to limit your subject to being placed in the center of the photo. Though being in the center is the traditional look, there are many ways to frame a kid and in some compositions it can be more exciting to create some drama and tension with an off center frame.

3. Fill the frame with the kid. Most of us tend to show too much of the surroundings by shooting too wide. What you imply is as important as what you actually show.

4. The eyes have it. Not always, but in most compositions it advisable to have the viewer’s eyes drawn to the subject’s face and in particular, the eyes.

5. Be certain your photos only have one center of interest. A photo should clearly have one center of interest, even when there’s more than one subject. The subjects should be close to each other, touching or overlapping. The center of interest becomes the group. Not each individual.

6. Don’t crop limbs at the joints or a person will look like an amputee. Consider the field of the photograph. The field is the foreground, middle ground and background.

7. Use objects in the foreground. This can frame the shot, add depth and visual interest, and lead the viewer’s eye to the subject. 8. Have only one center of interest in the middle ground. This is where your subject is, other objects on the same plane will draw the eye away from your subject.

9. Keep the background simple and uncluttered. Focus attention on the child. This is generally done with either a plain backdrop or by using a shallow depth of field to separate the child and make them stand out.

10. Position the horizon line either above or below the center of interest. If the horizon is exactly centered, it will lead the viewer’s eye out of the photograph.

Consider the perspective. Many of us shoot from our own eye level all the time. This is a huge mistake, particularly when the subject is a child. The perspective can greatly influence the mood and the overall message of the photograph. 11. Shoot looking down at a child to enhance an air of innocence or vulnerability. It makes them look even smaller than they really are.

12. Shoot at the child’s level to see “eye to eye”. Putting the viewer at the child’s eye level lets them more easily connect and identify with the child.

13. Shoot up at the child to emphasize accomplishment. Putting them on a level higher than the camera lends an air of pride and competence. It’s the same with business people. Note how the corporate executive is always shot from a lower angle.

14. Manipulate your field with perspective. Shooting up at your subject can isolate them against the blue sky. Shooting down could bring in some foreground elements not otherwise seen.

15. Manipulate light with perspective. Are you getting “raccoon eyes” from the noonday sun? To eliminate some unwanted shadows, have the child tilt their face up, and you shoot down. Study how different perspectives change the way the light interacts with the face. Color or lack of it is another way to control the eyes of the viewer. 16. Use contrasting colors between the child and the rest of the field to separate them. A child in a red or bright yellow coat against a stand of evergreens will “pop”. In a green coat, he’d be lost. 17. Repeating spots of color for a unifying effect. Using the same color family or tone in the main compositional elements can create a bold visual impact. For example, a branch with pink flowers in the foreground, framing a child with a pink hat, will led the viewer’s eye to the child’s face - the photos center of interest. We’ve covered a great deal of ground in this lesson, so here is your assignment:

Photo Exercise 1. Grab your camera and start shooting kids! Shoot old ones, young ones, babies and everything in between. If you have your own kids, keep your camera out and make it a point to shoot at least every day. More if possible. If you don’t have any kids, go to a park. Caution, let the parents know that you are a budding photographer and are just practicing. Offer to give them free prints. You don’t want them thinking you’re some kind of pervert. 2. Before every shot, stop to think - am I just shooting a grab shot? Or have I inserted some sort of artistic element? 3. How about your personal style? Is this shot the way you would want to portray this subject in a perfect world? If so, you are furthering your personal style. If not, make it so. 4. Think, what can I do to step out of the ordinary and make this photo something original? 5. Practice each of the compositional techniques until they are second nature. ********** Now that you’ve completed this training lesson along your photo journey, “Correcting Facial Flaws - And Other Photo Tips!, don’t lose your momentum! Keep reading the next lesson in the Portrait Essentials bundle... “50 Keys To Better Photography”

Btw - If you haven’t yet gotten a copy of Volume 1 - “7 Secrets To Creating Stunning Photos!”, it’s a freebie! (but, it’s not listed with Amazon), check it out here:

http://www.OnTargetPhotoTraining.com It’s time YOU put the “WOW” factor into your photos! ************************ On the subject of learning more… The section after the last book in the bundle is a list of other training e-books by “On Target Training” (me), check them out! (TWO of them are FREE!)

Book 3 - 50 Keys To Better Photography By Dan Eitreim

Introduction Thank you for reading this “On Target Photo Training” series volume! I hope you like it! One important point, this e-book won’t do you any good just sitting on your hard drive. You actually have to read it and then go out and practice the concepts!

There are actually a lot more than 50 photo tips - I really wanted to over deliver! Most of the tips will stand alone and no matter what order you decide to read and follow them, you will get valuable tips, tricks and techniques! But, there ARE a few that build on previous knowledge, so I recommend quickly reading through the entire course lesson to get a feel for what is what, then go back

and pick and choose the keys you want to work on first. Those of you that have been long time readers of my “On Target Photo Training” newsletter will recognize a lot of these keys as part of my daily writings. This “50 Keys To Better Photography!” course volume has been created in response to HUNDREDS of requests to combine my daily writings into one volume. So I have, with some changes. In this volume, the daily tips have been edited - many have been re-written - and tons of new photo tips and illustrations have been added. Plus, now they are all in one place and organized to help you find the particular areas you want to work on. That is the true “KEY” to photo success. You have to actually get out your camera and practice on these pointers!

I once heard an interview of Martha Stewart where she was asked how she learned to be such a great cook. Her reply was that she bought (or already had) the “Betty Crocker Cookbook”. She started on page one and successively cooked every recipe over and over until she got it right. Then she would go to the next page. By the time she had worked through the entire book, she was a master in the kitchen and had started her own catering business. (We all know how THAT turned out!) Want to be a billionaire? That is how!

She’s not alone! Actually, there is a movie - based on a true story - called “Julie & Julia” where the star did the same thing, only she did it with a Julia Child’s Cookbook. If I recall correctly, it took her a year, but she made it through the entire book and had mastered cooking, just like Martha Stewart! Clearly, the technique works! Give this course lesson a quick read through, then grab your camera. Start at Key #1 and practice until you have mastered that one photo key - then go to Key #2! By the time you are finished, you WILL be a better photographer! In fact, I’ll go so far as to say you will have mastered your camera and could turn pro if you so desired! (Or at the very least, you’ll start winning photo contests!) Let’s get started!

The Basics Of Photography Key 1: Photography Simplified In the reviews that readers have written about this e-book, I saw a comment where the reader thought that I am somewhat condescending in the earlier parts of the ebook. Hmmm... Sorry if I come across that way, it is not my intention. I assume they are talking about the way I break down everything to its simplest, most basic and sometimes obvious steps. I do this because - I don’t know if you are a pro photographer that has been shooting for the past 70 years, or if you are 16 years old and just got your first camera! I try to write everything so EVERYONE will understand and be on the same page when we get into the really top level stuff! Then, you’ll notice that you have such a thorough grounding in the basics that the top level stuff will seem easy. So, that said, let’s get into it... Frequently we’ll see a person walking around with enough camera gear slung around his neck to open a camera store. I once saw a guy at the zoo with three cameras hanging around his neck AND he was dragging around a huge rolling suitcase full of camera gear! It was the zoo – not an African safari! These people make it seem as though photography is complex, requires massive amounts of equipment and is virtually impossible to understand. Not so... Photography boils down to 4 simple elements: 1. The aperture.

The aperture is nothing more than a hole in the camera that lets in light. That’s it! Nothing more! All those confusing numbers like f 2.8, f 4, f 5.6, f 11, f 16 and so on are simply the way we write down what the size of the hole is.

I’m told the “f” means focal length. I don’t care! The number is a mathematical calculation that the science geeks understand - to get great photos, we don’t need to understand it. All we need to know is that it is a fraction. So, like any other fraction, the smaller the denominator (the number on the bottom) the bigger the number. For example, 1/2 is a larger number than 1/8. In photography, you can imagine the “f” symbol as the top half of a fraction. The 1/x. So f 2.8 would be 1/2.8, f16 would be 1/16. Therefore, f 2.8 is a bigger hole in the camera (and lets in more light) than f 16. 2. Shutter speed.

The shutter uncovers and covers the aperture (the hole) so light can get to the digital sensor (or film). The shutter speed is nothing more than the amount of time the aperture (the hole) is uncovered, letting light into the camera. Of course there are bunches of combinations of shutter speed and aperture - but the basics are pretty simple wouldn’t you agree? 3. The ISO. The ISO is a concept that goes back to film. It is a numerical designation indicating how much light a certain film type would need to create a “proper” exposure. We think of the ISO numbers as the film’s speed. For example, a film with an ISO speed of 100 is slower and would need twice as much light (for a correct exposure) as a film with an ISO speed of 200. True, we don’t shoot film anymore, but the ISO settings on your digital camera work the same way. Just know that you need less light the higher the ISO number, and more light if it is lower. There are advantages and drawbacks to each. We will explore this further later on. 4. Creative input. Creative input is the real magic to creating amazing photographs - ones that have

that elusive “WOW” factor. In creative we are concerned with things like lighting, posing, composition, and so on. So, there you have it, photography in a nutshell. It consists of 1. Aperture size and 2. Shutter speed and 3. ISO - which are mechanical operations for the most part and 4. Creative input. The amount of light needed to accurately record the data, can be easily calculated by the camera’s internal computer (that’s why cameras are able to have settings like aperture priority, shutter priority and full automatic.). What can’t be automatically computed and where we find the true artistry in photography, is in the creative decisions that go into each photo. How you manipulate the 3 mechanical settings will have a wide impact on your photos. No camera could ever automatically make these sorts of creative decisions. In fact, they don’t even try. The entire goal of an automatic setting is to get enough light onto the sensor or film to record the image, and do it at the fastest shutter speed possible so camera shake is minimized as much as possible. The IDEA behind camera operation and photography really is fairly simple. It’s a bit like chess. The rules are fairly straightforward and easy to understand, but the techniques and strategies will take a lifetime to master.

Key 2: Aperture And Shutter Speed If you want your photography to “POP” you need to understand the symbiotic

relationship between photo aperture and shutter speed - and to a lesser extent, ISO. If you want great photography, you MUST take your camera off automatic and start shooting in manual mode. That’s when the relationship between aperture and shutter speed comes into play and will take you out of the amateur ranks. Knowing how they work together will make your photo results far better. But first, here is an interesting fact I learned a while back. I think it admirably explains the concept of a symbiotic relationship in an interesting way, It’s not in the field of photography, but I think it is a pretty cool story of how a relationship can benefit both parties, making the whole better than the parts. This example is from the animal kingdom... Did you know that giraffes have exceptionally good eyesight? In fact, their eyeballs are physically the largest of any land mammal. And being so high above the ground, their vision can cover a lot of territory!

But giraffes don’t hear too well. I’m not sure if it is because they just plain have poor hearing or if it is because their ear are so far off the ground. Either way, they don’t hear well. On the other hand, rhinos have really good hearing, but can’t see worth a darn.

Wouldn’t it be nice if they hung out together? That way the giraffes could keep a visual lookout for predators - and any that they don’t see coming, the rhinos will hear. They would protect each other and both of them would benefit and be safer as a result. Like I said, wouldn’t it be nice if they hung out together? They DO! Herds of giraffe will almost always include a rhino or two! It’s a symbiotic relationship that works well to give them both the results they want, safety! In your photography, there is a symbiotic relationship too. It is the relationship between shutter speed and aperture. Aperture and shutter speed work together to give you what you want - stunning photos. Both of them play a part individually AND together. Each of them has to be considered. While they always work together, their coupling is not necessarily ALWAYS to best advantage. To explain how that can happen, we need to go back to the idea of giving up our creative control and giving it to the camera (by using the automatic settings). Remember, your camera is a machine and has no creativity. It is just trying to get a properly exposed, sharp image. Proper exposure just means there is enough light hitting the sensor to result in an image.

Ideally your camera wants the shutter speed and the aperture to each be as close as possible to a middle of the road setting. It works very hard not to stray too far from center. On automatic, the camera’s first priority is that it is going to select the fastest shutter speed it can. That will freeze the action and help eliminate camera shake. But at the same time, it is careful about straying too far from the center of the possible aperture settings. Shutter speed is the first priority because blurry photos as a result of camera shake are one of the leading causes of bad photography. We physically just can’t hold a camera still long enough if the shutter is too slow. Then, once the shutter speed has been selected, the camera defaults the aperture to whatever works to get enough light to the sensor. No consideration is given as to whether those settings work to create a great shot. (It’s a machine - it doesn’t care.) True, it is still a symbiotic relationship, but neither shutter speed nor aperture is benefiting your creativity. With all the possible “correct” combinations available, the odds that the camera has picked the best and most creative one is slim. Its only concern is to get enough light to the sensor without camera shake. The good news is, there are dozens of settings that will give you a proper aperture/shutter combination - you don’t have to stick to the middle of the road, blah! For example… Let’s say that on full automatic, the camera picks a shutter speed of 1/125th of a second with an aperture of f8. Based on the available light and so on, the camera has decided that those two settings work to get enough light to the sensor and cut down on camera shake. (And they will work - if all you want is a plain, vanilla shot!) But creatively, suppose we want to accent our subject with a shallow depth of field? An aperture of F8 won’t work! It will show too much detail in the background.

We need an aperture of f2.8! That will isolate our subject against a solid wash of featureless color!

But, if we used that aperture (f2.8) along with the previously selected shutter speed of 1/125th of a second, there would be way too much light. The finished photo would be totally washed out. Since we dropped our aperture from F8 to F5.6 to F4 to F2.8 which is a three stop drop (this is a LOT bigger hole letting in light), we don’t need to have the shutter open so long! Remember, they work together. We have to decrease our shutter speed by the same amount of stops (3). We will go through a progression from

1/125th to 1/250th to 1/500th to 1/1000th of a second. Can you see how that works? At f2.8 and 1/1000th we are now getting exactly the same amount of light to the film or digital sensor as at f8 and 1/125th! BUT, we have inserted our creative control by changing the aperture to one that will give us the depth of field we want. We’ve taken the first step in mastering our camera. We could go the other way if we wanted a deeper depth of field.

Instead of opening up the hole (aperture) and making it bigger, we could close it down. Then of course the shutter speed would have to slow down because we need more light.

Here is a chart that shows how the two (aperture and shutter speed), can work together. ALL of the below settings let in the same amount of light, but we are able to control the creative aspects of the photo by the combinations we choose. Note: This is one example of how the settings CAN happen. Not a definitive chart. This chart shows the variations that would give you the same amount of light as a setting of f8 and 1/125th. Other starting points would work the same way – increases on one side have to be offset by decreases in the other.

This gives rise to the question - Which is most important? Shutter speed or Aperture? Which should I select first? It depends on the subject matter. If your subject is moving - first you will want to consider shutter speed. You will decide if you want to totally freeze the action or let it completely blur – or something in the middle. Once you decide on (and select) the shutter speed that will give you the creative results you want, you then use whatever aperture is needed to get the right amount of light. This can be done on a manual setting, or a shutter priority setting. The shutter priority setting lets you manually select the shutter speed, then your camera will automatically select the best corresponding aperture.

Slow shutter

Fast shutter If your subject is stationary, shutter speed isn’t needed to freeze or blur the action! In that case, you will first pick the aperture that will give you the depth of field you want (depth of field is the amount of a photo that is in acceptably sharp focus) and then the shutter speed that will let in the correct amount of light at that aperture.

You can select the aperture on a manual setting or on aperture priority. With the aperture priority, you manually select the aperture and the camera automatically picks the appropriate shutter speed. The point to remember is that shutter speed and aperture work together - always. It’s a bit confusing at first, but once you “get” the symbiotic relationship concept, it is all pretty easy. Then YOU can take the camera off full automatic and start to wow your friends with your creativity. Later, you can add in the third factor - the ISO setting. This is handy if the shutter speed or aperture setting you need isn’t possible at the typical ISO speed. Another control option is with neutral density filters. (I’ll cover these in a later section.) Both the ISO and neural density filters can be used to change the light requirements and therefore the shutter/aperture settings. They work to give you a much broader creative option set.

Key 3: Master Your Camera - Fast! Has this happened to you? We buy a brand new camera with all the latest bells and whistles - mega pixels through the roof, first rate lenses and a flash that has more computing power than the space shuttle. The guy at the camera shop offered to sign us up for a professional photo tutorial, but we took a pass on that idea. (Have to cut costs SOMEWHERE!) We get home and anxiously rip into the boxes.We take one look at the manuals written by someone whose native language is geek - and we quickly give up on any attempt at understanding them! We finally figure out how to put in all 75 batteries and turn the thing on. And Voila! Eventually - through trial and error - we discovered how to set it on automatic, and it’s been there ever since. Our pictures are ok, but nothing special. No one EVER asks us for a copy for their wall! What’s worse, that weird little kid down the street keeps getting photos published in the newspapers and magazines! Photo contests? Forget it! We know - creatively - that there is more out there, but we don’t have any idea of what to do to make our photos better - not to mention the fact that we’re getting downright sick and tired of sitting in front of the computer all day - trying to “fix” our photos in “Photoshop”.

What to do? Here is a simple step that will immediately improve your photography. Read The Manual! Dig through your junk drawers until you find your camera’s manuals. You know, the ones you stashed out of site as soon as you bought the camera! (Too boring to read, but too valuable to throw away!) Next, set aside a few hours, and actually read them!

With camera in hand, go through the entire manual, page by page until you understand each of the settings, what they do and how to get there when you want to. Remember how Martha Stewart became a master at cooking? Page by page! Next - and this one tends to be a fairly radical idea - read the manuals for your flash units, your lenses and any other manuals that are clogging up your junk

drawer.

Be honest, do you REALLY know EVERYTHING in your manuals? You should! Your “art” is never going to shine through as long as you are unsure of how your equipment works! You need to know it so well that you don’t have to think about it - it has to become second nature. When you’ve reached the point that you don’t have to think about how to use your equipment, THAT’S when your mind will be free to concentrate on being artistic. Yes, you are in for a few mind numbingly boring hours, maybe even an entire weekend, but the education you get will immediately show up in your photos. And you won’t have to buy any expensive equipment! Just learn how to use what you’ve got. By the way - if you want to be truly great, you will read ALL of your manuals page by page - at least once a year. You will be approaching them from a different level of understanding each time, and you’ll gain new insights every time.

By truly knowing and mastering your equipment, you will also save on a lot of the time you spend trying to fix your photos in “Photoshop”. Your photos will be better and won’t have to be fixed! Not to mention that there are a lot of creative options that HAVE to be done “in camera” and really can’t be fixed later. Face it - did you “get into” photography to take beautiful photos, or to spend hour after hour in Photoshop? You probably spend too much time in front of a computer at work – do you really want to do it at home for your hobby? Finally, you will be able to start using your camera the way it was made to be used. And more importantly, you will be able to get the pictures you’ve imagined, out of your head and into your camera. So Key #3 in your “50 Keys To Better Photography” is to read, study and learn your equipment manuals.

Key 4: The Photographer’s Secret Weapon

Here is another tip that I’ve been begging photographers to do for quite some time - Start A Shot Notebook. A shot notebook will help you learn to master your camera - FAST! After reading your manuals, I believe it to be one of the most important training exercises you can do! There was a time when people learned to fly an airplane by just getting in one, and

taking off. They pulled the yoke back to go up, pushed it forward to go down and right and left to turn. That was pretty much all there was to it!

Those days are nothing more than a fond memory. Now the cockpit of a modern jet has dozens of instruments and hundreds of buttons knobs and dials. Even private pilots that have already gotten their licenses wouldn’t dare even try to fly one of them! The complexity of modern cameras has increased too, particularly digital cameras. They are just too darn intricate to just pick one up and hope to get stunning photos. Reading your camera’s manuals will help of course, but there’s more. A modern pilot has a checklist of everything he or she needs to do to get into an airplane and fly safely to their destination.

Ask yourself, would you feel safer in an airplane where you know the pilot followed a written preflight checklist - or one that checked everything from memory? You need to start doing the same sort of thing with your photography. Start keeping a shot notebook and record all the settings for each shot you take. By recording the details of each shot, you are in effect creating your own pilot’s “checklist”. In the future, any time you want to duplicate that particular type of shot, just refer to your notebook.

This simple exercise – keeping a shot notebook - is one that has been done by all the top pros and will quickly teach you the fine points of your camera’s operation. Additionally, you’ll learn how each of your lenses operates and how various lighting situations interact with your subjects. You’ll be stunned at how much you learn by this seemingly innocuous habit. It only takes a few minutes - but very few budding photographers do it. It’s a shame, if they only knew how fast their photos would reach the top of the local contests, they’d immediately start a notebook and never look back. Now that YOU know how important a notebook is are you willing to actually DO something that will help you get better photos? It’s up to you. Warning! It’s the photographer that creates stunning photos, not the camera.

Key 5: Creativity Can Be Learned Once we’ve moved past the basics of understanding how our cameras work - we photography junkies all want more creative photography.

It doesn’t really matter if you are shooting film or digital, (yes, there are still some film shooters, not many, but some) creativity transcends both storage mediums. By the way, that’s all digital photography is - a new type of storage medium. We used to store the photo’s information on film, now we store it on a memory stick. Other than the way we store the data, everything else in photography is the same!

We’ve all been there. We look at the pictures we see in books and magazines, then we look at our photos and something is (ahem) missing. The basics are there, a good exposure, clear focus and so on, but it just doesn’t compare. We start thinking we don’t have the “creative” gift! True, there are creative geniuses out there! (Maybe a handful scattered throughout the world.) Next to these creative geniuses our photos will never compare! No one else’s will either! But, we aren’t generally comparing our work to that minuscule group. We are comparing our work to the everyday production of average, everyday Joes who truly are NOT more creative than we are. And yes, I’m including professionals in this group. Most of us, as normal people do, tend to undervalue our own work, and overvalue the work of others.

It’s not necessary! Creativity can be LEARNED. The only difference between us and “them” is that they’ve learned how to put their creative vision into the camera - and we haven’t. Again, keep in mind that creativity CAN be learned! And it’s relatively simple and FAST! The trick to learning anything - including creativity - is modeling. And no, by modeling I don’t mean standing in front of a camera and saying cheese! In this case, modeling is simply finding someone that is already doing what you want to be able to do, and copying their techniques! (You “model” yourself after them.) Success leaves clues!

By that, I mean that if you shoot the same type of subjects, in the same sort of conditions, with the same settings they are using, you WILL get the same results. It must happen! The camera is a machine. It doesn’t care who pushes the buttons. It’s not going to work better for one photographer over another. It doesn’t care who is looking through the viewfinder. If we model correctly, we can be doing the same quality of work they are doing in no time.

Here’s how... When you find a photograph you like, cut it out of the magazine and paste it into your photo notebook. You ARE keeping a photo notebook, right? All the best photographers do! Then, closely examine the photo. Try to guess what the lighting conditions were. What time of day it was shot, how many lights were used, what is the positioning and directionality of the lights (reflectors qualify as a light source). Guess at the focal length of the lens. Do you think they used a tripod? What settings do you think they used for the f-stop, shutter speed and so on. Then, record ALL your guesses in your shot notebook.

Now it’s time to test. Get out there and try to duplicate the photo. Test your theories on how they got the shot. The ones that move you closer to success, make a note of them in your notebook. Do the same with the ideas that don’t work! A failure is a valid test result too! And, you’ll probably learn more from the failures than from the successes. As you test different ideas and theories and move closer and closer to the desired finished result, you’ll be having a lot of fun and learning a TON of new photo techniques.

Every test will produce results. As mentioned, even failures will help you learn something. (So, I guess there really isn’t any such thing as a failure, just different results.) Keep testing and trying different ideas and eventually, you WILL get the result you were after. It usually doesn’t take long (after all, there aren’t THAT many settings)! The more often you do it, the faster and easier it will get. Finally, you will be able to just look at a photo and intuitively KNOW how the photographer got the shot.

Paste YOUR shot in your notebook, with all the technical details. Now, you will forever be able to re-create that shot! Now, do the same thing with another photo you like. Every time you do this exercise, you will add a new technique to your photo arsenal. Plus, it gets easier to do because you are building on what you’ve learned before. Every time you add a new technique to your photo arsenal, you are exponentially increasing your ability to be creative! In no time, you will start to combine ideas and techniques into original creations.

Faster than you may think, you will not only be able to look at photo and know how to duplicate it, you will be able to look at a scene and know exactly what to do to make it look the best it can look! Or how to get across the emotions you want to get across. Or how to shoot it to be different from everyone else’s rendition. Tadaa! That’s creativity! So, there is the formula for learning creative photography - modeling. Try it, you’ll like it.

Key 6: A New Vantage Point You don’t have to be interested in photography for very long before you start to

notice that almost everyone shoots all their photos from the same vantage point. To improve your photography and produce better, more creative work, you have to change that. Generally speaking, almost all photos are taken from a standing position with the camera at eye level. I suppose this is the ideal vantage point/position for some photos - but I can’t think of any right now.

For most landscapes, there doesn’t seem to be much - or even ANY - attempt at originality... they all seem to share the same three tripod leg holes in the ground. Let’s face it, if you aren’t going to try for any individuality, it would be easier, faster and less costly to just go into the gift shop and buy a postcard of that scene.

This key to better photography is to pick a different vantage point! This can quickly separate you from the crowd and it is a really simple way to get more creative! It can’t be beat!

If you are shooting a person, try going up high! Try shooting down on them from a balcony or a ladder. People aren’t used to seeing photography from that vantage point and it will immediately attract attention!

Alternatively, try a low vantage point. Kneel or lay down on the ground and shoot up at them. Actually, when you shoot at an upward angle, it is a great way to make a subject appear more important!

Look at all the photos you see of business executives, they are almost always shot with a slightly upward angle. With kids and pets, get down to their level! Stop shooting from a standing position with the camera up at your eye! At their level, you will get far more engaging photos.

If you are shooting a landscape, find a new vantage point. Like I mentioned earlier, if you aren’t going to be creative, just buy a postcard. The world doesn’t really need another shot of the same scene from the same exact angle! But, if you want to learn how to get a shot of that scene, first try to duplicate the postcard (modeling). Then find three ways to make it better! A new vantage point, filters, different lens - whatever. I think this is the number one reason why more budding landscape photographers can’t sell their work... they are shooting exactly the same photos, from the same vantage point at the same time of day!

Face it, no matter how great our friends and family think our photos are, after the first fifty, or hundred or thousand times a photo buyer sees exactly the same photo - he or she is sick of them! AND the fact that you submitted it could ruin your reputation with them forever! If you ever hope to have your work get published, you MUST do something different. Even if you don’t care about being published, the same goes for winning photo contests or simply hanging the photo on your wall. Be unique. All these things seem pretty obvious and simple - but how many of us shoot the same old pictures, from the same spots, from the same vantage point, day in and day out!

Get creative! Try something new! Keep this photo tip in mind. Give shooting from a new vantage point, a new angle, a new location a try.

Key 7: Put The “WOW” Factor In Your Photos! If you’re tired of not being able to shoot the kind of stunning, “WOW” factor photos you know you should be creating, here are 2 photo tips that will help you out.

Take your camera off the automatic settings - and experiment. Before I discussed taking your camera off automatic so you could improve your knowledge of how your camera works, now we will get into using manual settings to improve your creativity. You have to keep in mind that your camera is a machine. It can’t think, it can’t create, and it can’t take your photos to the next level.

True, it CAN calculate how much light needs to hit the film or digital sensor, but your camera has no concept of creativity. When set on automatic, your camera’s job is to get the data recorded and eliminate camera shake. That is ALL! And it often doesn’t do a very good job of THAT! Face it; if automatic settings could give you amazing photos, EVERYONE would be a professional photographer! As I’ve said before, it’s the photographer that creates the photo, not the camera.

It may seem a bit confusing at first, but it really isn’t difficult to master the manual settings - and it will open up a whole new creative universe for you. Get out there and experiment. Find a scene you like, look at the camera’s suggested automatic settings to get an idea of where the correct exposure is, then experiment with other combinations! Speed up your shutter speed by one stop and see what happens! Remember to open your aperture one stop to compensate. Slow down your shutter one stop and close down your aperture one stop. How did the photo change? With experiments along these lines, it won’t take long to totally master the

technical aspects of exposure settings and you’ll learn a whole lot about the creative aspects resulting by changing these settings. Experiment with different kinds of light. Try the sun at various times of day, experiment with your on-camera flash, experiment with household lights, try using a flashlight, take a night shot with your car headlights as the only light source!

Then, go to the local library or bookstore and check out the books on posing. Examine how they work with feet, hands, the tilt of the head, the camera angle and so on.

Which direction is the model facing? How are their shoulders positioned? Are their hips in line with the shoulders? Make a note of ONE posing idea and go practice it until it becomes easy and second nature then add another, and another.

It may seem like a long and drawn out process, but you’ll be surprised at how quickly you start to see stunning results in your photography. Before long, people will start coming to YOU for photo advice!

Key 8: Tell A Story Key #8 to better photography, make sure all of your photos tell a story - is easy to understand - but not so easy to put into practice.

The good news is that like anything else, it gets easier and better with practice. In an interview, military photographer of the year MSgt Jeremy Lock said that he looks for two things in a photograph. A face and a story. Admittedly, anyone can stumble on a lucky shot where everything falls into place and they end up winning a bunch of awards - but as of this writing, MSgt Lock has won the title of military photographer of the year, SIX years in a row - he obviously KNOWS what it takes!

In this key, we will discuss the story telling aspect of an award winning photo. This concept is so important that I not only want to talk about it, but I want to give you a photo training project. Award winning images need more than good exposure, sharp focus and so on, they need a story. Something that will engage the viewer and make them want to keep looking at the photo - and possibly even derive some personal meaning from it.

The problem is... it’s difficult to get this quality into your art. It takes; first - being aware that a story is needed and second - you need the ability to find “the story”. Here’s a project that may help you put the story telling concept into your photography. For the next few weeks, every time you think about it, look around yourself and think, “If I had to take a picture of this - only one - what would be the ideal way to communicate exactly what is happening?” Once you’ve decided the best way to communicate what is happening, ask yourself, “What can I remove? What is the least I could show that would clearly indicate what is happening?” In other words, first try to find the defining image and then strengthen it by eliminating extraneous details.

Do it while at home, at work, driving to and from work, walking the dog... whenever you think of it.

Eventually, looking for the story - and just as importantly, finding the best way to visually tell the story - will become a habit and start to show up in your art. Try it, what have you get to lose? “Art” will NEVER happen with the camera set on automatic. Take your camera

off automatic right now - and vow never to put it back! Start looking at everything around you as a photo story, then decide how you could best tell that story - in one photograph.

Key 9: Exposure - How Your Meter Works! Getting the right photo exposure can be a bit tricky at times. Expose for the highlights and you will lose the dark areas. Expose for the dark areas and you will blow out the highlights! It’s a never ending battle. Key #9 addresses that issue and explains how light meters work. (Both hand-held and in-camera meters.) Here is a question I was recently asked, “When taking pictures of black people, do you have to open up the f-stop more?” Great question! They were referring to a studio lighting set-up, but the issue remains in any photo lighting situation. And not necessarily just with skin tones. What if you are shooting a black dog and a white one? Or, more commonly, a bride with a white wedding dress next to a groom in a black tux?

If we expose for the highlights, we will get nice detail and properly show all the lace and bead work in the wedding dress. Or the fur in a white dog, or all the subtle skin tones in a white person. On the other hand, by exposing for the bright areas, that means we will inadvertently under-expose the dark areas. We will end up losing all the detail and the black area will become nothing more than a big black blob. The wedding dress is gorgeous, the tux is a featureless black. We have problems going the other way too! If we expose for the black area, we show all the nice detail in the black areas of the photo, but the white parts are totally over exposed and blown out. We lose all detail and the white part is ruined. Stop reading for a second and think, what would you do? How would you solve this problem? What is the best course of action? Most of you probably went with - “Expose for a middle of the road area. It’s not perfect, but at least you won’t totally lose either side.” Good call. In fact, a middle of the road exposure is the concept that all reflectance light meters are based on. (BTW - a reflectance meter is what is in your camera.) It’s called a reflectance meter because…

No matter what your light source is, when light hits a subject, it reflects off the subject. (And into the camera.) The colors and even the types of materials present in the scene have a fairly large impact as to HOW MUCH light is reflected. White areas reflect more than black areas, velvet absorbs more light than satin. The fur on a black dog is going to suck up light like a Hoover Vacuum!

After reflecting off the subject, the light goes into your camera where the light meter “sees” it. The meter measures all this light, averages it out and sets the exposure for a setting that is in the middle. The middle setting between black and white is calculated to be 18% gray. Understanding the concept of 18% gray is a whole book of its own. Just know that a middle setting - about half way between the lightest and darkest area in the scene - is what your camera’s reflectance meter will give you.

Not perfect on either end of the spectrum, but workable. The other common type of light meter is called an “incidence” light meter. This type of meter is outside the camera and is hand held. An incident meter is the one you see photographers holding up next to a model’s face when they test fire the lights.

We most often see it used in a studio setting, but it works with any light source. We as photographers just tend to be too lazy to get it out for use in normal day to day stuff and rely on the meter in our camera. An incident meter is different from a reflectance meter in that it doesn’t measure the light being reflected off a subject. It measures the amount of light actually hitting the subject. (Incident to the subject.) This may seem like basically the same thing, but in reality it is radically different.

Reflected light is affected by the colors and the various reflectance properties of materials and objects in the frame. The light is measured AFTER it strikes the subject. Incidence metering is measuring the light BEFORE it hits the subject and is not affected by color, reflectance properties, etc. Measuring the actual light hitting a subject means that we are properly exposing for the light. And as a happy side effect, we are also properly exposing for the various colors in the photo. It will record colors and so on exactly as we see them! (Under those lighting conditions!)

The whites will record as white, the blacks will record as black and everything else in between.

It is a far better way to meter your shots and that’s why you see the best photographers buying and using incident meters even when they have a perfectly good reflectance meter in their camera. To answer the initial question, with a reflectance meter, yes, you have to open the aperture a bit wider to get the right exposure for black skin tones. (And close it down for white.) With an incident meter, it doesn’t matter what colors are present. If you want to truly master your camera - and get the photos you see in your most creative visions, you have to take your camera off automatic and start taking control. The first issues you will have are with exposure. Learning the various metering methods - and how to use them - means you are one step closer to winning photo contests!

Key 10: How To Shoot In Black And White Do you love BW photos - but you’re never quite able to get the stunning shots that you see winning all the photo contests? Here is a black and white photo tip that may help. Actually, here are two black and white photo tips! First, you need to develop an “eye” for BW photos. Not all scenes and subjects will look better in black and white than they do in color, but some do. BW is really good at showing high contrast scenes and it’s a real killer when there is a lot of texture! Think of the photo of the craggy old fisherman with his hard life showing in every

wrinkle in his face. You almost always see that type of portrait done in BW.

I recently saw a BW photo of an elderly persons hand - it was breathtaking! As a texture, wrinkles adapt very well to BW, and often look far better than the same scene in color. And for me, that’s really saying a lot! For most of my photo career I avoided shooting BW because it always seemed like something was missing (color). It never seemed as though something was added (art). I just never “got it.” You need to put in some time to develop your eye for BW. It won’t just happen. But the good news is, it isn’t hard to do and once you develop the black and white “eye”, you too will be able to shoot photos that grab the viewer and won’t let go! How to develop the eye? For the next month, make ALL your photos BW! EVERYTHING! It won’t take long for you to start to recognize a good black and white subject and one that isn’t so hot. (This project assumes that you are shooting - at least a little - everyday.) For the second tip, don’t shoot in black and white! This may seem to be in opposition to the first tip, but it isn’t. Keep reading.

With your digital camera, when you shoot in BW mode, it actually takes the shot in color and then converts it to black and white “in the camera.” Sounds good in theory, but unfortunately, most digital cameras don’t do a very good job of it. You are better off taking the photo in color. Then - in your photo editing program convert it to BW. Then after it is converted, use burning and dodging, layers, curves, levels and so on to turn it into black and white art.

Never shoot in black and white for your keeper - BUT - you should always snap off a quick BW preview so you can analyze the scene for its BW potential. Then shoot in color and convert it later in Photoshop or Gimp.

So, to learn to create those award winning - and contest winning - black and white photos; do a quick BW preview of everything you shoot for the next month and you will quickly develop the “eye.” There just isn’t any way - other than practice to get there. After you’ve done a quick preview shot, then you can shoot in color and convert it to black and white later. Pretty soon you’ll be making black and white art!

For those fast moving scenes where you will lose the shot if you take time to do a BW preview, shoot in color, then convert it later. Just skip the BW preview.

Eliminate Camera Shake Key 11: Your Shooting Stance One of the most pervasive problems with most amateur photography, (and more professional photography than you may think) is camera shake! Camera shake is (usually) the reason for all those blurry, out of focus photos. Stop blaming your camera and your lenses. Out of focus shots are rarely caused by a technical problem, but are caused by technique problems! Keep in mind that if you’ve been looking at your photos and saying “not perfect, but good enough”, it isn’t! If you ever decide to print them in larger sizes (to hang on the wall), your focus and camera shake mistakes – that you can’t even detect when you view your shot in the camera or on the computer - will be exaggerated. That stunning, once in a lifetime shot will be somewhere between nothing special and downright bad. So, to that end, the next several keys to better photography will be addressing ways to eliminate camera shake and get our photos crystal clear and sharp. First, let’s talk about your stance. You need to start thinking like a sniper with a rifle! Your Shooting Stance needs to be solid! Have you ever noticed how being a photographer and being a sniper are very similar? First off, there’s the obvious term - shoot. A sniper is trained to shoot and a photographer is trained to shoot. We call it shooting a portrait or shooting a landscape - having a model shoot and so on. Next, no good sniper would ever take a shot without recording it in his shot notebook. It’s how they learn the effects of heat and cold on a bullet. They learn how the ballistics are altered by varying wind speeds, altitudes and etc. While less than 1% of you are likely to be keeping a shot notebook, the top photographers do. I’ve been harping on it forever. This one simple act can propel your photography to heights you can only dream about right now. Next, the stance. Have you ever studied the stance used by good (rifle) shooters

when they are shooting from a standing or kneeling position? It is SOLID! Both in the legs and upper body.

The legs provide a strong steady platform and the rifle is held tightly against their shoulder. All to minimize any possible movements. If the muzzle moves even a fraction of an inch, they will miss the target. BTW - the stance is exactly the same every time too! They learn to do it the best possible way - then never alter it! It becomes a muscle memory. Then they gently squeeze the trigger - so they don’t inadvertently alter the rifles aim. If you observe a top photographer, the stance is very similar - if not exactly the same. A steady base is just as important for a photographer as it is for a sniper.

To avoid movement, the camera is held tightly against their face, while they look through the viewfinder. (If you shoot by holding your camera at arms length and watching the viewing screen - stop it. RIGHT NOW!)

And like a sniper gently squeezes the trigger, a photographer gently squeezes the shutter release to avoid camera shake. The longer the lens, the more we are prone to camera shake, but it exists even on short lenses.

This key for better photography is to consider your stance… is it as solid as possible? Could you make a 16 x 12 blowup of your photo and have it still be sharp and clear? How about a 20 x 30 or even a 40 x 50? It is possible.

Key 12: Tripod Tips This particular key to better photography will be an obvious one. Use a tripod!

Here is some good news and some bad… The good news is that, using a tripod when you shoot will go a long way towards helping to eliminate camera shake. Also, because of the time it takes to make the tripod adjustments, it will force you to slow down and pay more attention to your shot. The bad news is that there are a lot of situations where it really isn’t practical to use a tripod. There may not be enough room. (We’ll cover this in a later key to better

photography.) It may be too slow! For example, if you are shooting portraits of a pet, by the time you’ve made the necessary tripod adjustments, Fido or Fifi will be gone! It’s the same with kids.

But whenever possible, you should use a tripod. Camera shake is one of the biggest problems we face as photographers and a tripod will go a long way toward fixing it. I’m not going to bother trying to describe how they work, there is such a thing as being TOO basic - but there are a few hints you can follow when buying one. First, I will say that you want to get the best one you can afford. Actually, that’s a good rule to follow whenever you buy any sort of photo equipment. You will be better off - a lot better off - buying less equipment, but of a better quality. Get a good tripod that will give you sturdy support. That’s what they are for!

If you get one of those lightweight spindly things that can barely support the weight of your camera, it isn’t worth the effort needed to set it up. Every breeze or ground vibration will set up a shake that is worse than if you hand-held the camera.

On the other hand… In all of photography, you will have to make decisions that may involve a compromise. I.e. you could want a super fast shutter speed to freeze the action -

but you don’t have enough light. Or, in low light situations, you may want a wide open aperture - but the depth of field is too shallow. Or, you may want a heavy duty - SOLID - tripod but it is too heavy and inconvenient to lug around - and before long you stop using it. Frequently when we’re out enjoying our photo hobby, we just want to shoot. We never considered that we may need a tripod, so when the situation arises, our tripod is in the trunk of the car - a long way away! It seems we never have one with us when we need it. You want one that is easy enough to carry that you will have no qualms about ALWAYS taking it with you. It may be worth having a couple! Tripods ARE often heavy and awkward to carry around. It may be worth your while to get a smaller, lighter one to keep in the car. Save your heavy duty - all the bells and whistles - one for when you know you will actually need to have those features! Use your lightweight one when you are just out having some fun, and the heavier one when you have a specific shot in mind. But not too lightweight! I should probably refer to it as a medium weight tripod. So, your trade-off is that you may want a sturdy, quality tripod - but you need to get one that is lightweight enough so that you will actually use it. Take the time needed to find the right one(s) for you. Next - and this is vital, get a good head for your tripod. You want one that will safely support your camera and is easy to adjust. Get a good one. I often see tripods where the head costs more than the tripod itself.

You should be able to adjust the head to any position you want. Most good quality heads now include one or more built in bubble levels (like the ones carpenters use). They are useful - make sure your tripod’s head has one.

BTW - Make sure the legs on the tripod are both easy to adjust and are secure. You don’t want one of them collapsing and dumping your camera.

It’s not vital, but another option would be to get a tripod where the center column can be reversed. That will allow you to lower your camera all the way to the ground - if necessary - for those stunning flower shots.

By the way, if your tripod’s center column is NOT reversible, you can get an extra head and mount it on a piece of ½ inch plywood. Make it about a foot square and you will have a sturdy - low to the ground - base for your camera. When using your tripod, if you want to go higher or lower - raise or lower the three legs, not the center column. It is more involved and takes longer, but the stability increase is worth it. If you raise the center column, it makes the tripod top heavy - and shaky.

Lastly, if your tripod is prone to shaking due to ground vibrations, you can suspend a sandbag or some other weight from the center column to increase the stability. Even though we know we should have a tripod with us at all times, sure enough, we will be visiting friends or neighbors and want a shot, but our tripod is at home. We can hand hold the camera, but what if we want to be in the shot too? Look around and find a lamp! The shade is usually attached by some sort of nut that tightens the shade to a post on the lamp. That threaded post is often the same size as the threaded tripod hole on the bottom of your camera. Take off the shade and screw your camera onto the lamp!

Not an ideal (or even a very good) situation, but it can be used in a pinch.

Key 13: Use A Tripod - Like A Monopod Here is a key to better photography that will get you more use out of your tripod and create the better photography that comes with using one, even when you are in a situation where you may not normally be able to use a tripod! You might be in a seat in the bleachers at a sporting event, or possibly stuck in an assigned seat at a concert, or maybe the only place you can shoot from has a ton of foot traffic that would keep bumping into and tripping over your tripod. Sometimes - particularly at weddings, the action is hot and heavy and you have to keep moving - you don’t have time to keep extending and retracting all three of the legs. Whatever... Here is what you do. Turn your tripod into a monopod! All you have to do is extend one leg on the tripod instead of all three! Then handle it the same way you would a normal monopod. Using your tripod like a monopod will instantly solve a lot of the problems of shooting with a tripod. With only one leg extended, it will easily fit in the space in front of your seat in the bleachers, and since it is straight up and down and you are holding it - no one is likely to trip over the legs and so on. Plus if done correctly, using a monopod

can be as stable as using a tripod! This key to better photography is to turn your tripod into a monopod. It won’t save you from lugging your tripod around, but it can get you more stable shots in places where you normally couldn’t use a tripod!

Key 14: How To Use A Monopod Here’s a key to better photography that you aren’t likely to find anywhere else. How to use a monopod to get better photographs! A monopod (like the tripod) should be considered an essential piece of camera gear! We all know that using a tripod will give us cleaner, sharper photos. That’s a given! But lugging around a tripod can often be a major challenge - not to mention that a lot of time we are in a situation where it is impossible to use one. Often, there just isn’t room.

So, most photographers (at least the ones that are serious enough to want good photos) end up getting a monopod and are greatly disappointed. Used improperly, it has all the time delaying drawbacks of a tripod and is unstable to boot! Generally it ends up in a closet somewhere never to be seen again. If you didn’t know - a monopod has the same head and so on as a tripod, but only has one leg. This design makes it lighter and easier to carry around - it can even be used as a walking stick if you are trekking through the wilds. But, after one or two uses, most of us come to the realization that it isn’t any steadier than shooting hand-held. In fact with only one leg, it wobbles around so much that it is usually WORSE than shooting hand-held. So we toss it in our unused camera gear graveyard and never touch it again. Big mistake! The monopod is every bit as stable as a tripod; it’s just that few of us know how to properly use it. We use it as a stick with a camera on top - instead, we should use it like a tripod! Here is how to use a monopod... First: For stability, we need three legs like a tripod. Here is how we turn a one legged monopod into a tripod. The monopod itself is ONE leg and our own two legs - spread apart at a bit more than shoulder width - are the other TWO legs of

the tripod. Second: Place the monopod in front of you so that when you tilt it back to bring the camera to your eye, it forms a 45 degree angle. You will have to increase its length by quite a bit to get the 45 degree tilt and still have the camera at eye level. There is your tripod, your two legs and the monopod. Third: The camera should be attached to a swivel head. Tilt the camera (on the head) about 45 degrees forward so that when you lean the monopod back (so the camera is at your eye), the lens is level even though the monopod is leaning back at 45 degrees. Fourth: When you are shooting, get into a good solid stance and hold the camera firmly against your face. You now have a - virtual - tripod that is every bit as good as most - actual - tripods. With the added benefit of being fast and easy to work with! As a bonus it is lightweight when lugging it around too! This idea is like tying your shoes. It’s difficult to put into writing, but not too hard once you get the idea. This key to better photography can help you rescue your monopod from the closet and turn it into one of your most useful camera gear accessories. Since it is easier and lighter to carry than a tripod, you’ll actually USE it and create far better photography.

Key 15: Hands Off The Button

This key to better photography will further our study of how to eliminate camera shake. This idea is mostly mentioned when discussing night photography, because of the long shutter speeds, but is actually useful any time you want blur free photos! As tips go, it’s not some earth shaking, hot off the presses idea. In fact, I’m sure that many or possibly even most of you will have heard of this... but unfortunately, like many of the best photo techniques, we don’t actually DO it! It’s time to stop procrastinating and take some action! Here’s the problem... Camera Shake. Camera shake is the enemy of ANY photo but is always a concern in long exposure shots. It is particularly bad in night photography because of the extended shutter times involved. Obviously you need a tripod to hold the camera steady - by the way, that’s NOT today’s key to better photography - anyone trying to shoot at night without a tripod may as well give up and go home.

(As a side note, be careful about kicking the tripod. In the dark it is easy to do and it will set up vibrations that seemingly take forever to settle down.) Enough said. But, even with a tripod, we are going to get a bit of camera shake! Just pressing the shutter button will slightly move the camera and instill some movement blur into the shot.

The further you are from the subject matter, the more magnified and obvious the blur becomes. Those gorgeous night time city skylines may look OK as a 4 x 6 print, but if you want something larger for the wall - it just won’t happen. So clearly, the way to remove this blur is to get your hands off the shutter button!

Most of the better cameras offer a timed shutter release or a bulb function (or both)... use it! Use it every time you are shooting a long shutter speed shot - or using your tripod - not just at night.

This will trigger the shutter, without you having to touch the shutter button. Voila! No camera shake or vibrations. Hopefully you have been doing such a good job at reducing camera shake that you will never notice the difference in your smaller final shots - but it is there! The more you “blow up” an image, the more visible even minor camera shake becomes. Personally, I would rather use the technique and not notice any difference in my normal shooting, than not use it and ruin a shot! While a typical photo may look

good as a 4 x 6 or even as an 8 x 10 - you never know when you will want a photo for the wall. Perhaps a 20 x 30 or larger. You are better off taking the time and extra effort to shoot ALL your shots to the highest standards, rather than later realize that the once in a lifetime shot you created can’t be made into a large print. (And no, sharpening it in Photoshop won’t cut it!)

Key 16: Mirror, Mirror I’ve been talking about how camera shake is your enemy - the reason being that camera shake introduces focus blurring that will mess up ANY shot, not just long exposure shooting - and not just at night. Again, the blurring may not be noticeable in smaller prints, but if you want something for the wall - you may find that shot you were so proud of isn’t any good at all! This subject is so prevalent that I’m deliberately beating it into the ground… In the first “anti-camera shake” tip I said you would need a tripod. Next, I said that you should shoot with a timed shutter release or use a shutter release bulb. In this way you don’t introduce shake by depressing the shutter button. As a side note… I even suggested suspending a sandbag from the center column of your tripod for extra weight and stability! Now for one last camera shake removal technique - most of the higher quality

DSLR’s and SLR’s have a feature called the “mirror lockup”. This is another key to better photography that very few of us use, but it can make a big difference. In case you didn’t know, here is how it works... When you are looking through the viewfinder you are not looking directly through the lens. You are looking at a mirrored reflection. Actually it’s a reflection passing through two mirrors. It’s these reflections that visually turn over the image and let us see it the way it is... not upside down.

Light goes in through the lens, hits a mirror at 45 degrees, then bounces up into the viewfinder and off another prism surface and out into your eye. That first 45 degree mirror is actually in front of the shutter and has to be lifted out of the way when the shutter is opened to let in light. The lifting and dropping of the mirror is that clicking sound you hear when you depress the shutter button. That lifting motion causes camera shake. Admittedly it’s not very much, and few of us are so exacting in our photography that it will ever cause much problem, but it is there and is enough to introduce blur. When you are all set to take your tripod mounted, timed release, long exposure shot... lock up the mirror. This does exactly what it sounds like it does; it lifts the mirror, and locks it in place so there is no mirror movement when the shot is taken. BTW - After you lock up the mirror, give it a few seconds to let the camera settle

before you shoot. There will be minor vibrations for a little while. Don’t know if your camera has this feature? Check the manual! You shouldn’t have ANY buttons, switches or knobs on your camera that you don’t understand! They are all there for a reason. If you want the ultimate in clear photographs - use a tripod, trip the shutter with a timed exposure and lock up the mirror. Then, as long as you don’t trip over the tripod, you will have amazingly sharp photography!

Using On-Camera Flash Key 17: The Twenty-Five Foot Rule Here is a flash photography key to better photos that can save you a lot of frustration - and money! Your on-camera flash is only good for about twenty-five feet! Have you ever gone to a big sporting event? Or even seen one on television? If so, did you notice all the flashes going off in the stands? It’s amazing! I enjoy watching the track and field races during the summer Olympics. As the runner goes by each section of the grandstands, thousands of flashes go off. It’s almost like watching a “wave” of light following the runner around the track. “So what,” you say. As I mentioned, an on camera flash has an effective range of about 25 feet! Anything more than that and the light is completely useless! It isn’t helping AT ALL!

OK, so now you may be thinking, “No big deal, so it isn’t helping! If the light isn’t making it to the subject, it isn’t hurting either.” Actually, it IS hurting! On automatic when you enable the flash to fire, your camera is able to determine

that the distance from the lens to the subject is too far. Your camera knows the flash isn’t going to reach the subject, but it tries to do your bidding by making sure every flash is at maximum power! Your camera, being the faithful servant that it is, is trying to light the entire stadium with your little on camera flash unit! Here is one way it can hurt you. When you shoot with the flash firing at full power, it completely drains the charge. Therefore, it takes your flash longer to recharge. Trust me when I say, the best photo opportunities ALWAYS appear while you are waiting for the flash to recharge. And you miss them! It’s Murphy’s Law! Any wedding photographer who says he or she hasn’t missed a lot of great shots (sometimes even essential shots) while they were waiting for the flash to recharge is lying. Another great way that firing your flash at full power - when it isn’t helping the photo in any way - will cost you, you are using up your batteries at an alarming rate! As mentioned, great shots come and go while you are waiting for the flash unit to recharge, but you will miss even MORE great photos because the photo opportunity happens while you are changing batteries! Or even worse, while you are dead in the water because you DON’T HAVE any fresh batteries! Later, when the stars are giving out autographs, or you are on a tour of the stadium, or the bride is about to be kissed - and you can’t get the shot because your batteries are drained, well, now you know why you go through batteries so fast. Stop cursing your camera. It’s not the camera’s fault! Only use your flash when it is going to actually be beneficial. You will save money AND get more great shots!

Key 18: Intensify The Colors In Your Photos Here is a key to better photography that has gotten me more compliments on my portraiture than you would ever believe! I am always hearing about how my colors are so intense and how my subjects “pop” out of the frame, etc.

It is soooo easy! In fact by the time you finish reading this key, you will be fully qualified to use this strategy yourself. Here it is, turn on your camera’s flash! In the previous key to better photography we discussed turning your flash off

when you are too far from the subject for it to help. In this key to better photography, I say (if your subject is close enough) you should virtually ALWAYS use your flash! We all know we need a flash when it is dark. We all know we need one when we are shooting indoors (to overwhelm the color cast of the interior lights). But when you are outside - even at high noon, your flash can be a true life saver! By the way, high noon is the worst possible time to shoot! But we don’t care. We can still get good shots. I’ll explain how in a minute. Why is high noon so bad? Those are the shooting conditions (the sun directly overhead) that will either give your subjects “raccoon eyes,” or they will be squinting and totally ruin your portraits.

Here’s what you do... Block the sun in some way. This is usually done by putting your subject in open shade. Stick them in the shade of a tree, under a porch awning, in the shade of a building - whatever. I’m sure you know what I mean. Now the sun is lighting the background, but the subjects are shaded. This is good because it eliminates the “raccoon eyes” and squinting plus it gives a nice even -

soft - lighting to the face.

But we have a problem. Now, our subject is darker than their background. If we expose for the background, the subject will be too dark. If we expose for the subject, the background will be too light and get blown out. Answer: Use your flash! This way you can balance the light between the subject and the background, while eliminating the squinting and raccoon eyes associated with an overhead sun. Or even better, rather than balancing the light between the subject and background, use your flash to slightly over-light the subject. (About ½ to 1 stop.) Then the background will be slightly underexposed and darker - which tends to intensify the colors.

These little tips add up. Use this key to better photography and your portraits will “pop” with added color and intensity. Before you know it, you will be considered the best shooter in your area.

Key 19: Eliminate “Red Eye!” This key to better photography is about spooky, creepy looking eyes. We all know about the “red eye” effect ruining our photos! But have you ever seen the “green eye” effect? (Sometimes it is blue.) Those of you that HAVE seen the green and blue eye effect are undoubtedly looking at pet (or other animal) portraits. In animals, green and blue eyes are the same thing as red eye in humans! Most of you already know what causes it, but for those who don’t, red eye is a result of your flash being too close to the lens.

When the light source is close to the lens (like with an on-camera flash), here’s what happens: The flash is fired and light travels from the flash into the pupil of the subject’s eye. Then, it bounces off the back of the eyeball, back out through the pupil and straight back into the camera’s lens. Light bounces the same way a billiards ball does. It reflects out at the same angle it went in. If it hits the subject at a steep angle - like 45 degrees, etc., it will bounce off at 45 degrees. In other words, light hitting a model from one side, will exit to the other side. With the on-camera flash, the light hits the model with little or no angle at all! So it comes straight back and into the lens. What causes “red eye” is that the light from the flash goes into the eye and reflects off the back of the eyeball. The red you are seeing is the red of the blood vessels and inside surface of the eye. Green and blue eye is the same thing - only in animals. When you are shooting dogs and cats, you will frequently run into the problem. How to fix it? Change the angle of the light so it doesn’t bounce off the back of the eye and straight back into the lens! (Tadaa!) Move the flash off the camera and away from the lens, angle the flash head so it bounces off the wall or ceiling and then onto the subject, or get rid of the flash

altogether and use another light source. That’s why you frequently see photographers with their flash unit mounted on one of those big stalks off to the side of the camera. They are just eliminating a few problems caused by flash - one of which is red eye.

One fix that I do NOT recommend is using the “Red Eye” setting on your camera. What that does is fire off a bunch of small pulses of light prior to firing the main flash and exposing the photo. The idea is that these pulses of light will cause the pupil in the subject’s eye to constrict - become smaller - so the light can’t easily get in and back out. Interesting concept in theory – but useless in actual practice. This setting is bad for several reasons! Not to mention the excess use of your flash’s batteries! It doesn’t work – you still almost always get red eye. It’s just smaller because of the constricted pupil. If you are shooting an animal, it will freak them out and you can forget about getting any good shots! You’ll be doing good to even find them after they take off. Worse, it makes the subject squint and you’ve lost that terrific expression you were trying to get a shot of. At the very best, you’ve lost the moment and your creative work will suffer! I hope this key to better photography helps you understand how to eliminate red, green and blue eye! Both your human and pet portraits will benefit.

Outdoors/Landscape Photography Key 20: Create Better Landscape Photos! At some point in our photo lives, we all give landscape photography a try. And when we see the results - for the most part - we are disappointed. This key to better photography will help you move your landscape photos to a new level, and give you something you can hang on your wall with pride.

Landscape photography isn’t easy! It would seem that all we have to do is find a pretty location, set up our camera and voila! We start winning contests left and right. Not going to happen. In fact, I once read a quote from one of the greatest landscape photographers of all time - Ansel Adams - who said he felt lucky if he could get one good shot A MONTH! By the way, the negatives of some of his best known works are almost unprintable. My personal opinion of Ansel Adams is that he was a pretty good photographer, but nothing extraordinary. His genius was in the darkroom. Did you know that he didn’t use a light to expose the negative onto the photo sensitive paper? He had some sort of convoluted setup of mirrors etc., where he funneled actual sunlight down through a pipe in his studio ceiling and onto his negatives. If it was nighttime or heavily overcast, he couldn’t print! As part of the printing/exposure process, he created an actual book of how long each individual section of the negative needed to be exposed and so forth. For example, the clouds for half a second, the trees for 3 seconds the foreground for 1

second and so on. It took him a LONG time to work out how to print each negative to best effect. After all that, he wound up throwing out as many prints as he kept. His printing standards were pretty high! I say all of this to point out that even with digital cameras giving us immediate feedback, and Photoshop giving us a LOT of opportunities to fix mistakes, we will STILL have trouble getting that “WOW” factor into our landscape photos. Here is a way to immediately move ahead to the next level. Consider the light. Perhaps more than any other style of photography, landscape photos rely on the quality of light to give us that elusive “wow”.

Look through all your photo magazines, books and courses and you’ll find that one common element is that almost NONE of the photos were shot around noon! Take a few minutes to check it out - it’s true. When were they shot? Here is a vital key to better photography... Typically the best light you are going to get is just before the sun breaks the horizon at dawn through to about an hour past dawn - and sunset through to about an hour after the sun dips below the horizon.

You may have a terrific eye for landscape photography, composition, exposure and so forth - but if you don’t shoot at these optimal times, you are out of luck. It’s just not going to work. If you are a budding (or even a professional) photographer and you want great landscape photos, if the sun is out when you wake up in the morning, you have forever missed an opportunity. It’s the same in the evening. If you are at home watching the 6 o’clock news on television when the sun goes down, you are never going to succeed as a landscape photographer. Sorry, that’s just the way it is. So our first piece of equipment advice to get better landscape photos - is to buy a good alarm clock. And use it.

For most of us, even if you have to be at work in the morning, you will usually have enough time in the morning to get out there and practice your landscape photography for an hour or so - and still get to the office on time. Even if you don’t work outside the house, it’s the same with kids. Leave them with the sleeping spouse, roll out of bed (while it is still dark) go to your pre-selected location, shoot from dawn to about an hour past and you can still get home before most of them even wake up! Note: you don’t need to drive to some distant mountain range. Just go to a local park, or shoot a nice looking building. You are learning to work with light. Then, when you are on vacation, you will have the skills needed to get the landscape shots you’ve been dreaming of.

Key 21: Shooting In Bad Weather! Are you a fair weather photographer? If so, you are missing out on some terrific opportunities! Look at all the better “coffee table” photo books and photo contest winners, I think you will find that many of the best shots were done in bad weather.

Just before a rainstorm, the clouds in the sky can be very dynamic! Or, just after a rainstorm - those rainbows can often make or break a landscape photo. Add in the dynamic colors of a dawn or dusk sun - and you’ve got something pretty awesome!

Caution! Before you head out in or just before a rainstorm; be sure you are adequately protecting your camera gear. Electronics and water don’t mix well together. Generally, covering a camera with a plastic bag of some sort will do the trick. Don’t actually shoot while it is raining. Driving home the notion of electronics and water not mixing, I once read a question and answer some place - probably a photo forum. I’m paraphrasing but

the question was something like, “If I drop my camera in the water at the beach, what should I do?” The answer was something like, “Get the camera out of the water as fast as possible and completely dry it off, both inside and out. Once it is dry, put the camera back together and then throw it back into the water as far as you can! It’s never going to work again!” Now, to be fair, they were talking about salt water which is highly corrosive. If your camera gets wet with non-salt water, it can sometimes be fixed. Accent on the word SOMETIMES! Don’t chance it! If there is even the remotest chance that you could drop your camera in the water – be sure to use a sturdy camera strap! Here is a bad weather project you can do - Churches! Once you see the photo results, you may be the only person in your area that cheers when the weatherman predicts bad weather! If you set yourself a goal of getting stunning dawn and/or dusk photos - WITH the added drama of inclement weather skies, you can create something a lot of people are going to want! Plus, you will learn a LOT about landscape photography, inclement weather photography and so on.

Keeping in mind that bad weather doesn’t come around every day, you will want to scout out your locations in advance. When the time comes, there shouldn’t be any wasted time or any question about where you are going to go and where you are going to set up your shots. Shoot fast and you may be able to get in a couple different locations before you lose the dramatic light. Shoot fast, but stay with each location until you get a winner. (It won’t do much good to get shots of a lot of locations if they aren’t well done.) Plan to start shooting before the sun actually comes up over the horizon. Even while below the horizon, it will still be lighting the sky and can make some pretty cool silhouettes. Same with dusk - keep shooting until about an hour after the sun goes down! BTW - There is actually a false dawn and a false sunset about 20 minutes before and after the sun breaches the horizon that will often give you the best shots! What to do with the photos?

Once you have a collection of photos of all the churches, temples, mosques and so on in your community... 1. Put together your own coffee table book! It can be marketed to the Chamber of Commerce or other service organizations. They love stuff like that. Or just keep it for yourself. Or self publish it and give it out as Christmas gifts. I’m told Steven King writes a book each year (or did at one time) that he only sends out as Christmas gifts. If you aren’t on his list, it is impossible to get a copy. He never publishes them. Imagine the value of THOSE limited edition books! You could do the same. 2. You can also contact each church and sell them enlarged prints. Or you can donate the prints in exchange for the opportunity to take family and individual portraits of their congregation. Or just plain donate them because you want to see your work hanging in a public place. 3. Contact wedding photographers in the area and offer to sell them prints for their wedding clients. A highly dramatic print of the church they got married in will add a lot to a couple’s wedding album. AND most wedding photographers will NOT have photos as dramatic as yours! Point out the unique skies, getting out of bed before dawn and all the other work involved and they will generally not want to go through the effort. Pro photographers are as lazy as the rest of us! Not to mention, pro wedding photographers are tight on time. If nothing else, you will get to meet all the wedding photographers in your area. Networking works!

They may even employ you from time to time as a backup. 4. Or, just use them to blow your competition out of the water in the local photo contest! Whether or not you want to try this project, at least try dragging yourself out of bed and shooting at dawn, particularly in inclement weather. Come up with your own coffee table photo book and photo contest ideas! It is fun and you will learn to truly be the master of light - and able to get the type of landscape photography you see in the books and magazines.

Key 22: Two Horizon Photo Tips Landscape photographs are among the most beautiful photos you can produce. But, it isn’t easy! To get decent results, you have to know, understand - and follow - tons of rules. Individually, none of them are a very big deal, but they combine to create powerful landscape photos. Here are 2 photo tips that are each another of those little steps to greatness. In a previous key to better photography, we discussed using the right kind of light. In this key, we will talk about a couple compositional elements. Photo tip #1 - Make sure your horizon is straight!

This seems to be so basic as to be almost unworthy of mention - but it is amazing how often the horizon line is not straight! True, when you are shooting a mountainous scene - with hills, valleys and so on, it can sometimes be difficult to determine just where the horizon is. But you have to find it, and make it level. That’s why tripod heads have those leveling bubbles. A tilted horizon becomes more obvious when you are looking at a photo of a lake or the ocean. THAT horizon absolutely must be level and frequently it isn’t. It’s a bit disconcerting to see the horizon sloping to one side. Is the ocean pouring out of the frame? It only takes a second to double check and make sure your horizons are level. BTW – this is not necessarily true in portrait photography. Frequently, you can get some pretty stunning results by tilting the camera when you’re shooting people. Photo tip #2 - Make sure your (straight) horizon is not in the dead center of the photograph. You need a “star” for the viewer’s eye to settle on. This rule is easier to violate than the level horizon one is - and it is violated right and left! Having the horizon in the center of the frame feels right - while having it off center is counter intuitive. But, it is a compositional biggie!

When the horizon is dividing a photo in half, it can be very static and boring! There is no excitement or drama. The viewer doesn’t know what is most important - the sky, or the ground? What should they focus their attention on? Where should they look?

Any contest winning photograph needs a “star”. You have to decide, what is the star in this photo - is it the sky? Did you want to show the viewer some dramatic storm clouds? Or clouds with golden light kissing the bottoms? Or lights in the sky? If so, lower the horizon to about the bottom third of the frame. This will accent and make the sky the star!

Is the star of your landscape the ground? Did you want to draw attention to some natural feature or possibly reflections in a placid lake? Raise the horizon to about the top third of the frame and accent the foreground.

True, from time to time having the horizon in the center will be the best placement. There ARE exceptions to every rule. A centered horizon is frequently done in photos showing a reflection. Often, in that type of photo, the top and bottom half are both equally important. But this is an exception - and center horizon placement should be avoided unless you have a specific reason for them.

There was SOMETHING that caught your eye when you decided to take the shot! What was it? Make sure to raise or lower the horizon to make it the star - then, make sure the horizon is level! These two keys to better photography will help you along the road to becoming the best landscape photographer in your area.

Key 23: More On Level Horizons This key to better photography will further our investigation into getting better landscape photos. By the way, I consider city skylines as landscape photographs. It’s basically the same thing only with buildings instead of mountains. Let’s spend a little bit more time on making sure the shot (and the horizon in it) are level. In previous keys to better photography, we’ve looked into making sure the horizon

is level, but most of us don’t give this compositional technique nearly enough consideration. In fact, we generally don’t consider it at all! It’s important and can ruin a photo if not properly done. Here are a couple more leveling thoughts... As mentioned earlier, many tripods have one (or more) of those bubble levels installed in the head to help with the leveling issue. Some cameras are now including a level too! Here’s why.

At first, getting your images level may seem, easy, basic and obvious, but if it weren’t such a huge problem, would tripod and camera manufacturers bother to insert one or more levels? It has to increase their manufacturing costs and they wouldn’t do that it if it weren’t necessary! The problem is, often it is difficult to make the horizon level when looking at the image in the view finder - in this case I’m referring to the horizontal view (from a side to side perspective). Why? It is often difficult to even determine where the horizon is! You can’t make it level if you don’t know where it is! If you have - and use - a bubble level. That way you won’t have to determine where the horizon is. Just make sure the camera is level! What if you don’t have a bubble level? In these cases, it is sometimes easier to level the camera by looking for a vertical

object in the frame and making sure it goes straight up and down. Possibly a tree trunk or the edge of a building.

Let me point out that the camera not only has to be level side to side (horizontally across the frame), but front to back as well. (Up and down.) This will eliminate key-stoning. Key-stoning distorts the image. With buildings, it looks like they are falling over, and is most apparent when using very wide angle lenses. Architectural photographers run into this issue all the time. Their problem is that they may have to shoot a very tall building - from across the street! How can they get the entire building in the frame, from street level all the way up to where the top of the building disappears into the clouds? First they need a very wide angle lens to get the whole building in the frame, but this can introduce distortion and key-stoning. They solve it by using a special type of lens called a tilt and shift lens. In simple terms, a tilt and shift lens is able to move the lens elements so that the lens is level in respect to the subject. It’s an expensive but necessary piece of architectural photography. Have you ever seen a photo of a large building that looks like it is leaning and about to fall over?

That’s keystoning. They weren’t using a tilt and shift lens. In this situation, they used either a wide angle lens and got key-stoned (is that a word?), or they just used a regular lens, pointed up – in either case, the shot wasn’t level. Now, put this photo tip to the test. Get out there this weekend and do some landscape photography. Concentrate on getting the horizon level. Figure out how to use the bubble level and a vertical surface to get the horizon level in shots where it may not be apparent. Then do a few shots where the horizon isn’t level. Study them side to side! Can you see how vital it is to be level? Now go to a tall building and aim the camera up to photograph the top of the building. Take the shot. See how it looks like it’s about to fall over? That’s key stoning.

Finally, go to a camera store and have them show you a tilt and shift lens and have them explain how it works.

Key 24: Stunning City Skyline Photography Have you noticed those after dark photos where you see all these clearly visible buildings... sometimes lit by an ethereal looking golden light created by sunset? Plus, they have all the interior lights on and as a bonus, if the street is visible, you can often see the white and red light trails of cars.

They are stunning photos to say the least - contest winners! So we try to duplicate them. Shoot before dark… If we shoot just before the sun goes down, we get a nice shot of the city skyline sometimes even with that nice golden glow. But, since it is still light out, there are few if any interior lights. And in areas where there ARE lights, we can barely see them. As far as the traffic light trails, there just aren’t any. It’s not dark and the cars don’t have their headlights on! Plus, with all the light in the sky, your shutter speed wouldn’t be long enough to capture light trails even if the cars’ headlights were on!

Here’s what we get if we shoot after dark… If we shoot after it gets dark, we get nice photos of the building’s lights, and the light trails from the cars, but it is dark. We don’t get the nicely defined shapes of the buildings (or any clear view of the buildings at all).

What to do? The way I’ve written this so far may have already given you the answer. (Sometimes the obvious solution is the right one!) Do both! You do a double exposure!

An hour or so before sunset, pick the vantage point you want to shoot from - and set up your gear, using a tripod. Then, when the light is the way you want it to be (the golden glow on the buildings) shoot your photo. Then wait. Don’t move a thing. Later, when it is full dark and all the lights are on in the buildings and the traffic, shoot a second exposure. That’s how it is done folks. If you’ve never tried this, do it as this weekend’s project. You may like it so much you’ll never do another cityscape without using this method. With a film camera, double exposures are easy - just don’t advance the film. With digital cameras, you may have to shoot two separate exposures and combine them later in Photoshop. With this method, you will end up with one exposure showing the buildings and one exposure showing the lights! If you didn’t move anything, the lights will be in the windows where they belong, the buildings will glow and you have an award winning photo! To really do it right, in addition to using a tripod, trip the shutter with a timed exposure and lock up the mirror. This will eliminate any possible camera shake and give you a crystal clear, sharp photo that can be blown up for the wall. (Or for the lobby of most of the buildings in the photo.)

Key 25: Shoot Better Sunset Photos Sooner or later we all give sunset photography a shot. It’s almost a rite of passage! In fact, for a lot of us, seeing stunning sunset photos is what got us interested in photography in the first place! But, for most of us, our first attempts at sunset photography are dismal - at best. This and the next few keys to better photography are going to cover ways to move our sunset photography from the reject stack to the wall. Our first sunset photography better photo key is concerning exposure. This one is pretty basic, but we all have to start somewhere. If you haven’t yet learned how to get the right exposure, then it isn’t basic - it’s a game changer. For the most part, as beginners, when we first start shooting sunset photos, we have our camera set on automatic and trust in the in camera’s meter to get the correct exposure. When we see the final shot, the sun is there (as expected) but the whole rest of the photo is black. Or at least really dark.

When we first looked at the scene, the sunset was gorgeous. All the oranges, reds, and yellows reflecting off the clouds are what attracted us. But, in the final version, the clouds were pretty much gone! It just showed a dark, muddy mess. Why? It’s the meter. The light meter in your camera is designed for the “average” shot. Not for one that is overly bright or overly dark.

Because the meter is assuming your sunset photo is an average shot, it “reads” the amount of light in the scene, and sets the exposure to an average - or to somewhere around the middle of the scale between totally washed out and totally dark. (18% gray.) I explained this concept in an earlier section on the meter. For most photos we create, there actually are bright points and dark points - so setting the exposure to an average is acceptable. (Not great, but serviceable.) The light points will show as light, and the dark points will show as dark - while the averages will record properly. But, in our sunset photo, the sun is very bright in comparison to the rest of the scene. Let’s face it, at sunset the ground is starting to get pretty dark. Which makes the difference in light between the sun and ground even more dramatic. The meter sees all this light from the sun and sets the exposure to the middle. It is not showing the sun way up on the brightness scale where it belongs, but lowering the exposure to show the sun’s light in the middle of the light to dark spectrum. This dramatically underexposes the rest of the shot and everything but the sun goes black. By the way, the middle of the road exposure is called 18% gray. It is the point halfway between white and black. There is a lot of science involved, but simply put, that’s the way your camera’s meter works. The opposite is true too! If you metered the darker ground, the sky and sun (after bringing the ground exposure up to an 18% gray average) would be totally over exposed and blown out. How to fix it? Since the extremes of light and dark are what are creating the problem, the “fix” is to take your meter reading from the sky - but with the sun out of the frame! The sky - without sun - is pretty close to average (18% gray) so the reading will be correct. Or at least as correct as you are going to get.

The way to do that is take your meter reading from an area of the sky near to the sun, but with the sun out of the frame. Then recompose with the sun where you want it and shoot. Now the sky and clouds (which is probably what we were going for in the first place) will record all the colors, etc. Take this landscape better photography key and do some experimenting! Try doing some sunset photos by metering with the sun in the frame - then try one by metering from the ground. Finally try metering from the sky with the sun out of the frame. Compare the differences! It’s a good way to get a good understanding of your light meter - how it works and how to work with it!

Caution: Don’t look at the sun through your lens! You could damage your eyes and even go blind!

Key 26: How To Get Intense Sunset Photo Colors! In our last sunset photography key, we discussed how to meter the sunset so that you don’t get a dark, muddy (or even completely black) sky. We learned that the meter in our camera will see all the light from the sun and expose for that value while letting everything else in the scene go dark. To fix it, we learned to meter for the sky with the sun just out of the frame - then recompose to include it. In effect, this will increase the exposure value and more properly expose the sky. Now we are going to take a step backwards!

To get the most color and drama in your shot, underexpose! Now that we have learned how to increase the exposure to get a “correct” reading in the sky, we have to step back a bit and change our settings so they are slightly the “proper” exposure. That’s when you are going to get all of those colors to “POP!”

Slight underexposure will deepen and intensify the colors. The problem is that if you overexpose the sky - or even if you have a “correct” exposure (I put “correct” in quote marks because artistically there really is no such thing) you will wash out all the stunning colors that drew you to the scene in the first place. On the other hand, if you underexpose by too much, it all starts to go black. This is another area where shooting digital images is better than film. You can see what you are getting and make adjustments on the fly. When we were shooting film, we had to guess what the best exposure was - and frequently we were wrong. Even worse, we didn’t find out until the film was processed which could take several days - AND we had to pay $15 or $20 for the privilege of seeing bad or inadequate sunset photos! With digital we can immediately see the results and tweak our settings until we get exactly what we want! With this ability, there is absolutely no reason why YOU can’t get sunset photos

that will absolutely take your breath away.

The above image was done in HDR (High Dynamic Range) and shows what CAN be done with digital techniques! If you don’t want to invest in photo editing programs, you can still get results that - while not exactly the same - are very similar. The flip side to underexposing the sky in sunset photography is that while the clouds are going to be beautiful - the ground area is going to go darker. At sunset it is probably dark to begin with, and underexposing the image is going to further darken it - possibly (or even usually) making it go completely black with no detail. That is a bad thing. Unless you are going for a silhouette, you rarely - if ever want areas of your photographs to be dark and without detail. (You don’t want washed out with no detail either!)

Check the next few keys to better photography to discover how to solve THAT

problem (the ground going too dark)! Meanwhile, practice taking a few sunset photos with the sky slightly underexposed. You’ll like the increased intensity of the colors.

Using Photo Filters Key 27: Filters To The Rescue Filters will quickly boost your landscape photography - or any outdoor photos - to a whole new level. So, use filters in your photography! Filters can be an indispensable addition to any quality photo and most top shooters use them on virtually every shot!

With digital photography taking over the photo world, too many of us are using a point and shoot - camera on automatic - approach. Since there are no film development costs, we’ll fire off hundreds or even thousands of shots in the hopes that we will get one good one. The problem is that too often, we don’t get that good one! This scatter gun approach has dramatically reduced the photography skill set over the last few years and it is going to get even worse. Rather than learn to be great photographers, we are learning to be great at “fixing” photos in Photoshop. I have nothing against Photoshop, but it should be used as a “tweak” in photography. Not a fix. One of the “tweaks” we will frequently use Photoshop for is to insert the effect of filters. Photoshop is great at that - if - you simply want a color wash across the whole image!

But, there are a few filters where it is better to have them on your lens rather than try to add the effect later. Some filter effects CAN’T be added later. You could spend hundreds of hours in Photoshop on each photo trying – with dismal results - to seamlessly add them, or 30 seconds screwing it onto your lens. Again, is your desire to be a better photographer or to be an expert at Photoshop? Your choice. If you choose the former, you will want to have certain filters in your camera bag - and use them! Here are a few indispensable filters… UV filters, polarizers and neutral density filters. These filters are a MUST HAVE for any camera bag and their effects cannot be easily added by Photoshop.

The UV Filter. The UV filter will remove a bit of the atmospheric haze in the sky, but that’s not why most of us use them. If you leave it on your lens all the time, it will help protect your lens from scratches, etc. It is easier to replace a scratched UV filter for a couple bucks, than to replace a scratched lens for a couple hundred or even thousands of dollars!

Some photographers say that the cheaper glass of the UV filter on top of the better quality glass of the lens will give you a lesser quality photo. If you feel that way, it can be used to protect the lens normally, then removed just before shooting. That way you get the best of both worlds. The Polarizer.

By polarizing the light, polarizers remove glare from shiny objects, except metal. And they give us far better skies. It’s hard to imagine shooting an outdoor landcape photo without one. Neutral Density Filters.

Neutral density filters give us increased control over shutter speed and aperture settings. If you want that streaming, “cotton candy” look we so often see in photos of streams and waterfalls, you will need some neutral density filters.

They come in two major varieties - a neutral density filter with the ND material covering the entire surface of the filter - and a split neutral density filter where the ND material covers about half and the rest of the filter is clear.

They also come in various densities so you can get the degree of control you need! The best shooters wouldn’t dream of not having these filters in their camera bag. This key to better photography is meant to be a quick overview of some filters you will need. I’ll get more into how they work and how to use them later.

Key 28: The Indispensable Rubber Band! This key to better photography is simple, and short one - Keep A Rubber Band Handy! When you are using filters that screw onto the front of your lens - sooner or later you will run into the problem of wanting to remove it, but it won’t unscrew. It’s stuck! Sort of like the lid on a jar! Filters aren’t very big and it can be a challenge to get a good grip! Unlike a jar, we can’t really bang on it to get it loose - unless we want to constantly be buying new

lenses! Here’s what you do... Take a rubber band and wrap it around the filter. This will give you enough grip to get it started turning. That’s it! See? I told you this was an easy tip!

Where to keep your rubber band? You can keep one in your camera bag so it is always handy, but here is an even better option - wrap it around your wallet! Or go hog wild – get TWO rubber bands and do both. If you keep your wallet in your pocket, wrapping a rubber band around it makes it almost impossible for a pick-pocket to get the wallet out of your pocket! Try it! You’ll see what I mean! If you keep your wallet in a purse, there is less protection, but it still makes it harder to get the wallet out of your purse surreptitiously. These last two simple keys - use filters in your photography and keep a rubber band handy in case you can’t get the filter off - are just a couple more ways to take your outdoor, landscape photography to a whole new level. Next we will start talking about how and when to use your filters.

Key 29: Recovering The Ground! A couple keys back we talked about intensifying the colors in your sunsets by slightly underexposing the sky. As mentioned, the down side to this is that it will make the ground go dark and lose detail. Here is how to fix that problem… Add Split ND filters! When you’ve slightly underexposed the sky and you want to lighten the ground without lightening the sky, you would use a split neutral density filter. This way you can slightly underexpose the sky with the filter, not with the camera’s exposure settings. Here is how it works… A filter is simply a piece of plastic or glass you put in front of the lens. There are many types, but in this case we will be discussing the neutral density filter. What that means is that the filter is darkened with a neutral density material that will let less light through - but it is a neutral color. It’s kind of like sunglasses but the color of the light is not affected. In other words, the light looks the same; there is just less of it. That is a neutral density filter. But, you may ask - while it is letting in less light and underexposing the sky, it would underexpose the ground too!

True, IF the ND material covers the entire surface of the filter. (That type is handy too - but not here.) So we have what we call a split neutral density filter. What that means is that the top half has the neutral density material, but the bottom half is clear. This way, the top half is letting in less light so the sky is slightly underexposed and darker, but the ground is getting more exposure and is brighter so the details are recovered.

Neutral density filters can come in various amounts of filtration. 1 stop, 2, 3 or even 5! Plus they can be stacked for even more density. But, not all split filters are neutral! Actually, the filter can be colored too. When using a split colored filter, (color at the top, clear on the bottom) you can add color to a sunrise or sunset sky. Here’s a pro secret - many if not most of the beautiful colors you see in professionally shot sunsets have been added with a filter. Particularly in movies and on television. (Photo techniques don’t change just because it’s a movie set!) The thing about being a professional is that you HAVE TO GET THE SHOT. If nature isn’t providing the scene you need, YOU have to find a way to create it. I remember a few years back there was a television show called CSI Miami and they used colored filters EXTENSIVELY! In fact, they went a bit overboard. Filters should be a seamless addition to the shot. When the viewer starts to notice the colored filters, you’ve made a mistake. Watch for colored filters the next time you go to the movies - now that you are

looking for them, you’ll see their use - everywhere! You can stack them and use a colored filter to add colors to the sky and then darken it with a split neutral density filter to rescue the ground. For sunsets, tobacco colored filters tend to be very popular. For sunrises, filters trend more towards pink.

So, to create that jaw dropping - contest winning - sunset (or sunrise) you’ve been

dreaming about - first meter with the sun out of the frame to increase the exposure value. Then slightly underexpose the sky to intensify the colors with a filter. Finally, even add color to the sky if necessary with filters. These landscape keys to better photography are going to quickly separate you from the crowd! Try them!

Key 30: Amazing Waterfalls! Previously we discussed the split neutral density filter and how it can be used to intensify the sky’s color and bring back the ground detail in our sunset photos. Now we will discuss how the ND filter can be used to get great river and waterfall shots! I’m sure you’ve seen landscape photographs of a waterfall… You can shoot them so that every drop of water is in sharp relief... or you can shoot them so that the water looks like a massive string of cotton candy! And everything in between!

Interesting sidebar… did you know that Niagara Falls actually stopped flowing in 1848 for about 20 hours because there was ice that was blocking the Niagara River? Imagine a before and after shot of THAT! Anyway, back to our keys to better photography... We know that to get a sharp image, we need a fast shutter speed and to get the cotton candy blur we need a slow one. Pretty simple. Another good reason to put your camera on manual! You will never have those options on automatic! They will look like everyone else’s. YOU need to decide

what degree of sharpness or blur you want to show! What if we decide on shooting a waterfall with the long cotton candy stream? In that case we will want a really slow shutter speed - but what if it is a bright day? As you know, only a certain amount of light can be let in for a good exposure - if you let in too much, it will wash out the image and ruin the shot. So our first option is to close down the aperture (to let in less light so we can have a longer shutter speed.) But what if we go all the way to the smallest aperture setting and it still isn’t enough to give us the shutter speed we need? In other words, what if we are at the smallest aperture setting - and we still have too much light. Plus, there are problems with using a too small aperture, you may not be able to get the shallower depth of field you wanted. AND most lenses are made to be most accurate when the aperture is closer to the middle range. Unless it is a very good lens, you could have some aberrations at the extreme settings. Our next option would be to go with the slowest film or ISO setting we can. That is nice, it will give us nicely saturated, noise free shots, but there are limitations. So, what do we do? Since our problem is that too much light is entering the lens, the simple fix is to block some of that light. Enter the “Neutral Density Filter”. As previously mentioned, the neutral density filter is a filter that is designed to block a certain amount of light. That’s all! It doesn’t alter the light in any way it’s neutral. The light entering the lens has all the same properties; there is just less of it. Voila! You are now able to shoot that silky, cotton candy waterfall - on a bright sunny day!

Neutral density filters come in various strengths. You can block one stop of light, three, five, and so on. Plus various densities can be “stacked” for even more light blockage. You could put a five stop and a three stop neutral density filter together and block eight full stops of light! (That is a LOT of light!) The same concept is used to get the silky flowing water effect in rivers and streams. Try it, you’ll like it.

Key 31: Making Clouds “POP!” This key to better photography involves another piece of camera gear that you really can’t do without. It’s the “Polarizing Filter!” If you are at all into outdoor scenes and landscape photography it is vital and you should never leave home without it. While many filter effects can be added after the fact in Photoshop, to add the

effects of a polarizing filter would be almost impossible. I suppose there is some Photoshop genius out there that could do it, but it would take untold hours. What does a polarizing filter do? It polarizes the light! (Duh.) What does THAT mean? There are two main types of polarizing filter - a linear polarizer and a circular polarizer. This does not refer to the shape of the filter, but to the way it polarizes light.

Back in the day, both were available as photo filters but in reality, the circular polarizer was best and not many people bought the other. I don’t know if linear polarizers are still available or not. If they are, the circular polarizer is the one you want. When we see light, it is generally made up of the entire color (wavelength) spectrum. Plus, because of moisture and pollutants in the air, the light is bouncing all over the place - off objects in the scene, off molecules in the air - everything. When all this bouncing light enters the camera (or our eye) it is coming in from all directions and angles. It creates glare. Plus it is all the various colors in the light spectrum. Basically, the polarizer straightens out the light wave so the light particles are all traveling into the camera in a straight line - since it is not bouncing around, this eliminates glare. The filter also blocks some of the light wavelengths (colors) from

getting through - intensifying what is left! An example of a polarizing filter can be found at a 3D movie. The special glasses you wear (the new ones, not the old fashioned red and blue ones) are actually polarizers. Each side blocks certain wavelengths of light and allows others to pass. In this way, the movie makers are able to determine what we see to make it appear 3D.

This blocking of some light waves and allowing others to pass (after being straightened) are what intensifies the colors in the skies of our landscape photos! It also makes the clouds almost “POP” out of the frame. It is this filter that creates those entrancing skies we often see. Particularly in black and white photos.

As a side bonus, we can determine the amount of polarization we want to use! Just put the circular polarizer on your lens and - while looking through the viewfinder slowly turn the filter. (It spins around.) You will be able to visibly see the changes in polarization. Stop when you reach the point you like best and shoot away! More or less polarization can be achieved depending on the angle of the sun too! The sun at 90 degrees - relative to the lens - tends to give you the most polarization opportunity. At an angle of 0 degrees, there is very little polarization. Most landscape photographers use polarizers to intensify the sky, but cutting out

glare is a handy feature too! Note: Your filter will not eliminate glare from a metal object. The light reflecting off metal is already polarized. A polarizer will eliminate glare and reflections off glass and store windows allowing you to get better shots of the displays inside. It also polarizes the light bouncing off trees, leaves, flowers and so on, thereby eliminating glare and intensifying their colors! Want to be able to cut the glare and see through water so you can get a stunning shot of your prize winning Koi? You guessed it, use a polarizer. Here are two examples, one with and one without a polarizer…

No camera bag should be without a circular polarizer. It is one of the most useful pieces of camera gear you can own and it can’t be easily replaced by Photoshop. So here is your key to better photography - if you want your landscape

photography to grab your viewer’s attention (and not let go) use a polarizing filter on all your outdoor shots. It is an indispensable piece of camera gear and you should never leave home without it! Side note: In a pinch a polarizing filter can be used as a neutral density filter! Most polarizers cut out about one stop of light. Be sure to allow for that when you use one.

Key 32: To Buy Or Not To Buy Colored Filters Colored Filters - buy them and don’t buy them. The next time you are watching television - or go to the movies, notice the colors on the screen. Particularly pay attention to when the scene is supposed to represent dawn or dusk. Frequently, the colors you see are not natural and were introduced by colored filters. If done properly, you never notice the filter effect; you just accept the scene as being shot at that time of day. Sometimes, the director may want something more edgy and lets the colored filters become obvious and not seamlessly blend in. As I have mentioned before, there was a show on television called “CSI - Miami!” Take a look at reruns of that one if you want to see a blatant use of colored filters. In fact they use them too much, in my opinion, and it detracts from the show. But then again, they are making the big bucks and I’m not, so my opinion is

probably wrong. I don’t often recommend using Photoshop in the creation of a photo. I think they should be created in the camera unless there is a very good reason not to. But using colored filters is a good example of a time when Photoshop can come in handy. An overall color wash is easily accomplished in Photoshop with one or two clicks. And to have filters for all the various color shades and intensities would cost a small fortune.

Plus, you have more control over the amount of color saturation and so on with Photoshop, so I advise you to save your money and not buy solid color filters. What I DO recommend is that you get a few of the most popular split colored filters. At least get some pink ones and some tobacco ones. You can later decide on other colors and densities. As previously mentioned, a split filter is one that is clear at the bottom and colored at the top (or you can turn it over and have it colored at the bottom and clear on top). The dividing line can be sharp, or a gradual fade. I recommend a gradual fade it makes the filter less noticeable. This is used to color the sky without affecting the ground. The effect is more natural looking than a solid color wash - while at the same time it is more difficult and time consuming to replicate in Photoshop. Particularly with a gradual fade. It’s worth spending a few bucks and having split colored filters in your arsenal.

Key 33: Storing Your Filters Here is a really short tip, but it WILL save you a lot of time and headaches while you are on location - and has the potential to save you hundreds of dollars. Question - What is a good way to store your photo filters so that they are readily available - and you won’t lose them? If you keep them in their original packaging, they take up a lot of room in your camera bag. Room that could be better put to use for spare batteries, memory sticks (film?) and so on. Plus, and this is worse - with them all jammed into a side pocket of your camera bag, you can’t really tell what the filter is unless you take them all out. It can sometimes take forever to locate the right filter. (While that perfect light is dying by the second.) Taking them all out of your camera bag is generally not much of a problem until the day you forget to put them back. It could cost you quite a lot of money - and save the next photographer that shoots from that location (and finds a stack of filters) a bundle! Here’s what you do... buy a soft cover, zip shut CD/DVD case. Attach it to your camera bag, and you will never lose it.

The filters will fit in the CD/DVD slots and by just flipping through the pages, you can see the filters and easily pick out the one you want to use! My case is made by Case Logic and has been storing my filters for years. (They make camera cases too if you need one.)

Adding Color Key 34: Using Kodak Yellow! In this key to better photography, let’s talk a bit about color. Color can make or break an image, depending on how it is used. This key will discuss a color concept that is a big time compositional rule - but may be new to you. To get more engaging, better landscape photography - include people wearing “Kodak Yellow!” Interesting side note on color: Did you know that the colors yellow, red, and orange are used in fast food restaurants because those are the colors that stimulate hunger? Back to our photo tip... We all know that putting people into landscape photography can make it more interesting and more visually engaging to the viewer. People are simply more easily engaged by other people than by trees. It’s human nature. When we see people in a photo, we are hard wired to try to figure out what they are doing. It’s a survival thing. But that is only true if they are seen! Wide expanses of grass and trees (shades of green) can do a terrific job of camouflaging a person wearing green! Not to mention the popularity of camouflage clothing. By the way, green is NOT a good color to have people wearing if you are doing outdoor portrait photographs. While I have seen photos of people wearing green that I loved, most any other color will work better. When film ruled the day, Kodak film was - and still is - sold in little yellow boxes. That’s where the term “Kodak Yellow” came about. The color, Kodak yellow, is also on the film roll too.

“Kodak Yellow” was just a catch phrase we used to remind us that when we insert people into our landscape photography, it is best to have them wearing yellow! (Or red.) Here’s another historical side note: Kodak film was much better at recording warm (yellow/red) tones. Fuji film (sold in green boxes) was better at the cooler greens and blues of landscapes! All things being equal, we just matched up the color of the box to our subjects! It was an easy way to determine what type of film to use. Back to inserting people wearing “Kodak Yellow” into our landscapes…

I’ve heard of photographers who will actually carry a selection of yellow (or red)

windbreakers in their car - just so they can have people in their landscapes wearing them! It’s the only way to ensure you will get subjects wearing yellow if you are using “found” people and not professional models.

Consider this, if having the subjects wear Kodak yellow is important enough that many top professional photographers consider carrying yellow (or red) windbreakers as part of their camera gear, don’t you think that including subjects wearing yellow in our landscapes can move us one step closer to winning photo contests? Don’t discount entering photo contests! The prizes can amount to thousands and thousands of dollars worth of camera gear, trips, cash, and can get you published! If you’ve been bitten by the photo bug and you are shooting anyway, why not enter? Even if you never plan to enter a contest and even if you have no desire to go pro and/or get published - it’s still a good idea to make your photos as good as the pros. Agreed? Keep in mind - the color yellow contrasting with all the greenery in the landscape, “POPS” out of the frame and immediately draws the eye into the composition! This is a big time compositional rule.

Pay attention to ALL the details in your photography! It’s all these little things that will separate you from the crowd and start making you a contest winner. Pay attention to color. Include people in your landscape photography when it makes sense, and have them wear yellow. You might even consider including a yellow or red windbreaker (or two) as part of your camera gear. When the weather turns bad, you can always use one of them yourself – so it is not going to go to waste!

Fireworks And Lightning Key 35: Fireworks And Lightning-Part 1 At some point in our photo lives, we all need to try our hand at photographing fireworks and lightning. You could almost say it is another of those rights of passage! The good news is that it really isn’t very difficult and both fireworks and lightning are shot with the same basic techniques.

First: You need to find the best spot to shoot from! I hope you’ve been keeping a photo notebook because you will want to scout out the best locations to shoot from and then record them in your notebook. There is no reason to wait for the last minute and settle for a second best place. Or not find a good spot at all and miss the shot entirely. Be careful of extraneous light sources. With both lightning and fireworks, we are going to be shooting very long exposures and any extraneous light sources in the shot are going to be over exposed and get blown out. Find a spot that offers a good view of the action but doesn’t include any extraneous light sources. This tends to be most considered when shooting fireworks (since it is dark) but even if you are shooting lightning during the day, lights will get blown out and look bad. Try to find a vantage point that will exclude as many of them as you can. With fireworks we can determine in advance almost exactly where they will be in the sky and it is fairly easy to scout around and find a good location.

However, lightning can be anywhere in the sky! For lightning, you will want a scene that not only includes the sky, but overlooks the city as well! (Or overlooks some other eye catching location.) If you think about it, most of our weather patterns tend to come from the same direction. It’s really not too difficult to find a spot that will not only capture the lightning and be safe, but will show a photogenic scene as well. Having the lightning over a terrific landscape is much better - and more likely to win contests - than if it is shot with nothing in the background but dark sky – or is over an unappealing, blah scene.

You will most likely want to be up high on top of a building or on a hilltop of some sort. Caution, lightning can kill you. Don’t be the highest point and if the storm starts to get close, wrap it up and seek shelter. No shot is worth dying over. With fireworks, you will most likely not be too worried about the surrounding scenery. You just want to find a nice dark place to shoot from - but sometimes a

landmark can come into play here too! I’m sure you’ve seen fireworks shots where they are back-lighting and silhouetting the Statue Of Liberty, or the Eiffel Tower. You may have a local landmark where you could do the same sort of shot! Chances are, yours will be the first! (Here is another sales opportunity!)

With both lightning and fireworks, it’s the advanced preparation that will separate the winners from the losers. Find your shooting locations today, don’t wait until the last minute. Our next key to better photography will continue with more “how to” on shooting fireworks and lightning.

Key 36: Fireworks And Lightning-Part 2 Our second Fireworks and Lightning key to better photography - take multiple shots! Once you’ve found your location and the fireworks show is about to begin (or the lightning show) set up your camera on a tripod. This is a must! Don’t even bother with a hand-held shot. If you don’t have a tripod, stay at home and watch the fireworks show on TV. Here is an example of a hand-held fireworks shot…

You are going to want a very long exposure. Those shots you see of the whole sky being lit up are rarely – if ever- one shot. It is multiple bursts of the lightning or fireworks, captured by a long exposure.

Aim your camera at the best spot in the sky, set the ISO speed to the lowest number you reasonably can, and set the shutter speed to the slowest possible speed. This will get you the longest exposure possible. As for aperture, the sweet spot on most lenses is the middle area around f8. This will give you the sharpest photos, but if that setting doesn’t allow for long enough shutter speeds you can close it down a few stops. Or, add a neutral density filter to the lens, or if your camera allows it, take multiple exposures on one frame. Most DSLR’s don’t have a multiple exposure function available and that is a shame. It’s one area where film cameras were clearly better. Good news! I’ve heard that some of them are starting to build in a multiple exposure setting. It’s a move in the right direction! Anyway, the idea is to get several bursts of lightning or fireworks onto one frame – generally with a very long exposure.

BTW - local television channels LOVE great lightning shots. Once you have a few, send them in! You won’t get paid, but you have a good shot at being featured on their weather report.

I mentioned this before but it’s worth saying again, safety first! Be sure you choose a safe location to shoot from! Fireworks shows have everyone looking up into the sky. If you are shooting from the middle of the road, you WILL get run over. Seems silly to say that, until you get out there and see how many people are shooting from the middle of the road! Lightning can kill you. Make sure you are not the highest point in the area and if

the strikes start to get too close, shut it down. No lightning photo is worth dying over. As a side note: water and electronics don’t mix very well. If it starts to rain, get your camera under cover - fast. It wouldn’t hurt to keep a few large, plastic, ziplock bags on hand. Get out there today and find some good locations for photographing fireworks and lightning in your area.

Flowers And Spider Webs Key 37: Flowers and Spider Webs Part 1 Here is a secret weapon to add to your camera bag! It’s another simple idea that can take your nature photos to a whole new level! Flower and spider web photography is what got a lot of us interested in photography in the first place! Done well, they can be gorgeous!

Even if flower/spider web photography wasn’t part of you getting bitten by the photo bug - and you have no interest in them at all, they are very good subjects to

practice on and learn to master your photo equipment. Here is a key to better photography used by all the top pros! They almost always show the flower covered in dew drops. More than you may think, it’s the dewdrops that make the shot come to life!

The same with spider webs - in fact, in this case dew drops are an essential element of the shot. They shimmer, sparkle and reflect and they really make your photo come to life! Without dew drops, a spider web photo is fairly boring and frequently the web can’t even be seen!

Here is the secret, the dew drops are rarely - if ever - real! The professional photographer’s secret weapon that should always be in your camera bag is - a small spray bottle of water! This way, no matter what time of day you are shooting and no matter if there is dew or not - just give the flower a few spritzes and voila! You have a dew covered flower! That’s how the pros do it, they are NOT searching out flowers and spider webs with natural dew drops! Here is another tip. Sometimes with a spray bottle, we don’t get “dew drops” that are big enough to read well in the photo. Want your dew drops to be a bit bigger? Here is how... Try adding some glycerin to the water. It will help the water molecules bond together and make bigger “dew drops”. By the way, if you get thirsty, don’t drink the water and glycerin mix. Hydrate in some other way.

Adding glycerin and making the drops larger is almost essential if you want to get one of those close-up shots of a single dew drop reflecting the flowers behind it. (If well done, these type photos have better than average chance of doing well in photo contests.)

Make today the day you commit to being the kind of photographer you dreamed of being when you first “got into” photography. You can do it, it’s not that hard. Add a glycerin/water bottle to your camera bag so it is always available and use flowers and spider webs as practice subjects. Who knows, that next photo contest winner could be you!

Key 38: Flowers and Spider Webs Part 2 Here are four more keys to better photography that will make your photographs of flowers and spider webs a bit better… First - Shoot on a cloudy day! This gives your flowers a nice even lighting and does wonders for the colors.

Second - Shoot with a tripod. This will help with camera shake. If possible, shoot with a tripod that has a reversible center column - this way you can lower the camera as far as necessary.

Third - Get a set of close-up filters. Then you can get close-up photos of the flower details. These tend to be very beautiful photos!

Fourth - Here is a sneaky trick used by top pros. Often, the background isn’t exactly the best it can be for our flower and spider web photos - but if you want a real winner, you need a good backdrop! Use a photo as the backdrop! BTW - this is also a technique used by photographers shooting Hummingbirds. They will set up a feeder so they know where the bird will be, then they set up a large photo they specifically created to be the background. Tadaa! Another gorgeous Hummingbird shot!

Here is what the top pros do, create a photo of what you think will be the ideal backdrop - or several photos of various backdrops - then print out an enlargement. An 11 x 14 should do nicely. Then, when you go out to shoot flowers or spider webs, bring your backdrop photos. Set them up behind the subject and you will always have a perfect background for your flowers! Just be sure to do a close enough shot so that the edges of the photo don’t show.

Ideally you want one with colors that will not clash with your flower or spider web (or hummingbird) and is blurry enough to provide a wash of color but no detail that will draw the eye off your “star”. BTW – here is a bonus idea – use a polarizing filter. It will cut down on the glare from the leaves of the flower and intensify the colors.

Key 39: Turn Around This time we have a key to better photography that is really simple to do, but can get you some amazing results... And could even get you into that elusive photo contest winner’s circle!

Turn around! This may seem kind of obvious, but it is surprising how few of us actually do it! We get intensely focused on the scene in front of us and never investigate any of the other photo opportunities all around us! What do I mean by that? When we are shooting, we pick a subject, study the light hitting it, figure out the best way to capture the image, shoot and move on to the next item. In other words, we become totally fixated on what we see in front of us. Often though, (more often than you may think) that beautiful light hitting our subject is even MORE gorgeous if you look at it going the other way! This often happens in landscape photos. If we only turned around, we may see an almost magical scene! Not only can it be attractive, the light - seen from another direction can show you things you missed. For example, from one direction it is virtually impossible to see a spider web. From the opposite direction it literally pops out at you - and it could easily be the shot that defines your photo career and takes home all the photo contest prizes. By the way - you DO have a spray bottle in your camera bag so that you can add those “dew drops” to spider webs and flowers - right? Another example is a rainbow... it can’t be seen from one direction (it literally doesn’t exist) but could turn into your favorite photo ever, if you just turn around and see it!

I hope these keys to better photography are helping you become a better photographer - and enabling you to get more enjoyment from your hobby! Now the trick is to not forget them - and just as important, actually use them. If you know an effective photo concept, but don’t use it - you are no better off than someone who doesn’t know the photo concept at all! I recommend keeping a shot notebook, and thumbing through it every time you are out shooting. You will be reminded of things you’ve forgotten virtually every time you do it! Work in as many tips as you can and eventually they will become habit! For this key... Watch your back! Try to make it a habit to turn around every so often and check out the scene behind you. It’s these simple things that will turn you from a snap shooter into an unstoppable force in your local photo community.

Pet Portraits Key 40: Pet Portraits - Great For Camera Mastery In this key to better photography I’m going to dive into some pet portrait tips. Pet photos are some of the most rewarding portraits you can do - and they’re fun! Pet owners are some of the best people you will ever meet and if you want to truly master your camera, learning to do good pet portraits is the best training you will ever get! Our first pet photo key to better photography is - shoot at their eye level.

For some reason we photographers tend to shoot 99% of our photos from a standing position, with the camera up to our eye. Don’t believe me? For the next month, every time you see anyone taking a picture, notice their stance. It will almost always be standing up straight. This is rarely the ultimate shooting position for capturing the scene - and with pets (and kids) I would say it is NEVER the best! When I say to shoot at eye level, I mean at the pets’ eye level - not yours. With animals it usually means sitting, kneeling or even lying on your belly – yes, on the ground. It won’t kill you to get a little dirty! With larger animals, you may be able to just bend your knees a bit. Or, like the examples above, bring the pet up higher by putting it on a table of some sort.

BTW - If you are afraid to get your clothes dirty, or (more likely) if you are afraid you’ll look foolish by interacting with your subject, get over it. I can’t tell you how many pet photos I see where the animal is just a tiny blob way down in the corner of the shot. It’s a shame. Get down on the ground, shoot at the pets’ eye level and fill the frame. That photo key - all by itself - will catapult you over the other photographers in your area. The second key to better pet photography is - focus on the eyes!

I’m frequently asked where the photographer should focus and the answer is to ALWAYS focus on the eyes. It doesn’t matter whether you are shooting a corporate president, a mouse, or even a snake. Focus on the eyes. If the eyes are even a little out of focus, your viewers won’t like the image. If the eyes are crisp and in focus, you’d be amazed at what you can get away with in the rest of the photo and still have it be liked. Grab your camera and get out there! Stop procrastinating; you KNOW you want to do it! Do some pet portraits! Try doing some showing the playful nature of the animal; try some that are more formal. Try adding the owner! This will teach you camera mastery faster than any other kind of shooting I know!

Key 41: Better Pet Portraits In 3 Easy Steps When you try to take portraits of your pets, do you end up with nothing but blurry blobs? Was your dog or cat even looking at the camera? Were they looking attentive and happy? Did your cat make sure everyone was bleeding before the end of your last photo session? Creating good pet portraits can sometimes be a challenge. But if you follow three simple steps you too can do a good pet portrait of Fido or Felix. It’s really pretty easy. First, let’s shift our attention to the background. Whether shooting indoors or outdoors, you first need to do a scan of the background. You are looking for potential visual problems as well as distractions for the animal. Is there a street back there, with cars zipping by? What can distract the dog’s attention? Are there ducks waddling around? Are there kids playing in a nearby park? Balls flying around that can be chased after? Visually - Are there any poles, trees or fences that can look like antlers protruding from the dog’s head? If you take just a couple minutes to check out the background, the odds of getting a good pet portrait increase dramatically. By the way, don’t be afraid to set up a formal backdrop and shoot your pet portrait like you would a person! Owners love them and it can give you good experience

with using and working with backdrops. Plus, for such a simple addition to the photo, a backdrop can quickly turn an OK snapshot into a “portrait” that will be cherished.

Second… Who can help you? Trying to do a pet portrait by yourself can be a real challenge. If you get someone to help you and act as your assistant, it becomes a whole lot easier. After a few times of getting Fido posed just right - and then backing off to do the picture, only to have Fido follow you, you’ll know what I mean. Don’t get mad, they don’t know what you want, they’re just trying to be friendly. Cats are a different story, they won’t try to be friendly and follow you, they’ll just take off and you may never see them again.

With someone to assist you, they can control the dog or cat and all you have to worry about is the actual photograph. You can get in position, get yourself all focused and then just have them step back or lean backwards little bit and you shoot. Sometimes you have to be pretty fast on the trigger to catch the animal before they take off, but with your assistant there to help corral them, they will be reposed and ready for the next shot before you know it. Third… It’s important to have your pet looking at the camera with an attentive expression. (For insurance, you should take a few shots of them looking to the side as well – sometimes they turn out to be the best.)

It’s not very difficult to do.

When shooting dogs, a dog toy with a squeaker works best. Get yourself one that’s flat – or won’t roll away. Keep it hidden from the dog, and squeak it softly. By doing it that way, the dog won’t know what is making the sound and it will look attentively toward you to find the source of the squeak. Snap the shot. This technique will work for several shots, then once the dog realizes where the sound is coming from, you can squeak it louder and wave it around to get their attention. When squeaking no longer attracts their attention, flick it up into the air. (That’s why you want a flat one - so it won’t roll away when it hits the ground.) Flicking the squeaker into the air also has the added bonus of getting them to pull their tongues into their mouths. BTW - Both tongue in and tongue out shots are appealing. You will want to get several of each. Tongue in is a more classic look, tongue out makes them look happier. Squeakers don’t work very well or for very long with cats. They don’t seem to be as interested in sounds as dogs are. The squeaker may work once or twice, but for the most part you will need visual aids. Ostrich and Peacock feathers work well. Hold your feather in one hand and gently wave it around.

I know these steps are deceptively simple, but if you’ll just try them, you will be amazed at the results.

Key 42: In Pet Portraits - The Ears Matter This key to better photography is another one that will help us take amazing pet portraits! Pets are terrific photo subjects and sooner or later we all give it a try (or we should!) and here’s how to make your friends say, “WOW!” Remember Mr. Spock from the “Star Trek” series? When you think of the character of Mr. Spock, what is the first thing that comes to mind? For most of us, it’s the ears. In pet portraits, it’s the same thing... the ears matter! A dog – in most of my photo tips I talk about dogs, but they translate to other animals - puts its’ ears up when it is being attentive and alert. They are down when the dog is bored, unhappy, afraid and so on. No one likes a photo of a cowering dog! If you want your pet photos to be liked - the ears MUST be up!

For the first ten years of my photo career I specialized in pets... within the first 6 months, I had already made it a practice to never even show my client any photos where the ears were down. People don’t like them and they just don’t sell. If the ears are down, you may as well just the photos in the junk heap! The good news is, it is easy to get a dog to put its’ ears up... Once you are ready to shoot, get the dog’s attention in some way. (I’ll tell you how in a minute.) Just make sure you are ready to shoot because it won’t last long! As I mentioned in a previous key to better photography - the easiest way I’ve found to get a dog’s attention and make them look alert and happy is to softly squeak the squeaker on a dog’s toy. The ears will pop up and your “model” will look attentive, alive, happy and its’ personality will burst out of the photo! You will only have a second or so to get that award winning photo, but with a bit of practice, that’s more than enough time. Then comes the bad part, the dog is going to go for the toy. If you have a helper to control the dog, that is no problem. Don’t scold the dog for going after the toy... you made them do it! Just corral them and do it again. After you’ve done this with a couple animals and you get the hang of it, it’s easy to get amazing dog photos. I am amazed at how many “professional” photos I see of dogs with their ears down! What are they thinking? Even if the main subject is a person, if there is a pet in the photo - you must get the ears up or the photo just won’t work. What’s

even worse is that you probably won’t know why no one likes it.

On the subject of putting people in the photo with a dog - DO IT! That’s a great photo and they will want it. But, be careful. The owner will have a tendency to watch the dog and/or try to get the dog to look at the camera. This will ruin the shot. You are going to get a lot of great shots of the dog, while the owner is looking at it (not at the camera). Or shots of the dog - posed perfectly - with the owner pointing at the camera.

I always tell the pet owner to constantly look at the camera and smile and I will watch the dog. Then you squeak the toy! Works every time! This one tip will leapfrog you past more photographers than you might imagine. It’s so easy, you will start getting stunning pet portraits almost immediately! Give it a shot!

Key 43: Problem Animals This key to better photography is about problem animals… Why they are that way and how to get the animals attention! Pet portraits can be some of the best, most fun photography you ever do. But at times it can be a real challenge. It is a great photo training ground! If you master pet portraits - nothing else will ever again give you any problems! There is an old saying in show business... “Never work with kids or animals!” Why? Because they steal the show every time! While that may be a bad thing for an actor - for us it’s great! We want our pictures to be seen, liked, commented on and so forth. Stealing the show is a good thing! So the rule of thumb here is to ALWAYS include the family pets when you are shooting portraits. It takes more work, but after you’ve done it a few times you will quickly realize it is worth the effort.

Even better, in addition to the whole family, do shots of the kids with their pets!

Whether it’s your own kids or you are doing some photos for a friend... parents love ‘em! But, like everything else, pet portraits have their challenges. You won’t be doing pet portraits very long before you run across a dog or cat that simply won’t look at

you.

Why? And what can you do about it? Dogs... Dogs are basically pack animals and there is a distinct hierarchy in the pack. Alpha dogs and so on... Whether you realize it or not, there IS a competition between you and the dog to determine who the Alpha dog is! Generally, it is no problem and the shoot goes smoothly, but sometimes you run across a dog that is overly shy and doesn’t want to be the Alpha dog. It is not only content to be in the second spot, but WANTS to let you be the boss. Where this becomes a problem is that among dogs, eye contact (staring) is the first stage of a fight. In a staring contest, if neither dog backs down, there will be a fight for dominance. The winner of the fight is the Alpha. The loser isn’t. A fight can be avoided by one of the two dogs breaking off eye contact and “surrendering.” When that happens they usually will have a completely beaten, cowed look.

In addition to breaking off eye contact, they will often lay on their back, exposing the stomach. This is a vital, easily damaged area and to expose it signals complete surrender. “So what,” you say. “I’m not a dog, and I’m not trying for any sort of dominance”. The problem is, the dog sees the camera’s lens as an eye staring at them! If it is a shy dog, it will try to avoid a fight and won’t look at it! Rescue dogs, particularly ones that had a hard time and were abused, absolutely will not look at the camera! Or, if they do look at the camera, they have a completely beaten, cowed look. If you are trying to take a photo, you don’t want a dog that looks like it was just beaten! You want one that looks happy, alert and vitalized. There is your “why” a dog won’t look at the camera. BTW -If the dog HAS been abused in the past (which is often the case for rescue dogs) you really have your work cut out for you. Allow a lot of extra time to get to know the animal and get them comfortable with you. Then use the squeaker techniques described in previous sections. Shoot fast, your model isn’t going to look at you for long. Cats... Cats won’t look at a camera for the simple reason that you want them to. They’re obstinate. Cats will be your nemesis. But if you succeed it is worth it.

As a visual stimulus for cats, a peacock or an ostrich feather flicking around the lens will get their attention for a while. Caution… Handle the feather yourself! If you let the owner do it, they will whip that thing around so fast you can hardly see it! Your model will NEVER look at the lens! They are following the wildly thrashing feather! Hold the feather in one hand and gently sway it back and forth. When you have the cat’s attention – move the feather to a point just over the lens. And shoot!

Shooting animals is the best photo training I know to learn how to shoot fast and capture fleeting moments! Give it a try... animals will drive you nuts, but good pet portraits are definite contest winners!

Improving (Human) Portraits Key 44: Tips for Improving Your Portraits For this key to better photography, let’s get a bit into (human) portrait photography. Here are two quick tips for you, though they may seem minor, they can make a HUGE difference in the effectiveness of your portraits! Our first idea involves photographing peoples’ joints. No, I am not talking about marijuana. I’m talking about physical joints like wrists elbows, knees and so on. One of our primary functions as a photographer (whether you are an old pro or just picked up your first camera) is to make the portraitee (I think I just invented a word) look like they are having the best day EVER! You want them looking like a million bucks! Few of us can naturally fall into great poses - the ability to look comfortable in front of the camera is why professional models make the big bucks. One of the fastest ways to ruin that “best day ever” look is to make them look stiff and uncomfortable. Our joints play a huge factor in whether we look stiff and uncomfortable - or natural and flowing. Here is a rule of thumb for you... Key #1: If it can bend, let it bend!

Bend the elbows, the knees, the wrists, tilt the head, the shoulders and so on.

Just for fun, try taking a photo with the person just standing there, shoulders straight on to the camera, feet together, knees straight and so on. Stiff? You bet! Unless you are trying to shoot a photo of a soldier standing at attention, this will NEVER be an acceptable pose!

Now, shoot the same subject with as many joints bent as you logically can. Twist the shoulders, tilt the head, slightly bend the elbows (not all the way to 90 degrees), put one foot behind the other and rest the weight on it (this alters the angle of the hips) and so on. I think you will see a huge improvement! Take a few minutes and look at portraits done by top photographers and I think you will be hard pressed to find an unbent joint! Along those same lines... Key #2: If there are two of them, don’t make them the same!

By having two of them, I am talking about two hands, wrists, elbows, shoulders and on and on. Keep in mind, we have two ears and two eyes as well, so in a portrait, tilt the head so that the eyes and ears aren’t on the same level. Tilt the shoulders for the same reason!

These two keys to better photography may seem a bit obvious, but it’s amazing how few photographers pay attention to them. It’s these little things that make the difference!

Key 45: Two (More) Easy Portrait Photography Tips This next key to better photography is actually going to be two more tips, each designed to get better portrait photography. Key #1: Anti - Level Shoulders. In our past study of portrait photography, I’ve mentioned that, “If there are two of them, don’t put them on the same level.” I cited eyes, ears, shoulders... But, you might say, “If someone is sitting on a posing stool, chair, front porch, whatever, their shoulders ARE going to be on the same level.” Obviously we don’t want that! Fortunately, there is an easy fix. First: get yourself a wedge. While not ideal, a couple of those door stopping wedges will do in a pinch. Just get the largest ones you can and make sure they don’t completely collapse when weight is put on them. They aren’t very big so it is better if you have two or three of them side by side.

A better option is - you can make one yourself. Just buy a block of wood and cut it into wedges. That way you can make them a little larger (but not too much) than the door stopper. Wider is better too - so that it is more comfortable to sit on. If you are not handy with tools, this is the work of about 30 seconds for a handy man or the local Home Depot type store. Be sure to sand it smooth. You don’t want to ruin anyone’s clothing by snagging them on the wedge. Generally people are dressed up when they have a portrait created and they WILL get upset if you ruin their favorite clothing. Then, if you REALLY want to go all out, paint your wedges a flat black. That way they are less likely to show and draw attention in a photo. For head and shoulder portraits (and for waist level portraits) – this is not a problem. The only time your wedge showing is an issue is in full length portraits. Once you have them all cut, sanded and painted, toss your wedges into the trunk of your car and you will always have one on hand for a photo session. When it comes time to shoot the photo, just have your model slide one of the wedges under one side of their tush and sit on it. This will raise one shoulder higher than the other and you are all set! Note: Your model is likely to think this is a bit weird, so make a joke of it. Call them your “special, photographic tush modification system”! They’ll start laughing and everything will go just that much better.

You don’t want a dramatic rise - just a bit of a tilt. By using a wedge, you can determine how much or how little shoulder tilt there is. It goes without saying that YOU should tell them which side it goes under - and how far! After all, composition is YOUR decision - don’t let them take over your creativity! Key #2: Sit Up Straight! Throughout most of the world, people are getting heavier and heavier. This is something you need to take into consideration when you are posing your subject. DO NOT let them slouch! Slouching rounds the shoulders - which is very unattractive - and accents any extra weight we carry around the middle. BTW - you don’t even have to be overweight! When my business mostly consisted of shooting ballerinas, I noticed that if they were slouching at all, there were rolls in the stomach region. And these were young ladies who were the very definition of SKINNY!

As a side note: ballerinas and dancers in general have very good body awareness. They make great subjects to practice on! They don’t slouch very often, but watch for it anyway. That’s it for now. Follow these two keys to better photography! Make yourself a couple “photographic tush modification implements” (wedges), then be sure your subjects are sitting up straight and you will have moved one step closer to producing professional looking portrait photography. In the next key to better photography, let’s cover the “photographic ground modification system!”

Key 46: The “Photographic Ground Modification System!” Do you consistently use a special “photographic ground modification system” to help you with your individual and family outdoor portrait photography? You should! This key to better photography will show you how and more importantly,

why you should use a “photographic ground modification system”. There is a trend towards making everything sound as fancy and as complex as possible, a garbage man is really a “refuse removal engineer”, a home maker is a “domestic goddess” and so on. I developed the “special photographic ground modification system” as a tongue in cheek play on that trend. Why? Most people are NOT accustomed to getting their portraits done. Most often they are nervous and uptight. The ability to look comfortable in front of the camera is why models make the big bucks! Anything you can do to lighten your subject’s mood is golden. When I introduce my special “photographic ground modification system” or the “photographic tush modification system” from the last key, they never fail to get a laughs and the rest of the session is just that much more fun. Anything you can do to make your subjects relax and have a good time is a vital weapon in your photo arsenal! Plus, they are useful photographic tools. What is a special “photographic ground modification system”? When you are posing people on the ground or the floor (and you should have them sitting or kneeling on the ground for at least a few shots), they will often balk at the idea because they don’t want to get their clothing dirty. The way to handle it is to always keep several large black plastic garbage bags in your camera bag. Tell them what pose you want and - before they bring it up - tell them you don’t want their clothing to get dirty so you’ve developed a “special photographic ground modification system”! The more you can build it up and make it sound super important (with your tone of voice) the better. Then when you pull out a couple common, every day garbage bags, everyone will start laughing and you are going to get both their cooperation and a series of really nice, relaxed photos.

Black ones are easiest to hide so I think they are the best. Just have them sitting, kneeling or lying on the bags and be sure to tuck them in so that they don’t show in the photos. Their clothes are protected and they are having a good time. They will remember you for it! So, if you want better outdoor portrait photography, introduce a special “photographic ground modification system”! This photo key is one that could propel you to local fame!

Key 47: Visually Lose Weight

This key to better photography continues our discussion on clothing. In the last key we talked about protecting our model’s clothing - today let’s decide what they should be wearing! By the way, we are talking about portraits where we are trying for something meaningful. Obviously, all these ideas go out the window when we are jut fooling around or when we are doing “selfies” with a cell phone. Again, I have two tips for you. (With so many extra keys thrown in, I suspect this e-book should be titled; “100 Keys To Better Photography”!) Key #1: Avoid bright clothing and clothing with bold, eye catching patterns.

Let’s talk about bright clothing and patterns. With bright clothing and loud patterns we run into a problem with the viewer’s eye being drawn away from the face. In the above photo, the pattern on the hat constantly draws my eye away from the little girl’s face. Does it do the same for you? Bright clothing and patterns will have the viewer’s eye bouncing all over the place, with no distinct place to settle. In other words, for the viewer it is confusing. Confusing the viewer is something to be strenuously avoided. We want our photo to have ONE distinct star and there should be no confusion about what or who that star is. Don’t allow there to be a competition between the face and the clothing. When in doubt, to keep the viewer’s eye on the face, go black.

Key #2 – Issues with weight Unfortunately in our modern society, we have an issue with weight. The problem is, being over-weight is not the most attractive look in a portrait photograph! Keep in mind our goal is to make our subject look better than they have EVER looked in a photo. How can we do that? Have them wear black or dark clothing. Preferably with no pattern. (And pose them at 45 degrees to the camera and have them sit up straight.) I’m sure you already know this, but I’m including it as an attempt to be thorough. Why does it work to visually slim down our subject? It’s the shadows. Highlights and shadows are what define form in a photograph (in real life too). The eye picks up on these visual clues and they are what make us look fat! If we go with solid black for example - it is harder for the eye to pick out shadows. (Black shadows on top of black clothing.) In addition to hiding the shadows, be careful of your lighting so that you keep the

highlights on the clothing to a minimum - and keep all of the viewer’s attention on the face. That’s why I’m wearing what I’m wearing in my author photo. I’m fat!

These simple tactics can visually take 10 - 15 - even 20 pounds off our subject! Following all these portrait photography rules can often be a real pain, but it is worth it. Here is the real kicker. Most of the pros may know all the rules, but they don’t use them! THAT’S why you are going to start being the “go to” photographer when anyone in your circle of friends and family wants a portrait. You’ll simply be the best in your area.

Key 48: The Ultimate Portrait Photography Tip Most keys to better photography are easy to incorporate into your arsenal of winning photography ideas, and this one is no exception! Actually it is easy to do, but really HARD to make ourselves do! Study your subjects face!

By that I mean, sit them on a stool and LOOK at them. Decide which side is their “better” side. (For most people, it is the left side.) Look for flaws like acne or scarring. Check for bent noses. Check for too large noses, or too small. Check the

ears, the hair, the neck! Have you ever done this? I don’t mean surreptitiously - I mean out and out staring at them and moving around studying their face? Like I said, it’s easy to do, but hard to make yourself do - because both you and your model will be very uncomfortable with the process. There is a very good chance that no one has ever studied their face – openly trying to pick out the flaws. Your subject is going to feel really uncomfortable being scrutinized in this way. And it goes without mentioning that YOU will feel really uncomfortable actually doing it! But the finished portrait will be worth the effort. Write this photogrpahy key in your shot notebook. As photographers, whether professional or the newest newbie, it is our job to make the subject look like a million bucks! We can’t do that without “fixing” the various problem areas. And we can’t fix them if we don’t know what they are! Bottom line, you WILL both be uncomfortable - get over it! Once you have noted all the good and bad features (we all have them) you can employ photo techniques to magnify or minimize them. Got one side of the face that is noticeably better than the other? Turn the head so that the “bad” side is toward the back – and maybe even in shadow. Remember, the left side is almost always the best side. The reason for that is, our right cerebral hemisphere controls our emotions AND it controls the left side of the face. So, we display just a hint more emotion on the left side. The smiles are better and so on. Many people, whose fortune is tied to their appearance, know this and will work to be photographed from the left. Barbra Streisand is famous for it. She’s been known to force talk show hosts to redesign their sets and/or to change their seating arrangements so that she is only shown from the left. Is one eye - or one ear - larger than the other? All you have to do is turn the head so that the best one is showing. Hide the offending one or put it in shadow to minimize it’s affect on the portrait. Crooked noses can be “straightened” by shooting from the side the nose curves

toward. A too long nose can be shortened by shooting from straight in front. A too short nose can be enhanced by lighting it so there is a shadow that visually makes it longer. Most scarring and acne can be dramatically minimized by the way a portrait is lit. But you won’t know to employ these photo techniques unless you study the subject’s face. Try this photo key and I think you will agree that the results far outweigh any minor embarrassment you and your subject have to endure.

Key 49: Size Matters In portrait photography, size matters! In this key to better photography, let’s talk about the size of our photographs.

Have you ever wondered how the 8 x 10 size came about? I did and I did a little research. (Years ago.) If my sources were correct - and I think they were - here is how it happened. Back in the day, before point and shoots, SLR’s and DSLR’s - we had large format, view cameras. (Large format refers to the size of the negative.) Large format cameras are the ones you see in those old photos from back in the 1800’s. You know; the one with a HUGE camera, mounted on a tripod that probably weighed over a hundred pounds.

The photographer would stick his head under a black hood so he could see well enough to focus the image. The image was upside down by the way. That is actually the point to an SLR system - to flip over the image, so you see it right side up in the view finder. I discuss how it is done in one of the previous keys regarding the mirror lockup. Then, once he was focused, he would come out from under the hood and remove the lens cap - count off the seconds needed for the exposure - and then replace the lens cover. If he needed more light, he would hold up a big tray covered in chemicals (I didn’t research this, but I’m pretty sure it was magnesium) and fire it off at some point during the exposure. That explosion of light was his “flash”. Typically exposures were LONG! In the middle 1800’s the normal exposure time was 8 seconds or more!

These long exposures created problems of their own! The subjects were usually not able to hold perfectly still that long, and any movement created blurry – out of focus portraits. So, for formal portraits, the photographer actually had them sitting in a chair strapped to braces going up their backs – to the back of their head! They couldn’t move, even if they wanted to! Ever wonder why those old portraits looked so stiff and uncomfortable? I have to admit, they were pretty good at hiding the braces in the finished portrait!

Finally, the shot was done. The film was in a light proof slider that the photographer removed from the camera and took into the dark room for developing into a negative. That negative was typically 8 x 10 inches in size and the light sensitive paper was sized to match. The photographer made what is called a contact print. A contact print means that there was no enlarging or cropping. The print was made directly from the negative and was the same size as the negative. (Interesting note: For a long time, negatives were made of glass.) And that is how the 8 x 10 print size came about. Merely because that was the size of the negative. Later, using the same size ratios they began to crop and enlarge. Voila! The 4 x 5 and the 16 x 20 were born. As technology progressed, the size ratios of the negative changed, but the size of the light sensitive paper didn’t. It is still based on the old 8 x 10! For example, a 4 x 6 image actually enlarges to an 8 x 12 size! So, when you order

an 8 x 10 print from the lab - they take your 4 x 6 image, blow it up to 8 x 12 and cut off two inches! Hopefully those two inches weren’t vital to your photo! Ever wonder why so many shots have people with the top of their heads cut off? It’s not ALWAYS the photographer’s fault. Sometimes it happens in the lab. So, this key is to be sure to leave a little extra room around your portrait photography - and other photos - to allow for automatic cropping. Modern cameras shoot in different height to width ratios and need to be cropped to fit the 8 x 10 ratio. If you don’t allow for that, you could lose important aspects of your photograph.

Key 50: Basics Of Lighting Portrait Photography In lighting portrait photography, it helps to know the function of all the various lights involved. Certain lighting patterns are considered as basics because they WORK and every photographer should thoroughly understand them.

The main light’s function in lighting photo portraits is to provide the overall lighting. This is the one that you will typically read and use for your exposure settings. To be considered a main light source, it doesn’t have to actually be a studio strobe. It could be the sun or other ambient light, an on-camera flash, or even a reflector bouncing illumination into the face. This section is worth reading even if you don’t have – and never plan to get – studio lights. To make your subject appear 3D rather than flat and lifeless, your main light should be off to the side so that shadows - on the opposing side of the face - are created. Depending on the strength of your main light, the shadow area could be very dark and intense. Generally, this is not ideal. We will want to lighten the shadow so that details of the face can be seen. Enter the fill light. Again, this can be an additional studio light, ambient light, on camera flash or even a reflector bouncing light from the main light into the shadow areas. The intensity of the fill light - relative to the main light - is what will determine the depth and intensity of the shadows. A standard rule of thumb is to have the fill light be about half the intensity of the main. Then you can adjust the strength up or down - depending on your creative vision.

The third light is the background or separation light. (Like #’s 3 and 4 below.) It too can be any light source. This light is used to separate the subject from the background. It can be turned away from the subject and directly onto the background, or turned towards the subject creating what’s called a rim light or placed higher than the subject to become a hair light.

This is the standard three light set up used for lighting portraits in most studios around the world. The following photo shows a setup with several additional lights, but once you learn the three light setup, you can handle most any situation you run across!

Now that you’ve completed this training lesson along your photo journey, “50

Keys To Better Photography”, don’t lose your momentum! Keep reading the next lesson in the Portrait Essentials bundle “Model Release Templates ”

Btw - If you haven’t yet gotten a copy of Volume 1 - “7 Secrets To Creating Stunning Photos!”, it’s a freebie! (But, it’s not listed with Amazon), check it out here:

http://www.OnTargetPhotoTraining.com It’s time YOU put the “WOW” factor into your photos! ********* On the subject of learning more… The section after the last book in the bundle is a list of other training e-books by “On Target Training” (me), check them out! (TWO of them are FREE!)

Book 4 - Model Release Templates By Dan Eitreim

Introduction Welcome! Like it or not, we live in a litigious society. In other words, you NEED model releases - even if you never plan to sell your photos. Just putting them on a website can land you in a lot of trouble! That includes not just your own sites, but Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Redditt and all the others! The following releases should handle most of your day to day needs. Be sure to get a release signed on EVERY photo session. It is almost impossible to track down people and get releases signed after the fact. There really isn’t much more to say by way of introduction! You should make a tablet of each of these releases and keep them with you all the time. DON’T disregard this, people are looking for ways to sue ANYONE for ANYTHING and you are not immune - even if you are not a professional! You’ve been warned. I’ve included 4 types of model releases; adult releases, minor releases, property releases and nude releases. Plus a section of extra clauses. These should cover you in about every situation you will run across. To make them your own, insert your own logo where it says to do so, then add your own information in the areas I’ve highlighted. Let’s get started...

MODEL RELEASE: ADULT Insert your logo or letterhead here. MODEL RELEASE: ADULT I, (Please Print)_______________________________(“Model”), for good and valuable consideration, the receipt of which is acknowledged, give to “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE”, its legal representatives, successors, and all persons or corporations acting with its permission, unrestricted permission to copyright and/or use, and/or publish photographic portraits or pictures of the Model, and the negatives, transparencies, prints, or digital information pertaining to them, in still, single, multiple, moving or video format, or in which the Model may be included in whole or in part, or composite, or distorted in form, or reproductions thereof, in color or otherwise, made through any media in photographer’s studio or elsewhere for art, or any other lawful purpose. I hereby waive any right that I may have to inspect and approve the finished product or copy that may be used in connection with an image that “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE” has taken of the Model, or the use to which it may be applied. I further release “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE”, or others for whom “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE” is acting, from any claims for remuneration associated with any form of damage, foreseen or unforeseen, associated with the proper commercial or artistic use of these images unless it can be shown that said reproduction was maliciously caused, produced and published for the sole purpose of subjecting the Model to conspicuous ridicule, scandal, reproach, scorn and indignity. I acknowledge that the photography/videotaping session was conducted in a completely proper and highly professional manner, and this release was willingly signed. I certify that I am not a minor, and am free and able to give such consent. ______________________________ ____________________ Model’s Signature Date ______________________________ ____________________

Home Address Home Telephone Number Witness Signature: ______________________________________________ Witness Name: ______________________________________________ This form will be retained with the digital files, negatives, transparencies, contact sheets, and/or videotapes. When finished editing, resize the type as needed to fit entire form on one page.

MODEL RELEASE: MINOR Insert your logo or letterhead here MODEL RELEASE: MINOR I, (Please Print) ______________________________________ (“Model”), and the undersigned parent of the Model, for good and valuable consideration, the receipt of which is acknowledged, give to “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE” (“Photographer”), its legal representatives, successors, and all persons or corporations acting with its permission, unrestricted permission to copyright and/or use, and/or publish photographic portraits or pictures of the Model, and the negatives, transparencies, prints, or digital information pertaining to them, in still, single, multiple, moving or video format, or in which the Model may be included in whole or in part, or composite, or distorted in form, or reproductions thereof, in color or otherwise, made through any media in photographer’s studio or elsewhere for commercial purposes, art, or any other lawful purpose. We hereby waive any right that I may have to inspect and approve the finished product or copy that may be used in connection with an image that the Photographer - “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE”, has taken of the Model, or the use to which it may be applied. We further release Photographer, “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE”, or others for whom Photographer, “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE” is acting, from any claims for remuneration associated with any form of damage, foreseen or unforeseen, associated with the proper commercial or artistic use of these images unless it can be shown that said reproduction was maliciously caused, produced and published for the sole purpose of subjecting the Model to conspicuous ridicule, scandal, reproach, scorn and indignity. We acknowledge that the photography/videotaping session was conducted in a completely proper and highly professional manner, and this release was willingly signed. We acknowledge that the Model is a minor, and certify that we have given our consents freely. ______________________________________ ____________________

Model’s Signature Date ______________________________________ ____________________ Home Address Home Telephone Number _________________________________________ Parent’s Name (Please Print) _________________________________________ (Parent’s Signature) Witness Signature: ______________________________________________ Witness Name: ______________________________________________ This form will be retained with the digital files, negatives, transparencies, videotapes, and/or contact sheets. When finished editing, resize the type as needed to fit entire form on one page.

MODEL RELEASE: NUDES Insert your logo or letterhead here Model Release: Nude For good and valuable consideration in the value of $________, the receipt and legal sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, I (Please Print) ___________________ (Model) hereby grant to “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE”, (Photographer), the Photographer’s assigns, and those persons acting with the Photographer’s authority and permission, the right to take and create photographs (in any format) and other graphical depictions incorporating my likeness, in any and all media, whether now known or hereafter created (the Photographs). I hereby agree that all rights to the Photographs, including copyright, are and shall remain the sole property of “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE”, free and clear from any claims by me or anyone acting on my behalf. I have no right to approve the final images or to additional compensation. The Photographer’s rights include, but are not limited to, the rights, in perpetuity, to: use, reuse, publish, and republish the Photographs; combine the Photographs with text and/or with other images and/or media; alter the Photographs, in any manner “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE” desires; and, use the Photographs for illustration, promotion, art, editorial, advertising, trade, publishing, Internet publishing, or any other purpose whatsoever. I hereby release, discharge, and agree to hold harmless “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE”, the Photographer’s heirs, legal representatives and assigns, and all persons acting under “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE” authority or those for whom he/she is acting, from any liability arising from any use of the photographs or any changes or modification made thereto. I hereby warrant that I knowingly appear fully nude in some or all of the photographs. I am of full legal age and have the right to contract in my own name. I have read the above authorization, release, and agreement, prior to its execution, and I am fully familiar with the contents thereof. This release shall be binding upon me and my heirs, legal representatives, and assigns.

Full name: (print) __________________ Date: _________________________ Signature: ______________________ Phone: _________________________ Address: ______________________________________________________ City: _____________________ State: _____ Zip: _________________ Witness Signature: ______________________________________________ Witness Name: ______________________________________________ When finished editing, resize the type as needed to fit entire form on one page. As a precautionary tale, when shooting nudes ALWAYS get a photo copy of a picture ID and staple it to your copy of the release. If you shoot nudes, sooner or later you will be glad you did! When shooting nudes, I always use the 18/18 rule. I will not shoot a nude photograph of anyone over 18 months of age and under 18 years of age. Violate the 18/18 rule at your own risk! If you choose not to follow the 18/18 rule, please don’t write to me from jail.

PROPERTY RELEASE Insert your logo or letterhead here Property Release For valuable consideration herein acknowledged as received, the undersigned being the legal owner of, or having the right to permit the taking and use of photographs of certain property designated as: _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ _______________________________________________ does grant to “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE” his/her agents or assigns, the full rights to use such photographs and copyright same, in advertising, trade, or for any purpose. a) I also permit the use of any printed material in connection therewith. b) I hereby relinquish any right that I may have to examine or approve the completed product or products or the advertising copy or printed material that may be used in conjunction therewith or the use to which it may be applied. c) I hereby release, discharge and agree to save harmless “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE” his/her heirs, legal representatives or assigns, and all persons functioning under his/her permission or authority, or those for whom he/she is functioning, from any liability by virtue of any blurring, distortion, alteration, optical illusion, or use in composite form whether intentional or otherwise, that may occur or be created in the taking of said picture or in any subsequent processing thereof, as well as any publication thereof, including without limitation any claims for libel or invasion of privacy. d) I understand that in the event the property is sold, the new owners will continue to be bound by this agreement. e) I hereby affirm that I am over the age of majority and have the right to contract in my own name. I have read the above authorization, release and agreement, prior to its execution; I fully understand the contents thereof. This agreement shall be

binding upon me and my heirs, legal representatives and assigns. Dated: _______________________________________ Owner’s Signature: __________________________________ Print Owner’s Name:________________________________________ Address:______________________________________ City:_________________________________________ State/Zip:_____________________________________ Phone:_______________________________________ Witness Signature: ______________________________________________ Print Witness Name: ______________________________________________ This form will be retained with the digital files, negatives, transparencies, contact sheets, and/or videotapes. When finished editing, resize the type as needed to fit entire form on one page.

EXTRA CLAUSES Extra Clauses Here are a couple extra clauses you may or may not want to include in your releases. This first one is a simple list of terms in the release and their definitions. If you add it, it will preclude any possible problems with someone saying, “Well, I thought that meant…” On the other hand, everything you add to a release makes it look more foreboding and has the potential of making someone not want to sign it. You choose… Definitions: “ASSIGNS” means a person or any company to whom “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE” has assigned or licensed rights under this release as well as the licensees of any such person or company. “CONSIDERATION” means cash, ($1.00 or more), or something else of value I have received in exchange for the rights granted by me in this release. “CONTENT” means all photographs, digital files, film, audio, or other recording, still or moving, taken of me as part of the PHOTO SHOOT. “MEDIA” means all media including digital, electronic, print, television, film, radio and other media now known or yet to be invented. “MODEL” means the subject being photographed and includes their appearance, likeness and voice. “PARENT” means the parent and/or legal guardian of the Model. Parent and Model are referred to together as “I” and “me” in this release, as the context dictates. “INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE” means the photographer, illustrator, filmmaker or cinematographer, or any other person or entity photographing or recording MODEL.

“SHOOT” or “PHOTO SHOOT” means the digital photographyc, film or recording session described in this form. *********************************************************************** Here is a clause that was included in the property release, but on reading it, it could possibly have value in the other releases too! “I hereby release ”INSERT YOUR NAME OR YOUR STUDIO NAME HERE” from any liability by virtue of any blurring, distortion, alteration, optical illusion, or use in composite form, whether intentional or otherwise, that may occur or be produced in the taking of such photographs or in any subsequent processing of them.” ********************************************************************** If you were to take a photograph of a model (or potential model) and she signs a release agreeing that it is ok to sell the photos of her - the standard release - it is enough in most cases, but not all of them. For example, if you take photos of a model walking in the sand at the beach at sunset - if you get a standard release and then you sell the photo to some romance magazine, no problem. Then, after it becomes published, you are contacted by an AIDS awareness group and they want to use the photo in one of their brochures - this IS a problem. By having her photo appear, it could logically be construed that she has AIDS, which could damage or even destroy her reputation and career. Before you sell the photo to the publisher, get an additional model release with a clause like the following: “I understand that the pictures of me will be used in public-service advertisements to promote AIDS awareness. Knowing that such advertisements may intentionally or unintentionally give rise to the impression that I suffer from this disease, I nevertheless consent to this use.” If you know in advance that the pictures will be used for something like this, don’t wait, include it in the initial release. Or, tell the publisher that you do NOT have a release and it is their responsibility to get one. Put that in writing and have them sign it.

If you are doing a nude photo shoot, again the standard release isn’t quite enough. First you need to prove that the model was of legal age. Then you will want to prove that he/she knew they were being photographed nude and agreed to it. In other words, that there was no Photoshop magic done later to digitally remove their clothing. You will need a photocopy of a state issued ID to prove the model’s age at the time of the photo shoot and you will want to include an additional clause: I hereby warrant that I knowingly appear fully nude in some or all of the photographs. I am of full legal age and have the right to contract in my own name. I have read the above authorization, release, and agreement, prior to its execution, and I am fully familiar with the contents thereof. This release shall be binding upon me and my heirs, legal representatives, and assigns.

***************************************************************************** Lastly a word of caution: You want to be very careful not to accidentally dispense any advice that could even remotely be construed as a legal opinion. Never make a statement as to whether or not a release is needed. You could later be held liable. And if you do have a release and you are selling a photo to a publisher… This statement doesn’t need to (and probably shouldn’t) go on the release its’ self, but it should go on any correspondence you have with potential publishers of any photographs you sell to them. NOTE: PHOTOGRAPHER’S NAME is not an attorney and makes no warranties or representations in connections with these releases. Consult your attorney if you have any legal questions regarding them. ********************* Now that you’ve completed this training lesson along your photo journey, “Model Release Templates”, don’t lose your momentum! Head over to Amazon and get one of the other lessons in the series! Btw - If you haven’t yet gotten a copy of Volume 1 - “7 Secrets To Creating Stunning Photos!”, it’s a freebie! (but, it’s not listed with Amazon), check it out here:

http://www.OnTargetPhotoTraining.com It’s time YOU put the “WOW” factor into your photos! **************************************** On the subject of learning more… The next section is a list of other training e-books by “On Target Training” (me), check them out! (TWO of them are FREE!)

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Thank You As we reach the end of this bundle of books, I want to say thanks for reading! I want to get this information out to as many people as possible. If you found these lessons helpful, please refer your friends and family to get their OWN copies! Then, be sure to check out the other volumes in this series! Now that you have gone through this “On Target Photo Training” bundle, I would greatly appreciate it if you could go to Amazon and leave a review! It only takes a few seconds, but Amazon places a lot of weight on the number of reviews and I need as many as I can get. Here is your chance to be heard - and to help others make the decision to get started improving their photography! Just go to: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GYRRM73 Then go about half way down the page to where it says - “Write a customer review” - click the button and follow the directions. Here is my guarantee… good Karma will be coming your way - and it feels good to help out! Now, find a model and start experimenting!

Disclaimer Legal Notices While all attempts have been made to verify information provided in this publication, neither the Authors nor the Publisher assumes any responsibility for errors, omissions or contrary interpretation of the subject matter. This publication is not intended for use as a source of legal, medical or accounting advice. The Publisher wants to stress that the information contained herein may be subject to varying country, state and/or local laws or regulations. All users are advised to retain competent counsel to determine what country, state and/or local laws or regulations may apply to the user’s particular situation. The purchaser or reader of this publication assumes responsibility for the use of these materials and information. Adherence to all applicable laws and regulations, your national, federal, state or local - governing business practices, advertising and all other aspects of doing business in the United States or any other country or jurisdiction is the sole responsibility of the purchaser or reader. The authors and Publisher assume no responsibility or liability whatsoever on the behalf of any purchaser or reader of these materials. Any perceived slights of specific people or organizations is unintentional. Last Updated: August 29, 2018