Autumn Path, Michigan. Depth of Field complements of a Hyperfocal Distance Chart
The following question came today via email. I occasionally post some of the questions that come my way, along with my answer.
Question: Does the hyperfocal distance of a prime lens remain the same when a wide angle converter is attached to the lens?
Support the NPS!
During the government shutdown of our National Parks, some park service employees have come under fire in the media during circumstances which are not of their own making. While there may be a few grumpy people in the NPS (and anyone in any profession can say some some things in stressful moments they wish they could retract), in 30 plus years of taking photos in our National Parks I have had many excellent encounters with the hard working members of the NPS.
Cemetery for Military Working Dogs, Fort Irwin California
This cemetery for military working dogs is at the National Training Center, Fort Irwin California. Something about this place touched my heart. It was good to see the dogs that serve our country remembered in this way. The crosses indicate the dog’s name and the month and year the dog died.
Mushrooms
One of my neighbors couldn’t wait for me to get home from a long trip so he could show me the mushrooms in his back yard. While I was gone he mowed around several bunches of mushrooms, pine needles, and leaves so he wouldn’t disturb the scene, hoping I would get home while the mushrooms still looked good.
Denali Sunrise from Reflection Pond
You can have many of the advantages of a $300 – $400 incident light meter for less than $20. Sound too good to be true? It isn’t too good to be true. This is about as close as you can get to a photographic “free lunch”.
The Chalice of Life
This morning I was sitting in a waiting room with not much to do when I became interested in the play of light through a wall made with glass blocks. I decided to have a little fun with my iPhone and some apps.
Autumn, Tahquamenon Falls, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
Fall color is sweeping the country. To make the most of it, you want to be at the right place at the right time. With some help from the internet, I will help you find the best fall color locations and arrive at the peak of the season.
Autumn Leaves, Banff National Park (modified image)
I take pictures with my iPhone just for fun. And that includes altering the photos, like the one above, with some of my favorite iPhone apps.
Sunrise, Gibraltar Island. OSU photo workshop.
This sunrise photo was taken at last year’s outdoor photography workshop hosted by OSU’s Stone Laboratory on Gibraltar Island. The workshop this year starts tomorrow.
Twilight, OSU Stone Lab Photo Workshop
Jeremy Bruskotter and I will spend this weekend with a group of eager and excited photographers. It is OSU’s annual outdoor photography workshop at Stone Laboratory on Gibraltar Island.
Kristina
A backlit, window light portrait can be challenging to meter, but the photographic possibilities are definitely worth it.
Backyard Portrait
Sunlight is usually too harsh for portraits so I try to avoid full sun on the face when shooting outside. My usual choices are to shoot in the shade or put the sun behind my subject (as in the case of this photo).
The Strip, Las Vegas with Fireworks
You can point your camera at the sky in auto exposure and autofocus modes and fire away whenever you see a burst of fireworks, but for the best quality photos, it helps to know a few tricks of the trade. It’s easy when you know what to do.
Nature photography by Jim Doty, Jr.
OSU’s Prestigious Stone Lab is hosting the workshop “Capturing the Wonder of the Outdoors” This is your chance to take your nature, landscape, and wildlife photography to the next level. This is an intensive weekend that combines class sessions with hands-on field trips. Join us August 9-11 on Ohio State University’s scenic Gibraltar Island near Put-in-Bay, Ohio.
Window Light Portrait
One of my grandsons was sitting next to me in my office looking intently at photos on my computer monitor. The moment was too good to miss so I grabbed a camera.
California Poppies
I have never entered a photo contest before, but I responded to a request to enter the May photo contest at Midwest Photo Exchange (MPEX). The theme was “Spring” so I submitted an early April photo of California Poppies. Photographers from all across the United States entered photos. Winners were announced June 3 and I won the “People’s Choice” award for the photo that was voted for the most by other photographers and visitors to the site. This is a first for me and I am thrilled!
Bull Elk Bugling, Moraine Park, Rocky Mountain National Park.
What do you meter when your subject has multiple tones? You could let your camera meter the whole scene and hope that gives you a good exposure, but that isn’t very precise and it won’t always give you the best exposure. It certainly wouldn’t give you a good exposure for this photo of a very dark bull elk at sunset.
Canon 50mm lens set to an aperture of f/2.
If you want to speak your camera’s language and make it do it’s tricks for you, you need to understand the language of exposure.
Bryce Canyon at Sunrise
Why is exposure so important? Because taking control of the technical side of exposure is essential to empowering your creative vision. In the words of National Geographic photographer, Dewitt Jones, “Regardless of where you are in your photography; beginner, advanced amateur, or professional; vision without technique is blind. No matter how beautiful the conception, a good image will not manifest without good technique.”
Fireweed, Brainard Lake, Colorado
Sometimes you head out with one photographic plan in mind and need to switch to another. As Dewitt Jones often puts it: Â “If you go out to shoot waterfalls and Nature (God) is giving you clouds that day, shoot clouds!”
Sunrise at Dead Horse Point
For landscape photographers, the “one sunrise per day” limit can be a real challenge, especially when you have several excellent locations to choose from. The same goes for the “one sunset per day” limit. Sunrise and sunset usually have the best light of the day. Photography would be so much easier if we had a couple of sunrises and sunsets per day.
Wedding photography mixes several of the challenges of portrait photography, street photography, news photography, and event photography, all in a fast moving, anything can happen, “no second chances to get it right” environment. It is one of the most challenging kinds of photography I know of.
I recently had the following online conversation with a friend who is an experienced photographer (which explains why I didn’t answer some of these questions in more detail).
Petrified Dunes, Zion National Park.
Zion National Park is well know for its towering sandstone cliffs, but it has other treasures for the photographer willing to look, like these petrified dunes.
One Day in Utah
When I left home headed for Northern California I had no intentions of being in Southern Utah. By the time I reached Denver, snow in the forecast for N. Utah, Nevada, and the mountain passes in N. California made a detour much more appealing than fighting snow on I-80, especially since I have never been to the spectacular parks and monuments in Southern Utah.
20×30 inch Cougar Print
I admit it, I am hooked on big prints. You are looking at a 20×30 inch print (or technically, you are looking at a digital photograph of a 20×30 print). Big prints look great hanging on a wall (or held by one of your favorite models).
Park Avenue at Twilight, Arches National Park, Utah.
Don’t put your camera away after sunset. There are lots of photographic possibilities as the sky deepens into evening twilight.
The bride helps the ring bearer with his boutonniere.
Half the fun of photographing a wedding is capturing candid moments. This is the bride helping the ring bearer with his buttone . . . . his boutonai . . . . his flower!
Piano Reflection Portrait
This portrait is from a spontaneous photo shoot. I had three great subjects (sisters), perfect light, and a baby grand piano to work with, and I almost always have a camera and one or more lenses with me.
Magpie Meets Canon 100-400mm Lens
Update April 2: Yesterday was April Fool’s Day. I’m not selling my Canon gear (blame the idea on Art Morris, the world class bird photographer). My apologies to the people who wrote and wanted to buy my Canon gear. The Canon history in between the first and last paragraphs is accurate and I really did buy my first autofocus lens long before I bought my first autofocus body.
I have been so impressed with the latest Nikon cameras (which have edged out Canon in the technology race) that I’ve decided to switch to Nikon gear. It was a hard decision.
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