Long Exposures in the Midday Light

It is difficult to imagine that in a day when all photographers are pushing the manufacturers for higher and higher ISO that at the same time there is a need for lower and lower ISO. The truth is I enjoy shooting 30 sec and longer exposures during the daylight hours. There is no way to reduce the ISO low enough to create such long exposures while the sun is up. 

The only way to create this long shutter speed is with the use of neutral density filters.  If you’re like me and want to attempt this very cool look, I recommend the new Lee ND filter called “The Big Stopper”. This filter requires their holder but offers 10 stops of density to help you create those long exposures.

Before Filter

After Filter

Life is short, take pictures!

Marc Muench

A Great Lesson from Food TV's Good Eats

I watch a show on The Food Network called Good Eats.  The host is Alton Brown and he discusses a large amount of cooking gear and equipment (in addition, to delivering amazing food facts and cooking techniques.) The consistent thing about Alton's gear recommendations is he loves equipment that can multi-task.  Why have a piece of gear that can only do one thing.  If that is the case, to do three tasks you need three different items.  With multi-tasking, one piece of gear does all three jobs.

If you do a lot (or even a little) travel photography the concept of gear "multi-tasking" is hugely important.  In the ideal world it would be simple to take all of your gear everywhere.  There would never be carry-on limits, space or weight issues, and we would all have our own photo Sherpa.  In the real world, we are often forced to take fewer items in order to meet the travel reality.

I found myself in just such a situation on a recent photo trip to Alaska.  I normally carry a tripod along with a ball head and a gimbal head.  Turns out if I took both my bag would have been 50+ pounds and I did not want to pay the penalty.  I decided on just the gimbal since I knew it would work for my long lenses and also provide basic ballhead functionality (although not quite as efficiently.) 

Even with that I ended up wanting to shoot a macro shot from directly overhead my subject.  My first plan of attack is shown below.

As you can tell, probably not the best way to shoot.  Not only is the platform unstable but my ergonomics are horrible.  This is a really easy way to hurt your back and take a bad picture at the same time.  So I needed to innovate.

My solution was to multi-task my gear.  I know I had a great tripod (Really Right Stuff TVC-33) and my gimbal (RRS PG-02).  I decided to see if I could make it work in this macro situation.

After looking at the PG-02, I took the vertical support arm and turned it around.  This allowed me to support the camera and point it straight down at my basket sea star.  I had never done this before and did not know the PG-02 could do this.  What I found is exactly what Alton Brown talks about on Good Eats; another great use for a piece of gear designed for something a little (or a lot) different.

Although I had good support, my ergonomics still, for lack of a better word, sucked.  Before I destroyed my back, I finally settled on what you see below.

Tremendous support, good ergonomics, and a different view of a basket sea star.  After these shots were taken I switched over to an EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro for closer shots (an example is the first shot at the top of the post.)

So here is to Alton Brown, Good Eats, and multi-tasking. 

As you all know I love Really Right Stuff gear.  This shoot made me an even bigger fan of the RRS PG-02.  Good luck making this happen with any of the other gimbal heads out there.

Fiat Lux!

All shots of me are courtesy of Marc Muench, Leanna Telliard-Stern, and Gina Ruttle.  Thank you!

​Basket stars multi-task as hair!

Blending Landscape Exposures with Marc Muench

This weekend we are happy to have Marc Muench here to teach Light students the latest tips and techniques in exposure blending. Last night we shot along the Bluff Trail in Montaña De Oro State Park to gather images for HDR processing.

The fog left us alone just long enough to get some great shots of the sunset.

Today we'll be using the images from last night to explore the different ways to blend multiple exposures together to create stunning High Dynamic Range images.

We hope to have Marc back soon for another awesome workshop.

There will be more HDR learning opportunities during the California Photo Festival Oct. 12-16, 2011. Check out our website LIGHTWorkshops.com to see the rest of our summer workshops.

Fiat Lux!

Marc Muench - Blending Landscape Exposures

If you haven't already heard, Marc Muench is returning to LIGHT for his workshop Blending Landscape Exposures , June 11-12, 2011.

Marc will teach you how to get the most range out of a single landscape exposure with specific in-camera techniques as well as in post processing. We'll move beyond working with a single exposure and look at the best techniques for bracketing exposures and how to combine them using Photoshop CS5.

Your registration not only includes an incredible learning experience but also Marc's new book "Exploring North American Landscapes"

This book is a great look at the iconic landscapes of  North America and the latest techniques in landscape photography. As a third generation landscape photographer, Marc has a unique perspective on how photography has made a huge impact on how we experience these beautiful and famous places.

Don't miss this great opportunity to learn from a master photographer!

Register online or call the office 805-528-7385 today!

Fiat Lux!