Global Update

Do all portraits need a head or is it okay to frame or crop a photo so that it is headless? Most times I’d say, “for the love of God include the head”. Normally we connect with the subject of a portrait primarily by looking at the subject’s eyes, which reveal much about the person being photographed.

But….once you know the rules, you can try to break them to achieve a particular result. This image is a good example of a headless portrait that works IMO. If we try to analyze WHY it works, it works because the coupled elements tell a story. The Jake tattoo on the hand coupled with the suit, coupled with the Royal Monaco car actually tell a SPECIFIC story. These are all elements of the movie The Blues Brothers and both the photographer and I likely show our age by knowing this fact.

However, even if I did not catch the Blues Brothers connection, for me this shot still works. The elements are still there. The tattoo, older freckled skin, suit and older car all suggest a story. The fact that the shot is in black and white reinforce this fact. It’s up to the viewer to extract the story for themselves, but all the elements are there.

Okay then - do you agree? What do YOU think about this shot and the concept of a headless portrait?

Many thanks to 1putts of our photography forum for allowing me to use this image. Here’s the original photo.

The truth about polarizing filters is that every photographer should have one in his/her bag at all times. It is possibly THE single most important and  useful photo accessory you’ll own. When there is light outdoors, this filter is on my camera the vast majority of the time.

A CPOL (circular polarizing filter) can be used any time you’re in the outdoors, especially in the bright sun. It reduces reflections, and deepens/saturates colors like a blue sky. In bright sun,  you’ll often get skies that are blown out if you don’t use this filter. It makes the sky much bluer and richer looking in many cases without really affecting the other tones in the image. You will note the greatest results when the sun is low in the sky (so early morning and later afternoon/evening). The CPOL will not help your color and saturation much on overcast days, or when the sun is high in the sky.

For more information on this amazing little gadget, including a little insight into the ‘rule of thumb’ when using a CPOL, visit this link on polarizers in our photography forum

Here’s a link from B&H where you can look at or purchase different polarizers.
Buying from this link helps support our site.

Photography podcast #71 discusses the principles of using a portable, external flash. We talk about how flash works, the different types of portable flash, on camera and off camera flash, using a portable flash as a main light source versus a fill light, bouncing the flash, sync speeds and more.

Depth of field guide

Links /resources mentioned in this podcast:
Podcast #33 - Studio lighting for beginners
Podcast #47 - Flash sync speeds
PocketWizard from B&H
Peanut slaves from B&H

August’s  “Water”  assignment on the Photography.ca forum

If you are still lurking on our forum,
feel free to join our friendly Photography forum

Thanks as always to everyone that sent comments by email about our last podcast. Although ALL comments are appreciated, commenting directly in this blog is preferred. Thanks as well to all the new members of the bulletin board.

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What is considered ‘off limits’ in photography? Well, the answer of course can certainly vary from one photographer to the next.

These days, photographing children raises a red flag for many people and some photographers steer clear away from them. There may be a sense of ‘intrusion’ into the lives of these children, and photographing them may just not feel right. There is also the perceived risk that someone may call the authorities suggesting that the photographs are being taken for sexually motivated reasons. Other photographers that photograph children do so in order to show the true beauty and innocence of who children are. They don’t care about perceived risks as they know that the photographs they take are artful and ethical. Completely different sides of the story, right?

Another interesting choice of subject to some photographers are street scenes - capturing the beauty of surroundings with people passing by. No wrong doing right? Well again, to some photographers, there is a sense of discomfort in shooting complete strangers without getting their permission first. Other photographers that know their rights (it’s legal to photograph anyone in a public place) have no issue with the ’shoot first and ask questions later’ policy.

There are many interesting subjects to shoot, and which is right depends on the photographer’s preference, taste, and comfort zone. What subject matter are YOU uncomfortable shooting and why?

For more on this subject, check out the Photography subjects - off limits thread in our photography forum.

There are so many subjects out there to photograph, yet according to some, there are also subjects that have been ‘done to death’. Subjects such as a sunsets, or ‘drop of water’ close-ups come to mind. What about flowers - why are they so popular to shoot? Perhaps because flowers are accessible, beautiful, and they just stand there and smile. Yet flowers ( as well as other common ‘overdone’ subjects) are quite good learning tools for several aspects of photography including DOF, focus, composition, color, and exposure.

There’s also something to be said for the “who gives a crap attitude”. Just because these types of shots are commonly shot, does that mean you should not shoot them? I mean are you NOT going to shoot the Eiffel tower or the Taj Mahal or a sea of red tulips just because they are commonly shot? You’re going to shoot them because these are YOUR shots.

If you absolutely adore these types of shots, but feel as if they are all too commonly done, challenge yourself. Be as creative as you can with the shot and it will be sure to stand out among the rest.

For more on this subject, visit our photo forum: http://www.photography.ca/Forums/showthread.php?t=4202