Exposure compensation. How to get the snow white!!!

When you take pictures in the snow, your camera meter is fooled by all of the white in the picture and under exposes the images by about 1.5 stops.
I thought I would test this theory and took the three images above.
you can see the image on the left is too dark and the Histogram is to the left. In the centre image I have adjusted the camera by +2 stops of compensation and the graph is just creeping off the right hand side of the Histogram, overexposing some of the sky. Adding 1.5 stops to the centre image would have been about right.
The right hand image shows the correct exposure with the sky, snow and car all correctly exposed. Notice the graph has not reached the right hand side of the Histogram. For this shot I used a handheld ambient light meter to get the exact reading which was +1.5 stops. Oh just one more thing! The blacks are on the left of the graph and whites are on the right.
NOTE! Even if you own a compact point and shoot camera, you can adjust the exposure compensation using the (P) program Mode as shown on the photo of the screen on my Fuji.

Home Made Christmas Card from the Churchill's

I wanted to make a Christmas card that I could send to my friends on Facebook so with the help of Gavin Hoeys tutorial I produced this video from 9 images taken from a Photoshop PSD file. The images were then imported into Windows Movie Maker so that I could make the card twinkle. Some of the9  images were used quite a few times to make the lights flash on and off. I know its not professional quality but I have learnt a new trick which I can explore and refine.

Robin on Footbridge

Robin on Footbridge, originally uploaded by Ian_Churchill2010.

Here is another image of a different Robin taken on the same day as the last post. The image was taken in a quiet gloomy area at the same country park. I think this image shows a different mood than the last one. Again I have positioned the bird in the frame according to the rule of thirds ie. the Robins eye is a third of the way in from the top and side of the image. Its much better than putting things in the middle as it guides your eye through the image. Thats COMPOSITION!

A Friendly Robin. A welcome splash of Colour on a dull December day .

I took a trip to my local country park on a cold and grey December afternoon, hoping to capture some wildlife shots. Birds keep people at a safe distance so walking around with a camera just scares them away. I decided to sit quietly for a while and wait. Within a few minutes this Robin and a Nuthatch perched about 4 feet away just looking at me. I carefully lifted my camera and the Nuthatch flew away, leaving this friendly robin. Maybe next time I'll take some wild bird food with me to attract the birds in close.

Night time on the quay

I'm still exploring HDR (High Dynamic Range) images. This image was created from three images with exposure compensation of +2 stops, 0, and -2 stops whilst making sure the camera did not move between shots. I took it from a high vantage point so I was looking down on the boats. To my eye it was very dark but with HDR the shadows become visible in the finished image. By adjusting the images tonal range, many different effects can be created which make it difficult to know when the image is finished. I decided to stop here because I wanted vibrant colours. Its always a personal thing!

HDR StAldhelms Head

This is one of my favourite HDR images. Its pretty simple but its one of those picture that gets better the more I look at it. Maybe its the blues of the sea or sky. Maybe its personal because I know the spot is so peaceful. There is a seat nearby where I just sat and took it all in. I think its got to be one of my favourite places.

Leon Loves Arsenal

The only part of this image that came from my camera was Leon my grandson.
He put on his Arsenal Kit and just sat holding the Arsenal ball.
I told him he could become a footballer one day and the look on his face said it all.
I tried to create an image that would convey that dreaming feeling.
Starting with the dark blue night sky I added the moon, clouds, and stars using pre shaped brushed. I simply selected the size and where I wanted these elements. A click of the mouse and magically they appear. I removed Leon from his background and inserted him into the picture letting the clouds partially cover his legs.
The rainbow was produced and manipulated using a preset rainbow gradiant and the final touch was to add the text.
I hope you enjoy this image. I certainly enjoyed making it.

Can you see the Old Man in the Purbeck Rocks? I have used High Dynamic Range (HDR) technique to enhance the colours and details in the image.

ORIGINAL

HDR







Check out these two images.  




 

 

 



 


 





Have you ever looked at a photo and thought that it did not turn out the same as it looked with you eye?

The photo looks dull and the shadows look too dark and the bright areas look too bright?

That's because digital cameras (even expensive ones) have a smaller dynamic range than the human eye so it cannot record the same range from bright to dark.

I HOPE THIS MAKES SENSE.

I took this image on a bright autumn day whilst walking near Winspit Valley.

Being on the Jurassic Coast there were fossils every where.

I think the shape of the cliff face looks like an old man looking out to sea.

HDR (High Dynamic Range) is a technique used when then photograph has both under and over exposed areas. I took 3 pictures of exactly the same scene but under exposed the first one, over exposed second and correctly exposed the third. These three images were then combined so that you can see into the shadows and the highlights at the same time. I have removed the Lens Flare but the colour of the sea and sky is much bluer as a result of the HDR process.

I really like this process and will be posting some more soon. Its also great for night time shots.



Bournemouth Airshow 2010

Sunday 22nd August was a day I had been waiting for. I have missed the Bournemouth Airshow the last few years due to other commitments so I had my cameras packed and planned to spend all day practicing my blurred background plane action shots. I only saw one helicopter and the show had to be cancelled due to low cloud. I still managed to capture some shots of the kids that we took and stumbled upon a tent full of interesting eagles and owls. We still enjoyed our day out and there is always something to photograph as long as you take your brolly.

Meet Lacie

Lacies Mum gave me permission to share these images. I really like them as the choice of clothing really stands out against the background. Both are fairly plain and compliment each other. The result is that the when looking at the image, the viewer is not distracted from Lacies face.

Wedding Course

What I love about photography is that there are so many things to learn and so many ways of taking pictures of so many subjects in so many different places. As this blog is about my photography I should put in just a few pictures that I have taken both at real weddings and on courses. Taking pictures at a wedding is both a privilege and a great responsibility. You only get one chance to capture that moment, unlike in the studio where you can take your time and resit if necessary. Unlike the studio, shooting conditions can change from Brilliant sunshine outside to a dimly lit church when no flash is allowed and the pictures still need to be bright and vibrant. Photographers plan the day like a military exercise and have backup plans. Here is just a flavour.

Kacie the model

I just had to post these pictures that I took in my front room of one of my two goergeuos grand daughters. First of all she was really interested as I set up the light stands, unbrellas, backdrops and all the other gadgets. Children soon get bored and sure enough after a few minutes I heard "grandad !!! when are you going to take some

pictures.

"Soon" I said. As soon as I started to take pictures all was well. Flashing lights and being the centre of attention Kacie was having fun, but after only a few minutes the novelty had worn off and my model couldnt see the point in it all anymore. I asked Kacie if she would like to be a model when she was older as they earn lots of money. Seconds later she was up and posing. We had fun doing lots of posing including jumping and hair flicking. The moral is that all kids get bored quickly. They need to have fun and if there is a reward in site it makes it even better. Kacie earnt £1 for her first modelling job and is dreaming of a new carrear in the fashon industry. Well we all have dreams.

Cute Fantasy Fairy

I just had to show you a couple of cute pictures of Keira that I took recently.

Keira's mum kindly gave me permission to share them with you.

The pictures were shot in front of a white background at Keira's home. Later I added the unique wings that I design, before replacing the background with one of my growing list of high resolution digital fantasy backgrounds.

   

A big thank you

Wow!!!!! what a week, thanks to everyone who commented on my blog. I now have loads of friends who like my pictures and my blog, so a big thanks for taking the time to look or comment.
Many thanks. Ian

Fantasy Fairytale Pictures

I have quite a wide ranging portfolio offering hopefully something for everyone.

I am using my online blog to talk about the type pictures I'm taking. You can see from the two images that I need a posed picture which I can add to one of my backgrounds.

Memories on a Filmstrip

The filmstrip image is made up of four memorable images that ideally should be related in some way. In this image I used four holiday images. Each time I look at it I am instantly reminded of last years holiday, sitting by the pool in Alcudia in Majorca.

Children and Triptychs

Kerry has asked me to post an image that she has on her living room wall. I have many different digital triptych frames that I can use.
As the word triptych implies the image needs to contain 3 images that are related in some way.
In this case Jamie loves playing football so with some photo manipulation I came up with this image of him performing some ball skills.
Your child probably has something that they love from diggers to dolls so triptychs can be very versatile.
A big thanks to Gavin Hoey for the tryptych frame.

Digital Globe Of Your World

The DIGITAL GLOBE is a favourite of mine.

I take a collection of about 25 pictures and transform them into this wonderful shiny globe.

I then create this stunning background and make the GLOBE float in the picture. I also add the cool reflection  underneath the GLOBE.

As with FANTASY FAIRY pictures, I have to create this eye catching effect, so it takes some time on the computer.

Damsel fly

I thought I would post this picture as I stumbled on this colourful insect in the Bournemouth Gardens on a hot June day.

Mid day shooting ducks at Coy Pond

Its a pretty tame way of starting a blog but I decided to take an hour out and visit the local pond for some inspiration. Early afternoon on a hot and sunny June day is not the best time to take pictures outside as the light is harsh and directly above you. Images tend to look a bit flat. I normally try to take pictures either early or late in the day when the light creates depth and dimension to the image. This shot was taken on my canon 40d at ISO200 @ f6.3 using my 70-200mm f4 IS lens in a shaded area.
There will be much more exiting things to talk about in the future but I'm new to Blogging and just needed to get started.You know how it is!!