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eBook: What the heck is a Histogram?

Jay Patel — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:19 +0000

Price: $10.00

Format: eBook, PDF format, 37 pages

Size: 21.9 MB

Requirement: Adobe Acrobat Reader 9.0 or greater

Description

This in-depth guide to histograms provides all the information you’ll need to learn to make the most of one of the most powerful - and often overlooked – tools in digital photography. A quick glance at this little graph on the back of your camera can tell you if you have captured detail in the shadows, if your highlights are blown, if you need to bracket your images, and if your image is properly exposed. Professional nature photographers and accomplished teachers, Varina and Jay Patel will walk you through the process of reading, interpreting, and using histograms – while you are in the field and during post-processing in Adobe Photoshop. They use simple language and a wealth of real-world examples to teach you how to use your histogram.

Click on thumbnails below to see sample pages from this eBook:

In the Spotlight

Jay Patel — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 12:09:17 +0000

Yellowstone Falls from Artist Point is a sight to behold, but at this particular moment the view was extraordinary. The sun broke through heavy clouds, bathing the falls with light, and leaving the rest of the valley cloaked in soft shadow.

This was a waiting game…I watched the clouds for over 3 hours on this cold and rainy day before the spotlight illuminated Yellowstone Falls. I chose to under expose the image to ensure that the bright highlights in the water were not blown out. Even with under exposure, the falls were so bright that I had to process a single RAW image twice, and than combine them using our iHDR workflow.

By the time I was ready to put away my camera, my gloves were wet and my fingers were cold and numb. But it was worth the result… I wouldn’t hesitate to do it again.

Featured Download: Iceberg

Varina Patel — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:15:40 +0000

Click to Download

Jökulsárlón was, without question, my favorite of the places we visited on our first trip to Iceland. I wanted an incredible simple composition for this image – so I chose a single iceberg as my point of interest, and used a long shutter speed to blur the waves. The clean shades of blue simplified the image even further. A short time later, I was reminded of the awesome (and dangerous) power of nature – but for the moment, I tried to capture the incredible peace and tranquility of this beautiful scene. I hope you enjoy it!

As always, these images are provided for personal use as computer wallpaper or backgrounds ONLY. Copyright belongs to the photographer, and photographs cannot be used, redistributed, or recreated in print or on the web or on any other medium without written permission from the photographer.

Days Gone By

Jay Patel — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 12:25:24 +0000

On my first visit to Yellowstone, we stopped for lunch and my daughter fell in LOVE with the orange juice. And so, right in the middle of nowhere (somewhere along the Idaho/Wyoming border- farmland stretching for miles in every direction) she REALLY had to go. Well, here is a photo from that road-side stop. :)

This image highlights the emotional impact of human beings in a photograph. If I were to remove the two small figures from the photograph would this photograph have the same impact? It would be just another pretty landscape photo of a field and clouds. I chose the composition because I wanted to remember the time (clouds and sky) and the place (nothing for miles but freshly planted fields).

Simplicity

Varina Patel — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 12:15:50 +0000

I have always loved snow drops because they bloom sometime in February – when there is still snow on the ground. For me, they are the very first sign of Spring – and when I see them, I feel lighter somehow. It’s such a relief to see these delicate beauties appear after months of shoveling snow in freezing weather, and searching for sun under heavily overcast skies.

It’s easy to capture an image like this… even without fancy equipment.

I brought a single flower into the house and used a clothespin to hold it upright on a small stool. I placed a sheet of white paper behind it, making sure that the sunlight from a nearby window illuminated the paper. I used a small reflector (a sheet of shiny poster board would do… or even a piece of glossy photo paper) to reflect light from the window back onto my pretty subject.

I used a tripod to hold my camera steady, and I took several shots from different angles… making sure that my background was far enough away from my flower that the soft textures were completely blurred out. I chose an aperture of f8 in order to make sure I had enough depth of field to get the whole flower in focus.

Processing was very easy. I selected Photoshop’s default “daylight” white balance, and then brightened up the image just slightly to keep those whites as bright as possible – without blowing the highlights. I also removed a few tiny specks of dirt with the clone tool.

Flower portraits can be a lot of fun – especially when you are shooting the very first flowers of Spring!

Q and A: How much detail is enough?

Varina Patel — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 12:19:41 +0000

Take a look at these two photos of the same waterfall. Notice that the water in the image on the left is overexposed. This is a common problem when shooting scenes like this. The brighter water tends to lose detail even though the rest of the scene is properly exposed. The image on the right is properly exposed in every area. Notice the clear details in the water. I used our iHDR manual blending technique to make sure the entire image was properly exposed.

How do you know when you need more detail, and when you don’t? Take a look at the scene you are photographing. Can you see details in front of you? When I was was photographing this waterfall on an overcast day I could see details in the flowing water. However, if I look directly at the sun, I can’t see any detail at all… so if I’m shooting into the sun, I don’t expect to be able to see details in my finished image. The photograph below shows what I’m talking about. You can see lots of detail in the trees and the mountains… but the area right around the sun is “blown out”. In this case, it looks natural.

Of course, it’s important to keep in mind that photography is art. Only the artist can decide how much detail is right for a given situation.

To Learn more about our iHDR Technique check out our online webinar recordings:

Solitude

Varina Patel — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 12:01:03 +0000

One of the biggest reasons I choose to photograph nature is because I love solitude. I find that this is true for many nature and landscape photographers. We seem to share an appreciation – no… it goes beyond that – a NEED for solitude.

I get along with people just fine. I don’t mind speaking to large crowds. I can navigate my way through a city without a problem…

But I’d much rather be in the middle of nowhere. No cars driving by. No airplanes flying overhead. No lawn mowers or leaf blowers or weed trimmers. No radio or television. Just birdsong and the breeze through the branches and the trickle of the water over the rocks. I’m perfectly happy out there for hours. Days. Weeks.

How about you? What is it about nature photography that keeps you coming back for more?

Filters and Fieldwork

Varina Patel — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 12:34:19 +0000

This shot required very little special post-processing… just setting the correct color balance, and a bit of subtle mid-tone contrast. The real work of creating this particular image happened in the field… well… on the beach, actually. :)

This is a mid-day shot – I took it around 2 pm. Deep blue storm clouds were moving in. The water at Bahia Honda in the Florida Keys is this incredible turquoise or emerald color (depending upon light conditions and how rough the water is) and the sand is smooth and white. I wanted something different for this image. Jay I were playing around with our cameras… and this is the result.

There were a couple of problems with this scene as I stood there. First, the waves weren’t big enough to blur out easily… but they were too small to look good frozen in time. No matter what I did with my camera settings, I wasn’t getting a very interesting image. Second, there were strands of dark seaweed floating in the water. They created distracting streaks in the water, and left my test shots feeling pretty unappealing.

The solution to both problems? A whole lot of Neutral Density Filter. I used my own filter, and also borrowed Jay’s. The filters significantly reduced the amount of light entering the lens – by about ten stops in all. So, in order to get a correct exposure, I had to use a long shutter speed. 10 seconds at f/11 produced exactly the effect I wanted. The waves were completely smoothed out, so that the water seems calm and almost surreal. And all that floating seaweed? Well, it moved around so much with each wave that it blurred itself into oblivion! I didn’t have to clone out a single strand.

Even the clouds are softer – because they shifted during the long exposure. The rock in the foreground provides a clear point of interest, and since it is in clear focus, the scene doesn’t feel too blurred. Sometimes it’s helpful to have a sharp foreground object when you blur an image like this – it helps to anchor the scene.

So – what do you think? Was the technique successful? Does the image work for you?

Have you ever used a Neutral Density Filter? Or a long shutter speed to produce an effect like this? If not – maybe you should try it! It’s kinda fun! :)

The Road Less Traveled

Jay Patel — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 12:00:51 +0000

Where would you rather be? Sitting in an office or on this boardwalk exploring the coastal rain forests of Olympic National Park? There’s nothing wrong with having a desk job… the trick is to find a way to take “the road less traveled” before it is too late.

How was this photograph created?

This photograph highlights the use of a human element in composition. Many nature competitions adhere to strict rules that no “hand of man” should be visible in the photograph… but sometime a man-made element provides a bit of impact. Without the board walk, would the image be as effective?

Sunbeams

Varina Patel — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 12:12:58 +0000

I spent a good chunk of my childhood growing up in a beautiful valley in the Rockies… and every time I find myself back in those mountains, it feels like coming home. I’ve visited this lovely overlook several times in my visits to Glacier National Park. I’ve been on this overlook before sunrise and after sunset – in blinding winds and on a day when the water seemed smooth as glass. But this was my first visit to the overlook – and I remember these brilliant sunbeams every time I’m there. The scattered light was so beautiful reflecting off the surface of the lake and the rocks at my feet. America the beautiful indeed.

Having Fun with Wildlife

Varina Patel — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 12:00:58 +0000

I’m not really a wildlife photographer – but every now and then, I’ll pull out a long lens and see what I can do with it. The problem is, I tend to be uninspired by typical images of animals… the old “bird on a stick” shot fails to excite me. So, I try to capture images that are a little bit different. Not just your standard portrait of the creature… but something that gives the viewer a little bit more. Let me see if I can show you what I mean.

This stork was sitting on the edge of a narrow waterway – and although he was beautifully posed, he seemed a little lost in the tall grasses behind him. But I noticed that his reflection was just right. The brilliant blue sky was reflected in the smooth surface of the water, and it made a perfect background. Doesn’t he seem to be lost in thought?

Reflections came in handy when I took this shot of an alligator, too. The clouds and sky were reflected in the water, and the alligator seems to be skimming across a watery sky.

Adult storks seem to be 100 years old – because of their bald heads and wrinkly faces, I suppose. I think of them as knobby-kneed old men dressed in dusty, old-fashioned overcoats. So, I went with that. I converted this image to high-key black and white, and let the background blow out just a bit… as in an old photograph. This is a portrait of the very distinguished Grandpa Stork, who seems to have misplaced his top hat and cane. Ain’t he an old sweetie?

Well. This one speaks for itself I guess. Captain Jinkies here, decided to get all goofy in front of the camera. I have a whole series of images of these beautiful mountain goats… but this is the one that stands out. Go figure.
And how about this little dude? I love these tiny little birds – and this one caught this big old fish and was trying to find a way to get it down. It wasn’t going to work – but it sure was fun to watch!

The Promise

Jay Patel — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 12:02:09 +0000

I took this shot on the side of the road in Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming). This shot sold – along with two others – as part of a collection for a “peaceful” display for a hospital chapel. The selection was not based upon location – but on mood.

I processed a single image twice in order to bring out the details in both the sky and the foreground. I blended using our iHDR workflow. I did not use any filters for this shot.

I wanted to capture both the reflections in the water and the brilliant colors in the sky. So, I placed the horizon close to the center – ignoring the rule of thirds. Heck – you have to break the rules sometimes, right? ;) I did place the rainbow using the rule of thirds.

Featured Download: Iceland Blues

Jay Patel — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 12:00:31 +0000

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Jökulsárlón in Iceland is a breathtaking place. On one side of the road is a beautiful blue, glacial lagoon. On the other side is a black sand beach where giant icebergs lie scattered along the shore. This beauty come with its own peril – I found out the hard way. Right after I took this shot, a rogue wave knocked my off my feet and pushed me underwater. I managed to hold on to my Canon 5D MKII and tripod, but both the camera and lens were destroyed. Thank goodness for my backup camera! And the memory card was not damaged… so I didn’t lose any photographs. Thank goodness! (For more about that singularly disastrous day in Iceland, see Iceland: Day 5.)

Day Break

Jay Patel — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 12:00:36 +0000

We have only visited the Grand Canyon a couple of times… and each time for just a few hours. On our last visit, we were lucky enough to get this magnificent sunrise.

How was this image created?

The sun star you see in this image was created in camera…No Photoshop required. How? To create a sun star like this, you need a small aperture. For this particular image I used an aperture of F22. I placed the sun star and the horizon using the rule of the thirds.

Hold Your Breath

Varina Patel — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 12:00:20 +0000

We pay close attention to sunrise and sunset times when we are on location… but most of the time it’s not so much about being there at the moment the sun peaks over the horizon. It’s more about the light before and after that moment. We like to be there a good hour before sunrise – that gives us time to choose a composition, set up our camera gear, and do some low-light photography as the light begins to change.

The subtle magenta color you see on the mountain in this shot is called “Alpenglow”. It happens well before sunrise – this shot was taken nearly 20 minutes before the sun rose – and the colors started changing rapidly from that point on. The alpenglow faded as the sky began to glow in the East. By the time the sun appeared, the glow was long gone, replaced by rich golden light and a rainbow over the lake.

This was a tough shot to capture – more because of rain and splashing waves than particularly difficult camera settings. I wanted a 30 second shutter speed for a smooth opalescent effect… so I chose my settings accordingly. (f/8.0, 30 seconds, ISO 200.) Then, I wiped my lens clean and hoped for the best. I took three shots before the light faded – and only this one was was free of water droplets.

I’ve always loved long-exposure photography for the slightly surreal or dreamy effect it produces. What would you have done in a situation like this? Would you have been there in time to capture the glow? Or would you be kicking yourself later? :) I sure hope you wouldn’t have missed it!

Q and A: Full Frame or Crop Factor?

Jay Patel — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 12:16:07 +0000

“Why do you need a full frame camera?”

We have heard many different answers to this question… “Because most pros use Full frame camera.” “Because a full frame camera is better than a crop factor camera.” “Because a full frame camera has better dynamic range or tonality.” “Because my photos come out better on a full frame camera.” We believe that both crop factor and full frame cameras have their pros and cons, and we often use one over the other when the situation calls for it.

Let’s start with the full frame camera. Because of its larger pixel size, when compared with its crop-factor counterpart, it is typically associated with lower noise levels at higher ISO settings. (We are comparing cameras that appeared on the market at about the same time… not ones that were introduced several years apart). So, our first choice for shooting low-light or night photography would be the full frame camera because of it’s high ISO capabilities. There are also more options for prime lenses that fit a full frame camera – including tilt-shift (T/S) lenses in the wide-angle range. Sure, these prime lenses can be used on a crop factor body… but their effective focal length will be longer. When shooting with a wide-angle T/S lens, we prefer to use a full frame camera.

Night Shot with Full Frame Camera

What about a crop factor camera? One of the biggest drawbacks of the crop factor camera is also its biggest advantage - the multiplier effect. The crop sensor increases the effective focal length of the lens you are using. The crop factor makes a wide-angle lens longer (an 18mm lens with a 1.6 crop factor has an effective focal length of 28mm) – and a long lens even longer (a 400mm lens on a 1.6x crop camera has an effective focal length of 640mm)! That means that a crop factor camera is an excellent choice when you are shooting wildlife. Macro photographers also benefit, because the multiplier effect gives the photographer a larger working distances and more DOF for the same field of view.

300mm lens with 1.6x = 480mm effective focal length

When using a wide-angle lens on a crop factor body, the near DOF limit is a lot closer than the equivalent focal length lens with a full frame camera. As a result, a crop factor camera can get closer to the subject than a Full frame camera for the same field of view. Crop factor cameras are great when you want to get really close to your subject and still shoot wide. We were awfully happy to have a crop factor camera in Utah’s slot canyons!

10mm with 1.6x = 16mm effective focal length

So the choice between a crop factor camera and a full frame comes down to the situation. There’s no “right” answer here! We like to have one of each so that when we are in the field, we can choose the right lens for the job.

Hourglass

Varina Patel — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 12:00:11 +0000

We had actually planned to photograph the beautiful formations in the Vermillion Cliffs region of Utah on this trip, but the storm front we were expecting stalled out over California. So, we got back into the rental car, and drove West toward Death Valley National Park. We were exhausted (six hours by plane to Las Vegas, five hours by car to Utah, and then overnight to Death Valley… enough already!)

We arrived in time to capture the storm clouds as they gathered over the Mesquite Dunes. Early morning light brought out the beautiful rippling patterns on the dunes, and the brilliant blue sky is a perfect compliment to the golden sand.

When we shoot the dunes, we avoid the areas that are frequented by most tourists. We don’t want footprints in our photographs – so the biggest dunes don’t get much attention from us. Instead, we look for patterns like these – unbroken and perfectly formed. We arrive before first light in order to seek out a pleasing composition.

I set up my camera on a tripod – nice and low – so that I could get as close as possible to those gorgeous patterns. I chose a simple composition – this one is all about the rule of thirds. And I made sure to eliminate any distracting elements in the foreground. When I want to get close in the foreground, and still get the entire image in focus, I have to know my hyperfocal distance – invaluable information when you are shooting with a wide-angle lens. I also used a circular polarizer for this shot.

Post-processing wasn’t difficult. Just a matter of getting the right white balance to ensure that the rich gold color really stood out… and making sure I didn’t lose any detail in those highlights.

Death Valley is absolutely breathtaking no matter where you are standing – but the dunes are one of my favorite places to shoot. Maybe because they are constantly shifting with the wind.

2011: A Year in Photographs

Jay Patel — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 12:55:37 +0000

2011 was a great year for our Photography business – but there were highs and lows. There were many FIRSTS for us over the past year.

In 2011, for the first time…

we published a full year’s worth of eBooks.
we visited Iceland, where…
Varina got hit by multiple icebergs. Ouch.
we destroyed 2 cameras and 2 lenses in a matter of 20 minutes. Ouch again.
we are parents of THREE teenagers. Triple ouch.
we closed a business… and started a new one in the same month. (We closed the doors on Visual Wilderness, and started selling our ebooks on our own websites.)
we were unable to get a permit to run a workshop in a National Park.
we did not visit Death Valley. (We’ve been to Death Valley at least once a year, every year since 2005.)
we joined Google+, and gained thousands of friends and followers almost overnight.

So, there you go. It’s been a crazy year…but it was great fun. Here are some of our images from 2011:

We are looking forward to 2012, and have an ambitious schedule laid out before us. We hope you’ll come along for the ride!

Remains of Water

Jay Patel — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 12:13:54 +0000

Mud & more mud…is what you get if you venture into the Paria River canyon. The mud sticks to your shoes. It sucks at the legs of your tripod. It makes your pants heavy and stiff. And it sucks you down if you stand still long enough. But mud is great fun to photograph! I venture out into the river whenever possible….even when the river is a frozen sheet of ice in the middle of January. :)

How was this image created?

Choosing the proper exposure was very simple because the entire scene was evenly lit. The photograph is all about composition. I positioned the camera close to the cracked mud in the foreground so that I could use those incredible patterns as a dominant foreground. Perfect undisturbed jigsaw puzzles are rare to find in nature, and repetitive form is often an attractive element of composition.

Ten Seconds To Takedown

Varina Patel — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 12:57:13 +0000

Some of you have asked to see the photo of the wave that took me out on our Iceland trip, so I went ahead an processed it for you. It’s not one of my favorites from the trip… but half a minute later I was blacking out on the beach… so, I guess I’ll keep the photo as a reminder of the power of nature.

See that big wave coming in out there? That’s the wave that would take me out ten seconds later. At this point, I still thought I was ok. I was ready to back off if I needed to – but I didn’t feel threatened. You can see that there is a bit of water at my feet – but not enough to worry me. I assumed that the pull of one wave retreating would substantially reduce the power of the incoming wave… as had been happening all morning.

Unfortunately, that’s not what happened. The water at my feet didn’t pull back – you can see that it is shifting to my left. The next wave came in, climbed past me up the beach, and I pulled back to get out of the water. I realized I couldn’t move fast enough, so I braced myself to avoid being dragged under. No problem. The waves gently picked up all those pretty pieces of ice, and they floated past me. And then, the waves reached their peak – and in a rush, they returned to the sea. All those giant ice cubes shifted direction and came straight for me. An incredible impact to my right knee took me down. The tripod and camera ended up underwater – along with my f-stop bag, and the iphone in my pocket. I was hit by at least four icebergs… but I only remember that first one.

Anyway – it was a rough morning. If you haven’t read the whole story, you can check out our Iceland: Day 5 post.

… and here’s the photo from the takedown itself. I don’t remember hitting the shutter release, but the image was on my card when I thought to look. Kinda pretty isn’t it?