Learning from the Masters
I learn from the masters! I study photographers that are well known in their craft.
I learn from the masters! I study photographers that are well known in their craft. Photographers like Joe McNally, Peter Hurley, and Douglas Kirkland from today's masters. Ansel Adams, Yousuf Karsh, and Irving Penn from those that have passed.
I also learn from other photographers. Photographers that present amazing photographs and art work. I am looking at photographers that have clean work and seem to know what they are doing. They may not be published, written any books, or have a video series on Kelbyone but who are on sites like 500px where I can admire their work and get inspired from.
I have been studying photography since the 70s but I still do not know everything. Digital has changed the game for me and I feel as though I am starting over. I look to find new ways to learn without having to go back to school and do it ALL over again. I find the community of photography is supportive and encouraging but I also find there are a lot of photographers that may not be doing things the way I would do them so I have to be careful of who I choose to learn from and follow.
My goal this year is to continue to find amazing photographers to get inspiration from as well as continue to study the masters. As I learn or find new people I will post them here and I encourage you to do the same. I want to learn as much as I can but it can be hard to find something or someone new in the ocean of online digital photography. I hope I can help each of you and in turn continue to learn and find new things from each of you.
Here is a shortened list of where I am learning online:
Digital Photography School
Kelbyone
Lynda
Joe Mcnally
Peter Hurley
Here is a short list of the photographers I am following on 500px and Twitter:
I am in Love
I am in love...with my 50mm f/1.8
I am in love...with my 50mm f/1.8 lens. I have lenses for any kind of photography I want. I have lenses for portraits, lenses for landscapes, and lenses for macro/micro photography but had forgotten how much I appreciate my 50mm lenses. 25 years ago when I was in school we were told to always have a camera with a 50mm lens on it. It was a great lens for all kinds of photography and especially for street. When I looked through the view finder the world looked similar to what my eye saw and that made it easy to understand composition. If i needed to zoom or out I had my feet. If I wanted my subject to stand out I would open the aperture all the way and the world around would soften and only show my subject. If I wanted the world to be in focus I simply close down the aperture and everyone and everything was in focus.
As I have gotten older and have cameras and lenses for every kind of photography imaginable I forgot about my 50mm lenses. A few weeks ago I decided to get back to the kid photographer in me and I committed to having the 50mm on a camera almost all the time in the new year. Since then I have shot countless images with a 50mm. I had forgotten how great that lens can be. I especially like it for around the house and on the street. It is a small non-threatening lens and I can really get up close to people with it and not make them too uncomfortable.
Don't get me wrong I still have a wide angle lens when I shoot architecture, and an 85 or 105mm when I am shooting portraits, and I love my Macro lenses for food photography but if you stopped me on the street and asked what I had with me, it will probably be a 50mm f/1.8 lens. If you have been a photographer for a long time and are trying to get inspiration for the new year or rekindle your love of photography, try putting a 50mm on your camera and head out into the world and see what happens. if you are new to photography, I always say you should have a 50mm or a 35mm with a wide aperture. Pick one up and see how your world looks through one of these. I think you will be surprised.
I would love to see your 50mm photos. Please feel free to post them here or on my flickr page at DavePopephoto.
Christmas is Coming
I have done a little HDR but haven't spent a lot of time really thinking about it, so I decided to enter a contest this year and focus on making a decent HDR photo. I know that I am not Trey Ratcliff but I enjoy his work and I wanted to see what I would end up with. I tried this image 2 ways. The first one is with a 2 EV difference over 3 exposures and the second one is 1 EV over 3 exposures. Ironically I used to do this with film back in the 80s and 90s but they never looked this cool.
Which do you like better and why? Also I want to see your HDR images.
HDR EV -2, 0, +2
HDR EV -1, 0, +1