Improving Focus: Aperture "Sweet Spots"

Did you know there are sweet spots for a lens's aperture that will result in crisper images???

There is.

And I wish someone would have told me this years ago!

I tend to bump my aperture all. the. way. open. 

My 50mm lens goes to f1.8.

While I love the smoothness in the backgrounds and the beautiful bokeh it achieves, I usually don't need those things to the extreme that I get them.

 I'd willingly trade some of that bokeh and blur for crisper images. 

Rule #2. The middle of a lens's aperture range is the best at achieving crisp images.

Generally speaking, f8 or f11 are the typical mid-ranges.
Specifically speaking, two stops in from either end of the aperture range are usually the best.
For example: my 50mm lens has an aperture range of f1.8 to f22, so the best spots on this particular lens would likely be at f4 and f11.

But the specific "sweet spots" will vary depending on your lens.

The best way to find your particular lens's sweet spot is to do some field testing. There's a good article on Digital Photography School that will walk you through finding your lens's sweet spot in more depth.

All of this talk isn't to say you should never use those aperture "extremes", because there are certainly times when they can be advantageous...it's just best to know the trade-off of using one aperture over the other!

Improving Focus: Mirror Lock-Up

There are a lot of ways in which you can fake a good photograph, but one thing is certain: 

you can not fake good focus.

No amount of editing will make a blurry image crisp and clear.

Period.

That means you must get it right in camera.

And that can sometimes be hard to do.

Last week I watched the live, online workshop Fundamentals of Digital Photography with John Greengo at CreativeLIVE.com. While I knew a lot of the information would be review, I also knew I'd learn something!

When this workshop got to the section on focusing, I was all eyes, ears, and attention!

...and it turns out, I learned a lot more than I thought I would...

Over the next few days I'm going to share the three major "rules" or tips about focus that I took away from this course.

So, let's get started, shall we?!

1. Using Mirror Lock-Up will eliminate in-camera vibrations, thus resulting in crisper images.
Last year I upgraded my camera to a Nikon D7000 because the ISO capabilities are amazing. But every week it seems I learn something more about this model that makes it even better. The most recent "discovery" was that of mirror lock-up.

Let me first explain a bit about the mechanics of our cameras, using the below diagram as a reference:

When we look through the viewfinder we are seeing the image in front of us reflected into a mirror within our camera. When we press the shutter button to take the picture, that mirror must swing up and out of the way so the image can be recorded, or taken. Because this mirror swings up with such powerful force, it jostles the camera a little bit which can result in slightly blurry images.

{ click on the above image or HERE to read more about how your camera works! }


There is a way to stop that mirror from shaking the camera. Enter: mirror lock-up. It does just what the name suggests; it locks the mirror up before you take the picture.

On my D7000 there is an extra dial on the top that includes "MUP" - mirror lock-up. When I select this option, the first time I press the shutter button the mirror locks to the top of the camera. The second time I press the shutter button, the image is recorded. The downside to this option is that once the mirror is locked up, you can no longer see the image you're about to take.

If you want the benefits of mirror lock-up, but wish to avoid the inconvenience of not seeing what you're about to shoot, there is another option: Live View.
Live view will lock the mirror up and let you see what you're shooting!


Next time you're out shooting, give this trick a try...you might be surprised by the results!

...see you tomorrow for tip number two!...

Make Your Own Actions in PSE...Sort of...

I think most photographers who use an editing program such as Photoshop come to a point where they want to take that next step and create their own actions.

I'm there.

But I have PSE and there's no room in the budget for a full blown version of Photoshop.

And my tireless searches for some kind of action-hack for PSE have turned up empty.

But I'm stubborn...just ask my husband...or my parents.

And when I set my mind to something, I will find a way to do it.

With that all said, I "found" a way to create my own sequence of steps much like an action set and apply it to any photo with ease. Now, I must say that this isn't terribly brilliant and I'm surely not the first one to ever think of it, but I did come to it on my own. 

When I was editing the series of Space shots from yesterday, I decided I really did not want to have to remember/repeat each step for all the images. I knew I wanted them to all look the same or at least very similar and I am all about conserving time. So, I created the look I wanted using the proper adjustments. For all of those who have asked what I did to create those images, it was simply boosting saturation and super-boosting levels of black. ;)

After I completed my steps, I deleted the background image and saved the info as a .psd file.
NOTE: In order to delete your background image, first you need to double click on it to make it a layer, then you must have another layer in place before the program will allow you to remove it. This other layer can be a texture overlay, a solid color overlay, or even an empty layer as I have used in the screen shot below.

These two steps are pretty much all that's needed to make your "action".
In order to run your new action, you need to open the image you want to edit, open the action file, then simply select all components of the action set and drag and drop onto your image.

And that, my friends, is a whole lotta words for something fairly simple.

Here it is all together:
Step 1. Edit an image how you like.
Step 2. Delete the background layer. (Replace with a blank layer if necessary.)
Step 3. Save as a .psd file.
Step 4. Open your image to edit and open your newly created action set.
Step 5. Select all steps from the action, then drag and drop onto the image to be edited.

Space, The Final Frontier

These are the voyages...

Ok, ok I won't do the whole thing!

But I do really like Star Trek.

And I immediately thought of it when I was editing these shots.
...the fact that I'd just watched an episode the night before probably had nothing to do with it.
;)



Not to be braggy, but I must say that I was quite pleased with how these starbursts came out.



Not to mention the flares.



Does anyone know what those white specks are?



They're cottonseeds.



It is indeed time for the cottonwoods to drop their fluffy, soft seeds all around town and in our yard.
HERE is a shot from last season


Several of you have asked what I did to create these images, so here's the secret...

During shooting:
1. To get the starbursts you need a small aperture.
2. Adjust your shutter speed accordingly for a well exposed shot.
3. Do NOT look directly into the viewfinder, unless you wish to experience temporary blindness. Ouch!

During Editing:
1. I boosted the saturation levels up to about +25
2. Boosted the dark tone levels a lot

And that is it!

Bokeh Overlay Tutorial & Downloads

As a thank you for your visits and to celebrate reaching 100 followers, I've made up a tutorial of sorts to show you how to achieve bokeh overlays and I've put together a few fun bokeh downloads for you too!

I hope you like it.
Now on to the show!

*****

Capturing beautiful backgrounds of bokeh is easy as pie...or maybe as easy as eating pie.
That's a lot easier than making one...

Step 1. Put down your camera.
Now look around. Do you see any light sources? Do you see that light being reflected anywhere?
It could be off of a car or the sidewalk or the buttons on your kid's jacket.

The next three examples will show you that, much like love, bokeh actually is all around.

(anyone else a fan of the movie Love, Actually?!)

Step 2. Throw those photography rules out the window.
Go on, chuck 'em! Some rules are made to be broken.
This is where underexposure will make your background take on mood and overexposure can give you a bright and airy feel.





The main thing I learned in art school is that art is 90% BS and 10% Skill.
And we're makin' art here people!



Step 3. Hello, Mr. M.
Now pick up your camera and turn it to M - for Manual mode.
...I heard some of you gasp. Go on, you can do it!...
Now that we're all on M, I want you to also go into your settings and change the focus mode to manual.
(some of you may need to dust off that boring booklet that came with your camera - aka: your manual - to find this setting.)

You'll probably need to fiddle with your lens and shutter speed to get the desired effect, but don't worry if it's not 100% perfect sooc - that's why God gave us photo editing software!


QUICK TIP: If you're in a hurry or using a point & shoot I've found that it's helpful to stand at least 10 feet from your bokeh subject, focus on something very close to you and keeping that focus locked in, move your camera so the bokeh subject is in your viewfinder. You should be seeing some cool bokeh, but you may need to tweak this technique to make it work best for you.

Here's a shot I took last Christmas with a p&s:



and here's a shot I took with my dslr using this quick method:



And that's it.
Questions?

*****

Below are the bokeh overlays for you to download, along with an example of what they look like in use.
One's a little wild, one's a little Renaissance, and one's a little sweet.
...kind of like me! ;)


Click HERE to download all three bokeh backgrounds.



Saturday Night Fever




Princess Bride




Sound of Music

Big and Small

My mom and stepdad recently went to Hawaii! I've always wanted to go...maybe one day.

Anyway, this photo is theirs but they let me do some editing on it.




I'm sure most of you have seen these "planets" all over the photo blog world!
I just decided it belonged in outerspace.
;)



I use PSE 8 and this is how I did it:

Step 1: Follow this tutorial to get the basic planet look.
Step 2: Using the circle selection tool, cut out a perfect circle planet.
Step 3: Paste the cutout into a new layer.
Step 4: Turn the background layer into an editable layer by double clicking on it.
Step 5: Using the fill bucket tool, paint the background black. Then paint in "stars" using a low opacity brush - I used about 35%.
Step 6: Adjust lighting levels to your liking. Filter > Render > Lighting Effects.
Step 7: Make a duplicate layer of your planet, lighten the whole thing by using levels. Enhance > Adjust Lighting > Levels.
Step 8: Move your duplicate layer behind the original plnet layer.
Step 9: Ever so slightly shrink the original planet layer and adjust so that only a sliver of light peaks out from behind the planet.
Step 10: Merge and flatten.





__________




For some reason, I feel that this little guy is giving me the "if I don't move, maybe she won't see me" look!
What do you think?

Tutorial: White Backgrounds

Note: Please know that I am not a professional. I'm an amateur photographer on a small budget. And this is what I've found to work for me.


I get a lot of questions about how I get my white backgrounds.
Some people think I have a studio, which is an amazing compliment but not at all true.

I shoot my white background photos on our deck using two sheets of white posterboard and some tape. Really, I do!

No studio required and it'll cost you less than $1.00.


Here's my typical setup:


As you can see, the posterboard doesn't even need to be completely clean. I use the cheapest kind, which is about $0.40 per sheet at Walmart.
(these work well as reflectors, too!)

I like to shoot on overcast days because of the soft light and lack of shadows.
This particular day there were a lot of clouds that blocked the direct sunlight for several minutes at a time. Open shade can also work well.
(Pioneer Woman has a nice article on open shade!)

I use tape (and on this particular day a jug of bubbles) to keep the backdrop board upright.
It seems that overcast days are also windy days and sometimes the tape alone doesn't hold as well as I need it, hence the paint on my boards!

I set up next to the stairs for two reasons: 1.) It's the only space available on our deck! And 2.) I can get down low a lot easier by sitting on the steps, as opposed to laying down with my face smooshed against the deck.


Here's one of the crayon shots I got.
This was shot from above and therefore I didn't even use my backdrop board.

ISO 100 | f/5.6 | 1/125 sec | 300mm



And here's one where I shot from ground level and did use the backdrop.

ISO 100 | f/5.6 | 1/60 sec | 300mm


As you can see, it's not always perfect. I sometimes get vignetting from my lens.
(here's a good article on in-camera vignetting)

I've found that if I set my shutter speed lower than I think it needs to be, I'm more likely to get that pure white exposure of the background.

If your background is looking a bit gray, you can usually fix it by adjust the exposure using your editing software. Picnik makes this incredibly easy...and free!


Hopefully I've answered a lot of questions with this, but if you still have a question please feel free to ask in the comments or email me!