Does not the very word “creative” mean to build, to initiate, to give out, to act—rather than to be acted upon, to be subjective? Living photography is positive in its approach, it sings a song of life
—not death.
—Berenice Abbott
Photography has been around since 1826, and the digital realm has been publicly available since about 1990—it’s still in its technological infancy. The most common question I get asked these days when someone is watching me shoot is, Is that digital? Accompanying that question is the attitude among many amateurs that with the advent of digital photography and the ability to alter images in Photoshop, composition, good exposure, and creativity are no longer required. What needs to be remembered is this, however: a digital camera is simply another tool.
In the Mid-Pyrenees of Fr ance , dur ing one of my Fir stLight Wor kshops, I photogr aphed this stand of birch trees that had been carefully planted in a symmetr ical for m. 12–60mm lens, 1 second at f7.0
90 Many concepts of photography also exist in painting, such as tension, composition, and freezing a moment so we can study it
at our leisure. Until 1872, painters could draw only from mental images of how a horse appeared as it ran, for example. Leland Stanford, former governor of California and owner of a Palo Alto horse breeding ranch, hired photographer Eadweard Muybridge, the most famous cameraman in the American
West, to photograph a racing horse as it ran. Racing enthusiasts had long argued about the position of the legs of a running horse, and Muybridge’s images proved that at one point in a horse’s stride, all four of its feet actually leave the ground at once. This proved to be one of the first collaborations of photography and painting, as painters used these photographs to help them create accurate representations of a running horse.
Often, if the photogr apher has found that perfect scene , such as this rock for mation in Garden of the Gods near Color ado Spr ings, Color ado, which fills the fr ame perfectly, the simple
addition of a “moment”—here the climber leaping out dur ing a r appel—can provide that extr a “oomph” that takes the image from a snapshot into a photogr aph. 50–200mm lens at 150mm, 1/500 second at f7.3, 100 ISO
Just as with a painting, a photo has to work on its own—it should not require a lot of dialogue to convey the sense of what is happening. Some photos are good for the time at which they were shot—perhaps as a record of an event or the family portrait that is legitimate strictly because of its content. Great photos make for great viewing long after they’ve been shot, however. And what makes them great is content, moment, and
composition—and how we use the controls on the camera to achieve creative elements.
In this chapter, you’ll learn how to use creative elements to improve your
photography. This creative exploration takes photography beyond the mere snapshot.
Creative control over the shutter speed and aperture allows you to move beyond capturing normal scenes to begin to use your camera to explore and record your creative visions.
CAMERA CONTROLS 91
I was on assignment for CH2M HILL, the official environmental advisors to the Atlanta Olympics. My goal was to convey the power of American athletes as they practiced for the Games. I felt that incorporating motion into my photographs would best convey the world of the athlete. The shutter speed and aperture can be set either to stop motion or accent it, and to increase or decrease the zone of focus. On this particular shoot, I planned to use the shutter speed control as my creative tool.
To control the action in an image, you can choose a slower than normal shutter speed, allowing the motion to blur. This can result in
a painterly and slightly abstract rendition of the scene. Another technique is to freeze the action with a very fast shutter speed. This hyper- realistic view of the action is the most common
In this cor por ate shoot for CH2M HILL, I was
photogr aphing the US C2 kayak team pr acticing for their event. Cr iter ia for the shoot were
motion and power.
80–200mm lens, 1/15 second at f5.6
92 type of sports photography, allowing us to capture the athlete at the decisive moment with his or her eyes focused and muscles taut at the peak of concentration and exertion.
Examples of Shutter Speed Control
Stopping motion or accentuating motion is a control at your command. An old rule of
thumb in sports photography goes like so: To stop a player in motion, use a shutter speed of at least 1/500 of a second. Anything less will start showing some blur. On the other hand, if you’re photographing a waterfall, you could slow the shutter speed down to 1/15 of
a second to emphasize the motion of the water.
The photo of the Olympic kayakers is an example of slowing the shutter speed down, here to about 1/15 of a second, and adjusting the aperture accordingly. Instead of an image showing the boat stopped in the wave and the motion of the paddlers’ arms frozen, a fluid- looking image was the result. The power of the stroke can almost be felt in the photo. The detail of the water is softened and muted by the long exposure, focusing attention on the two boatsmen. I use this technique when I want to convey a sense of motion in the image and create a more “painted” look.
This slowing down, or “dragging,” the shutter can work creatively in a number of
The USS Hawkbill surfaces from beneath the Arctic ice . Par t of a National Geogr aphic assignment on the SCICEX progr am, a five-year look at the wor ld under the Arctic ice . 80–200mm lens, 1/250 second at f4.5
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scenarios. Photographing lightning by using a shutter speed of 1/2 second to several seconds at dusk can capture several bolts of lightning. I’ve photographed freeways at night with a long exposure, the taillights and headlights
of the vehicles becoming streaks of light in the frame as the long exposure captured the movement of the vehicles.
Long exposures open an entire world of possibilities that call for a tripod—the major requirement for long exposures. Another rule
On a commercial shoot for a client, my job was to photogr aph “gr and scenes” of Amer ica. I was in Lake City, Color ado, photogr aphing the
wilder ness with Uncompagrhe Peak as a background. Ar t director Tom Kaminsky and I had discussed the idea of shooting these gr and scenes with an almost “Where’s Waldo?” human presence . Late dusk helped
set the scene , the late-day sunset war ming the sky slightly, and the car dr iving through the scene provided the human link. 14–54mm lens, 1/4 second at f4, 100 ISO
94 of thumb from the pro side of photography is this: When shooting wide angles, the slowest speed that can be comfortably used without
a tripod is equal to the focal length of the lens. So, for example, a 24mm lens could be hand-held at 1/30 of a second. I’ve found, with practice, that I can go a couple of shutter speed settings slower by using the techniques described here. I spread my feet apart and hold the camera up, shooting as I slowly exhale. It works!
Applying the rules of thumb further, let the length of your lens determine the
minimum shutter speed at which the camera can be hand-held. If you are shooting with
a 105mm lens, the minimum shutter speed you could generally use would be about 1/100 of a second, so as not to show camera shake
in the photo. The longer the lens, the more pronounced movement will appear in the exposure. With really long lenses—500mm plus—even the motion caused by your heartbeat can be a factor in sharpness if you’re shooting slow exposures without a tripod. So if you’re shooting with a 500mm, the minimum shutter speed would be 1/500 by this rule. If you don’t have a tripod, try resting the camera and lens against a tree, or try shooting in a prone position, resting the camera on a rock or tree stump.
A Few Hints Regarding Stability and Holding the Camera
One classic flaw I notice among amateur photographers is the tendency when holding the camera to “hang” the lens from the fingers instead of supporting the lens with the hand
used for focusing. This may sound silly, but try stretching your arm out and hanging
a baseball-sized rock from your fingertips. Now try the same thing by cradling the rock in your palm, face up. You’ll find that your arm muscles are much more comfortable supporting the weight versus hanging the weight. I’ve always told classes that the telltale sign of the amateur is watching how he or she holds a long lens.
In this same spirit, another trick of the trade when shooting slower exposures is to use your body as a camera stand more efficiently, creating a more stable platform. Spreading your feet apart is the first step in this simple trick, and if there is a tree or wall to lean against, you are closer to performing the role of a tripod.
Okay, so you’re cradling the camera lens in one hand, and the other hand is holding the camera body. Feet are spread about shoulders’ width apart and you are leaning against a convenient tree or other support. Now add controlled breathing, and you have increased your ability to shoot at a slower shutter speed, sometimes up to two or three speeds slower.
Controlled breathing means taking a deep breath, exhaling slowly, and pressing the shutter while exhaling.
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Sometimes the details tell you as much as the over all photo. Case in point: at one of our
Dubois, Wyoming, Fir stLight Wor kshops, our group had the chance to photogr aph the Dubois Rodeo, which is held ever y Fr iday night dur ing the summer...a real- and wonderful-small town rodeo. I was in the back where the r ider s prepare and was watching a bull r ider prepare
for his r ide , and I was intr igued by his boots as they reflected the toughness of his spor t. I wanted more than just the boot, so I waited until he adjusted his spur s, creating an almost
“environmental por trait” of this r ider. 90–250mm lens at 106mm, 1/160 second at f2.8, 100 ISO
If It Isn’t Good Enough,
You’re Probably Not Close Enough
The fatal flaw of many aspiring photographers’ work is not being close enough. As discussed
in Chapter 3, learn to use the viewfinder like a painter’s canvas, filling the frame so everything going on in the photo is relevant to the image. Moving in close is often the essential key here.
96 Using this theory and taking it a step further, you can use a portion of your subject to tell the story. Try shooting very close on someone’s hands or face. This will work when the viewer knows what the subject is;
otherwise, it can be a meaningless abstraction.
Bringing the subject closer to the camera forces the viewer to interact with the photograph. Unless a carefully composed image uses the dead or empty space as part of the composition, a subject that is very small in the frame will not engage the viewer. Remember that your finished piece will often be a 4 × 6 inch card, and a small detail in the
image may be lost in a small print. Sometimes your composition needs to shout to get your message across.
Achieving Impact
in Your Photography
We’ve all seen the Sports Illustrated photo of the wide receiver, hands outstretched,
fingertips reaching for the ball. This is a great example of impact in a photo. Impact is
also about the decisive moment. The power of the athlete is conveyed in the image in an unmistakable way. Shooting with a long telephoto lens that helps to compress the image forces the background out of focus because of the very shallow depth of field.
Using a high shutter speed freezes the action, emphasizing the instant of the catch.
A high shutter speed can freeze the runner mid-step, the dancer in flight, or the Frisbee
just outside the reach of the dog’s jaws. The impact of this style of photography has defined how we think about athletes.
Adjusting Aperture for Maximum Impact
This is where long lenses shine. Try using a lens in the 200mm-plus length. The inherent nature of these lenses in compressing the field of view is amplified the longer the length
of the lens. When shooting, try a shallow depth of field, f4 or f2.8. This will force the background out of focus, creating a greater zone of interest on the main subject, being the only area that is sharp.
Shooting fast-moving subjects can be intimidating at first, especially when you’re trying to use a long lens. Try prefocusing on a spot on the field where the runner is going to pass, such as a piece of dirt, grass, or anything that marks the spot. Then wait until he is charging toward you and press the shutter at the moment he hits that spot. The more you do this, the more comfortable you’ll become with shooting moving targets.
If possible, shoot with the sun or main light source at your back. Not only will this provide better light, but it will be easier
to track the subject. Watch for the key moment—the third baseman throwing the ball or scooping up the grounder.
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This style of photogr aphy isn’t exclusive to spor ts photogr aphy. On assignment for National Geographic photogr aphing the Yukon River, I was out for almost nine days with the Yupik
people , who fish and hunt the r iver using traditional methods. This photo shows a Yupik man
throwing a har poon at a seal. The effectiveness of the photo is in its simplicity…and its power. In other words, it wor ks by impact. 17–35mm lens, 1/500 second at f4
The Magic of Long Lenses, the Breadth of Wide Lenses
Within our camera bags are mechanical tools we carry: telephoto lenses, wide-angle lenses, and macro lenses. Each lens serves a specific purpose, enabling us to compress our photos, expand horizons, or capture the tiny details of the macro world that exist all around us. The first “long” lens I bought was an 85mm for my 35mm film camera, many years ago.
I remember looking through it the first time and marveling at how the slight compression
of this short telephoto lens dramatized an otherwise normal portrait. Shooting wide open, the background dropped slightly out of focus, yet the range of focus encompassed the nose to the ears. I thought it was magical.
Small apertures are used interchangeably with the term “wide open” in the photographic world. These refer to the diaphragm in the lens being open to allow the most amount of light to pass through the lens to the chip. Wide open in an 85mm f2 lens would be f2.
98 Short lenses and long lenses: You’ll hear photographers use these terms in talking about their images and equipment. Short lens is another term for wide angle—anywhere from 14mm up to about 40mm. Long lenses cover lenses from about 85mm up to the super telephotos of 600mm and beyond.
I was fortunate to work in a camera store when I bought my first telephoto lens. I had the opportunity to use or at least “try on” many lenses before purchasing. Because of the sheer number of lenses I could try, my choice was made simple. Looking through a macro lens for the first time, seeing through the viewfinder the life-size rendering of a tiny flower or small bug, opened up another world to me. This was such an exciting visual awakening. At the same time I was absorbing the visual lessons of National Geographic magazine, LIFE magazine, and other
photographically powerful publications. What I learned was that photographs made with a long or short lens did not rely strictly on the lens’s compression or expansion effect, but that the photographer was using the physical traits of the lens along with shutter or aperture to create these wonderful moments.
The first time I looked through a 24mm was another visual epiphany. The world literally opened up, bringing a wide, new world into that tiny viewfinder. The lessons came quickly, and I learned to use a wide lens very carefully. The dramatic reduction in size of the subject as it moved away from the camera could reduce or eliminate the impact of the photo. Using wide lenses effectively
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The star t of the Ironman Tr iathlon is bedlam. As the sun breaks on the hor izon, hundreds of swimmer s explode into the surf for the two-mile ocean swim. I wanted to convey the huge
number s of swimmer s, so I shot this with a 24mm wide-angle lens, allowing the sea of ar ms to car r y the eye from foreground to background. 24mm lens, 1/250 second at f5.6
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takes practice. Another benefit of digital is that you can shoot and check while you are in the moment.
Using a wide lens, placing the subject close to the camera, and shooting wide open creates a very different look than shooting with the lens closed down for a greater depth of field. Many photographers prefer using
a wide lens stopped down to f11 or f16, to obtain maximum depth of field so the image is tack-sharp, front to back. This exaggerates the feeling of distance between subject and background.
Use leading lines with a wide-angle lens to give a dynamic perspective. Train tracks leading from foreground to background, either vertically or on a diagonal, force the eye to move through the photo, following the direction of the lines.
We have so many options, both within our camera bags and within our thinking process, to control creativity in our photos. Learning about your equipment and understanding the traits of particular lenses will enable you to use that knowledge to your own photographic advantage. Remember, the photographer makes the image, not the lens
or equipment. This is a key point of this or any other photo book. The photographer’s vision makes the photo, and the camera and lenses are creative tools we have to work with, similar to the painter being able to choose from different brushes.
Digital is the perfect tool for growth as a creative artist. The ability to check your photographic endeavors in “real time” versus looking at them as a historical artifact, as with film, is invaluable in the growth process of a photographer. Experimentation without the costs of film and processing is an obvious benefit. The EXIF file, which is attached
to every photo, contains information on the shutter speed, ISO, aperture, and white balance as well as the date the photo was shot. This EXIF file information, found by
choosing File > File Info > Camera Data 1 & 2 in Photoshop, can provide answers for your photographic experimentation. Say you shot photos of your child’s soccer game, and the photos were blurred. Look at the EXIF file to determine the exposure used, and then increase the shutter speed for the next game. Your photographic experimentation is documented with digital.
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The oppor tunity to witness a full solar eclipse is not a common occur rence . American Way magazine sent me to Rio de Janeiro to meet the cr uise ship Sagafjord , on which we were to steam 600 miles along the coast of Br azil to position our selves in the middle of the path of totality—over four minutes’ wor th. This photo is an example of leading lines, the streamer s, pulling your eye into the photo. Telephotos create their own “look” through the natur al
compression the lens creates. With the telephoto set at f2.8 or f4, the zone of focus is
restr icted to the subject and the background drops out of focus. If you shoot with a telephoto and the lens closed down to f11 or f16, the background will appear more in focus, which can be either a distr action or a benefit to the photo. 20–35mm lens, 1/125 second at f4
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H OW T O : C REA TIVE S HUTTER C ONTROL
Since the invention of photography, two constants in the world of the photographer have been shutter and aperture. The equipment may become more and more technically sophisticated, but these two compatriots of the camera are still the core of the mechanical side of the camera. Here are a few ideas on using the shutter as your creative tool.
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If you are using your camera in the Program mode, you still have control over the shutter in most cameras. Moving the control dial while in the P mode will allow you to change the shutter speed and the aperture in sync. You will notice that the mode indicator will change from P to Ps or some other indicator that you are using
as the Program mode, but you are changing the default shutter speed. In the P, S, or A
mode, the camera will automatically adjust the aperture to match the new shutter speed you’ve chosen. A flashing exposure number or exposure warning means that you have either too little
or too much light available for that particular shutter speed. If necessary, adjust the ISO to compensate. Moving it to a slower speed will set the aperture correctly.
Wor king with designer Mike Sukle in Denver to photogr aph an ad
campaign for the National Spor ts Center for the Disabled and that or ganization’s skiing progr am, I
shot this wor ld-class skier r unning a gr and slalom cour se . Shooting
with a slow exposure to create the feeling of speed, I also used
a powerful batter y-powered flash unit to illuminate the side of his
body as it passed, freezing some of the detail on his outfit. 80–200mm lens, 1/4 second at f4.5
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If you’re photographing a moving object, try “panning” with the subject as it passes. Panning is the trick of following the motion of the passing subject with the camera. When combined with a slower shutter speed, in the 1/30 of a second or less range, panning will make the background blur with the motion, but the subject will retain some sharpness— creating a feeling of speed in the still photo.
■ Along with the preceding method, try using either the pop-up flash or a supplemental flash for fill-in light. Setting the flash to the TTL (through the lens) mode provides the most accurate flash setting as the camera meter is reading the flash as the lens sees
it. As the subject moves by you, the flash will help freeze the subject while the background exposure is maintained. I do this in Manual mode, often underexposing the background by about a half stop. This makes the moving subject become more the visual center of the image as the background
becomes a little less prominent. I’ve also found that the camera/flash combination needs to be tested to achieve the perfect balance. For my tastes, the flash is also set about two-thirds of a stop underexposed, creating a more natural looking light.
■ Many modern electronic flashes provide an ability to use much higher sync speeds than normal, but only if you’re using the proprietary flash for that camera. The Olympus E1 with an FL50 flash allows a shutter speed of up to 1/4000 of a second sync in Special mode versus the maximum 1/180 of a second in Normal mode. The effective guide number is greatly reduced, meaning the power of the flash is limited to very close subjects. But this can work well in brightly lit situations, where you may want to use the flash for fill light, such as a midday portrait with the subject near the camera and the vista in the background, or in an environmental portrait where you want the background to be totally out of focus.