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By Anshum Mandore
11 March 2010
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A big bright moon is undoubtedly one of the most captivating celestial bodies of the night sky. It is a camera magnet because of the beauty and mystique that surrounds it. But capturing this beauty can prove to be difficult owing to the moon’s brightness. It is a challenging task to get the correct exposure such that the resultant image is neither too dark nor too bright. So here are a few easy pointers that will help you capture some delightful images of the moon.
Equipment:
The Lens:
While the moon may appear nice and large to the human eye on a particular night, your camera may capture it as a mere dot. This is because standard lenses of focal lengths ranging between 50 to 100mm are too wide for moon shots. For capturing the moon you need lenses with focal lengths of 300 mm and upwards, which are capable of revealing the details of the moon’s surface. The good news is that you don’t need an expensive telephoto with stabilization features or wide apertures. Thanks to the moon’s brightness, you can shoot with faster shutter speeds even at small apertures and still get fairly good results with an inexpensive, entry-level telephoto.
The Support & Trigger:
It is recommended to use a tripod when taking moon shots. Shooting handheld with the camera pointing at the moon can get tiring after a while and often leads to camera shake. For best results mount your camera onto a tripod, point it towards the moon and lock it into position. Now you are free to take as many shots as you like with varied exposures without worrying about vibrations. A wired or wireless remote shutter release can also prove very handy.
Technique:
Exposure:
A common mistake that photographers make when taking moon shots is that they underestimate the moon’s brightness which only yields bright, washed out images. Similarly, as the moonlight is a direct reflection of the sun’s rays, many believe setting your camera to ‘daylight exposure’ can do the trick. So some photographers practice the loony f/11 rule (from the Latin English word ‘lunar’) which is an offshoot of the sunny f/16 rule.
The rule states that when shooting a full bright moon at a constant aperture value of f/11, the correct shutter speed should be the inverse of the ISO value set on your camera. So at f/11 and ISO 100, the shutter speed should be 1/100. However this rule cannot be considered in isolation and may yield less than perfect results under many circumstances. Some factors that affect these values include the angle at which the moon rises over the horizon and the atmospheric conditions which can absorb a fair amount of light. But the rule does give you a great starting point to base your exposure calculations. So you can start with the loony f/11 rule and an ISO setting of 50-100 to avoid any noise and then use auto-bracketing if available to capture 4-5 frames with different exposures.
Focus:
Focusing on the moon is relatively easy. One way to do it is to point your tripod mounted camera at the moon and auto focus. Then with the focus locked on the moon switch the camera to manual focus, thus preventing the locked focus from getting disturbed. Take care not to touch the focus ring anymore thereafter. On many lenses, setting the focus to infinity will also work owing to the large distance between the moon and the earth.
Post Processing:
When it comes to moon shots, there are two basic adjustments that you can try in Photoshop which can make a huge difference to the end result.
Sharpen:
Sharpening your moon shots can work wonders to reveal more details. Due to the low ISO, these shots are generally noise-free. So the best Photoshop tool for sharpening these images is the Unsharp Mask. Set the radius to around 0.5 and you will have a fair amount of leeway with this amount.
Curves:
Moon shots often come out looking flat. A small adjustment using the Curves tool however, can change that. Simply create a small ‘S’ curve to amplify contrast between the light and dark areas. The result will be a moon with deeper shadows and brighter highlights, thus giving the photo a 3 dimensional feel.
Composition:
In the beginning you will find it exciting to fill most of your frame with the moon, thanks to your telephoto lens. However there are various other ways to include a big part of the moon along with other elements in the frame to make an interesting photograph. A full bright moon on the horizon with silhouettes of trees or a cityscape in the foreground can be a stunning shot. If the moon is higher up in the sky, try shooting from a low angle to get some really dramatic silhouettes. Similarly a small cloud or a flock of birds outlined against the moon can result in a gorgeous image. If there is a bright moon and a large number of clouds on the move, try a long exposure. The moon will probably end up obscured but the bright halo behind a curtain of clouds in motion blur makes for some extremely interesting shots.
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By Anshum Mandore
05 March 2010
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Museums and cathedrals are often awe inspiring structures with intricate design and meticulous artwork and hence offer photographers an excellent opportunity to get some great shots. Yet, capturing the beauty of these gorgeous monuments is far from easy. The tricky and unusual lighting make for a challenging task to get good pictures especially from the inside. So here are a few tips that might prove handy when shooting inside museums and cathedrals.
Get ‘Flashy’:
Use your on-camera flash inside a museum or cathedral and more likely than not, you’ll be disappointed with the results. The on-camera flash on most cameras, including the high end DSLR’s, just doesn’t pack enough punch to light up such large empty spaces and also cancels out light from other permanent sources in the room. So if you are keen on photographing museums & cathedrals, get a good external flash. Most DSLRs and some of the new generation ‘bridge’ cameras come with a hot-shoe for mounting an external flash. These external flashes can light up an area within a radius of 75 feet and can thus be invaluable for shooting in such environments.
Shooting sans flash:
While an external flash is great for shooting indoors, its use is prohibited in many public places including some museums and cathedrals. There are many plausible reasons for this. Flash photography can prove to be a disturbance for other visitors in a museum and can disrupt the sanctity and serenity of a cathedral. Also the ancient artefacts and paint used in these old structures can be sensitive to light and can get easily damaged by the flash light.
So what does one do in such situations? The answer is simple. If your camera can be controlled manually, choose a slower shutter speed. If you are using a point and shoot, switch to the night scene mode which is present on most modern cameras. But when using this mode in such low light conditions, it is important to keep the camera as steady as possible to avoid blurry shots. Those with DSLRs must avoid using wide apertures because the resultant shallow depth of field can prove detrimental for such shots.
Keeping it still:
If you aren’t allowed to use flash, then the only option you have is to shoot with a slower shutter. So it is recommended to carry some kind of a support mechanism for your camera. The best option of course would be to carry a tripod. But often, these too are restricted in museums and cathedrals due to their bulky and unwieldy nature. The next best option is to carry a monopod or a sturdy table top support like the Joby Gorillapod, the Gary Fong Flip Cage or other similar camera supports. If none of these are possible, pump up the ISO on your camera, brace yourself against a wall or sturdy surface, and shoot away. The results you get may not be the best, but they will still be better than not having any pictures at all.
Using Wide Angle & Fisheye Lenses:
Some of the most dramatic pictures to showcase the interiors of cathedrals and museums have resulted from the use of wide angle and fisheye lenses. The distortion caused by such lenses serves to render a more dramatic image of such structures. The resultant photos also give a more accurate sense of scale and dimension. So do not hesitate to use wide angle lenses, and don’t obsess over the distortion. If shooting with a telephoto, try shooting at the widest end. Another trick to try when using a tripod is to capture multiple sequential frames and stitch them together later, to create a panoramic image.
Photos Courtesy Artie Ng
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By Anshum Mandore
03 March 2010
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Natural disasters leave a lasting imprint on all those affected by them and these families need all the support they can get to slowly get back to their normal lives. This is where photography can play a vital role where you, the photographer, can capture and accurately portray the devastation and the plight of the affected populous. Your photographs can go a long way to garner support for the relief work and help these people get back to normalcy. So in this article we will focus on how to document natural disasters in an ethical and sensitive manner.
Pictures that Reach Out:
When it comes to photographing natural disasters, the techniques, equipment or technicalities take a backseat. It does not really matter whether you are using a wide angle lens or if you are shooting with the right ISO settings. Your objective should be to take pictures that can make an impact on the viewers and urge them to extend their support to the victims. So focus on conveying the true feelings, emotions and the right scale of the incident in your photographs using whatever technical knowledge of photography you have.
Property Damage:
Perhaps the most telling images of any natural disaster are those of damaged and destroyed property. Buildings demolished by an earthquake, houses submerged under water by a flood or automobiles lodged high up in tree branches after a cyclone make for telling images of the aftermath. Try to capture these shots from various vantage points which also show the surroundings and help put things in perspective. Shoot wide, since zoomed in shots fail to convey a sense of location or scale. Wherever possible try to include people in your shots such as a family retrieving their belongings from a battered home, or someone driving around in a damaged automobile. But when doing so, be attuned to the heightened sensitivities of the people affected by the tragedy. Should you detect even a hint of discomfort, respect their wishes and discontinue your photography right away.
People:
Portraits of the victims can make for some really powerful and moving photographs. So try to capture their strong emotions through close shots. Once again however, bear in mind the heavy sense of loss and grief that is likely to be in the air and so be sensitive towards those around you. Also remember, that your objective of taking these photographs is to accurately portray the reality of the situation to the outside world. So try not to be too dramatic and instead focus on documenting all that you see.
While you capture the grief and loss in your portraits, do not shy away from portraying expressions of hope and the fighting spirit of the human race. An innocent toddler smiling in the midst of a calamity can be just as effective a photograph as an adult in tears. Another interesting subject to cover is the rescue effort. There’s something extremely inspiring and motivating about photographs of people helping other people. Capture scenes from the makeshift medical camps and places where clothing and rations are being distributed to the victims.
Flora & Fauna:
Photos of uprooted trees or perished animals may not attract sympathy from all. But they do convey a sense of the totality of the destruction. Try to include these amongst your subjects. Viewers are sure to feel a tug when they see images of pets in distress or livestock that has been abandoned or perished. Remember to always shoot these photos such that you show the destruction around them to give your viewers a sense of the situation. For example, a close shot of a drenched pet does not convey much, but the same shot with a submerged house or a damaged automobile in the background can effectively portray the gravity of the situation.
The Little Things that Matter:
In a natural disaster situation, often it is the spirit of the victims that takes the biggest hit. And there are always a number of small things that you can do to help lift their spirits while helping with the rescue and rehab efforts. For example photographer Sander-Martijn won over many hearts in Haiti, simply by using a portable Epson printer to present his subjects with on-the-spot prints (See our article here). Similarly you can think of other little things that you can do with your camera or even between your shots to relieve the victims of their grief, even if only momentarily.
Lastly and least likely, should you be in a situation where you have an opportunity to photograph a natural disaster while it is actually happening, before you pull out your camera, take measures to ensure your own safety and also help save other lives. After all, although a picture may be worth a thousand words, it definitely isn’t worth risking a life.
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By Kadambari Khaire
19 February 2010
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 Kornel Friedmann, better known as Cornell Capa, was a Hungarian American photographer who revolutionized the field of photojournalism. Brother of legendary photojournalist, Robert Capa, Cornell Capa picked up from where his brother had left and brought to life the horrors of war through his exceptional photography. His famous work, The Concerned Photographer was a composition of his vivid imagery that illustrated post WWII human crisis. Capa also founded New York City's influential International Center of Photography and served as its Director in the latter half of his photography career.
Born in Budapest to a business family, Capa was originally name d as Kornel Friedmann by his parents. The youngest among three brothers, he moved to France in 1930, to team up with elder brother Robert Capa as a photojournalist. With anti – Semitism on the rise in Europe he soon started going by the name Cornell Capa.
Capa had initially aspired to study medicine, but took up photography instead after being influenced by his brother and his photographer friends which included renowned War photographer, David (Chim) Seymour and French photojournalist, Henry Cartier Bresson.
In 1937, Capa moved to New York along with his mother. His growing passion for photography led him to join the new Pix photo agency as a printer and later switch to Life Magazine’s darkroom in 1938. During this time, he also honed his photography skills and published his first photo-story on New York World’s Fair in Picture Post. Capa was then drafted to join the US Air force where he worked extensively with its photography department.
 After the war, Capa rejoined Life as a staff photographer. While at Life, his portraits of famous personalities like Jack Paar, painter Grandma Moses and Clark Gable made it as the cover shots of the magazine. The death of his brother in May 1954, while covering the First Indo-China War, saw Capa join Magnum Photos and take up its presidency two years later following the death of David 'Chim' Seymour.
After joining Magnum, Capa covered many high profile stories on the Soviet Union and the Israeli Six-Day War. He also covered the electoral campaigns of John and Robert Kennedy, Adlai Stevenson and Nelson Rockefeller. In 1967, Capa published a series of exhibits and books titled “The Concerned Photographer”. One of these books was the Farewell to Eden (1964), which was a study of the destruction of indigenous Amazon cultures.
The growing number of exhibits eventually led him to start  the famous International Center of Photography in New York City in 1974 for conserving and promoting the work of photojournalists from across the globe. Capa served at the International Center of Photography as the Director for 20 years.
On May 23rd 2008 Capa passed away in New York of natural causes at the age of 90. He will be forever remembered for his exceptional images and his immense contribution to the field of photography.
Photo Courtesy: Magnum Photos
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By Anshum Mandore
18 February 2010
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Shooting portraits outdoors poses a number of challenges and at the same time presents some unique opportunities. All kinds of photography, including portraits, depend on three key parameters– proper white balance, correct exposure and perfect focus. If you want good outdoor portraits then you need to understand and make the right use of the above three parameters. And these tips will help you learn just that.
White Balance:
Shoot Raw: Shooting images in RAW format gives you maximum flexibility during post production and allows you to alter the exposure, saturation and sharpness without any significant loss of quality. But the most useful feature of RAW format is that it lets you alter the White Balance in the photograph with a single click. This is of particular importance since altering White Balance and getting rid of colour casts in a processed image (JPEG etc.) is extremely tricky and often leaves you frustrated.
Gray Cards:
Shooting on Auto White Balance mode often yields a set of images with extremely varied white-balance. This can prove to be a tricky proposition especially when shooting at different locations in sequence. If the number of images is large, processing each individually to correct White Balance can be a nightmare. That’s where gray cards come in. Gray cards help you to equalize White Balance across images. Since gray is considered the most neutral of all colours, when shooting a sequence of images outdoor, shoot the first image at each location with the subject holding a gray card. That way all you have to do in post production is select the white balance of the gray card image and apply it to all other images from the same location. This can save you precious hours.
Photo by Anshum Mandore
Exposure:
Shooting in the midday sun:
It is recommended to use this technique only as a last resort. Try to direct the light using some kind of reflector to create studio like light conditions. If you don’t have a reflector, you can make do with other easy to find alternatives like a white sheet, a Styrofoam sheet, art paper sheets or even car dashboard reflectors. The sun directly behind the subject is an absolute no no unless you’re trying to get just a silhouette. The sun behind the camera can work, but ask your subjects to look away from the camera so they are not squinting in the photographs. Another position which works best on most occasions is when the subject and camera are located at a 90 degree angle to the sun, i.e with the sun to your left or right. Any harsh shadows here can be easily softened using reflectors or off-camera flash.
The sunny f/16 rule:
This is a simple rule of thumb that serves as a rough guide to get your exposure right in daylight. When shooting in the harsh sun, at an aperture value of f/16, your shutter speed should be the inverse of your ISO setting. So at f/16 and with ISO set to 200, your shutter speed should be 1/200. The same rule is applicable at f/8 when shooting in the shade. However, remember to use this rule only as a rough guide or a starting point and not a dictum.
Photo by Anshum Mandore
Diffuse:
How do you diffuse the sun? It is not really that hard. All you need is a queen sized white bed sheet (the thinner the better) and a few large clamps (you will find these at most stationery stores). Use the clamps to hold the bed sheet in place around some tree branches or any available frame or structure standing in front of the sun and get your subject to pose in the shadow. This way you could diffuse the sunlight falling on your subject. When clamped on the side or at an angle, the same sheet can also be used as a reflector to light your subject from the side or top.
Focus:
Focus Points:
The first step to achieve proper focus for your portraits is to never let your camera decide where to focus. The full autofocus feature on most cameras is designed to focus on the closest objects in the frame. So pick the focus mode instead which allows you to select a single point to focus on. This gives you full control and is likely to yield the best results.
Open Up:
Invest in a fast lens like a 50 mm f/1.4 or f/1.8 or a fast medium zoom like a 70mm f/2.8. These lenses allow you to shoot your portraits at wide open (largest) apertures. This technique blurs out the background and helps the subject of your portrait stand out.
Go for the Eyes:
Eyes are considered the sharpest feature of a human face and they are usually the first thing that grabs our attention when you are looking at a photograph. Naturally then, a good portrait should keep it that way. Focusing on the eyes of the subject yields the best results in any kind of portrait photography. Moreover, shooting at the large apertures will ensure that the subject’s skin is softened when you focus on the eyes thus making the portrait all the more attractive.
Photo by Anshum Mandore
Other Tips:
Shady Shots:
Don’t be offended just yet. We’re simply talking about shooting outdoors in the shade. When you shoot in direct sunlight, it can lead to unpredictable white balance settings and harsh shadows. Shooting in the shade on the other hand can get you some beautiful portraits if you expose your shots correctly and select the right white balance. The same is true when shooting in overcast conditions. The clouds actually act as a giant softbox and can give you some outstanding results.
Never wider than 50 mm:
Wide angle lenses distort your images. While this distortion can be insignificant when shooting landscape, it can be disastrous for portraits. In general a focal length of 70 mm or above is recommended for portraits and distortion isn’t usually a serious issue until you go below 50mm.
Compose out Distractions:
While composing your shot make sure you keep distractions like signboards and power lines out of the frame. Sometimes even seemingly insignificant objects like a single long blade of grass or the branch of a tree can prove to be quite distracting in your final image.
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