Tamron Blog: Angle of View

Knowing Your Gear Gets The Shot

  By Jeff Allen

On a recent spring-like Sunday drive, I happened upon the Benson Sculpture Park in Loveland, CO not far from where I live. I love viewing art of all sorts, so I stopped to enjoy the garden and some of the 144 sculptures that are spread throughout the park. There is just about always a camera in the car with me and this day was no exception. After all, you never know when you will see something that inspires image making.

Wandering through the 10-acre sculpture park, I enjoyed the variety of sculptures and was inspired to shoot some hand-held and some tripod-mounted images. However, it was a windy day and those gusts were zapping my creative energy. So I folded up the tripod and headed back to the car.

Just then I rounded a corner, almost stumbling into a larger-than-life sculpture of people pulling on a wishbone, “Big Wish,” by Linda Prokop. Though wind-beaten from my trek around the park, the piece inspired me to stop and take a couple of shots.

Big Wish by Linda Prokop, 2009. Benson Sculpture Park Loveland, Colorado. Exposure info: ISO 100 Aperture priority, at f 22. Shutter speed chosen by camera=1/15 sec. Focal Length 16mm Circular Polarizer used to increase color saturation of the sky.

Times like this are when really knowing how your equipment will perform comes in handy. I had one of my “go-to” lenses, the Tamron 16-300 VC PZD, attached to my APS-C sensor DSLR. I knew I wanted a large depth of field for the shot I envisioned. I set the camera to aperture-priority mode and stopped down to f22. Since it was a bright sunny day, I set the camera at ISO 100. Because I have taken the time to understand my camera’s capabilities, I knew with this scene I could trust that the “matrix” or “evaluative” metering mode in the camera would get the exposure just right.

The camera chose a shutter speed of 1/15 sec.  I set the lens to the 16mm focal length and held the camera just barely off the ground to get this exaggerated view looking up at the sculpture. It wasn’t necessary to use live view, or even attempt to lie on the ground. I know my gear well enough to know what to expect in the shot. And as you can see from this image, I nailed it with the first shot.

As always, I worked the subject from several different angles, but I knew that the first shot was the one I would deem the keeper. The lesson here is to shoot your camera and favorite lenses regularly so you know how the light meter reads scenes, and what to expect from lenses at different focal lengths and angles of view. Then you too will be able to ‘shoot from the hip’ -- or in this case -- from the ankle. 

Good shooting

It's Early, Cold and WORTH IT!

 by Jillian Bell

 

Let me start by saying I am not a morning person... You can quote me on this.

I spent the last week in northern Minnesota where the daily high reached -5F and had forgotten how crisp and refreshing the air feels, but more importantly had forgotten a great advantage to an extremely cold sunrise.

Sun dogs scientific name parhelia, are an atmospheric phenomenon that consists of a pair of bright spots on either side on the sun, created by light interacting with ice crystals in the atmosphere often co-occurring with a luminous ring. (from wikipedia.org)

Knowing your environment in any situation is the best way to achieve remarkable photographs. With this image, the cold morning (-19F!) provided the perfect atmosphere to capture sun dogs at sunrise. I received the best results waiting until the sun reached fully above the horizon line; underexposing the image by 1 stop.

Now spending long periods
of time in below zero temperatures is not recommended. Using Tamron's vibration compensation was perfect for hand holding, allowing me to stay safely within my warm vehicle, coffee in hand.

Canon 70D Tamron SP AF 15-30mm F2.8 VC USD @ F22 1/50sec ISO 100

This image depicts the open farm country in northern Minnesota and hopefully the frigid temperatures so often reported on the weather channel. I travel all over the United States for Tamron. Sometimes the best photographs are the ones you can capture in your own backyard.

Bokeh For Beginners

   By Patrick Nagle

Bokeh is a term that has become very popular in the photographic world. It is the way a lens renders out of focus points of light. It may be intimidating to some, but it is actually very simple to do. All we are doing here is shooting with a very shallow depth of field. First you need some points of light; Christmas lights are perfect for this. You then want to put your subject far from your background. The photograher needs to shoot close to the subject that is intended to be in focus. Turn the camera onto Aperture Priority and open up the aperture as wide as possible. From there it's then just a matter of how you want to compose the image against the light source.

 

Tamron 60mm f/2.0 @ 1/2 sec. - f/2.8 - ISO 100

It was mentioned that a wide aperture is best for good bokeh. However, this effect can be achieved with any lens....

 Tamron 16-300mm VC PZD @ 135mm -  2 sec. - f/6.0 - ISO 100

Typically other photographers will say that you have to shoot with a fast prime such as a f/1.8 or f/2.8 lens, but the above image was shot with an all in one zoom at f/6.0. It was mentioned earlier that bokeh has to do with a shallow depth of field. It is critical to remember that our f-stop is not all that affects DOF. It is also the focal length and focus distance. To get the above effect, all that was needed was to zoom and change positioning.

Bokeh can be very rewarding when done correctly. As always, practice and experiment with it. But most of all, have fun!

Sunday Drive - The Flowers

 By Jeff Allen

Between my visits to photo specialty stores, events around the country, and the Tamron Tailgate Tour, I am fortunate to have seen and photographed a lot of beautiful and fascinating places around the country. However, one of my absolute favorite places happens to be in my own “backyard” – Rocky Mountain National Park just above Estes Park, Colorado.

Fly On Fleabane

Tamron 16-300 VC PZD at 300mm at lens min focus distance of 15.3" from the sensor, providing a macro magnification of 1:2.9 ISO: 200, Shutter speed: 1/125 sec, Aperture: f9

 

So with a few days off the road, I headed up to the park with the amazing new Tamron 16-300, the powerful 150-600, and the hope to find a few wildflowers and/or elk along the way. With just these two lenses, I can cover just about any situation. Since we planned on doing a little walking during our day trip, I wanted to keep my backpack as light as possible by carrying as few lenses as possible and yet be prepared for anything I might want to photograph.

Dandelion Seed

Tamron 16-300 VC PZD at 300mm at lens min focus distance of 15.3" from the sensor, providing a macro magnification of 1:2.9 ISO: 200, Shutter speed: 1/125sec, Aperture: f6.3 for that beautiful bokeh

 

Of course, when my wife and I headed west from our home in Fort Collins, I forgot that it was a state holiday weekend (Happy 138th Birthday Colorado!) in addition to being the height of the summer tourist season. Despite the crowds, we managed to find a few great spots, some inspirational flowers, a few distant elk and some really interesting people.

 

Often when we head out on trips, my wife serves as “spotter.” She watches the scenery and looks for potentially interesting places to stop while I watch the road. Fortunately for me, she has a good eye and has found more than one interesting spot that inspired me to some great images.

 

Once we were into the park, our first stop was at about 10,100 feet at a pullout overlooking Hidden Valley just before the very popular Rainbow Curve overlook on Trail Ridge Road.  Deanna had spotted some interesting flowers she thought I might like. There was a bit of haze in the air but since I wasn’t really looking for landscapes, I was able to concentrate on things a little closer to the ground. There were several different clusters of wildflowers which provided some great color.

 

After about an hour of shooting and a few minutes to review our images, we decided to rejoin the stream of cars, campers, and tour busses to head up toward the summit. But more about that in part two of our trip: Sunday Drive – The Elk. 

Follow me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram: @TamronTechJeff

Darken your foreground objects so they’re silhouetted against the background for impact!

By Rob Moody

I’m able to do this using the Overexposure/Underexposure Compensation mode, represented by a +/– symbol on a button near the shutter release button on most cameras (on some entry-level DSLRs and most point-and-shoot cameras, this mode may only be found through the menu).

This mode can be used to brighten or darken the entire image by rolling a command dial, you can either take away or add to the exposure until the desired look is achieved. Rolling the command dial to the minus side makes the image darker and silhouettes the already-dark objects in the foreground against the sky.

Practice by incrementally moving the indicator to the minus side one step (1 EV, or Exposure Value) at a time. Keep taking pictures to see what happens to the overall brightness and darkness of the scene. I like to incrementally make the image darker until the objects (like the trees in this image) become black. Doing this also makes the colors richer, making the sunset even more stunning.

Be sure to set the over/ under exposure mode back to 0.0 before your next shoot so you don’t end up with unexpected surprise.

Playing With Fire

By Jeff Allen

Try experimenting with flash and without, as demonstrated in these images. When using the flash, “bracket” your exposures – underexposing at a full stop (-1), 2/3rd stop (-.7), 1/3rd stop (-.3) – to see the variations in detail and lighting. By underexposing the flash you can avoid washing out details in the foreground which would cause the flames to look washed out as well. Most DSLR cameras allow independent flash exposure adjustments. Some brands allow settings to be made using controls on the camera body, while others allow the adjustments on the flash (speedlight) instead of the camera. Check your owner’s manual for complete details or ask an expert at your local photo special retailer.

Using ND Filters

By Ken Hubbard

For me the most important filter I have in my camera bag is the circular polarizing filter, this is because of the many uses this for this filter that can help enhance your images.  First, and what most people use this filter for is to help create a more dramatic look to the sky by deepening the blue and brightening the clouds. Second, is to take out the reflections in surfaces such as glass or glare on shiny surfaces like a wet green leaf. Lastly, you can use it to slow down your shutter speed by up to 2 stops. If you are shooting a stream or moving water and your scene is a little to bright and you cannot get a slow enough shutter speed, try putting on your CP filter and using it like a ND filter.  The way a CP filter works is by attaching it to the front of your lenses and turning the filter till you see the desired effect thru your viewfinder.  For maximum effect it is best to have the sun directly behind you or over your left or right shoulder, not directly in front of you.

 

Lens Used: SP24-70mm F/2.8 Di VC USD

Focal Length: 24mm

ISO 200

Shutter Speed: 1/80th

Aperture: F/16

Shooting Fireworks Anytime

By Jeff Allen

Firework photography isn’t just for patriotic holidays anymore. In addition to Independence Day, there are shows on New Year’s Eve, at fairs and carnivals, sports team championship celebrations and season openers, business or civic grand openings and dedications, amusement parks and many more throughout the year. There are slightly different challenges shooting fireworks from a distance versus shooting displays nearby.

The photo below was shot at an early New Years Eve event with the Tamron 18-270 Di II VC PZD. As always, dress for the weather. If outside for long periods, keep back-up batteries inside a coat to keep them warm. Choose a spot safely away from the fireworks, and scout locations in advance of the show if possible. Choose a location with the breeze at your back, so the smoke is blowing away from the display for sharper results. Focus manually and leave it set once the distance is determined, so the camera isn’t trying to hunt for focus in the dark.

Use a steady tripod and a release cable, or remote, for the sharpest results. For long distance shots a telephoto lens is necessary. Use a low ISO like 100 or 200, as the bursts are very bright. Try using manual exposure. The best results are usually shot with exposure times from about 5-30 seconds because the camera records everything that happens for as long as the shutter is open. The longer the shutter speed, the more visible the firework trails will be. Try different shots, allowing only one or two bursts, then allow several bursts to expose on each frame. A noise reduction software program in post-production can help eliminate the digital noise seen in shots like this.

Shooting Motion with Panning

By Jeff Allen

 

A great way to photograph “night light” subjects is to follow, or pan, with the subject as it moves past you. The best results are achieved when using the continuous shooting mode on the camera, so there are more frames to choose from. Experiment with shutter speeds, but the results are generally created with shutter speeds ranging from 1/10 sec. to 1/60 sec., depending on how fast the subject is moving and the amount of available light. When panning, leave a bit of room in the frame for the subject to “move into”. This shot of a carousel horse was the third frame of a of five-shot burst shooting as the horse approached and passed by. Good results can be achieved with this technique whether hand-held or panning on a tripod.

Long Exposures and Seaside Piers

By Ken Hubbard

One of my last blogs that I posted a few months ago, I was talking about the not so winter I was having on Long Island and having to travel to Montreal to see snow.  Well, that turned out to be a real bad idea, because mother nature decided to finally hit us with some bad winter weather and then follow me around for a while on my travels.  One of the places I was looking forward to was Myrtle Beach. The Carolina Nature Photographers Assoc. was having its annual convention there at a hotel right on the beach.  I thought to myself "boy, this is going to be nice... Beach, sand and warm weather".   The beach was there, and my room on the 12th floor looked over the beach nicely, but as far as the warm weather goes, I don't think it ever went past 55 degrees. A bummer for South Carolina!

No matter what the weather is, and after this past winter I can't believe I'm complaining about 55 degree weather, I still try to find some time to shoot where ever I am. In this case the Apache Pier was within a few hundred yards of my hotel and seemed like a good place to capture some long exposure night images.  I really liked the patterns in the support planks and noticed that I got a mirrored look to them when I put one of the posts directly in the center of the frame.  The image below is a 30 second exposure shot at F/22 and an ISO setting at 800.  I used an LED flashlight to light up the entire inner structure, since there was so much light coming from the pier itself my first few images without it came out very dark.  Since LED lights can sometimes come out a little on the cool side I used one of Rouge Light Modifiers warming gel filters, that normally go onto a speedlight, over my flashlight to warm up the color a bit.  Another thing to remember when using a flashlight on long exposures, always keep the flashlight moving and don't leave it pointing at one spot too long,  this will cause a hot spot on your image that will not look good.