How to Create Your Own Textures

I typically shoot landscape photography.  And when I’m shooting a landscape, I’m looking at the big picture – where the horizon is, where the sun is at, the reflection on the water – everything.  However, textures aren’t about the big picture, though, they’re about the detail.  And we’re not always used to looking at the details.  A wall for us is usually the background – or something that’s just in the wall. But walls can make for some great textures, like this:
The walls in my house are old plaster walls, so mine might have a bit more texture than yours (and a bit more peeling paint, apparently, too – that’s artistic, though, right?), so try looking up and down instead.  The ceilings in my house range from subtle textures…

Read more: http://digital-photography-school.com/how-to-create-your-own-textures#ixzz0W04RRcho

Can You Tell the Difference Between Film and Digital? [Photography]

Shane Hurlbut, who’s been DP on, ahem, illustrious projects like Terminator: Salvation, is a huge proponent of consumer DSLRs, especially the Canon 5D MKII. Now, he’s challenging viewers to separate digital from film shots in his new movie. Can you? Hurlbut is shooting a project based on Navy SEALs, and the trailer (of sorts; it’s mostly an awful lot of bikini’d ladies) is shot with a mix of digital and film photography, using the digital Canon 5D MKII and Sony 950 as well as the Arri 235 film camera. He created kind of a contest to see who could pick out the digital shots from the film in the trailer (most is digital, shot with the 5D MKII)—it’s way harder than you’d think, not least because the dude is clearly an expert. [read]

Digital SLRs as camcorders

While almost all digital compact cameras have offered standard definition (640 by 480 pixels) video recording since they became a consumer-friendly option years ago, technological boffins long protested that it wasn’t possible to include the same feature on a more advanced digital single-lens reflex (SLR) camera—at least not an SLR in the conventional sense.

When Nikon introduced 1280 by 720 high definition (HD) video on its D90 SLR last year, it was the herald for the start of a new era. Once one manufacturer had found a way, it was only a matter of months before others were jumping on the video SLR bandwagon. Nikon’s age-old rival, Canon, followed suit with its higher-end EOS 5D Mark II SLR, which offered 1920 by 1080 resolution—the fabled full HD resolution.

The video recording capability seemed at first like a gimmick (do serious photography enthusiasts—the traditional audience for such cameras—really want to shoot movie clips, too?), but the feature now makes sense with the the growing popularity of HDTV. Also, video on an SLR provides photojournalists and news gatherers with another arrow for their bow. In the age of the Internet, video is fast becoming king.

Of the major camera manufacturers, it’s surprising that Sony, with its rich heritage in camcorders, is the only one without a SLR that records HD video. Sony also doesn’t have the heritage of lenses that manufacturers such as Canon, Nikon, and Pentax do. That’s undoubtedly another advantage of shooting video on a SLR or interchangeable lens camera—the ability to choose from potentially hundreds of… [read]

Nikon D3s Hands On Photos and Video: DSLR Night Vision Is a Beautiful Thing

The D3s’s impact on photography won’t be nearly as dramatic as the D3—the camera that started the low-light arms race—but we got to shoot with it, and really, you’ve never seen nicer low-light images in your life.

I had around two hours to shoot with a pre-production model of the tank-like D3s at New York’s Big Apple Circus, hence all of the scary clowns and very flexible folks. Since low-light performance is what you’re probably most interested in, I’ve broken down the sample shots into galleries by ISO speed. Overall, shots at ISO 6400 are the cleanest I’ve ever seen at that ISO rating—just think about that for a second—and ISO 12,800 photos are unquestionably usable for even large web photos (like 1000×1000 pixels). Of course, the pictures at ISO 102,400 have ridiculous grain and you’d never use them for anything but novelty, but consider that we really are talking light sensitivity on the order of night vision. It’s a remarkable achievement for achievement’s sake. [read]

Do you have Too Much Camera Gear?

When you first got into photography, you probably started out pretty simple. Maybe you started with an advanced point and shoot camera or an SLR with the kit lens. Photography seemed so simple back then, didn’t it?

Then, as your interest grew, you started buying more and more gear, until all of a sudden, out of nowhere, you found yourself surrounded by mountains of camera gear: lenses, filters, flashes, memory cards, cleaning kits, bags, camera bodies, lens hoods, tripods, ballheads, panheads, levels, tripod collars, camera straps, card readers, remote shutter releases, and the list goes on forever…

But, is all this gear really worth it? Is it really all necessary to achieve your end goal of capturing light?

Problems with having too much camera gear

Whenever you get new gear, you may just think about its cost in money: can you afford it? Should you wait until they lower the price? Is it really worth it to get the name brand or should you buy an off-brand? [read]

Canon 1D Mark IV Pro DSLR Revealed Tomorrow? [Rumor]

Canon’s pro DSLRs are Holy Grail ancient at this point, so something’s gotta be coming soon: It might the 1D Mark IV, as early as tomorrow. People, inventory systems and invitations are talking.

The rumored specs are for a 16MPish APS-H sensor (1.3x crop factor) with bursts of 10-12fps, 19-point autofocus system, and the same kind of 1080p video powers as the 7D. Price? $5000.

Even if it’s not tomorrow, it can’t be too much longer before we see some 1D and 1Ds Mark IV action, since Canon can’t let Nikon have all the pro fun, after all. [Photography Bay, Canon Rumors]

Send an email to matt buchanan, the author of this post, at matt@gizmodo.com.

K’Nex Lightbox Tutorial

After months of photographing my work with so-so results, I decided it was time to invest in a lightbox. And what better way to do it than to Do It Yourself? In search of the perfect supplies, I raided my parents basement and came across my favorite childhood toy: a box of K’nex!If you’re wondering what a lightbox can do for you, look no further than my dingy-yellow digital ‘graphs in the K’nex building portion of this tutorial, then compare those to these images taken inside of the completed K’nex lightbox. Lightboxes keep your colors looking bright, reduce shadows, and make sure your images look clean and professional. Follow the tutorial below to create your own… [read - spinhandspun.wordpress.com]

Photographing the Aurora Borealis – i.e. Northern Lights

Some of the most captivating light shows witnessed here on earth, are actually occurring 300+ miles above our heads, in the upper atmosphere. A result of spectacular solar storms, the Aurora Borealis has captivated thousands of men, women and children. I am one of them. I have spent countless hours, in mind-numbing temperatures (-42 Celsius), chasing the lights in an attempt to capture what many people fly half way around the world to experience.

Have I been successful? I guess that`s subjective. At -42, after standing on a frozen lake, in the middle of nowhere, just shy of the Arctic circle, success can be very subjective. I made it back home alive, so I would consider that a success. After many attempts, and many frozen fingers, I have captured photos which I am proud to share. So I consider that a success. But it seems the more times you venture out, the more you try to hone your skills and capture more unique and inspiring photos.

Read more: http://digital-photography-school.com/photographing-the-aurora-borealis-%e2%80%93-ie-northern-lights#ixzz0Tp40hxRF

Photoshop Mobile for iPhone and iTouch

Adobe has released its new Photoshop.com Mobile application for the iPhone and iPod touch. The new application allows users to edit and share photos directly from their device, integrating with Adobe’s Photoshop.com online service to store the original photo online, as well as edited versions; users may also save edited photos back to their devices’ photo libraries [read]

Saying a Camera takes Nice Pictures is like Saying a Guitar Plays Nice Melodies

by Darren Rowse

The following was left as a comment on a previous post by one of our readers – Angelino Pan y Vino (no link given). I thought it was a great story and one that might encourage readers who might feel they have lower quality cameras and gear.

“Saying a camera takes nice pictures is like saying a guitar plays nice melodies.”

You may quote me on that.

This goes to both amateur photographers, who don’t have top-notch equipment, as well as those ‘professional’ photographers, who like to compensate in gear what they lack in skill (ie: buying 10+ studio lights, 4-5 different cameras, with countless lenses and props).

You can spend all your money in professional equipment, but if you don’t have the skill to use it, it’s pretty much worthless. Likewise, even if your equipment isn’t top notch, you can still accomplish wonderful things, as long as you know what it is capable of.

The Dominican photographer Wilfredo García, when going on photography trips with his students, and clubs, always came back with the best picture. He was known for having a huge collection of cameras, going well over a hundred.

During one of these trips, a student challenged him, saying he would obviously bring back the best photograph, as he had the fanciest cameras. He replied “So why don’t you choose a camera for me, for the next trip?”

He went with a disposable film camera, and still bought back the best picture.

As long as you know the limitations of your equipment, and how to overcome them, it is possible to take gorgeous photographs, even if you don’t have a fortune to spend on your gear.

Note from Darren: I‘m interested to hear your thoughts on Angelino’s comments! While I’m someone who has spent his fair share of money on different photography gear – I’m amazed how often I come back to the most basic lenses when taking my best shots. What do you think?

Read more: http://digital-photography-school.com/saying-a-camera-takes-nice-pictures-is-like-saying-a-guitar-plays-nice-melodies#ixzz0TdogLBHg