February 20, 2015

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Free Effects & Goodies, inspire, video

How to Get Great Light!


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In today’s video we’re going to look at six lighting conditions and talk about the 3 ways to use light. — I talk a lot in my workshops about Zones, tones and planning our images. Today we get to look at years of images from the same scene and the journey to getting the perfect light. We photographers are not controlling light like they could be! And it all starts in how we see and plan our images. Whether it’s a landscape or a portrait. They work the same!

This all boils down to 3 choices. Take it! Make it! Or wait for it! Watch video and then remember these tips.

  • If you light you want is not right, look for another perspective that is perfectly lit. Take it.
  • If it’s a must have like a portrait, try adding light or filter it with a translucent. Even a bed sheet can soften beautifully.
  •  You don’t need a hundred mediocre photos. Just one amazing one. A cloud or a sunset can change everything. Wait it out.

— Seim

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February 4, 2015

2

inspire, special effects, tips, video, workshop

5 Ways to Make Better Photos With Your Mind!

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It’s not about where you are. It’s about how you light.

In today’s Photographic School video we get away from fancy gear and software. We’re going to talk about 5 things you should be using in your mind. Applying these factors will guarantee you better images EVERY time!

We’ll look at 5 images that have all merited at the PPA International Photographic Competition. Watch the video and look at a specific factors in each image that can be applied to any image any time and help build our ability to craft award winning photos images both before and after we release the shutter.

We dig even more deeply into these concepts in the EXposed and PHOTOGRAPHICS series.

Great images start not in the camera but in the mind. Today we’re going to see how!

— Gav

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October 17, 2014

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video

Getting Awesome Light in Camera .

The Light is What Matters.

I was sitting in the studio working away this week when I peeked out my window and saw this amazing light. Watch what was happening. I could not help but grab a camera and go out to chat about it.

While this was off the cuff and I didn’t have any models or scenes ready, the light is what matters. Any scenario can be amazing if we use it well, but some light is just magical and if we plan our sessions to work with that and understand how to mold it to our needs, anything can happen.

Sometimes the situations are bold like this one. It would have been perfect timing for a portrait session, though I would have had only minutes. Sometimes magical light is more subtle and you really have to think about where it’s reflecting, how the subject and camera is positioned and how we expose. I’ve learned this. If I just stop, breathe and take in the scene before I make the image, my perception changes and I see things I would have otherwise missed. Slow down.

Having a fundamental understanding of light itself is the foundation for our artistry. If you have not yes watched the EXposed workshop I highly suggest you take a look. It will change your perspective. From now on, each time you see unique light take a moment out of your mind to think about what the light is doing, how it plays off objects, faces, landscapes and shapes.

Once we know the light, we control the light. — Gav

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September 28, 2014

2

tips, video

Better Exposure with Zone Scales!

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Today we take on a simple exercise in Zones that will improve our understanding of exposure. I’ll show you some new helper tool that we made up, free for EXposed owners. If you did not get the update shoot us an email.

Understanding Zones and what you did in past images will help you improve future ones.

You might also want to check out our Lumsit system for Photoshop that brings Zones and tone control together is a whole new way.

Learn more about zones in the EXposed master class.

Enjoy — Gav

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September 2, 2014

0

Free Effects & Goodies, tips, video, workshop

This Simple Principle will Make Your Photography Better..

Our camera is just an instrument. It’s what happens in our mind that makes a great photograph. When we understand the tools, we focus on the artistry. Sometimes we fall for the scam that we can just fix it later and so we fail to expose well and never get that truly magical light. Today’s tip takes on a simple truth about exposure in the camera. I call it, Doubles and Halves!

Photographic exposure and simple math are one on the same. Don’t run away, it’s more elegant than it seems. F5.6 to F8 doubles or halves your light. ISO 200 to 400 doubles or halves. So does 1/50th to 1/100th and so on. Ditto for Zones and Exposure Value and Ratios. They are all connected. All tools to manage and understand the Stops (flow) of light. Just doubles and halves.

Understanding these terms helps you nail the light and focus on the vision. This video from the first chapters of my EXposed series explains in simple terms. EXposed also covers deeper aspects, so if you love understanding light, check it out here.

— Gav

 

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