Popular Photography Websites

May 9th, 2012 by No comments »

Have you always wanted to learn the art of photography, and even took the steps to go out and buy a camera, but don’t know what to do after that? Well, you’re in luck! Thanks to our virtual reality known as the Internet, you now have access to tons of websites dedicated to the art of photographing a beautiful picture. Whether the website is a self-started one from a professional photographer, or a subset of one of the more well-known creators of great photos, you area able to access all of the information you need to get started a world you may eventually fall in love with. So join me as I visit some great photography websites – hopefully you’ll learn everything you wanted to and more!

Photography.com

This is one of the top-ranked photography websites on the Internet due to its wealth of information on the subject. The site is perfect for the photo novice, providing great articles and forums on ways to improve your photographs, as well as opportunities to share your photos with others for comments and constructive criticism, which is great for the beginning photographer.

Other perks of the site include being able to browse product reviews. When you’re first getting started in the world of photography, it is important that you get your hands on the right equipment; this is because even the cheap stuff can be expensive, so the last thing you want to do is spend your hard-earned money on something that doesn’t produce the quality you’re looking for. After you’ve read the reviews and found what seems to be right up your alley, you can actually buy digital cameras, photographic equipment, and stock photos from their site. Access to all of the benefits of the website requires you to join as a member, but do not fret – membership is free.

PhotographyTips.com

Another one of the more popular photography websites out there is photographytips.com. This website is dedicated to providing tips, tricks and techniques to improve your photographs; and it must be a great site for it has received rave reviews from BBC, Australian National Radio, and USAToday. Unlike the previous website, photographytips.com requires a fee to become a member; however, they assure you that the benefits of membership are plenty.

Some of these great benefits include a “Guide to Posing the Female Model,” which helps you learn from experts on the best way to utilize a female’s attributes and display them on a photograph. Also, they give tips on composition, lighting, and other techniques, as well as how to photograph specific subjects, be it a baby or a tiger. They give great information on how to buy used and new traditional and digital cameras as well as tripods, meters, and additional equipment. Also, you can view photographs from around the world, and even outer space, from professionals in the industry. And if you are at a loss for words (or terminology) they provide you with a glossary that gives definitions of all of the terms you’ve heard but didn’t know what they meant. With all of the perks they offer, I see why this site was ranked one of the top photography websites out there!

NationalGeographic.com

The magazine known around the world for its incredible photographs has one of the top ranked photography websites on the Web. As soon as you enter the site, you are greeted by gorgeous, professionally-taken photos (I was lucky to see a beautiful whale taking a great leap out of the blue ocean waters) and a Photo of the Day. While the site is slightly different than the others mentioned because it does not offer innumerable tricks to improve your skills, it does give great examples of what a fabulous photo should look like. And they offer photo tips on lighting and more through their free monthly newsletter, as well as a photo guide (for purchase) that helps you learn the basics, and some advanced tricks, in photography. Also, if you are a person who is looking for stock photos, you can purchase some of the best in the world from this site. That’s not a bad way to get advice from the best!

Photo.net

Photo.net is another one of the top photography websites out there and it is due to the great community they create for users. By simply browsing the site you have access to tons of fabulous photos from thousands of photographers, some amateur and many professional. You can view the top-rated photos on the site and create your own picture presentations. And once a week, the best photos are chosen to be showcased as the best for the week.

Users can grow as great photographers by sharing their pictures with the community where they will receive comments and critiques on the ways they can improve. You also have the opportunity to develop and manage a personal portfolio on the site that will allow you to organize your pictures to expose them to others later. Similar to the previous photography websites, they provide resources that help you learn about the art of photographing a picture, and even provide tutorials to get you started. And when you’re ready, they have tons of links to great camera equipment, and have a camera shopping forum with feedback from camera and equipment users who have experienced first-hand the benefits and problems associated with certain cameras. If you like to read up on photography, then you can find plenty on the site, and if you enjoy reading articles from professionals already out there, then you’ll find exactly what you need at photo.

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Light Painting With Photography

May 5th, 2012 by No comments »

The whole basis of photography is the reaction between light and a light-sensitive material, such as film. While most people rely on this reaction solely for capturing memories of times they shared with friends and families, others utilize photography as a form of art. One intriguing type of art photography is light painting.

Light painting was made famous by Man Ray, the avant-garde American photographer who called the technique “space writing.” Now, light painting is popular in a variety of different fields, such as wedding photography. You might have seen a picture of a bride and groom drawing a heart in the air with the light from a firework sparkler.

On the other hand, you might have accidentally participated in light painting. If you take pictures in darkened areas without the flash on, sometimes cameras will automatically lengthen shutter time. Thus, if you move or bump the camera while the shutter is open, you may notice any sources of light to be oddly streaked in the same pattern as your movement. This is unintentional light painting.

Light painting is basically smearing the appearance of a light source across your photo, whether film or digital. As the light traces its way across your viewing screen, it also forms a streak across your picture. When you control this movement, you can can create interesting shapes and images from the light, which will stand out from the darker background.

When you are looking to perform light painting, there are a few things that you can do for set up. First, you will probably have to change a couple settings on your camera. Make sure that your flash is off; otherwise, it can spoil the brightened effect. Additionally, you may have to lengthen the amount of time that your shutter is open by slowing its speed. This will give you enough time to form the shape that you want out of the light.

Of course, you need to choose a darkened area so that your source of light will show up. You also need to pick what the main light source will be. This may be a flashlight that someone is waving, or a solitary light that you will turn into a streak by moving your camera. If you want to capture an image of moving light, you should consider putting your camera on a tripod or other stationary object so that your accidental movements do not throw off the trace of light. If you want to make a stationary light seem like it is moving, you can move your camera in the same pattern that you wish to appear in light on your film.

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Collecting Art – Do You Have the Bottle

May 1st, 2012 by No comments »

The headline reads “Undiscovered master piece sells for millions at Auction”. The family was overjoyed to discover that a picture that had hung on their grandfather’s wall for years attracted a six figure price at auction. Grandson and heir said “The whole family knew he collected odds and ends but we never envisaged it would amount to anything.”

Ok the above is fiction, but it’s what’s at the back of the majority of collector’s minds, especially those who collect art. Buy it cheap and sell it for millions. Just don’t rely on it as your retirement fund. In many respects it is a lottery, your betting your collection decision against that fickle beast, public opinion. The beauty of the art collecting lottery is you can hang the ticket on your wall. A win, win situation, your wall decorations are working for you and all your friends can admire your taste.

Now that can be scary, because 90 out of 100 people know damn all about art. If it isn’t chocolate box pretty it isn’t art, right. Wrong, have a look at the masters of art in your local museum or better still here on the internet and see how many pretty pictures you can find. Look at Picasso, Gauguin, Pollock, Matisse, Cezanne or Van Gogh to mention a few.

It’s Ok, I’ll wait.

Not much prettiness there. What is there is life, both the depiction of it and in the picture itself. There is an energy that radiates from art and if you allow it that energy will take you places you have never been before. But be prepared, it will confront you, it will challenge you, it is opinionated and isn’t afraid to speak its mind, it is prepared to stand up and be counted, it is art.

As such it is in the vanguard of human experience, it is raw, it is fresh and new. It isn’t the tried and true of recipes of yesterday rehashed, it is pushing the boundaries. In the 21st Century it is computer generated art in all of its many and varied forms. Be it fractal art, manipulated photography or cartoon cells, the collectable artists of today are using a keyboard and a mouse. If Michelangelo were to paint the Sistine Chapel today you can bet London to a brick he wouldn’t be using intonaco. Now as then he would be using that latest technology available to him.

For the collector this just adds another level of complexity. Because computer art is so easily reproduced, what does one actually collect? As in the past, collect signatures, preferably from a limited edition. Obviously, the shorter the edition the better. If an open edition with a signature is all you can afford, go for it, it is better than a poster with or with out a digital signature. If your print isn’t signed by the fair hand of the artist, as a collectable, it is worthless and that includes digital signatures. It is a $29.99 commodity and barely worth the paper it’s printed on. Although the frame may attract a bid or two.

If you consequently come across your print on the cover of Vogue or in a TV commercial for whatever, chances are you’re on a winner. That is the paperback of your signed first edition. Assuming of course your print has staying power, for so much of the mass media is based on ephemera. It is the quick hit that attracts attention and while this can be true of art there is a deeper relationship just waiting for your attention in works that can stand the test of time.

For anyone seriously considering collecting art, the pieces to acquire are those you can live with. If you like it from the start that is a bonus though not essential because if you have chosen wisely you will, over time and many conversations, come to love your new found friend. Works of art do become trusted friends and when it comes time to dispose of them it is a gut wrenching experience. This I know for I have been there and done that. When I had to dispose of my collection a few months ago my main concern was that they were going to good home rather than the financial return they could afford me. Consequently the ROI was less than if I had been less sentimental.

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