Download this photograph processed with Topaz Labs Simplify 2 of the wild side of Cozumel Mexico. This 2010 photo desktop calendar is free for you and your friends. All I ask is that you do not edit this file in any way.
The pictures in this slide show are not paintings, they are photographs! These photographs are processed with a Photoshop plugin called Simplify 2 by Topaz Labs. This is a sample of what you can do with this program. It will remove detail from photographs and make them look like a painting or a cartoon and even a line drawing representation of a photograph.
Lens aperture, shutter speed and ISO are the three primary adjustments available to achieve a properly exposed photograph. These settings can also affect the image quality and artistic effects of your photography.
The aperture is the size of the opening in the camera lens at the moment a photo is taken. Aperture is measured in fractions, so the larger the number, the smaller the aperture opening. Shutter speed and aperture are the two primary controls for limiting the amount of light that hits the camera sensor. Aperture also controls the depth of field. A small aperture will produce a photograph with almost all objects in focus. A large aperture will produce a photograph with a small amount objects in focus. This will give you control over what you want in focus. That is why I primarily use the aperture priority camera setting in my photography.
Typical apertures include: f1 f1.4 f2 f2.8 f4 f5.6 f8 f11 f16 f22 f23 f45
Shutter speed is the amount of time the shutter remains open when a photo is taken. Shutter speed and aperture together determine just how much light hits the film or camera sensor. The shutter speed is also a fraction, just like the aperture. A shutter speed of 500 is actually 1/500, or “one five hundredth of a second. To hand hold a camera, the rule of thumb is a 50mm lens can be hand-held at 1/60 of a second. A 200mm lens at 1/200 of a second and so on. To achieve this you can adjust the apertures or the ISO settings.
Typical shutter speeds: 30s 20s 10s 4s 2s 1s 1/2s 1/4s 1/8s 1/15s 1/30s 1/60s 1/125s 1/250s 1/500s 1/1000s 1/2000s 1/4000s
The sensitivity of film or camera sensor is measured by ISO, and the larger the number, the more sensitive the camera sensor. ISO 100 needs a lot of light, like outdoors on a sunny day. ISO 1600 doesn’t need much light. However, higher ISO means more grain in the film and more noise in digital. Digital images borrow the ISO scale to measure the sensitivity of film. Just like the grain that’s added to film at higher ISO settings, more “noise” is added to digital images at higher ISO. In general, as ISO goes up, quality goes down. Some of the new mid to high-end D-SLR have improved the noise levels at the higher ISO settings up to ISO 1600. Some of the new cameras have ISO settings between 100 and 102400.
Typical ISO settings: 50 100 200 400 800 1600 and high ISO 3200 6400
My basic camera settings I use related to this article are: ISO 100 for best image quality and set camera to aperture priority. Also, use a tripod when ever possible. All three settings work in concert and affect proper exposure. All have their advantages an disadvantages, so experiment with all of these settings and you will become a better photographer.
Doug Niedermiller Photography
Cape Ann is located on the coast some 43 miles northeast of Boston, Massachusetts. It includes the towns of Rockport and Gloucester and is home of The Second Annual Lobsta Fest and Seafood Extravaganza! The photos in this gallery were also shot in Essex, Magnolia and Manchester by the Sea. Autumn in Massachusetts may be the best in the country. Some of my favorite locations on Cape Ann are Plum Cove, Lanes Cove, Rockport Harbor, Gloucester Harbor, Rocky Neck, Atlantic Road, Halibut Point, Buswell Pond, Annisquam, Lobster Cove and Hoop Pole Cove. All of these locations afford excellent photo opportunities. I would love to photograph Cape Ann in the winter but, the weather is too unpredictable. So I will have to leave the winter photos for my brother-in-law, Todd Harrington, of Plum Cove Photography, who lives in Gloucester.
Many of the photos in this Slideshoe were processed in HDR. For more information on HDR or High Dynamic-Range photography and the program I use, Photomatix Pro 3.1, click on the links below!. Photomatix Pro 3.1 is a standalone program and also has Plugins for Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2.
The HDRI Handbook: High Dynamic Range Imaging for Photographers and CG Artists +DVD
Mastering HDR Photography: Combining Technology and Artistry to Create High Dynamic Range Images
Massachusetts is rich in history and old cemeteries. To visit and photograph the Old Burying Grounds of Massachusetts in Autumn is incredible. The old maple trees are huge and beautiful, with bright fall colors of yellows, oranges and reds. The last trip to Massachusetts we went out looking for dead relatives for our genealogy project. You see both my wife and I have ancestors in the area that date back to the first settlers of this great country. Finding grave stones of many of our ancestors is a thrill and trying to imagine what life was like back then. I would like to sit down to dinner with our ancestors to visit with them to find out what they were like. The photos in this gallery were shot in the town cemeteries of Ipswich, Harvard, Shirley, Essex, Groton, Newburyport and Lexington. It’s a step back in time. It’s a chance to understand what our Founding Father’s sacrificed for us.
The Betty Ford Alpine Gardens are located in Vail Colorado at 8200 feet above sea level. This is a great place to photograph the high mountain flowers. Vail also has a huge (ginormous) ski area in the winter and a great place to visit in the Summer & Fall. There are plenty of activities year round. Most of the photos in this gallery were shot at the Betty Ford Alpine Gardens. Others were shot on Vail Mountain and at Booth Falls.
Outdoor Photographer Magazine is a must have for Nature, Landscape and outdoor photographers. it is my favorite. Buy it here at a great low Price!
Alaska is a rugged and beautiful place to photograph. We visited Alaska by cruise ship. While the ship was a great place to view and photograph the glaciers and the inside passage, as a photographer there was not enough time spent on land. My next trip will be by motor home. For a review of Alaska and the cruse ship (coming in the future) and other great destinations visit our other site at DCM Travel Reviews.
Doug Niedermiller Photography
