Develop Your Own Style!

Photography can never grow up if it imitates some other medium. It has to walk alone;
it has to be itself.
— Berenice Abbott – in “Infinity” magazine, 1951.

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Develop Your Own Style

I never understood that expression! From the very beginning of my studies in Photography. I was told to read and digest everything I could get my hands on from the Masters of Photography.

Ernst Haas, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Alfred Stieglitz, Edward Steichen,
Imogen Cunningham,  Margaret Bourke-White and All the others.
I intentionally placed these names in this article. They were the first names that I ended up finding in the Library. We didn’t have the Internet in those days!! LOL 

From first learning Proper Exposure and Composition. Learning about light and shadows to posing. Then Developing in the Darkroom (editing on the computer now). After reading and studying this stuff to trial and error. I was first starting to feel good about what I was doing. Then someone said; “You have to Develop Your Own Style”!! You kidding me? How on earth am I supposed to do anything “For My Own Style” after all this going through my head of all that I’ve studied?

Style?? What is Style? A Look? A Certain type of Feel? Develop Your Own Style???

That never made sense. Still Don’t! You shoot what you see. Train your Mind’s Eye to see something that you can say to yourself; “Now that would look good in a Magazine or on Someone’s Wall. Power of the subject. If it’s a Portrait make sure you can see what the person’s personality is like through the “Eyes”. The emotion. The expression. It all comes through from the eyes…

If it’s a Landscape or Still Life? Make sure you understand what the Main Idea/Subject is for the Image. If Not? The Viewer of that piece will Not Understand the point. I hate when someone says “Rules are Made to be Broken”. In Art those “Rules” are guides for us to be able to get the Viewers Attention. So the audience can get it. For them to See what your trying to do and for what reason. If an Artist Breaks the Rules. They better know what the Rules are! Otherwise the Viewer will just glance at your work and say oh that’s nice! I don’t know about you??? But when someone looks at MY ART. I want them to say “Whoa”!!!

Drama, Emotion? Contrast or Shadows? What do you want to show in your Art?

Portmeirion Village, Wales

Ireland

Florence, Italy

To All Our Friends and Family

 

 

Happy Mothers Day

File Management

Friday Night Photography Quote:

Realism and super-realism are what I’m after. This world is full of things the eye doesn’t see. I mean even the eye of a senesitive person. The camera can see more, and oftentimes better.
— Andreas Feininger
“Feininger as I Know Him” by Wilson Hicks, The Best of Popular Photography by Harvey V. Fondiller , ISBN: 0871650371 ,

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For the past few weeks I’ve been discussing the Basics of Photography. From Depth of Field to trying to make sure your subjects are as sharp as possible.

This week I had run across a statement in one of the Photography Groups on Facebook. Someone who was a Newbie saying that they had run out of room on their hard drive and asking for Opinions on what to do!

→ Never Ever save your Images to your Computers Hard Drive!
Get yourself an External Drive. If you catch a good price get Two!
One as your working drive when your editing. The other will be disconnected from your computer normally. When your Backing Up your Images from your Working Drive you will then connect your Backup Drive for this purpose.

Keeping with this behind the scenes discussion. I’d like to discuss the File Management. I am speaking about All Your Images. I don’t care if you shoot in JPG or Raw. I don’t care which Brand of Equipment you use. Or if your shooting with a P&S or an Advanced Level DSLR.

Be extremely organized! Make sure that you know where your images are going before you do your Transfer Upload from Memory Card to Drive. I have a Directory System that may give you an idea of what I’m talking about. Lets say you have a Family Gathering. A Holiday or just a get together to visit some Relatives. You Must inside your Head think of how you want to classify this before hand. Maybe a Family Directory? Or Event Directory. But what are you going to call this “Session” so you will Remember it in the future down the Line?
See where I’m going with this? The last time I backed up my working Drive I had noticed I have over 50 thousand images. If I don’t exactly remember what I did. It’s a Logical or mostly Logical system. So it wont take me long to find what I’m looking for.

→ Never Work/Edit/Change your Original Images!
Whether in any format I will start working and after one or two steps/layers or whatever. I will do a “Save As”! Keeping with the files discussed in a Family Gathering. I will have it under Events. Maybe who ever was hosting this Event. Or whatever Holiday it was. Last Holiday was New Year so I will have it as Archive/Event/New Year. Then I will create two more directories Under the New Year. The first will be /working and the second will be complete. I may also have a directory for the Net. Never ever forget that the images You/We Post on the Net will always be Low Resolution and have your Watermark on it. Your Finished Images will be Full Resolution without a Watermark so you can print or email Your Beautiful Family Photos!

The reason for Not editing your Originals is in case We Mess UP!
We do! Or Like I do. I will go back now to a time I had very little knowledge and skill. Look around at some of my images and then look at the Working Directory to see what I did. Do I like it or not. Most of the time I will use the Original Image and take that to edit it with my current skill and tools. I might save it in the working directory as a second or even third image.

I was recently involved in a Nature Challenge on Facebook. I went back a few years into my Archives to find something and do a Major ReEdit. Because it was soo long ago I was using a very Limited P&S. It was the first camera I had gotten to Travel since I had put my camera down for several years.
We were going to Alaska and I asked my wife “how can we go to Alaska without a Camera”? This and the next trip is what made me make the decision to get myself a Real Camera out of frustration that the little P&S was way too frustrating for me. I had absolutely no knowledge of Digital or what or how anything was done. No One told me about Noise! I’m sorry that they didn’t! That little camera was way too Noisy the minute I used the very limited Zoom. At least the Basic Principles of Photography didn’t change. So I spent the almost the whole flight to Fairbanks trying to read that book called the Manual! What a joke that was! But I had no choice and worked it out.

Here are two Images I had Reworked from Alaska that I think came out pretty nice. The Originals were Untouched JPG files. Considering I was forced to run an Anti Noise Plug In on each of them several times. Didn’t work a 100% but I’m satisfied! I was having trouble getting the camera to do what I wanted and when. The delayed Shutter was another thing that made me crazy! I’m used to the shutter clicking the minute you depress the button. Not 5 seconds later. What’s that About?

First one is of an Iceberg at Hubbard Glacier.
The second is of Mendenhall Glacier.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Like always. All comments and discussions are Welcome!

Have a Great Weekend,
Mark

Art!

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What is Art?

Art is anything that was created by someone using a Media that creates an emotional response from the Viewer of that Object! That being said this can also includes a negative emotional response…..

The accepted definition of Art can be found in a lot of places. I’m sharing a Link to Only one. You can thank me later!! Ha

definition of Art

That is why “Art” itself is so objective.
Photography as Art creates a whole different level of arguments. Some positive and a whole Lot of Negatives. Especially from other Photographers who are willing to Deny that Photography can be accepted as “Art”! I have ran into a few of these people through the years and they are unwilling to accept Photography on this level. Why? Beats me!

When going out to full fill my creative urges the main thing I have inside my mind is “Is This Good Enough to hang on a Wall”?
Lighting, Composition, Colors and Interest.

The use of the technical aspect aka the Camera to me is second nature and will do what I have to do out of reflex. Just bearing in mind that I have to have all the correct equipment on hand to perform said tasks. On occasion I’ve had to just make do with what I had because of situations that had come up unexpectedly.

I am going to try and post a few of my images as an example of my interpretations of what I feel Art is. Please share your thoughts!

Thanks!!
Mark

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Ringing In the New Year!!

Happy New Year!

This past year has been fun. PIcked up some New Students. Shot some exciting New Wildlife and Landscape Art. As well as some New Portrait Clients!

I just want to Thank All of my Followers on these Blog Pages. As well as all of my Clients.
It’s been a Lot of Fun and will be Looking forward for things to Come!

Be Careful Out There!

From Our Family to Yours:
Wishing All of You and Your Families a Very Happy and Healthy New Year!

from the Gottesman Family

Holiday Photography

Friday Nite Photography Quote:
Photography can never grow up if it imitates some other medium. It has to walk alone; it has to be itself.
— Berenice Abbott – in “Infinity” magazine, 1951

 

Wishing All Our 
Friends and Family
A Very Happy Healthy
And Safe New Year!

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I am seeing a lot of wonderful Images from the Holidays being Posted on Social Media. Too bad these Images or either too Dark or Out of Focus. When questioned these people will find an answer like “Oh it’s good enough” or “I Like it that Way”!
Really? You went out of your way to purchase a Point & Shoot Camera. You went out of your way to learn or Semi Learn how to take a Picture with your wonderful Smart Phone. Which can take wonderful Images if done properly!

What bothers me is the acceptance of these Images as a New Standard of the level of knowledge in Photography! Wrong!! C’mon People you know it’s Not Acceptable to “Like” an Image that is very Out of Focus or way too Dark? Are You Just being Polite? You can barely make out what the subject is Let alone any person or people in the image…. Doesn’t make sense to me!

Then after viewing these Images and reading all the praise on how wonderful these images are. I then see a comment on a friend who happens to be a Photographer that
“Oh your picture is Beautiful. You Must Have an Expensive Camera?”

We hear and see it all the time! Is it Funny? Not! It is actually very disturbing to anyone who has spent A Lifetime studying and trying to better themselves. Countless hours reading and watching tutorials. Countless money on books and workshops trying to figure out how to make our Images better. Countless Money on equipment that can let us do what we want. Instead of fighting with something that is Not Capable of doing what we are asking of it.

You see buying something and learning how to use it. Then finding out you can’t do what your envisioning in your mind with the equipment you just purchased. Is it expensive? Yeah maybe! Does the equipment create the Vision? No! Not for a minute. The Equipment meaning camera, lens etc is just a Tool that we use to be able to do what You See…. Does it always work out that way? No!

The level of acceptance of what is good and what is Not!
Because of the accessibility of Photography to the masses. Everyone now has a camera on them in one form or another. Everyone is pulling out their cameras and taking pictures. The Problem I see is that these People are Not editing Out the Bad Ones. We as Artists pull Out those that “Look Bad To Us”. The Dark, The Out of Focus. The ones that “Should Not Be Seen”! Once we take those out they are Never Shown. Never will you or any Customer ever see these Images!
Why? Because the Images You see Represent All of Our Efforts of Learning and Studying. All the Time of countless Hours trying to figure out Composition, Posing, Lighting Techniques and Camera Exposure. All of this put together creates “Reputation”! Our Brand if you will.

I’ve actually been asked by a person who was given the Images from the party I was asked to shoot if that is the complete package? Meaning are there any more Images that is Not in this package! The Answer is Of Course there is. You think I’m going to give you a picture with someone’s Eyes Closed? or Bad Lighting? Not On Your Life! That Image is No Longer around. It is Gone from History. It was Pulled and Deleted! You or anyone else will never See that from anyone who Has any Self Respect for themselves or about their Art!

Those Images are the Ones you will be Seeing on the Net. Those Images that are Too Dark. Those Images that are too Soft or Out of Focus. Those are the Images that People should just Delete and Not Share with the World. Those are Not the Images that Look Good!

Sunset Loch Lomande, Scotland

What Is Photography Today? Everyone has a Camera. There are a very Large Number of Absolutely Beautiful Images All over the Net from every subject. I Ask You Again: What Is Photography?
How Should an Image Look? What is an Expected Level of Quality that You or Anyone is Required to produce to create a Beautiful Image?
Before anything else. That is what the Average Person Needs to figure out before Posting Horrible Images on the Net or Social Media!

I don’t know why anyone is Afraid to say what is truly going on. Most of us on a Certain Level of skill or knowledge considers this whole topic “The Dumbing Down Of Photography”. If someone is disinterested in learning how to take a better picture. Or just Can’t be bothered by even trying to Improve the Images that they are producing.  Don’t Ew and Ah at them. Tell them to buy a Book or Watch a Video or Youtube! To learn how to take better Pictures! There are places on the Net like Youtube that will have Tutorials on Learning how to use your Camera. Learning how to create better Images with those New Toys you got for Christmas!

If you Have Any Questions Please! I can Help you learn how to use that New Camera. New Toy or even help with some of the Programs out there that can Improve your Image. But you have to Contact me so I can Answer your Questions! But keep in Mind!! I am a Photographer! I am Not a Camera Salesman.

You can leave a comment or question here in the Comments Section. You can also leave a comment on my Facebook Page! Just Remember I can help you Learn. But!!! You Have to Want to Learn. That Camera might have a great computer inside. But it’s Not as Smart as you think it is. You have to learn how to use it.
Here’s my facebook page Link:
https://www.facebook.com/Mark-G-Photography-198529480219947/?ref=hl

You can also contact me here in email:
Info@MarkG-Photography.com

Thanks! Have a Happy New Year!
Mark

Natural Light!

Weekend Photography Quote:
As great a picture can be made as one’s mental capacity–no greater. Art cannot be taught; it must be self-inspiration, though the imagination may be fired and the ambition and work directed by the advice and example of others. 
— Edward Weston

 

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OK I’ve been obsessed lately about Using External Flash and everything that goes with it for a bit.  I was Affected by a statement from someone who mentioned that they don’t use “Flash” they Only shoot with Natural Light like Flash was a Dirty Word and Disgusting!  That they would never ever touch a nasty piece of equipment like a Flash??

Natural Light – Is Thee Perfect Light when it cooperates completely!
Nine out of ten times it doesn’t from one thing or another and as “Photographic Artists” we Must Be Able to Deal with the Light Accordingly so as to get our Work Done!  Keeping this in mind when Natural Light Does Cooperate it can be a wondrous thing!

Here is a great example of what can be done in a tough situation but when Nature Does Cooperate and gives us Great Light.  We as Photographers must Learn how to deal and work with the current situation to create an emotional Image.

This was shot last summer during our Trip to Italy.  This image was taken inside the Pompeii Museum in one of the Public Baths where the Natural Light was coming inside from the holes that were in the Ceiling.  Shot Using a Panasonic Lumix P&S in Raw.  Processed with Lightroom 4, PS5 and the plug-In Nik Silver Efex Pro
This was Hand Held.  Like I always say a Camera is a Paint Brush and as Photographers it’s Our Job to Learn how to use it.

I realize it’s Wednesday but I wasn’t able to get this out for this past Weekend.  I’m also not sure if I will be able to post another Issue for this coming weekend either so  I ended up available today and was able to get this out today so I ran with it.

Like always all Comments and Thoughts are appreciated.
Have a great Weekend!

Mark

 

Wishing All My Friends and Family
A Very Happy Thanksgiving!

Since it Is Thursday and a lot of people are posting B&W Images for a while now for B&W Thursday.  I was thinking of joining the Lot and posting B&W Images for this as well.

I was Nominated to partake in the 5 Day B&W Challenge.  Here is one I had posted for the Challenge and thought you might like it.  It was taken in one of the buildings in Pompeii, Rome Italy.  This is one of the Roman Baths that the Soldiers used to use after there training.  To sit and unwind, play Politics and just shoot the breeze.  I had used a Panasonic Lumix ZS40 for this shot.  Even though there were very Low Light Levels I was impressed at the quality.  Hand held and natural light.

© MarkG Photography
All Rights Reserved!

I processed this image using PS4, the Nik plug-in Color Efex Pro4 as well as the Nik Silver Efex Pro2 for the B&W Conversion.  It’s Not the Camera!  It’s the Vision you have in your head.  Then by your skill you make the Camera do what you want to make this image you saw in your head come to fruition in the Editing Process!  The Camera is a Paint Brush!

Basic Fundamentals Part 2

Friday Nite Photography Quote:
The belief is once you buy a camera you are photographer. SO that means if I buy a Cello…… I own a cello. 
—Vincent Versace

Did you do any of the searching out of the information we discussed last week?  Did you start reading the book “Understanding Exposure”?
If you have any questions at all please just ask me here!
If your embarrassed and would like to ask me Privately you can do that as well.  You can email me at Info@markg-photography.com or you can Private Message me on Facebook by clicking this Link to my page here: https://www.facebook.com/Info.MarkG.Photography

Now lets take the Basics a step further.  Artistic Composition!
I’ve seen so many people make every excuse under the Sun to avoid trying to learn “The Rules of Composition”!  These are the most important Rules about Art that were created by the “Masters of Art”.
If thee Great Classical Masters Created a Set of Rules that they themselves follow who are we to argue the Point of “Rules are Made to be Broken”?  Yes!  We Can Break the Rules, but???  The percentage of failures of breaking the Rules are so extremely high that it’s not even worth trying.  As Students of Art the most Simplest Rules of Composition can be made by just a little bit of concentration of what we are doing.  For a Link to the Rules of Composition go here:
http://www.photographymad.com/pages/view/10-top-photography-composition-rules

Thanks for Reading
Again if you have any comments or questions please feel free in commenting here.
Mark

Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th of July!

This brings us to a little bit of History! Remembering the History and some of the people who selflessly put themselves at risk for what they truly believed in! First person that comes to mind is John Hancock! As one of the signers he knew that there would be a price on his head for Signing the Declaration of Independence! In return he Signed it in the Middle with his great handwriting large enough so as to not be missed! Very large indeed! Large enough that the British were Looking for him! The other person who risked his life was an Unknown to most of us. In the dark climbing a small treacherous circular staircase in a Small Church looking out and placing Lanterns so the riders could warn John Hancock and the others how the British were going to come after them! Paul Revere was Not thee Only Rider but he was made famous by the Poem! Both of these 2 men Paul Revere and Robert Newman were the first to be captured and arrested! John Hancock had to go and get them out because they put themselves in harms way to protect Hancock and the others! I don’t know why but the name Robert Newman has almost but disappeared from the teachings! OK History Lesson Over! Happy Birthday America!

Friday Nite Photography Quote:

The use of the term “art medium” is, to say the least, misleading, for it is the artist that creates a work of art not the medium. It is the artist in photography that gives form to content by a distillation of ideas, thought, experience, insight and understanding.
– – Edward Steichen

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So this week I received my New P&S from B&H!
After researching all the choices Including Mirrorless and P&S Cameras I ended up with the Panasonic Lumix ZS40!
Wonderful little camera! I have to say upfront that the Only thing I don’t like so far is that Panasonic didn’t include an External Charger! I am forced to charge the Battery when it’s inside the Camera! Now granted I’m used to having a couple of chargers and 6 batteries for my Pro Equipment! But I am unable to charge a battery when I’m out shooting! Anyway, this camera has a lot of the features we are used to if you have a Full Sized Full Featured DSLR! No Shutter Lag was one of the things I can honestly say I was worried about! This little puppy can shoot in full Manual, has Live View as well as a Fully Operational View Finder! The Lens is a Wide 24mm to 720mm Zeiss Zoom! Yeah that’s right a 720mm Optical and it can go out further but that’s Digital Zoom so I don’t have any Interest in doing that! I’ve brought it out and shot both Raw and JPG to see how the images look and if I can work the Images with my Current Digital Darkroom programs and Setup! I did have to go to the Adobe Downloads and get the latest DNG Converter but that worked out fine! I will post a Raw image soon but the Fireworks are starting and I’m going to try and capture some with my new camera!
Happy 4th Everybody!

Here is the First Raw Image with this very nice Camera!
Aperture Priority Aperture f:5.6, Shutter: 1/60 sec, ISO: 100
Hand Held using the Macro Feature! It also has an Antishake System that worked out even by Hand Holding a Macro Shot!!

All C*C Accepted!

© MarkG Photography
All Rights Reserved!