shutterhack

"Photography is the only major art in which professional training and years of experience do not confer an insuperable advantage over the untrained and inexperienced - this for many reasons, among them the large role that chance (or luck) plays in the taking of pictures, and the bias toward the spontaneous, the rough, the imperfect."

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Nikon D50, People, Philosophy of Photography, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 2:20 AM | Permalink

All portraits are staged, so I contend that they are just being themselves in an artificial environment. Whether they are "relaxed" or "comfortable" is a different question and the answer to that is dependent on both the sitter's psychology and the directorial skills of the photographer.

"Natural" vs. "artificial" light is a false dichotomy. It is false as in the distinction lies two implications:

• that the photographer has given up some degree of control over a very fundamental formal aspect of their photography.
• that natural light is somehow more "trustworthy."

Some photographers may be more comfortable just taking things as they find them (I sometimes am), but that doesn't relieve you of the decision of when and where and how to make the photograph.

"If they wear a ton of make up who am I to say they can't." Of course they can! It's their choice. But if you think it looks bad, why, don't you think you have an obligation (as the person making the photograph) to point that out?

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Nikon D50, People, Philosophy of Photography, Photography, Portrait

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 1:59 AM | Permalink

"...to show the true being of the subject."

Which is something I think is impossible with a photograph. A photographer can show what they as a person perceive to be a truth about a "subject" (see how even the commonly used language that we use make a captive of the person being photographed?), and if as photographers we express that well, I think a viewer is more likely to respond with some sort of engagement.

And the more we know about the person photographed -- the more information we have to work with in judging the "honesty" of the photograph.

Labels: Pentax K100D, People, Philosophy of Photography, Photography, Portrait, Tamron AF 70-300mm F/4-5.6 Di LD Macro

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 1:52 AM | Permalink

Honesty is a loaded word when describing photographs, which are "fictions" the photographer and the person photographed have conspired to create -- but where the photographer clearly has loaded the deck and holds the upper hand. But still, as in all fiction there can be honest emotions and ideas expressed. So I don't mean honest in any sense that a philosopher or jurist would accept. I mean honest in terms of creating a response in me, the viewer. It's something you know when you are experiencing it.

To be clear, the only truth a photograph holds for me is that is a photograph, something a photographer created. I think it is intellectually dishonest to hold one art form, photography, to a standard that we do not hold other arts to. Experiencing art involves a certain suspension of disbelief. After all, when we listen to music that evokes the sea, do we demand that it is only worthwhile if actual sea made sounds are used and that someone is throwing buckets of seawater on us while we listen? But I do want to "connect" in some way with what I'm looking at, tasting, listening too, or touching.

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Chendering Fisheries Complex, Nikon D50, People, Philosophy of Photography, Photography, Portrait

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 1:46 AM | Permalink

Certainly, there are many portraits that feel false, for various reasons. Those reasons can range from too much gauze effect to make a woman's skin supposedly look better to a snapshot-like smile on the subject that makes the emotion feel barren.

I like the more straightforward portraits (I tend to work in black and white) but ones that seem to capture a particular moment or gesture, one that feels vital. Yet some very "staged" portraits feel genuine as well, in the right hands. You seem to use both "honesty" and "reach me emotionally" as criteria. I think the former is more problematic than the latter. For me, emotion from a portrait is crucial. But I'm never sure what "honesty" means with respect to photography.

I think there are great portraits that reach people emotionally, are extremely expressive, and seem quite genuine but are not necessarily what a lot of people would consider "honest." In other words, one may catch a crabby older woman in a gesture or look of sweetness. That still may be a very much "real" look of that woman but not a represenatitive one. So is that honest? If most people who don't know the subject come away assuming that the portrait has captured the woman's "essence" (which I don't believe a portrait does do or should do - I tend to see portraits as capturing essential moments), is there a lack of honesty?

And, sometimes a portrait is able to capture a universal emotion, gesture, or moment that is more a statement of the photographer than it is a representation of anything about the subject. Depending on the situation, that can be a very valid and honest portrait as well. Dramatic lighting may change someone's appearance a lot yet may capture something very poingnant that the photographer is feeling at the moment.

Subjects are "used" all the time in photography just as Hitchcock, for instance, "used" his actors. That could be, but would not by me, considered dishonest. As far as cloning out blemishes, etc., I think that will also depend on the type of portrait, whether or not someone is paying for it, and what the goal and vision of the photographer is.

Sometimes blemishes add to personality, crows feet add great character and lines to faces, bags under eyes can be very telling. But if one has been hired to do a portrait that will hang on the subject's wall, it seems perfectly legitimate to do a little flattering in the post processing. That flattering, however, is where most people get carried away, making their portraits look like plastic and losing any sense of skin texture or life. A refined and gentle hand in the post process would be my preference.

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Chendering Fisheries Complex, Nikon D50, People, Philosophy of Photography, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 1:36 AM | Permalink

Yes, even the hues and shades of a photograph can make it either complex or simple. Try to make sure that your compositions don't have too many colours. Very often, a photograph can be sufficiently varied, yet simple, by simply having various shades of the same colour.

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Nikon D50, People, Photography, Portrait

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 10:27 PM | Permalink

The best lens for the camera is any which provides greater resolution than the sensor. When zooming in on any image made with that camera if a point, line, or edge can be defined by 1 or 2 pixels, then that lens is meeting or exceeding the resolution of the sensor. This is why DSLRs have such poor glass compared to high-end P&S cameras with crisp definition in all details. DSLRs have larger sensors, larger pixels, so they can get away with vastly lower tolerances for the glass. DSLR owners never realize this, they always want to believe they are getting what they pay for. They *are* getting something, but it's not what they paid for. They are getting the chance to play the fool is all.

For a clue on which P&S camera will have the ultimate lens attached, research any number of the resolution tests at dpreview.com. Download the high-resolution charts to see if edges and lines are defined by 1 or 2 pixels, from edge to center to edge. You'll find that those sporting designs from famous makers of glass (such as Carl Zeiss and Leica for example) will often surpass others.

Labels: AF-S Zoom-Nikkor ED 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G DX, Night, Nikon D50, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 6:09 PM | Permalink

Desire and drive count, but professional photography is a competitive business, and for every successful photographer there are dozens looking for work. Training can only help to fine-tune a natural “eye,” and although a prospective photographer may have a true passion for the art and craft, if he lacks that eye no amount of training or desire can compensate. Many people must be content to be advanced amateurs rather than professionals.

Labels: AF-S Zoom-Nikkor ED 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G DX, Nikon D50, Philosophy of Photography, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 6:09 PM | Permalink

A higher ISO setting allows you to take digital photos with quicker exposures at the expense of overall image quality. This can be crucial when taking photos at night without a tripod. To get enough light for a decent photo, you may normally have to keep your digital camera still for 1/15th of a second or longer else blurred photos may result. This is extremely difficult to do if you are holding your camera; even if you brace yourself up against a wall some shake is bound to occur.

With a higher ISO setting, you could get away in the same situation with perhaps a 1/30th of a second exposure or faster. The higher the ISO number, the faster you can take the photo, but more grain (noise) will be introduced. You should be able to get by with an ISO of 200 with medium and high-end prosumer cameras. With a digital SLR, even an ISO of 400 or 800 might introduce just an acceptable level of noise into your photos.

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Night, Nikon D50, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 6:07 PM | Permalink

When talking about composition, we often hear people say you must follow the golden rule or you must follow the rule of the thirds or the rule of the quadrant or your image must have a foreground - middleground - background and that you cannot use the center of the frame and thats reserved for somebody else other than you and thats a bad composition to bull's eye.

No! If you do that what occur is that you risk of falling into your Einstein theory for definition of lunacy which is doing the same things over and over and expecting results to change. So what winds up happening is you get images that starts to look the same because you have defined "you must do this". So, is it important to understand the rules of composition? Yes, but you have to understand them completely so you could break them correctly. There are great shots where the image is bulls eye but its using pattern. There are more things to a composition than simply those so-called golden rules. Theres light gesture color shape geometry all those things come into play... time for instance.

What I think is most important is to first understand that you are responsible for each millimeter of the frame as you shoot it. And to make the image look cool that it has to move you first. Well, how do you practice that well you practice at "Alright, I'm going to use the rules of thirds but I'm not going to be governed by them. Whats most important is whats most frustrating to people that take pictures is that they see something, they feel something whats more importantly is that they feel it but they cannot manifest that feeling because they are limited by these "rules that they have to follow".

My point is that the more you understand what you're looking at the better-off that you will be when you are taking the picture. Because the better understanding of how light works, how glass works, how focus works becomes the static choices that you can make at the point of capture. And if you did good enough at it you can do them in such a way that you do them without having to stop to think about them. That they are so automatic that you're making these choices as you shoot consciously because you spend so much time practicing up to point the where you break the rules sub-consciously.

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Night, Nikon D50, Philosophy of Photography, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 6:07 PM | Permalink

Strive for a blend of style and content. Professional photographers from my observations are experienced journalists with singular, well-developed photographic styles who use both color and composition in a unique manner.

Labels: AF-S Zoom-Nikkor ED 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G DX, Night, Nikon D50, Philosophy of Photography, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 6:06 PM | Permalink

Taken with a Nikon D50 and Nikon AF-S Zoom-Nikkor ED 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G DX (kit-lens)

While you should always try to take digital photos at nighttime that avoid the blurred results of 'camera-shake' due to long exposures with an unstable digital camera, realize that blur is not always undesirable. Some blurring can be used creatively, such as that created by cars driving on an interstate at nighttime.

This effect is best performed if the roadway is next to a lit skyscraper or cityscape. Frame a photo containing the cityscape and roadway, and take an exposure of half a second or longer as necessary (use a tripod!). The skyscrapers should look clear and crisp, and the roadways will turn into streams of light.

Labels: AF-S Zoom-Nikkor ED 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G DX, Night, Nikon D50, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 6:06 PM | Permalink

Quoting a famous photographer James Balog:
About a week ago, I was in Connecticut photographing the largest oak tree in New England on this farm. The elderly man who was the farmer who had lived on this ground for his entire life--he was 80 years old--was very interested in tagging along with me because he was in a camera club and he wanted to talk camera talk.

He started talking about how they had this rule in the camera club that you couldn't show the presence of humans in the pictures, that you couldn't show anything. There couldn't be a wire or a phone pole, let alone any overt thing like a pasture or something.

And I said to him, "The whole story about this tree is the fact that this 400-year-old tree is standing here surrounded by forest that's been mowed down and the only thing that exists now is a pasture." That's the story. That's what's interesting--not hiding from the fact that that happens.

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Animal, Nikon D50, Philosophy of Photography, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 6:06 PM | Permalink

A digital camera's self-timer mode can reduce some camera shake when taking night photos.

While most digital camera manuals describe the self-timer mode, where the camera takes a picture several seconds after the shutter speed is pressed, as "good for portraits", the self-timer mode can be very useful for night photos as well.

Most night photos, especially in situations where you cannot reliably use flash, require a shutter speed of half a second or longer else the subject will be too dark. This is to compensate for the lack of available light. Unfortunately, these situations, especially when you don't use a tripod, can result in camera shake.

However, if you use the self-timer mode, you might be able to get some acceptable shots just holding your camera very steady. Any shake caused by pressing the shutter button will be eliminated, as the camera will not take photos until several seconds after the button has been pressed.

Labels: AF-S Zoom-Nikkor ED 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G DX, Night, Nikon D50, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 6:05 PM | Permalink

Taken with a Nikon D50 and AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G lens

Conversely, when photographing very small objects getting everything in focus can be quite a challenge and may require a very slow shutter speed in order to be able to use the smallest aperture available. The focal length of the lens makes a difference to the depth of field available, the longer the lens the more restricted the depth of field. A wide angle lens will give you almost limitless depth of field.

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Nikon D50, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 7:35 PM | Permalink

Good times.

People, especially children, get bored very quickly. If you start fiddling with your camera telling them to hold on a minute you will never get good pictures. The most important part of the picture is the expression on the face. When you see that expression you must be ready to instantly capture it, everything else, the lighting, the background, the composition must be ready. Facial expressions, at least the good ones, are very fleeting things. If you ask someone to smile and you leave them holding that smile for even a second it will look very, very false.

Labels: Canon IXUS SD10, People, Photography, Portrait

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 1:44 PM | Permalink

Marine Fishery Resources Development and Management Department
Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center
Taman Perikanan Chendering
21080 Kuala Terengganu, MALAYSIA

Taken with a Nikon D50 and Nikon 70-300mm f/4-5.6G lens

Photography is all about light, the direction of the light falling on your subject is most important, you need to look at your subject carefully and watch how the shadows fall.

If you are able to choose the time of day to shoot your pictures, try to pick a time when the sun is low in the sky, either shoot in the early morning or late afternoon. Shooting pictures of people with the sun too high in the sky, tends to mean the subject's eyes will be in shadow and/or they will be squinting in the strong light, both of which tend to look horrible. A nice side effect of shooting in the early morning or late afternoon is that the colour of the light is 'warmer', reds and yellows are stronger which generally gives a more pleasing effect.

If you are photographing in sunlight, try to position yourself so that the sun hits your subject from the side, this will give you nice 'modelling' and help create a 3D effect in the picture.

Sunlight behind the subject can give a very pleasing 'backlight' effect but be careful that you are not getting 'flare' in the lens, which degrades the contrast of the image.

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Nikon D50, People, Philosophy of Photography, Photography, Portrait

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 1:43 PM | Permalink

The two sisters had a good time at the Sekayu Waterfalls, Terengganu.

Tips for portrait Photography

Front to Front Pose - fronts of both people facing, or touching the other.
Fronts facing forward - fronts of both people facing forward, possibly at an angle, one front to the other's back.
Avoid space between heads to create intimacy.
Use lots of negative space around couples in the frame.

Labels: Canon IXUS SD10, People, Photography, Portrait

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 1:40 PM | Permalink

Many photographers — even some experienced and knowledgeable ones — seem permanently confused about contrast, especially when the word is used to describe lenses. In photography, like the word "speed" (which can refer to the maximum aperture of a lens, the size of the gap in a constant-rate shutter, or the sensitivity of an emulsion), the word "contrast" actually refers to several different things. "Contrast" in photo paper, for instance, or in a finished image, refers to overall (sometimes called "global") contrast, meaning how the materials distribute tonal gradation from black to white or lightest to darkest.

When we talk about lens contrast, we are not talking about that quality. What we are talking about is the ability of the lens to differentiate between smaller and smaller details of more and more nearly similar tonal value. This is also referred to as "microcontrast." The better contrast a lens has (and this has nothing to do with the light­dark range or distribution of tones in the final print or slide) means its ability to take two small areas of slightly different luminance and distinguish the boundary of one from the other.

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Nikon D50, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 11:00 PM | Permalink

ISO stands for 'International Organization for Standardization' and their film speed ratings are used to indicate the relative amount of light necessary to give a proper exposure. A normal film will be rated at ISO 100. A film rated at ISO 200 will give a proper exposure with only half the amount of light compared to the ISO 100 film, enabling you to shoot in lower light or with a smaller aperture or faster shutter speed. The ISO 200 film would be referred to as a 'faster' film. There are films available that range in speed from ISO 25 to ISO 1600.

So why not use the faster films all the time, what are the advantages of slower films?

The faster films have a more prominent grain structure the individual grains clump together to form spots that are visible to the naked eye, especially when you blow the photo up to A4 or larger from a 35mm negative. In certain circumstances this effect can be used creatively especially in black and white photography but mostly it is undesirable.

How does all this effect digital cameras?

In the digital photography world the phenomenon is called 'noise' not 'grain', the cause of the problem is slightly different. When light levels are low, the sensor has trouble reading the scene properly and pixels of random colour are thrown into the picture. However to us photographers the end result is the same or very similar.

The 'better' digital cameras have, usually hidden away among the manual settings, a sort of simulation of the film speed effect. My camera for instance, the Nikon D50, has an ISO range from 200 to 1600. This feature is not available when you are in fully auto mode but is available in all the other modes. I sometimes keep it set to ISO 400 as the grain structure is not significantly worse than ISO 200 and it gives me that extra f-stop to play with. When I am shooting fast action and I want to freeze the action (not always the case - see shutter speeds and apertures) then I'll select ISO 400 or 800. If the light is very bad ie night time or indoors then a shot at ISO 1600 is often better than a blurred shot caused by using too slow a shutter speed or no shot at all.

Labels: AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G, Nikon D50, Photography

Posted by Mohd Fadzly Abdul Mubin at 10:59 PM | Permalink