PEOPLE PHOTOS AT NIGHT

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A friend asked me to do some portfolio shots while I was in a different town. I didn't have my studio gear, so I had to rely on street lights. Here are a few hints for shooting using street lights at night:

1. Sodium or Mercury vapor street lights are very difficult to color balance properly. Black and white photographs are far easier to deal with.

2. The model needs to be in a position of looking upward. As the streetlights are far overhead, deep shadows will be the result if the model is looking straight ahead or downward. An upward look will illuminate the face.

3. Have the model a few meters behind a street light. As in the previous instruction, you want the street light to evenly illuminate the face, instead of the light illuminating the model in a vertical fashion (which creates shadows).

4. While street lights are very bright, you will still have a difficult time with camera shake. These types of photo shoots are best with models who can pose naturally while remaining still.

5. Set your camera to Aperture Priority, with the lowest "f" number. Secure the tripod, and adjust your ISO if you feel the shutter speed is too long to create a sharp image. Do not increase your ISO too much however, as you will get a poor quality image that will make skin look blotchy.

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Mark's photographic prints for your wall can be purchased at www.markhemmings.com

Mark can be hired as a photographer or filmmaker via www.hemmingshouse.com

NO TRIPODS ALLOWED!

Dear reader, if this entry or my other blog entries don't answer your specific photography questions, you can call me on the phone anytime for advice by clicking here.

Many great buildings of the world allow photography, but no tripod usage. Using a flash is often worthless, so instead, try the following the next time you are in a location such as the attached photo of St. Stephen's Basilica in Budapest:

With a wide angle lens, set your camera to Aperture Priority, and the lens f-stop number to f8. Set your lens to manual focus, and focus the lens to infinity. Place the camera on self-timer mode. Now, place your camera on the floor, in the middle of the room, hall, church, or whatever interior you are photographing. The lens should be pointing to the ceiling, lying on its back. You are now ready to release the shutter. Wait for the self-timer to kick in, and you will have a very sharp and precise photograph.

If you do not want a perfectly vertical interior photograph, use a purse, jacket, or any other soft material to prop up the front of your lens. This will give you an angled photograph. For a near-vertical shot place a small strip of fabric under the camera body (instead of the lens), which will give you a less-than perpendicular angle, similar to my attached example photo.

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Mark's photographic prints for your wall can be purchased at www.markhemmings.com

Mark can be hired as a photographer or filmmaker via www.hemmingshouse.com

FRAMED PORTRAITS

I am currently in Hungary, teaching photography and filmaking to international students. We have visited many fascinating locations, including this wonderful Greek-Catholic church. I asked through a translator if I could create a portrait of the priest, and he was happy to oblige.

This post is simply an encouragement to seek out backgrounds or surroundings that can frame your subject in a centered fashion. I love this type of framing device, and feel it often conveys a great sense of power and authority.

Good luck!

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Mark's photographic prints for your wall can be purchased at www.markhemmings.com

Mark can be hired as a photographer or filmmaker via www.hemmingshouse.com

EMPTY SPACE

Dear reader, if this entry or my other blog entries don't answer your specific photography questions, you can call me on the phone anytime for advice by clicking here.

While it is often not advisable to take photographs like the attached sample image, in certain circumstances strange compositions can be quite valuable as art photography. I took this photo in Amsterdam, during a time when people from every house would open their windows and play a musical instrument. The melody was prearranged by a central conductor on a tall crane. The sound was haunting and beautiful.

I felt that the surreal aspects of the musical endeavor required an equally surreal composition. Giving more weight to the clouds encourages the viewer to ask more questions of the artist, which is always a good thing (regardless of a negative or positive response).

Experiment with different compositions, and don't feel bad when your photography club or association judges you harshly. A lot of the time the judges wish that they too could express such freedom in their work!

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Mark's photographic prints for your wall can be purchased at www.markhemmings.com

Mark can be hired as a photographer or filmmaker via www.hemmingshouse.com