DEFOCUSED PHOTOGRAPHS

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Rarely is it acceptable to take photos out of focus, however there are times when such a practice can yield strange and wonderful results. Fine Art photography often utilizes certain elements of defocus, and sometimes stock photography. Much to my surprise, I have had many stock photo sales from my intentionally out of focus photographs.

Not every subject will work out of focus however. The technique seems to require a scene that emotes a feeling of loss, confusion, distress, or loneliness. I took the above photo in the Toronto airport, of a captain reading the flight info screens. I immediately grabbed my camera, set my focus to manual, and captured an image that speaks of confusion . . . in my mind an airplane captain should not need to find out where his plane is located.

Give this technique a try, and don't forget to keep the photos a cool tone instead of a warm tone. A bluish cast aids in the sense of isolation, whereas a warm toned photograph tends to be inviting and embracing.

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NON-STATIC PHOTOS

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.

If you have been to New York city, no doubt you have visited the iconic landmark, Rockefeller Plaza. This location has been in countless movies, and always makes for interesting people photography. This lesson has to do with the importance of movement in a photo, and how to technically achieve such an end.

This image would not have nearly as much drama if the people were frozen in action. The figures needed a very slight motion blur to suggest movement, taking the image from a static to a dynamic state. Since every moving subject will be traveling at a different speed, it is impossible for me to suggest accurate shutter speed and aperture settings, so it is best to experiment with a few different exposures. Put your camera on a tripod, lock it tight, and start photographing.

If you find that the people are blurry beyond all recognition, then speed up the shutter speed. Conversely, if they are still frozen in place, the shutter speed needs to be a bit slower. Depending on the speed of the subject, 1/2 second exposures are a good starting point for this process.

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