Timing The Shot

In photography, to create compelling images, timing is everything. All the other photographic elements certainly come into play; light, composition, depth of field...and so on, but in certain photographs, timing is the one critical element that will make or break the image.

With people the eyes are the most important for they are what connects the viewer to the person in the photograph. A simple shift of the eyes combined with a frisky expression says it all. It's not always a matter of luck to catch these kinds of moments, but luck certainly helps. Anticipation and being observant are the two ingredients most necessary to consistently capture these great opportunities.

Action shots are another category of photography that requires an element of timing. Whether it be sports related or moments with a great deal of movement, timing is the critical element in capturing the story of the moment. The trick is to incorporate not only the movement, but all the supporting elements as well. Wildlife action shots are perhaps the most difficult to capture simply because you must wait for the wildlife to perform in front of you, and they seldom ever cooperate in such a way as to accommodate what you want to capture.

Your presence alone will often alter their behavior and in many cases simply spoil the opportunity. It takes a great deal of patience and an understanding of the habits of the wildlife you are photographing. Cold fingers and numb toes will become a common predicament when photographing wildlife in the winter. But, to get the close in, compelling shots, you must be willing to alter your situational comfort to meet the wildlife on their terms.

Timing also includes not only those precise momentary captures, it also includes a broader more seasonable elements and this includes time of day. Finding an interesting subject is only the beginning of timing a great photograph. You must learn to think beyond what you are looking at and project how the scene will appear at different times of the day or even in different seasons. A snapshot of a windmill in the middle of the day is not necessarily a very compelling shot regardless of how interesting the subject. Move time forward a few hours and catch it at sunset and this rather ordinary subject now becomes engulfed in a magical moment of light.

Swap out the windmill and insert a tree and once again the timing of the shot generates a eye stopping image. This tree if taken in the middle of the day would simply be a photo of a tree, but add in a bold summer setting sun, it becomes an iconic symbol of what the art of photography is all about.

Timing the shot as a photographer becomes a process requiring a great deal of practice and observation. Knowing and understanding how your camera reacts to light and having a command of your camera is also critical because you do not what to be guessing about your exposure when those often fleeting moments present themselves. Great timing combined with a commanding grasp of how your camera does what it does will lead you toward capturing amazing images that stir the imagination.

Exploring The Possibilities - Taking That First Step

Photography often becomes a connected series of events that ultimately results in a finished photograph exhibiting a unique look. To arrive at the end of those events requires us to travel down a path of exploration, and those travels always begin with a first step. Therefore, we must be willing to take the first step, if for no other reason, but to discover the possibilities that await us.

The winter of 2018 and 2019 in Kentucky was a rather dreary and wet affair. Not much snow, but a great deal of cold rain along with many days of overcast skies. Not often for several months did the sun manage to burn through the overcast. But, on one occasion, I managed to be at the right place at the right time to capture an amazing sky when the sun decided to appear.

It began with a first step when the skies began to break apart late one afternoon. No plans were made for any kind of outing, but I realized an opportunity was developing that just might lead to an interesting lighting situation. An instinctive warmth swelled up inside as I gathered my camera and gear and headed out. I just drove at first not knowing for sure where to go, then I remembered a location from a previous outing I thought might work out. Well, it proved to be rather ordinary, but I was not far from another place and decided to head over that way. It proved to be a good decision.

Originally I hoped to capture some long lens images of an old brick house that sat off in the distance along a country road  that split two harvested cornfields. As the afternoon wound toward its climax, the light began to improve and I captured several long angle lighting shots of the old house, but I noticed how the clouds and the sun were going to interact as the sun dipped below the cloud line along the horizon. It became obvious that a spectacular light show was building and I shifted my focus away from the house toward the setting sun.

As I thought it would do, the sunset proved a welcome respite from all the dreary days we had endured all winter and I snapped away. It is amazing just how quickly the light changes at the transitions of the day. Between each shutter release the clouds shifted and the light swung in great arches of red and orange mixed and blended themselves between the muted gray of textured clouds.

I moved here and then there, changing my camera angle as the clouds moved ever so slowly carrying with them the full color spectrum of a setting sun. As I moved along a gravel access road that lead down to one corner of one of the cornfields, I noticed a single tree standing broadside to the sky. I raised my camera, framed a couple of quick images then paused for a moment.

Something unique began to develop across my field of view. The clouds moved to either side of the tree and grew dark red as the last moments of the afternoon display transformed into its final act.

I moved back a few yards...then a few more...and there it was, the final possibility...a flaming tree silhouetted against a sky engulfed with a magnificent arch of fire and smoke. I made a few final shots and then, almost without hesitation, the light dropped, grew dim, and the curtain of darkness implied an end to the afternoon performance.

That image alone was worth the taking of that first tentative step of anticipation. Yet, several weeks weeks passed and I kept looking at the images from that shoot. I realized the possibilities were not yet finished and started playing around with what was there.

Photography is a series of events that ultimately leads to a finished photograph. The trick is to recognize the possibilities, then wade deeper, taking what you capture to another level of exploration.

Some Shade, Some Natural Back Light, and a Single Speedlight

There are times when shooting conditions offer a challenge to a photographer. As a photographer you must learn to adapt to each situation and what might appear at first to be difficult, can be used to your advantage.

Back in May 2016 a friend asked me to assist her in shooting some prom photos of about a dozen or so teenagers. Turned out to be a wonderful experience as the kids were awesome and having a great time.

The shooting conditions at first did seem to be a bit of a challenge as it was a bright sunny afternoon with a lot of speckled sun filtering through the shade cast by numerous trees. As usual I brought along all kinds of equipment not knowing for sure what I might need. Turns out all I used was a single speedlight on a stand shot through a 20 x 30 softbox.

The setup was actually quite simple: The speedlight / softbox combination was placed at about a 45 degree angle from my subjects and about six feet away. Took a little experimenting with the output settings, but once that was determined it was a matter of finding the right place to shoot.

I ended up placing the kids in a shaded area where some of the afternoon sunlight was filtering through. This filtered light became my background and a source of back light used to place some subtle highlights on their hair. Behind them was a large patch of mottled light and shadow, which by using a long lens to zoom in on the subjects, became a great source of Bokeh or those nice softly out of focus blotches of light that make up the background. I set my base exposure for the background slightly under-exposing it to reduce some of the glare from all of the mottled light splashes. The flash itself, fired remotely from the camera, simply provided some extra fill light to brighten up the faces and to make their eyes sparkle.

On one of the shots I lined up the guys in a V-like formation and made the shot from down low. On this one I used all natural light exposing for their faces and allowing the rest of the scene to simply fall where it wanted to. This created a brighter background which contrasted sharply with the dark nature of their tuxedo's.

The first key to this shoot was simply a matter of getting the kids to loosen up and be themselves which wasn't all that difficult to do as they tended to feed off each others energy naturally. The second key was allowing the light that was already there to provide the base background lighting and then using the flash to simply fill in. From the time the first image was captured until they had to move on the prom location, we had a great time.

What made it easy for me was the simplicity of the setup; some shade, some natural back light, and a single speedlight.

A Look Beyond - Discover Those Reserved Moments

There is dwelling through the night a canopy arching overhead filled with the wonders of creation. As beautiful as what we can observe using just our marvelous eyes, it is but a fraction of what harbors there, just out of sight. Those few thousand stars visible to us each night are but a tantalizing hint of what awaits those who chose to look beyond.

For as long as I can remember I have been fascinated with the night sky. As a photographer I am constantly seeking new and exciting ways of expression. Capturing the night sky is but one of those ways, but it serves to fill the void of wanting to know more about what is there. Every photograph reveals a new moment in time and becomes a reward unto itself.

Genesis explains in simple form how God created the Heavens and the Earth in six days. For some reason he chose to obscure much of what lies just outside our field of view only giving us just enough to rekindle within us a desire to find out more. It was a brilliant way to motivate and stimulate our minds so we would grow and seek out more about his creation. Sort of a teaching tool I suppose, and an effective one. 

When I step outside and observe the heavens I am doing more than simply looking or taking pictures. I am exercising the inquisitive instinct he placed within all of us. I know more lies just beyond what I can see and capturing those images becomes a means to discovery and revelation. God gave all of us different gifts. There are the biblical gifts like mercy or teaching or even prophesy, but he also gave us earthly talents and he expects us to develop and explore both the biblical gifts and our earthly talents. I suppose too that is why he chose to only reveal a small portion of his creation to allow us to discover for ourselves the wonder of what he made, for in his creation he reveals himself to us. It just seems so obvious really when you think about it. The complexity of creation simply could not have just happened from a random event out of nothing.

When I look beyond what is visible, I feel blessed to have been given the opportunity to observe and experience a part of creation that was reserved just for me for that moment of discovery. When I think about it, every photograph of creation is exactly that; a reserved moment of creation. I only wish I could do justice to what is there.

Blending Science with Photography

Internet Photo

I love science. Even during my youngest years, science captured my imagination. I suppose growing up watching those Walt Disney Man in Space program specials first broadcast in the late 1950's influenced my interest levels to such a high degree, I've never lost the fascination with all things scientific. Throw in Sputnik and the early years of the Manned Space program, and I was hooked for life.

Never really had the smarts to become a real, fully educated, scientist myself, but down deep lies a pseudo scientist who explores all kinds of amazing things...but, even today I enjoy watching programs with a scientific angle to it.

So how does one blend science with photography. Well, it is a matter of experimentation combined with observation of the results. Science and photography are a great blend of opportunity. There are so many ways to combine the two, it is difficult to truly define in detail all of them.

Photographing the moon is about the easiest way to break into combining science and photography. It is a big and bright subject and exhibits a different look every night.

Combine your observations and photography with Solar and Lunar eclipses and you will discover the thrills of our local celestial neighborhood.

Another exciting way is to photograph the night sky. The technical aspects of how to go about doing this falls outside the scope of this post, but there are numerous videos and articles about the subject available. The science part of the combination requires you to learn some basics about the night sky. Simple observations of the constellations is a great place to start. You can download any number of apps to help you navigate the night sky on your smart phone, or you can do it the old fashion way by using a star chart.

The next logical step is to find the Milky Way and photograph this amazing spectacle that lies just out of view from our visual abilities, but becomes a wondrous revelation a modern digital camera can capture with ease. Combine the digital camera with a tracking devise and you can accumulate the light of the night sky in such a way as to make it appear like a magical apparition.

Graduating to using a telescope/camera combination opens up a tremendous arena of deep sky objects to photograph. This area is a bit more advanced, but well within the capabilities of most photographers.

Science and photography can also be applied to the natural world. Macro photography, nature photography, weather photography, and underwater photography takes your photography into the fascinating realm of natures wonders. The idea here is to not just photograph things, but to dwell more deeply into the makeup of the world. Explore the complexity of the smallest of things, capture the majesty of a lightning storm, and explore the delicate beauty of a flower or the amazing agility of a hawk.

Learn about those smallest of things and what causes lightning to flash. Seek out the scientific nature of the different species of wildflowers and ecosystems they grow in, and the life history of migrating birds.

 Discover different ways to capture them to reveal the subtle flavor of how they are designed. You will improve as a photographer, an artist, and as a naturalist.

To me, taking the photograph is just half of the equation. The other half is understanding what I am photographing. I want to know why the Orion Nebula glows red. I want to identify the various structures of light, and gas, and nebulae seen within the Milky Way. I seek to discover the natural history of a nesting bird, or why a storm brews into a super cell. I look for new ways to use the equipment I have more effectively and to create techniques or DIY equipment to get the job done.

Combining science and photography is not just for scientist. All of us can learn more about the natural world through photography. All it takes is an inquisitive mind and a willingness to try.

Shooting the 2019 Super Blood Wolf Moon and Eclipse

The past two years Kentucky has been fortunate to witness two amazing celestial events. The full total eclipse of the sun last year (2017), and more recently the total lunar eclipse of the moon. Throw in the M46 comet and several meteor showers and you have full year of wonderful celestial magic.

Shooting the lunar eclipse known as the Super Blood Wolf Moon turned out to be filled with drama and exciting opportunity. For over a week leading up to the event the skies in Kentucky were overcast, cold, rainy, and generally miserable. The day leading up to the eclipse we received a couple inches of snow and the day of the eclipse started promisingly, but deteriorated into a gray white sky filled with a cold wind. By that evening, the sky was still cloudy, but about an hour or so before the eclipse was supposed to start, the skies began to clear, slowly at first with scattered remnants obscuring the moon. Just before the eclipse started, the clouds parted and the sky shined crystal clear with the Orion constellation hanging majestically in the southern sky and the full moon brilliantly riding almost overhead.

Over the next couple of hours I stepped outside to take few photographs, then came back inside to warm up, repeating the process until the last 20 minutes or so before totality occurred. That last 20 minutes I bundled up and braved the cold night air to watch in awe as the moon grew blood red across its entire face snapping images every minute or so.

Capturing images required some trial and error. I started off shooting in aperture priority at f/8 with an ISO of 100 allowing my shutter speed to drag along depending on the brightness of the moon. I ended up having to over compensate the exposure to allow for a short enough exposure to keep the image sharp. Before long, I had to change my tactics and shifted my exposure to a manual mode. This allowed me to shoot at f/6.3 and adjust my shutter accordingly to obtain the results I wanted. I shifted the ISO upwards to 1600 and began shooting around 1/4th of second alternating up or down to get different results. I also adjusted my camera into the Vivid mode which would enhance the blood red color effect.

As the moon approached totality, I was beginning to grow numb from the cold and decided to call it  a night. Certainly, the night was filled with magical celestial moments few take time to observe. The night sky is filled with wondrous visions and with the technology found within today's digital camera's almost anyone can capture those wonders. The Blood Wolf Moon Eclipse proved a highlight of the new season of observation.

Looking For Quality Light - Shoot The Edges

Most of us already understand how light is the driving force behind all great photographs. It is the quality of light that separates good light from bad lighting situations. Without it, photographs tend to become xerox copies of the things we see. Improve the light and your images will be transformed into moody and powerful images of the world around us.

Quality and quantity are not always a good mix. In fact Quantity of light has little to do with its quality and in many cases only serves to hinder the creative process. Certain kinds of photography often do require a good quantity of light.

Photos of subjects like wildlife or fall colors often do better when the quantity of light increases enough to generate bold, dynamic colors and detail. However, to create moody light, or light that possesses a softer more reflective quality, lower light often is what is required. But Low light is not always conducive to quality and will sometimes create a muted and often unresponsive effect. To find elusive quality light a great place to look is along the edges of light.

Shooting the edges of light will in most cases solve a great deal of lighting problems anywhere from high contrast, to dim and unresponsive muted colors. But finding it requires we know where to look. So lets take a look at where to find quality edge light.

Actually edge light can be found almost anywhere at anytime of day, but in most cases it is best and most easily found in specific situations. The most obvious is during transitional moments of the day like from predawn to sunup or the twilight regions between light and dark transitions. Edge light during these moments can be some of the finest kinds of light you can shoot. I'm not specifically only referring to sunrise or sunset situation, which can be great times of course, but those moments where light changes from one style or type into another. An example would be just after a storm when the sun breaks through thick cloud cover. Or in drier regions, during times when a great deal of dust is in the air and the sun is filtering through it.



Edge light can be reflected light which takes on the color hue of whatever it is reflecting off of. This can generate interesting effects, but can also generate some unwanted conditions as well. Edge light can also be diffused light created as it passes through a translucent material or object like glass, or clouds, or water vapor like fog.

Edge light is some of my favorite light in which to shoot. It almost always improves the situation and creates a great deal of mood. Using it to its fullest extent can be tricky and requires a great deal of trial and error to get it right, but when you are struggling to find quality light, by adjusting your eye to look beyond the ordinary and look for those interesting lighting conditions created by edge light, you can start to overcome photographic setbacks and move forward into the realm of amazing light.