In 2009 Jeanne Pickens, the marketing director for Rogue Federal Credit Union, contacted me looking for professional photographs of the southern Oregon region to be used in an exciting new marketing campaign. She needed inspiring iconic images of southern Oregon to be used during the launch of their newest branch office in Medford, Oregon and to completely re-invent their company branding. In the past several months, she and I have worked together to find just the right images in my collection for their project.
Rogue Federal Branch Interior
The Rogue Federal Credit Union marketing plan has been an extensive undertaking for Jeanne and her team and has been met with critical acclaim and public appreciation. To date, my images have been used in a wide variety of marketing and branding materials including large wall murals, calendars, greeting cards, video terminals, credit and debit cards and vehicle wraps.
Rogue Federal Branch Exterior
Curious about the creative process behind the re-branding effort and how Jeanne and her team went about finding and selecting the images that would support their concept, I interviewed Jeanne to gain some insight. Following are my questions and Jeanne’s responses.
[Sean]: The Rogue Federal Credit Union marketing campaign is very impressive. Tell me a little about the concept your team came up with and the types of images that you were looking for.
[Jeanne]: Rogue began to go through the rebranding process in 2008. It began with extensive research on defining who and what Rogue stands for. One of the results of that research was a tagline, which is “Living Local … it’s a ROGUE thing!” At Rogue Federal Credit Union we get it, we know why Southern Oregon is such a great place to live and many of those reasons can be communicated through the images captured by Sean Bagshaw. We knew we wanted to communicate our brand through local imagery and when we set out to find a photographer that was in line with what Rogue stands for we hit a home run when we discovered Sean. We define “Living Local” as actively engaging in life here locally experiencing all that Southern Oregon has to offer. The big bold photographs of local landmarks carry this primary position and allows for us to connect with a broader target audience of why Southern Oregon is so special. It also communicates the fact that we are local and as a result builds trust within the community.
Rogue Federal Credit Cards
[Sean]: How did you go about finding the images that you needed for the campaign? Had you heard about my photography before you started or did you come across it as part of your image search? If you did an image search, where did you look?
[Jeanne]: We were searching for only Local photographers because part of our brand is only doing business with local businesses if at all possible. In our search we came across several local photographers, but Sean’s images definitely stood out amongst the crowd. Our search was done exclusively online.
Rogue Federal Vehicle Wrap
[Sean]: What kinds of placements and products are you using images in for this marketing campaign?
[Jeanne]: Where aren’t we using Sean’s amazing images? We started with the use of the images with the merchandising of our new branch located in North Medford, from there we have redesigned business cards, our debit and credit cards used by our members, membership cards, wrapping the corporate vehicles, brochures, promotional pieces, calendars, branch stretched canvas images, and many other branches have been rebranded as well. Any branch you go in, you can find pieces of Sean’s work.
Rogue Federal Office Mural
[Sean]: I heard that Rogue Federal Credit Union won an award related to this marketing campaign. Tell me about that.
[Jeanne]: Rogue entered our debit and credit card designs into a national competition for credit unions called the CUNA Marketing and Business Development Council. We won first place for our new card design in our asset category. We were very excited to win this award because it is a reflection of the brand we have developed and is a prestigious award for credit unions.
[Sean]: How has the public response to your photography based marketing materials been? Has it had the desired impact?
[Jeanne]: We receive compliments literally on a daily basis. Members love our new brand position in that we are supporting local and improving the communities in which we all live. With a new brand it takes some time to resonate, but our members and community have been very receptive and complimentary to our position we are taking!
I’m excited to announce two new workshops I will be offering in 2010. These one-day workshops will focus on digital workflow and improving your photo processing skills. The first workshop will cover intermediate level techniques and the second workshop will be delve into more advanced techniques. Both workshops will be held in beautiful Ashland, Oregon. Read below for more information.
Taking Your Photo Processing To The Next Level (Intermediate)
Where: Guanajuato Room, Ashland Public Library, Ashland, Oregon
Tuition: $120.00
Join award-winning outdoor photographer, Sean Bagshaw, for an informative day-long workshop in the art of processing images in the digital darkroom. This workshop is for those who want to expand their knowledge of Photoshop CS and learn new techniques for getting the very best out of their digital photographs.
To register for this workshop:
To pay by credit card, clickHERE. (This is a secure site.) To pay by check: Make your check payable to Darlene Kruse, note that it is for the Post-Processing I workshop, and mail to Darlene at P. O. Box 1004, Ashland, OR 97520. Please include your email address and contact telephone number.
This is an intermediate-level class for those who already use, or plan to use, Photoshop CS as part of their digital photography workflow. This class is appropriate for current users of Lightroom, Aperture or Photoshop Elements who want to extend their processing options through the use of Photoshop CS. It is also a great class for those who are already using Photoshop CS but would like to become more comfortable in the program, improve their current workflow, and learn more about working with adjustment layers and layer masks.
To get the most out of this workshop, you should already know how to:
~Download images to your computer
~View and organize images in an image editor such as Lightroom, Bridge or Aperture.
~Open an image into Photoshop CS (download the free 30-day trial from Adobe.com if needed).
~Make basic adjustments to images for color, contrast, sharpness, etc.
~Use the basic Photoshop tools such as crop, magic wand, brush, lasso, clone, etc.
Topics this workshop will cover:
~Basic RAW image adjustments before opening into Photoshop.
~Selecting the best color space and bit depth.
~Non-destructive Photoshop workflow including basic cloning, perspective control, color balance, contrast, localized creative ~adjustments and prepping images for web and print.
~How to understand and use layers and masks for the greatest non-destructive creative control in your image processing.
~Basic techniques for bringing out the light and drama in your digital images.
~Soft proofing for best print output.
To register for this workshop:
To pay by credit card, click HERE. This is a secure site.) To pay by check: Make your check payable to Darlene Kruse, note that it is for the Post-Processing I workshop, and mail to Darlene at P. O. Box 1004, Ashland, OR 97520. Please include your email address and contact telephone number.
Taking Your Photo Processing To The Next Level (Advanced)
Where: Guanajuato Room, Ashland Public Library, Ashland, Oregon
Tuition: $120.00
Join award-winning outdoor photographer, Sean Bagshaw, for a day-long workshop in the advanced digital photo processing techniques he uses to help make his landscape, nature and travel photographs possible. This workshop will cover advanced techniques using Photoshop CS, as well as a few other image processing programs, that give an amazing amount of creative control to photographers in expressing their artistic vision making it possible to create images that previously were not possible.
To register for this workshop:
To pay by credit card, click HERE. (This is a secure site.) To pay by check: Make your check payable to Darlene Kruse, note that it is for the Post-Processing II workshop, and mail to Darlene at P. O. Box 1004, Ashland, OR 97520. Please include your email address and contact telephone number.
This is an advanced-level workshop intended for those who already use Photoshop CS to some extent and are familiar with the many of the software’s tools, palettes and adjustments as well as how to work with layers and masks. This workshop is appropriate for people who have taken Sean’s intermediate-level photo processing workshop and are comfortable with that information. It is also appropriate for those who use Photoshop CS on a regular basis, are familiar with layers and masks, and want to add some new techniques to their current workflow.
To get the most out of this workshop you should already know how to:
~Make basic RAW image adjustments before opening into Photoshop.
~Select the appropriate color space and bit depth.
~Utilize a non-destructive Photoshop workflow including basic cloning, perspective control, color balance, contrast, localized creative adjustments and prepping images for web and print.
~Use layers and masks for the greatest non-destructive creative control in your image processing.
Topics this workshop will cover:
~Luminosity masking for targeted tonal adjustments.
~Using blending modes for creative dramatic effect.
~Techniques for drawing viewers into an image.
~Non-destructive techniques for localized dodging and burning.
~Various techniques for blending multiple images using layer masks.
~Blending double processed RAW images for extended dynamic range.
~Blending multiple exposures for extended dynamic range.
~Using channel layers to create highly detailed masks for blending and selections.
~Comparing exposure blending with different HDR software options.
~Demonstration of the NIK Viveza, Color Efex Pro and Silver Efex Pro plugins.
To register for this workshop:
To pay by credit card, click HERE. (This is a secure site.) To pay by check: Make your check payable to Darlene Kruse, note that it is for the Post-Processing II workshop, and mail to Darlene at P. O. Box 1004, Ashland, OR 97520. Please include your email address and contact telephone number.
As a fine art landscape and nature photographer, one of my goals is to create the very best quality master files of my images that will produce prints with great detail, sharpness and clarity even at very large sizes. While the topic of how to create the highest quality prints in a digital workflow is deep and complex, I am going to share three simple RAW adjustments that are often overlooked but can make a big difference in the final quality of large format printed images.
RAW sharpening, RAW noise reduction and removal of chromatic aberrations could determine the success of this image as a large gallery print.
My latest article on the Photo Cascadia blog covers three simple but often overlooked adjustments that can be made during the processing of RAW files that will add subtle but critical quality to images destined to be printed as large format fine art or gallery prints.
Before chromatic aberration removal
After chromatic aberration removal
Many photographers are educated on how to best prepare RAW files for white balance, contrast, clarity, and color but either don’t know or forget to also make adjustments for RAW sharpening, noise reduction and removal of chromatic aberrations. All three are quick and easy to deal with and can create serious problems in large fine art prints if they are not attended to.
My article goes through each adjustment, what it does and how to use it, along with before and after examples. If you are using expensive camera equipment, practicing careful camera techniques and spending quality time processing your images in the computer for best print output, then you should absolutely know how to use these three simple RAW adjustments. The full article can be viewed on the Photo Cascadia blog HERE.
On Tuesday, May 11 at 7:00 pm I will be giving a slide presentation to the Southern Oregon Photographic Association. In images and words, I will share a retrospective of my year in photography. Since last spring I have had some wonderful adventures with my camera including photographing locations in the Columbia Gorge, the Oregon Cascades, Lassen Volcanic National Park, the Utah desert, the Oregon coast, Mexican mining towns and beaches and many great spots right here in the Rogue Valley. In addition to sharing some of my photographic vision of the natural world, I will also tell some tall travel tales and discuss some of the techniques I use to create my images. Call Terry Tuttle at 541-779-3396 or go to www.sopacameraclub.org for information.
I recently gave a talk at the Ashland Art Center in which I shared some of the things I have picked up while pursuing a career as a photographer and being in the business of photography. It was requested that I put those thoughts down in writing for people to access here on my blog.
Many photographers, as well as other types of artists, have dreams about turning their art into a business and a profession as I did. The reality is that a creative mind and the demands of running a business often don’t mesh conveniently or successfully. The skills of an artist don’t necessarily foster business success, and operating in a business mode can be a killer for artistic creativity.
Story In Stone
My previous career was as a science teacher. When I left teaching to pursue photography full time I had some skill as a photographer (although looking back now it doesn’t seem like much), but I knew next to nothing about managing and owning a business, especially a photography business. Six years later can’t claim to be a great business mind, but I feel like I have learned from my trials and errors and so far my business is growing. I take that as a sign of luck, but also of getting some things right.
One of the most important things for anyone considering photography as a career is to be realistic about your goals. Do you want to make a little money from your photography to help pay for equipment and travel, or perhaps see one of your images published from time to time? Or do you intend for photography to be your soul source of income? I see a lot of people who treat photography like a hobby even though they wish it would generate income like a full time job. If your plan is to make a living, then you can’t approach it like something you do just for fun in your spare time.
Forgotten
I haven’t necessarily built my photography career with perfect execution, but a few things have worked out pretty well. I wouldn’t say that my approach would work for everyone, but I think there have been a few things that have lead to me getting as far as I have. Take them for what they are worth.
I didn’t jump in without setting aside the time and financial means to build my business over several years.
Photography businesses like mine require many years to establish. My brother opened a bike shop and had customers from day one because he had a previous following from working in other bike shops, he had a physical storefront and he provides a needed service. When I started in photography I didn’t have any of these things.
Before I left my teaching career my wife and I developed a five year plan and made sure we had the financial means to both invest in the start of my company and sustain the family for that period of time. I didn’t know how long it would take to start seeing a profit from photography, but five years ended up being a pretty good gamble.
I constantly, honestly and critically assess the quality of my photography and compare it to what other top professionals are producing.
In the beginning I was too naive and uninformed, and I thought my photography was better than it was. Now I try to be brutally honest with myself.
I push myself to constantly improve and create work at the highest level. Over time I want to develop a style in my photography that will set my work apart from others.
I find it important to continually study the work of others, practice, learn, innovate, experiment, search for my vision, shake things up, and get criticized.
I put in a full day of work every day and maintain a strong and focused work ethic.
Being self employed was hard at first. I had to learn to organize my day and stay focused. It has been essential to set a strict work schedule for myself. Any illusions I had that self employed photographers work 4 hour days and take relaxing photography vacations quickly went away.
While I have more control over when I work, the total number of hours I work is greater than in any other job I have done. Fortunately I really like it.
Zion Twilight Moon
I attempt to learn all that I can about doing business as an outdoor photographer.
I read everything I can get my hands on that pertains to being successful as a photographer. There are many books written on the topic, but I find blogs and forums often have the most relevant and current information.
I network with other outdoor photographers and we share ideas and information.
I go to conferences and do other professional development when I can.
My collaboration with with the other photographers on the Photo Cascadia team has been very valuable in exchanging professional insights.
I make as many connections as I can in my area of the business.
I submit my work to magazines, publishers, stock agencies, art consultants and photo buyers. I email, call, introduce, hand shake, visit, attend and network.
I look for multiple sources of revenue.
My original, sadly simplistic business plan was to sell ten $300 prints a month. That seemed like an easy way to make a $36,000 annual salary. However, that didn’t factor in expenses and overhead. It also didn’t take into account the fact that selling that many prints as a starting, unknown, marginally talented photographer proved to be far more difficult than I thought. Then, right as I began establishing myself and selling more prints, the economy tanked.
Now I have expanded my income sources. I bring in small portions of my overall income from print sales and stock licensing through my website, publishing in magazines, teaching workshops, architectural photography assignments, gallery sales, art consultant representation and stock agency representation. Posters, cards, calendars, books, iPhone apps and ebooks are other potential sources of income.
Burney Falls
I have invested a great deal of time and money in my website so that it has function, content and search engine visibility. My website is the main way people find my photography. I currently have between 3,000 and 5,000 monthly visits to my website. While that’s quite a bit more than the average photography portfolio site, I’d like to have 30,000 visits a month.
I have worked to develop a fan base and name recognition through a variety of means.
The advent of digital photography has allowed a vast number of people to become excellent photographers. There is so much great photography available that good photography alone won’t get you noticed. This is where a fan base, word of mouth and name recognition come in handy.
I spend a lot of time spreading the word through social media (blogging, Facebook, Twitter), press releases, branding, public exhibitions, contributing to online photography forums and speaking to groups and organizations. It all helps put my photography and my name in the eyes and minds of the public.
I share my time and knowledge. I like to share what I know and I owe a lot to people who shared their knowledge with me. Many doors have been opened by my willingness to share. I don’t have any secrets and I reply to every photography related email that comes in.
I place a high value on my work and charge what I think it is worth.
I have studied stock image pricing and negotiation as well as wholesale and retail fine art print pricing.
It is tempting to sell/license work for next to nothing just to get a sale, but once you set your standards and prices low, it is hard to raise them.
I consider my cost of doing business in determining my prices. It’s only a successful business if you can cover your expenses and salary.
Dawn Fire At Mono Lake
I don’t take work that doesn’t help me toward my professional goals.
Early on I took any paying job that required a camera. Eventually I realized that unless I planned to make weddings, portraits, pets or sporting events the main focus of my photography business then taking jobs in those areas was only taking away from the time I needed to spend establishing myself as an outdoor photographer.
At this point all my focus goes into just two areas of photography: outdoor/travel and architecture…and I need to spend more time marketing my architectural photography if it is going to continue being profitable.
So, I don’t think I have shared any great discoveries here, just some things that have brought me to where I am. Hopefully there is something there that helps you, motivates you or brings you to the realization that photography is best left as fulfilling a hobby. I’ll keep working at my own business and in another six years I hope I can share a whole new list of things I have learned.
If you have questions or helpful ideas to add, feel free to leave a comment or send me your thoughts.
This week I will be giving a couple of free to the public presentations in southern Oregon that I wanted to let people know about.
On Wednesday, March 17 from 7 to 9 PM at the Business Center located at 109 NW C Street in Grants Pass, OR I will be presenting the second part of my “Working the Light” lecture for the Grants Pass Camera Club. The presentation is open to guests as well as members. Part 1 of this presentation covered my approach to capturing dramatic light in the field. In part 2 I will demonstrate some techniques that I use to process images in the digital darkroom to fully express dramatic light in the final image. For more information you can go to the Caveman Camera Club site.
On Thursday, March 18, from 5 to 7 PM I will be at the Ashland Art Center Meet and Greet to share some of my photography and talk about my business strategies as a photographer and artist, including topics such as exhibiting, marketing, social media, building a website and making the right contacts. This talk is open and free to the public. The Ashland Art Center is located at 357 E Main Street in Ashland, OR. You can find more information on the Ashland Art Center at their web site.
If you have any questions about either of these presentations, feel free to contact me directly as well.
I’m looking forward to both of these presentations and sharing a bit of what I do and how I do it with southern Oregon photographers and artists.
Last week a team of Pacific Northwest photographers, including myself, launched the website for and officially announced our group photography project called Photo Cascadia. The launch of Photo Cascadia was met with excitment and interest from friends, colleagues and the photography enthusiast community in general. If you missed it, you can read my previous postfor the basic introduction to the Photo Cascadia team.
The launch of Photo Cascadia also generated some great discussion and several questions about the future plans of the group. Group founder, Adrian Klein, has posted answers to the most common questionsabout the group that we have recieved to date. Perhaps they are questions that are on your mind as well. Questions include:
There are few groups out there already that have collaborated on websites and other efforts in relation to Nature Photography. What makes your team different and how was it started?
Why is the Photo Cascadia team all males? Where are the female photographers?
Does the Photo Cascadia team have Photo Cascadia specific workshops available?
How can I buy fine art prints of images I see in the Photo Cascadia galleries?
When will the Photo Cascadia team have additional products available for purchase such as calendars, books, cards, etc?
Read Adrian’s Q&A for answers to these questions and to submit any other questions you might have about Photo Cascadia.
I am very proud and honored to be a member of Photo Cascadia, a group of talented photographers from the Pacific Northwest who are now pooling their vision, knowledge and imagery to inspire others to learn, create and explore. The group includes Kevin McNeal, David Cobb, Chip Phillips, Adrian Klein, Zack Schnepf and myself. I am very privileged to be associated with such accomplished and creative individuals who are helping to push the boundaries and recreate the art of outdoor photography.
This is our announcement video that is being released around the web:
So, what exactly is Photo Cascadia? Photo Cascadia is a team of six of the Northwest’s best outdoor photographers who were brought together by their mutual passion for pushing the envelope in creating powerful fine art photographs of the natural world. Photo Cascadia forms a platform from which we can have a meeting of the minds and a way to a share our imagery, knowledge, experience and vision. Our goals are to promote conservation, provide learning opportunities for aspiring photographers, be a valuable resource for publishers, photo buyers and photographer colleagues and to share our photographs with a large and growing audience of like minded adventurers, nature lovers, photography appreciators and art collectors.
We see great potential in the future of our collaboration. To start, Photo Cascadia will be a source of photography instruction and a place to be inspired by the beauty of the natural landscape and the need for conservation. The blog already contains a wealth of photography information and all six of us will continue to share our knowledge and passion there. The workshops and photo tours offered by members of Photo Cascadia provide another way for enthusiasts to improve their photography skills and visit some of the most spectacular wild and scenic locations in the Northwest and around the country. You can also connect with Photo Cascadia on Facebook and Flickr.
I’m looking forward to a great adventure as a member of this exciting group. I hope you will find Photo Cascadia a place to access helpful information, get inspired, appreciate natural wonder or just take a break from your day to enjoy some breath taking photography.
Several months back I upgraded cameras from my trusty Canon EOS 5D to the newer model, the Canon EOS 5D Mark II. The Mark II boasted a range of new features that made it a worthwhile investment, including a larger and clearer LCD screen, a stronger and more weather proof build, easier to navigate menus, customizable settings, HD video, a sensor dust cleaning function as well as greater resolution (21 MP), updated processors and firmware and reportedly better image quality. Over time I have found that, really, just one feature of the newer camera has fundamentally changed the way I can take photos. That feature is the greatly improved performance at higher ISO settings.
Hand held at 1/40 second, f/9, ISO 500
ISO is the standard by which the sensitivity of film or a digital sensor is measured. Better sensitivity, lower noise and improved in-camera noise reduction at higher ISO settings are hallmarks of the latest generation of digital SLR cameras, and high ISO performance will surely continue to improve in the near future. I have always used Canon digital cameras by choice, but the most current high end digital SLRs from Nikon, Sony, Minolta and others all have much better high ISO performance than their predecessors.
Hand held at 1/100 second, f/8, ISO 320
I haven’t done quantitative tests to compare the high ISO performance of older DSLRs and current ones, but the improvements are so dramatic to be readily apparent with a simple inspection of the image files at 100%. There are plenty of independent testers out there who have done careful scientific comparisons if you want the raw data. My goal in this article is simply to share some images I have taken recently that either would have previously been impossible or would have required more equipment and more labor intensive techniques. Of course, you would need to see high resolution image files to get a complete understanding of the image quality, but for the purpose of this article I think these screen size images give you the main idea. I should also point out that in addition to improvements in ISO performance, improved noise reduction algorithms in software like Adobe Lightroom and Camera RAW, as well as improved image stabilization technology in lenses take some of the credit.
Hand held at 1/13 second, f/4.5, ISO 3200
How does better high ISO performance allow for new opportunities in photography? As the sensor becomes more sensitive to light as the ISO setting is increased, the camera is able to maintain faster shutter speeds in lower light conditions and still get a proper exposure. Essentially it means you can shoot in lower light situations or with smaller aperture settings without the need for a tripod. However, with past cameras the increased sensitivity to light at higher ISO settings came with an unacceptable trade off; increased image noise or digital grain. Until I acquired the Canon 5D Mark II, the higher ISO settings were generally useless to me. My images need to be very clean and sharp, so I would always shoot at the lowest ISO setting (ISO 100) to ensure adequate image quality. This almost always meant the need for a tripod to get a sharp image.
Hand held at 1/15 second, f/5.6, ISO 3200
Experimenting with the ISO capabilities of the 5D Mark II during my travels in Mexico this month have left me impressed and excited about the possibilities. I still use my tripod most of the time, but I find that in situations where a tripod is impractical, time prohibitive or creatively limiting I can often raise the ISO to between 200 and 500 to allow for fast enough shutter speeds for hand held shooting with a very slight loss in overall image quality. Images at these ISO settings are certainly good enough for publishing and even fine art printing. There are times when having the ability to photograph without a tripod is extremely freeing and allows for flexibility, mobility, spontaneity and creativity that wasn’t possible before.
Hand held at 1/20 sec, f/4, ISO 3200
What’s more, I have found that I can also hand hold my camera in minimal light situations, such as indoors or for night time city scenes, by increasing the ISO dramatically. I have increased the ISO to as much as 3200 and still been able to capture very usable images. A slight degree of noise in these images is acceptable to me for the fact that they would have been almost impossible to get otherwise. While I still return to the tripod if image quality is essential, it is exciting to be able to photograph people and other moving objects in low light conditions and not have them be blurred. Most of my night city photography does not include people because of the blurring of objects in motion with slow shutter speeds. Being able to hand hold the camera and get sharp images of moving subjects indoors and at night opens a whole new world of possibilities.
Hand held at 1/30 second, f/4, ISO 3200
I’m sure the technology in ISO performance will continue to improve for some time. Within a couple of years there will be cameras that allow us to photograph in almost complete darkness with fast shutter speeds and produce noise free images. Until then it is exciting to know how good the ISO performance is right now, and that photographers have the ability to take photographs that were previously impossible or impractical.
Hand held at 1/15 second, f/7.1, ISO 500
If you found this article helpful, informative or otherwise useful, feel free to share it on the social media network of your choice using the handy links below. If you have anything to add, feel free to leave a comment. Thanks!
Hand held at 1/30 second, f/4, ISO 3200
New Photography Possibilities with high ISO Performance
Several months back I upgraded cameras from my trusty Canon EOS 5D to the newer model, the Canon EOS 5D Mark II. The Mark II boasted a range of new features that made it a worthwhile investment, including a larger and clearer LCD screen, a stronger and more weather proof build, easier to navigate menus, customizable settings, HD video, a sensor dust cleaning function as well as greater resolution (21 MP), updated processors and firmware and reportedly better image quality. Over time I have found that one specific attribute of the newer camera has had a bigger impact on the way I can take photographs than any other. That feature is the greatly improved performance at higher ISO settings.
I haven’t run any objective tests to make quantitative comparisons between older DSLRs and current ones, but there are plenty of independent testers out there who have if you want the raw data. My goal in this article is to share some images I have taken recently that either would have been previously impossible or would have required more equipment and more labor intensive techniques.
Better sensitivity, lower noise and improved in-camera noise reduction at higher ISO settings are hallmarks of the latest generation of digital SLR cameras, and high ISO performance will surely continue to improve in the near future. ISO is the standard by which the sensitivity of film or a digital sensor is measured. I have always used Canon digital cameras by choice, but the most current high end digital SLRs from Nikon, Sony, Minolta and others all have much better high ISO performance than their predecessors.
How does better high ISO performance allow for new opportunities in photography? As the sensor becomes more sensitive to light with increased ISO settings the camera is able to maintain faster shutter speeds in lower light conditions and still get a proper exposure. Essentially it means you can shoot in lower light situations or with smaller aperture settings, without a tripod, than at lower ISO settings. However, with past cameras the increased sensitivity to light at higher ISO settings came with an unacceptable trade off; increased image noise or digital grain. Until I acquired the Canon 5D Mark II, the higher ISO settings were generally useless to me. My images need to be very clean and sharp, so I would always shoot at the lowest ISO setting (ISO 100) to ensure adequate image quality. This almost always meant using a tripod.
Experimenting with the ISO capabilities of the 5D Mark II during my travels in Mexico this month have left me impressed and excited about the possibilities. I still use my tripod most of the time, but I find that in situations where a tripod is impractical, time prohibitive or creatively limiting I can often bump up the ISO to between 200 and 500 to allow for fast enough shutter speeds for hand held shooting with a very slight loss in overall image quality. Images at these ISO settings are certainly good enough for publishing and even fine art printing. In some situations the ability to photograph without a tripod can be very freeing and allow for creativity and camera positions that weren’t possible before.
What’s more, I have found that I can also hand hold my camera in very low light situations, such as indoors or with night time city scenes, by increasing the ISO dramatically. I have increased the ISO to as much as 3200 and still been able to capture very usable images. The value of these images in greatly enhanced by the fact that they would have been almost impossible to get otherwise. While I still return to the tripod if image quality is essential, it is exciting to be able to photograph people and other moving objects in low light conditions and not have them be blurred. Most of my night city photography does not include people because of the blurring of objects in motion. Being able to hand hold the camera and get sharp images of moving subjects in low light opens a whole new world of possibilities.
I’m sure the technology in ISO performance will continue to improve for some time. Within a couple of years there will be cameras that allow us to photograph by moonlight without a tripod and produce noise free images. Until then it is exciting to know that ISO performance is at a level right now that allows for types of shooting that were previously impossible or impractical.
Guanajuato, Mexico is as visually interesting as any city I have photographed. What many visitors might not realize, however, is that to find some of the most surreal parts of town you have to go underground.
The entire city sits atop an extensive subterranean tunnel system. The tunnels were originally dug by mining operations starting in the 16th century to divert the river and keep the town and mines from flooding.
From its beginnings in the mid 1500s the city was built to maximize useable space on the steep hillsides. Houses were stacked on top of one another with only the narrowest of alleys between them. Much of the charm of Guanajuato comes from the fact that it was never intended to accommodate cars.
But cars were inevitable. In a huge engineering project in the 1960’s, as car traffic in the narrow streets became more of a problem, the river was diverted yet again and the tunnels were converted into an underground system of roads. New tunnels have since been added, creating an ever expanding underground even Batman would be envious of. Drivers who know and understand the complex catacombs can quickly get from one part of the city to another. There are many entry and exit points making it possible to dive underground in one neighborhood and surface in another the next valley over.
Most of the tunnels are deep underground, dark and full of car exhaust, but in places they break out to the surface where they are lined with buildings, bridges and arches.
The subterranean channels and tunnels create an entirely different and mysterious dimension to a town that already has so much interesting character. It is a little hard to locate the best parts of the subterranean tunnels at first, and it can also be very disorienting trying to navigate through the tunnels. Often I’ll emerge in a part of town that I have never been in before.
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