The goal of this tutorial is to help photographers prepare digital images either originated by scanned film or digital capture for printing purposes. The main focus will be directed at printing by a professional service since they typically produce the best results in contrast to home printing. For those just venturing into professional quality printing there’s a lot of useful information in this tutorial.

Color Management

What is color management? Color management is a procedure that maximizes the consistency of the colors and brightness from capture to output. The output is the final destination of the image, it can be in a device such as a monitor, a smartphone, or ultimately a print.

Color Space

The first concept to understand is Color Space. When an image document is generated, a Color Space is attributed to it depending on the device used. A Color Space is the entire set of colors (also called Gamut) that can be expressed by this document. For photography and printing purposes we are only concerned with RGB Color Spaces, (CMYK Color Spaces are used more for press). The most common Color Spaces are:

• ProPhotoRGB is the Color Space that encompasses the biggest number of colors, but in order to achieve it’s full potential it requires 16 bits files (normally files are 8 bits) which doubles file size. Moreover, it can be reproduced in only a few very special output devices.
• AdobebeRGB is the Color Space that represents more closely the Gamut of high end professional inkjet printers;
• sRGB is a more limited Color Space and is used when printing on low cost printers or “one hour photolabs”. With that said, if a good quality print is desirable, the wisest choice is to use AdobeRGB, . Using sRGB is limited to low quality output. Most monitors work in this Color Space. Usually scanners and point and shoot digital cameras deliver images in sRGB Color Space. Advanced cameras have the option to choose.

Different Color Spaces are better for different types of prints.

Color Profiles

Keeping the definition of Color Space in mind makes it easy to understand the concept of Color Profile. Assuming that different devices have different characteristics in representing color and brightness of images, the goal of using Color Profiles is to translate the representation of the image between devices. Every monitor displays in a distinct way, so when you calibrate your monitor you are attributing a color profile to it that makes it to show color and brightness according to the standard Gamut of colors for monitors. In the same way, a print doesn’t show the same Gamut that monitors do for the same image. A print is a reflective object, it depends on incident light to show the image. Moreover, it depends on the inks and the papers utilized in making the print, so it makes sense to utilize a Color Profile to translate the colors viewed in the monitor to those that will be printed to paper.

Important: for those utilizing a professional printing service there’s no need to worry about profiling for the printer and paper, but is very important to calibrate their monitor to have a maximized similitude between the image viewed and printed. Additionally keep in mind that the printed image will always look a little darker and less contrasty than in the monitor due the already explained nature of the different medias.

Image Resizing and Image Size

Image resizing is the next big misunderstanding issue in printing. Most photographers, especially newbies, have problems when resizing their files for printing purposes. The most important information related to image size is the total number of pixels that compose the image. For example a typical entry level DSLR captures images at 5184 px X 3456 px, which translates into a approximately 18 Mb file. This means that you have 5184 pixels available horizontally for printing and 3456 pixels vertically. If printing in a resolution of 300 ppi (pixels per inch) your will need 300 pixels in every inch of printed image. In other words, the maximum size for printing at this resolution is: 5184 px /300 ppi = 17.28” and 3456 px /300 ppi =11.52”, meaning, at 300 ppi, you can print an image roughly as big as 17” x 11”. If the best quality is not that important a image can be resized at 240 ppi or less, consequently reaching a bigger size.

Image Resampling

It’s very important to emphasize that we are not talking about “Resampling” the image, but rather “Image Size”. The image below shows the “Image Size” Panel in Photoshop. The first section: “Pixel Dimensions” shows the actual original number of pixels in the image (as in our example 5184 px X 3456 px). The second section “Document Size” shows the size of a image at a 300 ppi resolution (17.28” X 11.52”). The 3 checkboxes in the bottom of the panel are crucial to understand the whole concept behind the Image Size issue, but only two are actually crucial. The first checkbox is out of the scope of this tutorial, so we are going to skip it. The next, “Constrain Proportions”, when checked, will maintain the proportions between width and height. By keeping this box checked, the risk of odd looking images that seem stretched vertically or horizontally will be eliminated. The most important is the last checkbox, “Resample Image”, and the idea behind it is pretty simple: if unchecked, the Pixel Dimensions will be kept as in the original capture when changing either width or height in either section (“Pixel Dimensions” or “Document Size”), therefore the resolution will change in order to keep the pixel dimension constant. On the other hand, if changing the resolution, width and height will change for the same reason. This ensures the best image quality.

It’s important to understand how the different sections and checkboxes will affect your image.

If a bigger (e.g. for printing) or smaller (e.g. for web posting) image is needed, then “Resample Image” has to be checked. This implies that new pixels have to be “created” when “upsizing” or pixels have to be removed when “downsizing”. The result is not as bad when going smaller as it is going bigger. Although Photoshop and other softwares do a reasonably good job when resampling, the best results are achieved when keeping the image at it’s original size.

Cropping

As a professional Master Printer, I notice that a big number of customers bring files cropped in a way that is more pleasant to their vision. There’s nothing wrong with that, at least when they don’t ask for a standard print size that doesn’t match the same proportions of the cropped file. American standard printing sizes are normally sizes like 8×10, 11×14, 20×16, and so on. The standard sizes are handy because it’ easy to find cut sheets, pre cut mats, and ready to use frames. If you intend to use those standard sizes make sure that your image has the same proportions as the chosen standard size or something will be cropped, either in width or height, depending on the relation between the sides. You can stick to your proportions, but you will have to find custom paper, mat, and frames.

Borders

Borders are very important tools to enhance images, but there are a few things that have to be taken into account when deciding sizes and proportions for images including borders (a future tutorial will show how to apply borders in images).

Tip: Using borders of different sizes can make odd proportions fit in standard sizes. For example the 17” X 11” image from the entry level DSLR, isn’t proportional to a 20×16 standard size. Applying a 2.5” border to top and bottom and a 1.5” border on each side, makes a pleasant looking and fitting standard size print.

Conclusion

Printing is the final expression of an artistic photographic vision. Learning and following basic principles can make this process much easier, faster, and less expensive. My intention was to explain the technical aspects of printing without worrying about the technical and artistic aspects of the capture and post production. I sincerely hope that this tutorial can help you to achieve your masterpiece.

About the Author:
Born in Brazil, Alfredo Tisi is formally trained as an Metallurgical Engineer and IT Designer. Started to dedicate seriously in photography in the early 90’s. In 2000 published a photo book telling the history of the Architecture and Engineering in the region where Brazil was first settled by the Portuguese. The decision to dedicate full time to photography was then taken. In order to learn the best with the best, he relocated to Los Angeles, California. Worked with the best photographers and technicians, with the best equipment at the best photo labs, completing 11 years at A&I Photograph and Digital, in Hollywood, exercising several positions, culminating as a Printer at the Fine Arts Department. Following that, there was a brief stay at Richard Photolab, as member of the Digital Team. Today Alfredo Tisi owns Alfredo Tisi Imagery, where offers all his expertise in printing, retouching and shooting commercial and portraiture photography.

For Further Training on Photography Printing:

Like many disgruntled ink jet printer users, Pro photographer Ron Martinsen had almost given up on getting good quality prints. He found himself averaging about $50 per 4×6 print when you account for all of the clogged print heads, discarded printers, wasted paper, and ink costs. But through much research and in collaboration with Canon, Epson & HP he was finally able to develop a dependable printing workflow with great results. This eBook is a result of his efforts and we were able to negotiate a 25% discount for our readers which expires in 1 day, simply use the discount code PICTUREPRINT at checkout.

It can be found here: Printing 101 – Introduction to Photography Printing

Go to full article: How to Prepare a Photo File for Printing

Article from: PictureCorrect Photography Tips

1. Move closer to your subject. Nothing kills a photo quicker than a distracting background. If you have a great background try bringing the subject closer to the camera so they don’t get lost. Remember this tip if nothing else.

“chit-chat” captured by Raluca Mateescu (Click Image to See More From Raluca Mateescu)

2. Take lots of pictures. Digital photography is cheap and it is good! It is okay to shoot multiple photos with only slight variations…keep and share your best photos. Also you don’t need an expensive camera; I have photos from all over the world hanging on my walls that were taken with a $300 point and shoot.

3. Get creative. It doesn’t take much to enhance a photo. Pictures taken from 5 ½’ above the ground can look repetitious. Think about changing the perspective – get down on one knee or on your stomach if possible. Stand on a chair. Experiment with different lenses if you have them. Experiment with composition.

4. Rent equipment. Professional camera stores are not just for professionals. They have rental departments where anyone can pick up an exotic lens for a day or more. Many that can be used on non-professional cameras. These rental departments are manned by people with lots of photo knowledge and people are generally more than happy to “talk photography” if not too busy at the moment. Don’t be shy.

“The Catcher in the Rye” captured by Arman Zhenikeyev (Click Image to See More From Arman Zhenikeyev)

5. Use the camera’s flash. Especially outside. Your eyes can look at a person in front of a sunset and see their smile but your camera can’t. It is either going to record the colors of the sunset and your subject will be a silhouette or your subject will be visible and the background will be overexposed. Be conscious of shadows on people’s faces – again utilize your flash. If your subject is looking into the sun they are squinting – turn them away from the sun and fill shadows with flash.

6. Think of your camera like a painter’s canvas. Be the artist. Is there a garbage can or other unwanted item in the frame that can be eliminated by simply moving a foot or so to the left or right? Look at the entire frame you are about to capture, not just the one main element you are focusing on. Sure you can fix it in Photoshop but it is better to capture it the way you want to see it.

7. Study Pictures. Pictures you like. Cut them out of your favorite magazines or newspapers. Keep a file on your desk and just take a moment to look at them and tell yourself what you like about them. Bookmark web sites that have photos you like. Go to them often. Develop your eye.

Oh, and move closer to your subject 😉

8. Learn to take a little criticism. All photographers love their own photos. You put your heart and soul into them. You want to show them off. They are pictures of your kids, taken with the camera you always wanted and just bought. How can people not love them? Remember art is subjective. Not everybody is your mom.

9. Get your pictures published. Local newspapers have photography contests, generally centered on a theme: children, pets, travel. If you are in the right place at the right time, CNN might be interested. Don’t forget about the internet. There are always photo contests you can enter online. Publish your own website. There are plenty of free sites that will allow you to build a web site using your photos. They are a great way to share our art and these days you don’t need a degree from MIT to do it.

10. Learn from your mistakes. But don’t be afraid to break rules. Photography is fun and creative. Nobody is going to die if your snapshots are a little off or weird. What might not work one day may be a stroke of genius the next.

And one last time, move closer to your subject.

“Kelso Dunes” captured by David Urban (Click Image to See More From David Urban)

For the amateur photographer, these are ten easy, non-technical tips to help you improve the quality of your photos. While there are many technical aspects of photography, great pictures usually begin with a confident photographer who has learned to master composition before worrying about F-Stops.

About the Author
Andy Templeton is a professional photographer located in Orange County, CA. Andy specializes in editorial, public relations and corporate photography.

Go to full article: 10 Simple Yet Effective Photography Tips

Article from: PictureCorrect Photography Tips

One of the most frustrating experiences for a photographer is to get home from a photo trip with some great images only to find that some of the images are not sharp. To help solve this problem, this article covers seven things that a photographer can do to create really sharp images.

“Twilight Inferno” captured byDailyTravelPhotos.com (Click Image to See More)

Tripod

When it comes to getting sharp images, the first place to start is with a tripod. A tripod provides a stable platform that holds the camera rigid — dramatically increasing the sharpness of the image.

Weighting the tripod

A tripod is a good start. However, a tripod can be made even more stable by using some object to weigh down the tripod. This produces even sharper images. This is so important that many tripods have some type of mechanism at the bottom of the center post that was designed for hanging objects to add weight to the tripod.

A simple way to take advantage of this feature is to carry a small net bag with your photo equipment. The bag can be filled with rocks, or other materials, and attached to the tripod. Even if a tripod doesn’t have such a mechanism, other methods can be used such as hanging a camera bag from the center column of the tripod.

Shutter release

Just because a camera is on a tripod doesn’t mean that the camera will be steady. The simple act of pressing the shutter can cause vibrations that will cause a loss of sharpness. The solution is simple. A remote switch can be used to release the shutter. A remote switch is a device that attaches to the camera through a cable, or wirelessly, and allows the photographer to release the shutter without touching the camera.

Mirror lock up

Even if the camera is set up on a tripod, the tripod is weighted down, and a remote switch is used, image quality can still be degraded due to vibration from the movement of the camera’s mirror when the shutter is released. This vibration is primarily a problem with shutter speeds between about 1/30s and 1s.

“Happy New Year Singapore” captured by fady (Click Image to See More From fady)

This is easily solved by enabling the mirror lockup function on the camera. Once enabled, pressing the shutter button once swings the mirror out of the way. Pressing the shutter button a second time releases the shutter. This way, the mirror vibration dies out before the shutter is released.

Aperture

The middle apertures (around f/8 for most lenses) produce the sharpest images. The larger apertures produce softer images due to various aberrations while the smaller apertures produce softer images due to diffraction.

Shutter Speed

While a tripod eliminates camera movement, the subject that is being photographed may be moving. Thus, a shutter speed that is high enough to freeze the subject movement should be used. This may require that a larger aperture be used in order to get the proper exposure

ISO

Increasing the ISO will allow a higher shutter speed to be used in order to stop the movement of the subject.

“Cloud Chafers” captured by DailyTravelPhotos.com (Click Image to See More)

Following these techniques will put you on your way to creating some really sharp photos.

About the Author
Ron Bigelow (www.ronbigelow.com) has created an extensive resource of articles to help develop photography skills.

For even more information on sharp photography techniques: Tack Sharp Photography Guide

Go to full article: How to Capture Really Sharp Photos

Article from: PictureCorrect Photography Tips

We have all seen stunning portrait photos that have a blurred background while the subject of the photo is perfectly focused. When done correctly, these photos can be very dramatic, however, it might seem hard to accomplish, especially if you are not familiar with the proper techniques. A faster prime lens (with greater aperture capabilities) will give you an edge in this technique, but even an off-brand lens, such as a Sigma 85mm lens will give excellent results if you follow the tips in this article.

“Night life” captured by Gagan Dhiman (Click Image to See More From Gagan Dhiman)

Shooting pictures with blurry backgrounds is directly related to something called Depth of Field (DOF). DOF is the range, from front to back, of the picture that is in focus. You can have an infinite range, meaning the photo will be totally in focus in both the foreground and the background.

Conversely, you can have a range of focus that is as shallow as an inch or less. The more shallow the range of focus, the more blurry the background will be.

Controlling DOF

Some digital SLR cameras have a little button that will show the area of focus in the viewfinder, but a little knowledge about how to accomplish your goal will be very helpful. There are a couple of setting on your camera that can give you a great shot with blurry background, but there are also some techniques involving setting up the shot that will help. Here is a short list of things to be aware of when you are ready to shoot an award winning portrait photography:

Distance between the camera and the subject: To increase the blurriness of the background, simply move closer to the subject. Taking a photo from 50 feet away will give a large range of focus. Move closer to within 10 feet, and you will significantly reduce the range of focus, giving you a more blurry background.

Distance of the subject from the background: This is similar to the first tip. If the subject of your shot is standing right in front of something, such as a wall or a tree, the background will tend to be in focus more than if you move your subject away from the background objects. Thus, instead of the wall being 3 feet behind, have the subject positioned 10 feet in front of the wall.

Focal length of the lens: The formula is really very simple. As the focal length of your lens increases, the depth of field decreases. Wide angle lenses in portrait photography are becoming more popular, but it is because it is a new twist rather than a blurry background success story. Use a 50mm lens, and you may get a decent blurry background, but with a 100mm lens, your chances are dramatically improved. Perhaps the most popular focal length is in the 85mm range. A telephoto zoom is also widely used, especially the 70-200mm lenses.

Aperture setting: Almost any information you read about DOF will start with aperture settings. While using the techniques outlined above will improve your shots, a wide aperture lens is your best tool for getting a blurry background. Pro shooters have very expensive glass with apertures as low a f/1.2, but you can take great photos with a less expensive lens that has an aperture of f/2.8. The wider the aperture, the more shallow the DOF.

If you can satisfy all of these suggested recommendations, you will move yourself immensely closer to the goal of a blurry background with the subject popping and capturing the viewer’s eye.

About the Author:
Grab your gear and get ready to take some amazing shots as you master the art of people photography with a Canon portrait lens. There is a great lineup of outstanding lenses athttp://www.canoneoslenses.org that will get the blurry background you desire.

Go to full article: Shallow Depth of Field for Portraits

Article from: PictureCorrect Photography Tips

Although most photojournalistic wedding photography shoots are done using ambient light, there are situations whereby the lighting situation might not be ideal to turn out good pictures. That is why judicious use of an external flash plays an important role in assuring great shots and happy clients.

“kiss in the limo” captured by Tatiana Garanina (Click Image to Find Photographer)

A good photojournalist uses the external flash at appropriate moments to complement available ambient light. With a flash mounted at all times, you can address any kind of lighting situation, without having to scramble for one when the need arises. Many a time, the use of flash creates a distinction between getting the shot or not getting it at all. Therefore, there is no need to be so adamant in insisting that you follow the fad of just using ambient light in your photojournalistic wedding photography shoots.

These are some examples which make the external flash an indispensable asset:

i. Indoor shoots

While many couples opt for a casual outdoor solemnization ceremony, there are some others who would prefer to have their ceremonies conducted indoors, such as a hotel ballroom or clubhouse, so that they are not at the mercy of unpredictable weather changes. While shooting indoors, it is practically impossible to expect to shoot using ambient light. The use of an external flash here would ensure that your subjects are correctly exposed.

To prevent harsh shadows being cast behind your subjects, you should at all times avoid pointing the flash directly at them. Try using an omni-bounce or bounce card to soften the flash falling on your subjects, so as to foster an ambient feel and creating atmosphere while reducing the evidence of flash. Flash can be bounced off the ceiling, walls, wedding gown, a guest’s white shirt or anything available that reflects light well.

Photo captured by Dmitriy Bashaev (Click Image to Find Photographer)

Bouncing softens the light source by effectively making the source larger and spreading it out in every direction to eliminate hard shadows. Using sideway bounce off a wall can also create side lighting in rooms with very flat illumination and directional effect for simple portraits.

ii. Fill-in flash for outdoor shoots

When faced with a strong backlight situation, the camera’s exposure settings will automatically underexpose the subject to compensate for the bright background. Using a fill-in flash in such situations will illuminate the subject, hence preventing them from being underexposed. It can also be especially useful for keeping eye sockets from getting too dark or to lower the contrast ratio of shadows and highlights in direct sun. For best results, you should shoot in A mode, and put your external flash on high-speed sync, a function which is available in most TTL flashes. This creates a nicely exposed subject and ambient background. When the subject is close, and the sky is clear or partly cloudy, you can also take advantage of high-speed sync and use a fast shutter along with negative exposure compensation to darken the background, saturate the blue in the sky and add a little drama to the clouds above. Darkening the background here allows your subject to stand out from the background, instead of blending in, hence creating more depth in the picture.

“Katrin” captured by Olga Filonova (Click Image to Find Photographer)

Contrary to the use of bounce flash indoors as explained above, direct flash rules reign for outdoor shots – no diffusers or modifiers, no bounce. Here it’s used as either a slight fill to get rid of harsh shadows, or to bring the subject in balance with the ambient light – usually for strong backlight situations. For fill-in effects, try using strobes at about -1 to -2 power on your flash.

iii. Freezing an action

As events in a wedding evolve so quickly, there will be times you need to freeze an action. Some examples include a couple dancing and a wedding march-in. While shooting without a flash creates the “blurred movements” of an event, shooting with an on-camera flash shows the static action using a faster shutter speed.

Photography flash techniques is an art in itself. When used appropriately, it would produce stunning photos that would delight all your customers.

The author is a professional wedding photographer based in Singapore. You may check out her website at http://www.vivien-tan.com or her Squidoo lens on photojournalistic wedding photography.

For Further Training on Flash Photography:

This new course which we have an exclusive deal on this week is designed to help you take professional headshots and and portraits using a DSLR and basic flash. By the time you finish this video course, you’ll know exactly what to buy and exactly what to do to start creating professional flash photos in both indoor and outdoor conditions.

It can be found here: Flash Photography with Headshots & Portraits

Go to full article: Photojournalistic Wedding Photography: Flash Techniques

Article from: PictureCorrect Photography Tips

Article from: PictureCorrect Photography Tips

Article from: PictureCorrect Photography Tips