With everything in photography there is a fine line between right and wrong! and this is just my way of seeing things
Now having said that there is also a basic standard that we should work to! And once you have the basics you can then burn the rule book and get creative.
This first part of tech Thursday is going to be about stepping into the world of “auto” not a big favourite but the best place to start!
Auto setting on a Sony a7iii highlighted in green
The above image is set to p but auto would need to be selected
Setting a camera to auto will be one of the simple ways to start out in photography. This is the setting that most new photographers will look at just so they can get used to holding a camera and honestly Start playing about with taking images of everything from family cars plants and so on.
Auto is exactly that! It automatically sets the camera to give what the camera believes to be the best mix of iso, aperture and shutter speed. This is known as the exposure triangle all setting use this triangle but each setting may use it in different ways
Auto has it’s down sides though, to me this is that there isn’t any room for being too creative. With the settings like bokeh with the blurry background or low light moody shots!
This is because the camera will pick from all the light and dark points and come up with a mathematical equation this will then automatically set the iso aperture and shutter speed to give what it thinks is best! with the amount of light hitting the sensor
This can result in some good and bad results.
For example, if you are taking a picture of black car against a bright backlit skyline with a lot of white clouds the camera will add everything together over all the sensors pixels to try and get 50% grey now if there is more white than black in the shot the camera will nine out of ten times under expose the dark colours this would then result in the image of the car looking more of silhouette shot than a photo of a well exposed car and sky.
Now on the other hand, if the camera takes in the darkest points of the black car, the result will be the opposite the sky will become blown out over exposed leaving next no details of the clouds but this time the car should be pretty close to good exposure.
There is also a number of annoying factors such as the auto setting may use an iso that induces a grainy effect to the image as the higher the iso goes the more grainy an image will become! And this will lower the clarity of the finished image.
Also if there is movement in the image the camera doesn’t take this into account in auto so it may choose a shutter speed that’s slow so could result in blurry images
I’ve had images where the camera sets the aperture to f6.3 iso of 800 and a slow shutter speed this then had a grainy look but also had blurring… its okay if you want to capture a still object but not great for movement!
Upside to shooting auto is that you can get shooting right away without to much knowledge of the bigger details of the camera
This was where I worked more on Composition. Working out where in the frame to place the object or subject as this is a good thing to learn as soon as possible. I will go into the rule of thirds in a later post but just filling your frame and moving the subject left right up Down will give you a feel for what can be achieved and what looks good to you!
Also depending on the camera you’re using and the lens images and setting will be different
So go try set you camera to auto and take a few shots see how you get on!
This post is just simple outline over the next few weeks more posts and a deeper understanding of this setting will be posted
As of Monday January 7th there will be set of weekly posts with a set theme
I’m working on ideas like model Monday… tech Thursday and set up Saturday
These post will be created so that there is a helpful idea to try each week to grow and learn the art of photography!
Such as with “model Monday” will create a post with ways to interact pose the model what to do, what not to do and what to look for!
Tech Thursday Will be to learn what each camera setting does, how it impacts the shots you take and what creative aspects each setting will create when used correctly! Or incorrectly
And set up Saturday will be a 52 week lighting set up showing what lights used how I set up the shot, what I looked for and why I did it! This series should help those who are learning to try and set up different shots and recreate something similar!
All the above is my take on photography and what I look for or how I see the setting it’s not how all photographers will see it as everything within photography is subjective but learning how others create something or work the camera or lighting is a step closer to finding what works for you!
So if the above is something that you will find interesting or if you know someone who would be interested in learning because they /you got a camera for Christmas or birthday then please follow or share the post
I’m really looking forward to sharing what I’ve learnt and hope that you all will enjoy learning from what I post!
The above is only part of what’s going to be posted on this blog so keep watching and keep learning ! You to could be learning to take images like this one below!
Model Amber R shot on location with one flash and a reflector at golden hour!
Find more of my work at Our Instagram page give it a follow while you’re there!
So we are a day into 2019 yes one whole day nearly gone!
But it’s looking good been in the editing room getting some of the shots sorted for this post!
Sorted some new lighting tests and loving the new statistic lights not only for video but for photography too!
So what do you think of these guys have to say I’m over the moon with this shoot! Loved working with Amber R she always pulls out all the stops and creates something beautiful and spectacular!
I’ve had the pleasure to work with Amber on a number of shoots over the last few years but these shots just blow me away!
Take a look at a few below!
I’m so happy with these images now like with most photographers we all have that one person we look up to our so called inspiration! Well I have to say this shoot was inspired by someone I look up to In a big way!
A guy called Jason Lanier his a Sony artisan and a Rotolight master of light! I’ve been following his work for about 5 years and this man is a legend!
Well I was looking at a few of his shots and wanted to get something that would stand out to his amazing standard ! And to me the shipwreck shots are getting there! We all need inspiration someone to look up to but never to copy create your own work !!
To see more images from this shoot go check out my Instagram page
Also feel free to comment like and follow my work it’s always great to hear from people !
More posts to come this week so keep and eye on this page !
But before it’s over I want to share a post from a shoot I did a couple of weeks ago with a male model Jack H
Now most of you would know I seldom shoot with males but that’s going to change in 2019!
It’s time more males become models
Okay ladies can shoot way more styles but males are definitely photogenic and we can definitely show the masculine or physique of the male gender!
A number of styles suit males as well as females from head shots to fashion mixed in with product marketing or sports and fitness !
New year will be showing signs of change and we as creatives have to embrace change! And dig even deeper to create something artistic yet eye catching!
So watch this space over the coming months as we will be showcasing some of what we create!
Here are a few of the images that we took with this very photogenic Male! Was a great shoot and I look forward to working with Jack again in 2019!
This is due to a very turbulent time, so many ups and downs! So much happening and not enough time to even make time for my projects!
Work took over ! Life just run away!
But I’ve still managed to have a great year! Managed to work with some fantastic people! Made some good friends! And new connections!
I guess if I’m honest I’ve put life plans and work first! But god how I’ve missed Photography the thing that makes me relaxed that’s given me endless hours of joy
It’s time to get back to where I feel I’m at home! And this all starts in January of 2019.
There is going to be a lot of changes going to be blogging much more often
Got a number of projects planned.
A weekly blog called “back to camera basics” where I will be posting about camera setting what functions do what when in manual mode and much more!
Will be post weekly Lighting tutorials. with how to do set lighting styles, what to look for, what lighting is best for situations. And how to get the best from natural light, strobe, static lighting or the reflectors you have,
I will also be posting images and behind the scenes from photo shoots that I’ve done showing what and how I got the shot!
And there will be lots more to come ! Videos, editing tutorials, lighting diagrams, photoshop tips and tricks, product reviews and customers, client, feedback on what we have done for them ..
so if this is something that’s worth your time and you want to see these post please follow us share what we do as this make it worth it to us, and I would love for this blog to help as many people to become better photographers and spark that interest for new photographers and creatives !
So until 1st of January I wish you a very creative and happy 2019!
Well it’s been a while since I posted I’ve been so busy the last 3 months working hard and learning as much as I can but finally that works paying off !
The problem is that the camera that I’ve been using has been limiting me and limiting what I can do as a pro photographer! At least a professional who will be taken seriously!
Well I’ve been looking at a number of camera bodies and seeing that companies like canon and Nikon are still falling way short of the quality for price that I could handle spending !
Now I know that mirrorless Cameras are not for everyone and maybe even the brand of camera! But after long debate and many restless nights I’ve gone and done it !
I’ve become a Sony shooter ! I’ve got my first Sony full frame body and taken the leap towards the mirrorless would of photography!
So here is the start of things to come as this year I have wedding to shoot headshots to take and many personal projects that need undertaking !
I will be posting a few images over the coming days and also will do a review of what this Sony is really like in hand but that will take a little time !
Also there will be some videos coming soon as to why I switched from Nikon to Sony and if I still agree with this change in the coming weeks
So please keep your eyes open for some of the posts coming and some of our new work too!
well we have been mega busy and been creating content to go onto our new up and coming you tube page that starts november 1st !
I would be so so grateful if you would all take the time to follow the like below and hit that subscribe button.
our new page is dedicated to the learning side of photography and also will be showing what we can do for you if you work with Adrian Day Photography
so if you want to learn lighting or photoshop editing or all things photography please go take a look subscribe and like our test video
Over the last few months we have been doing Instagram testing ! Working with grid apps and seeing what it can do for us as a business, if it has any benefits or weaknesses to an Instagram account
Well it’s strange because it had some up side and some very strong down sides too!
For those of you who ask what are grids it’s using an app that breaks up a standard image into a number of smaller images 6 or 9 parts seem to be best but there are a number of others to use. You then post each image in sequence to Instagram to create a bigger picture. So it looks something like the image below on the page!
Model in image is Rhiannon
To be honest this looks fantastic on the page because you see a bigger image and it adds depth a character to your page,
As for stats well it works on getting more impressions to your page 9 times the amount of impressions in fact. Within the first week of testing we went from just 2000 impressions to 18.000 and the following week we hit our best of 30.000 this wasn’t our only benefit we started seeing a rise in followers too bonus I hear you say now this is one you would need to keep and eye on if you do like for likes or follow for follow !
We downloaded an app to see who is following and unfollowing you on Instagram
This is a benefit for anyone marketing on Instagram but when testing its needed 100%
This is where we found out that though people followed by the next day they would be gone so we couldn’t really count the following side of the grid marketing only really views and impressions
In short out post like went up too but also found that because there was multiple images to build up one full image the same person was liking all 9 so even though some full images got 300 likes divided down the average image was only 33
The impressions told a different story but again depended on a couple of factors repeated views of one or more image some images got 400 impressions some only got 100 but still meant that the grid was doing its job and getting images seen by more people even if there was multiple views from same person!
Now the view was a different thing again though the images got 400 impressions the same image would only get 50% of views around 200 still this was good for the page as was the impressions as both had gone up significantly for our page
All in all this was a great thing for our page and showed that grids work pretty well to get your page seen and a small following this was in the beginning
Now comes the but and this is a BIG BUT
Over the weeks we tested we found the out following dropped even those who followed us for months before started unfollowing we contacted a few and the reply was that they got annoyed with seeing parts of an image and not the full image and that because they was following it would block the news feeds with so many images they couldn’t see anyone else’s posts so they had to unfollow!
So in conclusion
The odd post including a grid maybe once a week to show a special image maybe a good thing. And yes it’s great for impressions
But in doing so you could loose you your following we gained nearly 500 follower in the time we run our test and dropped over 600 so we are over 100 down from
Where we started !
I’ve now resorted to the odd post and have started to archive the grid images because now I have to post a minimum of 3 images at a time because it puts out the grid images previously posts and make the page look very unprofessional and muddled!
I would suggest a simple clean page and post a number of images at set times of days would gain you a better following and impressions rate than doing grids
This is just what I have found and may not be the same for all but would say try it if you would like to but do so at own risk
Check out our page to see our work and grids before they all get archived
Adrian Day Photography 