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 phantom
Location: The Desert
Gender: Male
Creeping in the shadows
 |  |  | Taking great photos 101
< on 4/30/2003 5:36 PM >
|  | | | Waddup people
First off, I'm not offering this tutorial as a critisism of photos that are already around. There are great photos associated with UE and not so great. My goal is to have you produce more great pictures, and waste less film.
Now, you're not going to need any special equipment or certain type of camera. Anything from a cheapie disposable to a fancy-ass 4000$ super deluxe digital will work.
I'm letting you in on a secret known by pretty much artist types only. It's very simple and works every time. I know I'm letting the suspense build, but let me first tell you why some pics don't look as good as you thought they would.
If you are not an artist or a photographer, you probably take photographs by looking at what you want to photograph and placing it right in the middle of your viewfinder. Boring. A subject in the middle of your picture is uninteresting. How do we solve this? By throwing it out of the center. First, you need to pick 1 main subject. This doesn't mean you can't include more than one, but try not to do more than 3-4. Your main subject should be the absolute focus of the photo and everything else subordinate.
Next is the peice that really pops. It's called the rule of thirds. Basically, your mind will see any picture is more interesting if it's slightly off center, usually by thirds of a picture. All you have to do is take advantage and place your main subject at or near a cross of thirds on the picture. What do I mean? Let me illustrate:
 up_thirds.jpg (6 kb, 360x274)
It's pretty simple. Just locate your main subject on or near the circles at the intersection. Instant interest in your photos.
Now, it is called a rule, but like all rules it can be broken. If you feel like your pic would look better ignoring this rule, by all means, ignore it. Just be sure you know why you are breaking it.
phantom - educating the unwashed masses, at least until they come out of their tunnels and take a shower.
-~phantom~-
shadowlurking |
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MacGyver
Location: St Paul, Minnesota
Gender: Male
"Someone go find me a paperclip, a D-cell battery, and a cheese grater"
| | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 1 on 4/30/2003 6:43 PM >
| | | | next lesson, and one I have never really used involves tripods.
Reasonably priced and compact folding/telescoping tripods can be had from various places (Av got one at radiohack I think). Using a tripod will make your pictures noticeably clearer in less than full-bright conditions.
The basic theory is that when the photo subject is darker, the shutter has to be open longer to expose the film enough to work well. During this extended time, a handheld camera is constantly moving in your hand. Evewn if you try to hold it perfectly still, nearly imperceptable muscle vibrations are still shaking the camera.
If you don't have a tripod, setting the camera on something also works very well. This is what I do most often in leu of carrying a tripod. The main disadvantage is that the surfaces you have to choose from are usually less than ideal for the angle you are trying to capture. Tripods can usually be set to all sorts of funky angled cominations to frame up the shot perfectly. Weigh the differences and decide what you want to do.
-----
About flash, experiment with and without it. Pictures taken with flash are easier (not requiring a tripod for sure pictures) but more sterile-looking. Take this for example:
Taken with a flash. Crystal clear, but lacks detail from natural shadows and coloring.
This one was taken holding the camera and using the light bulbs in the ceiling. A little blurry, but not bad considering.
Like a fiend with his dope / a drunkard his wine / a man will have lust for the lure of the mine
"If you are not part of the solution, you are not dissolved in the solvent." |
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phantom
Location: The Desert
Gender: Male
Creeping in the shadows
| | | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 2 on 4/30/2003 10:05 PM >
| | | | Right on, Krazy. Definately get a tripod if you can afford it.
For those that can't immediatly afford to shell out $50 for a tripod, get faster film, ones with a higher ISO number. These films are more sensitive so they need less light for the same picture. This allows you to take faster shutter speeds to avoid blur. For average amounts of indoor light, get 400 speed. For less light, get 1000. 1000 is pretty good for almost any indoor situation, it's very versatile.
If you like your pictures warm, just get outdoor rated film. The incandescent bulbs will give your pictures a yellow/orange cast. If you don't want that yellowish cast to the pictures, get indoor rated film. If the place you're going to is lit with flourescents, you'll get a green cast with an outdoor rated film, which I think is usually ugly. So if you know you're going to a place that's lit by flouros, get indoor film.
One more thing, you can get decent tripods used at camera shops. If you want/need new, don't bother with anything under $50. You'll just have to buy a new tripod soon.
[last edit 4/30/2003 5:07 PM by phantom - edited 1 times]
-~phantom~-
shadowlurking |
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Feral Tiger
Location: San Diego
Gender: Male
rawr?
| | |  | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 3 on 4/30/2003 11:12 PM >
| | | | Lenses, Filters
Filters- Take somthing that is recived by the camera out UV filters will remove ultra violent light from the lightsource, resulting in a more crisp natural picture. These are most effective outside in sunlight, but I keep one on anyway to protect the ccd in my camera(Doubt that it matters much). Linear Polarizing filters will remove glare depending on what angle the filter is set onto the camera. If you have trouble getting a reflection off of a window or other reflective surface, these will do it. Correct me if im wrong but I believe that 2 linear polarizing filters will make a variable light filter, where you twist one to make the picture darker/lighter. Circular Polarizing... never used one, so iono. Where I get my filters, they're about 10$(USD).
Lenses-Only lense that I really use is a wide angle lense. It pretty much does what the name implies, they help a bunch in small spaces where there isn't much room to back up to get a wider shot. Depending on the quality/amount of conversion, I see wide angle lenses go from 50-120$(USD)
Prehaps Ill post a couple with/without photos later.
[last edit 4/30/2003 6:13 PM by Feral Tiger - edited 1 times]
Save a soul, save it now for a better life,
Time to break, good bye, cause time is flyin on and on,
But if you want to believe in a better life
Fly away, Try it on, come together with a smile |
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MacGyver
Location: St Paul, Minnesota
Gender: Male
"Someone go find me a paperclip, a D-cell battery, and a cheese grater"
| | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 4 on 4/30/2003 11:36 PM >
| | | | Posted by Feral Tiger
Correct me if im wrong but I believe that 2 linear polarizing filters will make a variable light filter, where you twist one to make the picture darker/lighter. Circular Polarizing... never used one, so iono.
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Yep, if you have two polarizing filters set parallel to eachother, half(not sure on amount) the light will pass through. When they are 90 degrees from eachother, none of the light will pass through. I remember playing with some of these back in physics in high school.
Like a fiend with his dope / a drunkard his wine / a man will have lust for the lure of the mine
"If you are not part of the solution, you are not dissolved in the solvent." |
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ya t7911
Location: Athens, Georgia, US of A
Gender: Male
| | |  | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 5 on 5/1/2003 12:48 AM >
| | | | telephoto(zoom) lenses are handy lenses to have, though they don't let in much light. Although i have one, its such a pain to change that i rarely use it.
color filters can be fun for those of you using black and white. i only have a red filter, which can do a lot to the contrast of a picture.
another fun tool is focus. most digital cameras (if not all) don't allow you to focus. they put everything for the most part in focus, from what i understand. with manual cameras you can pull the focus from the foreground to the background. ever seen a photo with a person focused in front, and an extremely blurry background? thats what i'm talking about.
there's a lot of good tools to make your photography better. you don't have to go buy lots of stuff. just learn how to control whats already built in to cameras. it took me awhile to understand my camera, but now i think i'm fairly decent with it.
t7911.
there are many paths to the mountain.
http://www.yellowalbert.net
urban exploration of georgia and the southeast US |
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The Dark One
Location: Montreal, Quebec
Gender: Male
Twist
| | | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 6 on 5/1/2003 2:35 AM >
| | | | A decent digital camera should give you manual control over focusing. Mine lets me change it with a little wheel knob at the top (although this isn't good for active and moving objects), and has settings so that you can choose which part of the frame it'll try to focus on.
And about one part of the person or object being blurry, you can easily change that by varying your aperture. The wider it is (the lower the f-stop), the more light that gets in, but the area in focus is reduced. A small aperture will give you super-crisp images but you'll need brighter conditions or a longer shutter speed.
And to do with the film speed- the faster the it is, you'll need less time to capture a shot, but there'll be more grain, generally, unless you shell out cash for super-spiffy film. Like in that Kubric movie that was shot in just candle-light.
*** MsMaul was kicked by MsMaul (I didn't eat enough bagels!!!!111) |
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phantom
Location: The Desert
Gender: Male
Creeping in the shadows
| | | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 7 on 5/1/2003 5:01 PM >
| | | | Feral Tiger - Yes, you can control the amount of light coming into a camera using 2 polarizing filters, but that's what the shutter and aperature settings are for, you don't really need another light control, as it's difficult enough determining the right exposure without throwing in another variable.
UV filters do tend to make your picture more crisp in sunlight, but most photographers get them mostly to protect their lenses. It's much cheaper to replace a 10-15$ filter than it is to replace an expensive lens.
Remember, if you do decide to use a polarizing filter, you'll have to stop up about 1 1/2 - 2 stops. Make your shutter speed 1 or 2 numbers lower or your aperature 1 or 2 numbers lower. (Shutter - 500 speed to 250 speed to 125 speed, Aperature - 8 to 5.6 to 2, or similar.)
-~phantom~-
shadowlurking |
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Feral Tiger
Location: San Diego
Gender: Male
rawr?
| | | | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 8 on 5/1/2003 9:48 PM >
| | | | Urr... yea, I use a digital camera, so I wouldnt have a clue as to the shutter adjustments. Sorry about not saying that.
Save a soul, save it now for a better life,
Time to break, good bye, cause time is flyin on and on,
But if you want to believe in a better life
Fly away, Try it on, come together with a smile |
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GnomeToys
Location: West Lafayette, IN
Gender: Male
West Siiiiide
| | | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 9 on 5/1/2003 11:43 PM >
| | | | This one might be a pet peeve of mine, but its my advice:
If you're taking a picture of a drain or tunnel, don't include your friends in the picture. Nobody wants to see them but you, I'm just trying to look at the tunnel. There are certain exceptions where scale of a feature needs to be shown, but mostly its been annoying. Luckily I can't think of anybody off the top of my head that does this a lot.
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mike2
| | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 10 on 5/3/2003 3:27 AM >
| | | | Posted by Feral Tiger
Lenses, Filters
Filters- Take somthing that is recived by the camera out UV filters will remove ultra violent light from the lightsource, resulting in a more crisp natural picture. These are most effective outside in sunlight, but I keep one on anyway to protect the ccd in my camera(Doubt that it matters much). Linear Polarizing filters will remove glare depending on what angle the filter is set onto the camera. If you have trouble getting a reflection off of a window or other reflective surface, these will do it. Correct me if im wrong but I believe that 2 linear polarizing filters will make a variable light filter, where you twist one to make the picture darker/lighter. Circular Polarizing... never used one, so iono. Where I get my filters, they're about 10$(USD).
Lenses-Only lense that I really use is a wide angle lense. It pretty much does what the name implies, they help a bunch in small spaces where there isn't much room to back up to get a wider shot. Depending on the quality/amount of conversion, I see wide angle lenses go from 50-120$(USD)
Prehaps Ill post a couple with/without photos later.
|
a quick but very helpful note about filters..
if your camera has a threaded lense.... put a sky light on it!!!
scratching a 10-30 dollar skylight sure does save your ass, because if you scratch a non removeable lense you're pretty much SOL i think.
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Mr. Motts
  
Noble Donor
Location: Long Island and Brooklyn NY
Gender: Male
| | | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 11 on 5/20/2003 7:41 PM >
| | | | Anyone use Infared film in derelict areas? It comes out intensley surreal.. I'm not sure how well indoor/low light shots will come out though. I'm gonna try as soon as I find a cheap SLR!
Check out Simon Marsden's stuff its like photographing Dali's brain. http://www.simonmarsden.co.uk/cards.htm
Save the planet... kill yourself.
http://www.opacity.us/ - Abandoned Photography |
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Shane
Moderator
Location: Bronx, NY
Gender: Male
| | |  | | | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 12 on 5/20/2003 8:50 PM >
| | | | Yes! Marsden is amazing, he's one of my main inspirations for getting into photography and urban exploration. There's a ton of his stuff at:
http://www.marsdenarchive.com
I have yet to experiment with infrared film, but I plan on it, I just gotta finish off a roll of regular B&W in my slr before I pick up the IR Film.
"Because there's no possibility of real disaster, real risk, we're left with no chance for real salvation. Real elation. Real excitement. Joy. Discovery. Invention. The laws that keep us safe, these same laws condemn us to boredom. Without access to true chaos, we'll never have true peace. Unless everything can get worse, it won't get any better." -Chuck Palahniuk |
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MacGyver
Location: St Paul, Minnesota
Gender: Male
"Someone go find me a paperclip, a D-cell battery, and a cheese grater"
| | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 14 on 6/15/2003 8:09 AM >
| | | | I ran across this while looking for something else. It is about taking pictures using a large kite and a remote controlled shutter release. Interesting, and maybe useful in some kind of bizarre situation. It's a great way to get aerial photos of somewhere/thing/body, but it would be far from stealthy. 
http://home.rochester.rr.com/srinz/kapgallery.html
Like a fiend with his dope / a drunkard his wine / a man will have lust for the lure of the mine
"If you are not part of the solution, you are not dissolved in the solvent." |
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kowalski
| | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 15 on 7/1/2003 12:08 AM >
| | | | Posted by GnomeToys
This one might be a pet peeve of mine, but its my advice:
If you're taking a picture of a drain or tunnel, don't include your friends in the picture. Nobody wants to see them but you, I'm just trying to look at the tunnel. There are certain exceptions where scale of a feature needs to be shown, but mostly its been annoying. Luckily I can't think of anybody off the top of my head that does this a lot.
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I really have to disagree with you here. I think incorporating people into photographs of the structures we explore is an incredibly effective technique when employed purposefully and intelligently. It goes beyond just showing scale; after all, urbex is an experience that involves both the building and the people. Architecture has long stressed (though often forgotten) that good design is about building a mutually-supportive relationship between the structure and those using it. And the history of almost all of the places we explore is a history of human use and disuse.
I'm not saying any old photo with a bunch of dorks standing in it is a good composition. But I am saying that I think including people in some of your shots is really a vital tool in communicating what a structure means and how it feels and relates to you, the explorer, the human.
From another direction, consider this: Of all the structures in your brain, the area assigned to visually identify other people is among the largest. Don't discount the importance of the appearance of other people in our viewing and understanding of our environments.
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Jester
Location: Vancouver,B.C. Canada
Gender: Male
Always just out of sight...
| | | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 16 on 7/1/2003 12:11 AM >
| | | | I agree with Kowalski. and those pics, btw, are amazing.
It requires wisdom to understand wisdom: the music is nothing if the audience is deaf. |
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ya t7911
Location: Athens, Georgia, US of A
Gender: Male
| | | | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 17 on 7/2/2003 7:42 PM >
| | | | i think his point was he is tired of pictures that are like "look at me and my buddies. we're so cool." that attitude is pretty lame. good portraits are different. i've done some pictures of people in buildings that have turned out well. it depends on the thought you put into it, i think.
t7911.
there are many paths to the mountain.
http://www.yellowalbert.net
urban exploration of georgia and the southeast US |
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Chud
Try a 211, you'll just get 187'd...
| | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 18 on 7/2/2003 7:59 PM >
| | | | But who doesn't love Action Squad? Most of their pics seem to be 'me and my buddies' but they're still awesome.
Nobody will not agree with the Russians, ever on anything.
-Kimmo |
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Ninjalicious
Gone, but always with us
Location: Toronto
| | | Re: Taking great photos 101
<Reply # 19 on 7/3/2003 12:18 PM >
| | | | An exception can be made if your buddies happen to be naked women.
Ninj
http://www.infiltration.org
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