Archives For Florida

Great Blue

Great Blue

Varina Patel —  September 25, 2012

For me, this shot is about light, color, and detail. The brilliant golden eye of the heron is lit by the sun, which is low on the horizon. The eye stands out against the deeper blue tones of the bird. The directional light also highlights the details in the birds features and feathers. The incredible sharpness of the image, the beautiful lighting, and the complimentary colors make it one of my favorites.

This was an easy capture. I took a single shot and then checked my histogram to make sure I wasn’t losing any details. A few more shots and I had the image I wanted. No special processing or fancy tricks required. The light was right and the lens was sharp. Of course, a beautiful subject helps a lot! ;)

If you want some tips for photographing birds, check out this blog post from last week!

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The Fawn

Shooting Wildlife. With a camera. Jeez.

Varina Patel —  September 20, 2012

Effortless - Varina Patel

When it comes down to it – wildlife photography is about being willing to wait. You aren’t likely to just walk up a get that fantastic shot you were hoping for. Start by doing your research – find our where the animals hang out, what time of year they are most likely to be there, and what time of day they are most active.

Fly Over - Varina Patel

And once you’re there – be prepared to hang out for a while. Find a place to watch and wait – and take lots of photographs. If I’m photographing birds or other fast-moving creatures, I like to use a fast shutter speed and set my camera to take the maximum six shots per second in case one of these beauties decides to take off for me. But don’t just point the camera and fire off five-hundred photos. You’ll have to wade through all those shots later. Be ready to shoot – but don’t overdo it.

Glacier National Park - Montana, USA

Pay attention to the light while you are shooting. Bright light means you can use a faster shutter speed – but if the light is harsh, you’ll end up with blown highlights are very dark shadows. I love shooting wildlife in the shade or on slightly overcast days. Clouds make great diffusers - and the the soft, even lighting is easy to work with. Soft, directional lighting – think early morning or late evening – is also really beautiful. My goal is to show the textures in the fur, the catch-light in the eyes, and an interesting pose.

I also like to use predictive auto focusing (that’s “AI Servo” for Canon users). In AI Servo mode, the camera automatically adjusts the focus to follow any object that is moving in a predictable pattern. It’s a great help for birds in flight, animals on the move… or children playing soccer. As far as I’m concerned, photographing my kids is no different from shooting wildlife. ;)

Eyes of Blue - Varina Patel

For animal portraits, I like to use a narrow depth of field to help blur out the background – but make sure you keep that eye nice a sharp, no matter what! Watch for interesting poses, pleasing angles, and action shots. And just have fun with it! Animals are so much fun to shoot… you never know what they’re going to do!

Glacier National Park - Montana, USA

To learn more about colors and creativity check out our EBooks below:

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Pine Glades Lake

Varina Patel —  August 28, 2012

This is a shot I took at sunrise from the shores of Pine Glades Lake in the Florida’s Everglades National Park. I needed an eight-second exposure to capture the fading light – and to smooth the surface of the water in order to showcase the beautiful reflections on the water. As is often the case, my goal was to create a minimalist image. I chose a pano crop to accentuate the width of the scene. A wide-angle lens let me show a wider portion of the lake and the brilliant sunset colors fading into the deep blue of the sky.

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Featured Download: Swimming in the Sky

Varina Patel —  July 27, 2012

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I took this shot in Florida’s beautiful Everglades. I wanted to capture the pattern of clouds on the water so that my lovely alligator friend could take a swim in the sky. ;)

As always, these images are provided for personal use as computer wallpaper or backgrounds ONLY. Copyright belongs to the photographer, and photographs cannot be used, redistributed, or recreated in print or on the web or on any other medium without written permission from the photographer.

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Pulse of Rain

Jay Patel —  June 27, 2012

I took this shot during our workshop in Everglades National Park. We had a small group of students who braved the elements and went wandering and shooting in the rain.

On this particular day at Nine Mile Pond, we got some very unique light conditions… there was a rainbow, rain, and a brilliant sunrise all at once. I was not shooting anything in particular, just playing with the lens and wandering between the students helping out when these two blades of grass caught my attention. When I shot the image, I was surprised to see these tiny pulses… traced by the water drops as they bounced off the lake surface.

This is perhaps one of the most unique shots in my portfolio.

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Everglades National Park, Florida (FL), USA

Quick Tips: Competing Background Elements

Jay Patel —  May 28, 2012

Compare these two images to see how distracting elements within the frame can impact a photograph. Jay captured the action is both shots beautifully – but the first image is much stronger than the second one. Why?

Take a look a the of little blue heron above. The bird is well isolated against a uniform background – the cool blue waters of the Shark River in Florida.  The viewers attention is focused directly on the heron. The uniform background allows the viewer notice the details of the bird – the impressive shape of his body, the patterns in his feathers… even the tiny fish he has caught in his beak.

The second shot shows a green Heron in action. He has also caught a little fish, and is preparing to take flight. In this photograph the subject has to compete for your attention – the foliage around it is distracting, and the green heron nearly gets lost in the photograph.

When composing a photograph, pay attention to the competing elements in the scene. Eliminating distractions helps the viewer focus directly on the subject.

To learn more about how to capture creative images and brilliant colors check our the ebooks below:

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Featured Download: Morning Glory

Varina Patel —  May 25, 2012

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I took this shot as the sun peaked over the distant trees in Everglades National Park in Florida. I wanted to capture the pattern of the pines against the sky, and the richly backlit grasses. I used a narrow aperture to produce a sunburst through the trees.

As always, these images are provided for personal use as computer wallpaper or backgrounds ONLY. Copyright belongs to the photographer,and photographs cannot be used, redistributed, or recreated in print or on the web or on any other medium without written permission from the photographer.

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Capturing the Last of the Light

Varina Patel —  April 27, 2012

Here’s a shot from the Florida Keys. At the end of the day, a group of us were shooting on this beautiful shoreline. Others were trying to capture the last glow of the sunrise in the sky – but I wasn’t inspired by the sliver of light behind me. Instead, I found myself captivated by the much more subtle glow on the mangroves.
This is one of my favorite times to shoot. When the light is nearly lost – and night is just about to gain the upper hand. But it’s not always easy to capture the beauty of the moment. It’s brief – gone almost before you have time to set up your camera. So, when I already have my camera out and ready (because I’ve been shooting the sunset) I try to grab the opportunity if I can. I am constantly turning around as the sun sets – checking the sky behind me for color, and checking the ground for that gorgeous, fleeting glow. :)

On this day, I grabbed up my tripod as soon as I saw it, and ran along the shoreline towards the mangroves. When I reached the waters edge – I searched for the composition I wanted. I had scouted the area earlier in the day, so I knew what my options were, and I waded out into the calm water to find my spot.

I needed to set up my tripod in such a way that my shadow wouldn’t be in the image – which is a challenge when the sun is behind you! So, I looked for a spot where I could shoot at a slight angle. My shadow stretched to the left in this shot… carefully placed just outside the frame. I wanted to show the beautiful patterns under the water, so I used a circular polarizer to cut through the surface glare. A graduated neutral density filter was unnecessary, because the sky was getting darker and the foreground was lit just slightly. So, I ended up with pretty even lighting overall. My camera had no trouble capturing the entire range of light with a single exposure.

I needed a long shutter speed in order to get enough light – 20 seconds was enough to get the shot. And it’s a good thing I was ready… because by the time the shutter closed, the light was gone.

So, what can you learn from a shot like this? First, arrive early so you can scout the area in advance. You want to know where you want to shoot when the moment arrives. Second, keep checking over your shoulder. Changing light means changing photographic opportunities! Don’t let that great light get away from you! And third, have your camera ready to go so that when you find your spot you can get your shot. :)

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Featured Download: Lost in Thought

Varina Patel —  April 6, 2012

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This stately stork stood still for me as I photographed his reflection in Everglades National Park in Florida. The smooth blue of the sky was reflected in the water, and provided a beautiful backdrop for an unusual portrait of this impressive bird.

As always, these images are provided for personal use as computer wallpaper or backgrounds ONLY. Copyright belongs to the photographer, and photographs cannot be used, redistributed, or recreated in print, on the web, or in any other medium without written permission from the photographer.

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Beaming

Varina Patel —  February 24, 2012

So – how do you capture a scene like this one? This is one of the more difficult situations to work with. First, the range of light is extreme – dark shadows and blinding highlights mean I can’t capture the entire dynamic range in a single exposure. And since the light beams reach below the horizon line and the dark trees stretch above it, a Graduated Neutral Density filter will cause as many problems as it solves.

The solution? Bracketing. I took three exposures to capture most of the dynamic range. One shot exposed for the darkest shadows. One for the mid-tones. And one for the highlights. I let the brightest area inside the sun remain over exposed, since we can’t see details there in reality and reducing the brightness of the sun would create a very odd, unnatural look.

Once I had those three images, I needed to blend them as smoothly as possible. I processed each image carefully for the area it would represent. I used the mid-tone image for most of the sky, and used the other two images to bring out details in the trees and foreground… and of course, the bright areas around the sun. Then, using layers and very careful masks in Photoshop, I blended the three images. I use the “iHDR” manual blending technique that Jay and I have developed over the years. It’s much more effective than your standard HDR software because it allows us to apply blending only where it’s really needed.

When blending was finished, I removed a bit of lens flare (which is often a problem when you are shooting directly into the sun). I chose to leave some lens flare because I liked the visual effect of all that scattered light.

Does the scene feel natural and real to you? Does it evoke an emotional response?

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