If you are like most people, you will learn two things:

1. New lenses are really expensive.
2. Choosing a new lens is even more confusing than choosing a new camera.

Why is choosing a lens so confusing?

The popularity of digital SLR cameras is increasing at an amazing pace.  Every year, millions of new people buy high-end digital cameras.  Unfortunately, cameras and camera accessories are still named and marketed like the primary customers are scientists and optics specialists.  Camera models have weird, non-sensical names like “D7000″ or “60D” and lenses have even more confusing names like “Sigma 30mm f/1.4 EX DC HSM”.

But here’s the secret:

Camera model names really are just jibberish, but lens model names aren’t.

Digital SLR cameras have silly model names like Canon 5D or Nikon D7000.  These names don’t mean anything useful.  They are made up by the manufacturer.  Your only option is to either memorize them or consult a guide when you are looking for a new camera.

Unlike cameras, lenses have very useful names.  Typically the name of the lens is the scientific specification of the len’s capabilities.  If you can learn a little bit about lenses, you will be able to understand what all their names mean.  This will make it much easier for you to decide which new lens you should purchase.

Why do you need different lenses anyway?

In simple terms, a camera is just box that captures light.  Light comes into the box and is recorded as a picture by a light sensor.

Of course, the light sensor inside the camera isn’t “life size”.  It’s only a few inches tall.  So to record a full-sized picture of the real world onto the tiny light sensor, light from outside has to be “focused” onto it.

Different lenses focus the light differently.  Some lenses try to fit as much of the outside world onto the sensor as possible by capturing a “wide angle” view.  Other lenses try to capture far away objects by making them appear larger.

So why can’t one lens do everything?  Building lenses is a lot like building cars.  It’s easy to design a sports car to be light and powerful so that it can drive fast.  It’s also easy to design a mini-van that can efficiently carry a large group of people.  But it’s almost impossible to design a mini-van that is light and drives very fast.  Lenses are the same way.  It’s easy to optimize a lens to be good at one thing, but it’s impossible to make a lens that is good at everything.

Every lens is a compromise.  By learning about the differences between lenses, you will be able to find the right lens for the types of photographs you are making.

What makes lenses different

All lenses have two very important characteristics – the focal length and the size of the aperture.  These are the two most important things that determine what a lens can do.  There are also a number of other minor characteristics that will determine how well the lens works.  We will cover each of them.

1. Focal Length

The focal length of the lens determines how much the lens “zooms into” the scene.  A lens with a longer focal length magnifies the picture more.  A lens with a smaller focal length provides a wide-angle effect where more of the scene fits into your picture.

The focal length for digital SLR lenses are given in millimeters.  The millimeter measurement comes from the mathematical formulas involved in lens design.  You don’t need to worry about that.  Instead, you just need to memorize a few key numbers:

• Below 35mm
  • This is a wide-angle lens.
• Around 50mm
  • This is a “normal” lens.  The lens creates images that match what your eyes see in real life.
• Above 85mm
  • This is a lens that magnifies or “zooms in” more than your eyes see in real life.

If you had a lens included with your camera kit, chances are that it isn’t limited to a single focal length. Instead, it covers a range of focal lengths by zooming in and out.  For example, the Canon 18-55mm lens covers the range from 18mm to 55mm.

So why not simply buy a lens that can zoom from 4mm to 300mm?  The problem is that it isn’t possible to build such a lens that makes good images and doesn’t weigh as much as a car.  In fact, fixed lenses that only have a single focal length are usually sharper and lighter than zoom lenses.  But they are also more limited.

There’s one final wrench to throw into this.  Many less expensive DSLR cameras have what is called a “crop factor”. Because it is less expensive to put a smaller image sensor in a camera, not all cameras have a “full frame” image sensor.  Since the camera’s image sensor is smaller, the lenses act differently on the camera.

If your camera has a crop factor, it will say so on the box or in the manual.  A typical crop factor is 1.6x.  When choosing a lens, you have to multiply this number by the focal length of the lens.  So while a 50mm lens is a “normal” lens on a full-frame camera, it acts like an 80mm lens (50mm x 1.6 = 80mm) on a camera with a 1.6x crop factor.

Thus if your camera has a crop factor, keep in mind that lenses will look more “zoomed in” than you would expect.  So instead of buying a 50mm lens to use as a normal lens on your camera, you might buy a 35mm lens because 35mm x 1.6 = 56mm (or about 50mm).

2. Size of Aperture

The other important factor to think about when buying a lens is the maximum aperture size of the lens.

Simply put, the aperture is the hole in the lens that lets light in.  The bigger the hole, the more light that comes into the camera.  So a lens with a bigger aperture is called a “faster” lens because it lets in more light and thus can shoot in less light.

The size of the aperture also controls “depth of field”.  The bigger the aperture, the less of the image that will be in focus.  If you aren’t familiar with depth of field, review our guide on shooting pictures in manual mode.

The aperture of a lens is written with an “f-number”.  Like most numbers involved in photography, the f-number scale is more confusing than it needs to be.  Just remember that the smaller the number, the bigger the aperture.

When you see the name a of lens like “Sigma 30mm f/1.4″, the part after the f is the f-number of the maximum size of the aperture for that lens.  Here are some common ones you will see:

• f/1.4
  • This lens is very fast.  It is great for shooting in low light or for shooting portraits.  You will have excellent control of depth of field.
• f/4
  • This lens is average speed.  It is great for most situations, but not low light.
• f/5.6
  • This lens is not very fast.  It won’t work well in low light.  You also won’t have too much control of depth of field.

Since almost all modern lenses have an adjustable aperture, the f-number only specifies the maximum size.  A lens can always make the aperture smaller.  So an f/1.4 lens can also operate at f/4, f/5.6 or even f/22.  Thus a lens with a lower f-number is more flexible, but often heavier or more expensive.

Sometimes you will see cheaper lenses that have a “variable f-number” such as f/4-5.6.  This means that the lens can only operate at f/4 when zoomed all the way out.  When you zoom in, it can only operate at f/5.6.  In other words, the lens lets in less light as you zoom in.  This makes using the lens more difficult when you aren’t shooting in direct sunlight.

Extra lens features

When looking at lenses, the focal length and aperture by far the most important factors.  That is what determines what the actual picture will look like.

However, there are a number of other features that lens makers add to lenses to make the lenses easier to use in a variety of situations.  However, you don’t need any of these features to take good pictures.  Usually extra features mean higher prices.

3. Better Autofocus Mechanism

Different lenses use different technologies for autofocus.  Here are the major types you will see:

• No autofocus
  • Older lenses or very specialized lenses may have no autofocus capabilities at all.
• Micro motor autofocus
  • This is used on inexpensive lenses such as the Canon 50mm f/1.8.  It is loud and slower to focus.  You can’t manually adjust focus while in autofocus mode.
• Ultrasonic motor (Canon)/Silent Wave Motor (Nikon)
  • This is used on more expensive lenses.  It focuses quickly and quietly.  You can adjust the focus manually even when using autofocus.  It is a higher-quality mechanism.

4. Image stabilization

Some lenses have an image stabilization mechanism.  Canon calls this IS or Image Stabilization.  Nikon calls this VR or Vibration Reduction.

This is a great feature to have.  Lenses with this feature can shoot sharp images in less light by compensating for the shake in your hands.  This feature won’t help you when using a tripod and should be turned off in those cases.

If a lens has IS or VR, it is going to cost more money.

5. Other Features

The more you explore lenses, the more types of specialized features you will encounter.

Some of the other features you may see are:

• Tilt/Shift
  • These lenses can physically tilt and shift on their base.  They are designed for architectural photography.  They are very expensive and are meant only for a very limited type of customer.  A beginner should stay away from these lenses.
• Lenses with removable optics
  • Some lenses, such as the LensBaby Composer, have removable optics that allow you to modify the characteristics of the lens by swapping out parts.  These are meant more for special effects, not for day-to-day shooting.  They are “fun toys”.
• Manufacturer-specific terminology
  • Every manufacturer has an array of codes they assign to lenses for any number of reasons.  Sigma is especially bad about this.  In most cases, you can ignore them until you narrow in on a particular lens.
  • One code worth noting is that Canon adds an “L” to the name any lens that is “professional grade”.  These lenses also have a thin red line around the end of the lens so that everyone knows just how much money you spent buying them.  You will hear people refer to these lenses as “L glass”.
  • Most Canon lenses are “EF” lenses.  These lenses will work on any modern Canon camera.  However, a few very inexpensive lenses are “EF-S” lenses.  These lenses only work on crop sensor cameras.  You should probably avoid purchasing EF-S lenses if you plan to ever upgrade to a full-frame sensor camera.
  • On the Nikon side, all lenses are branded either “DX” or “FX”.  The DX lenses are crop-sensor only while the FX lenses will work on any Nikon camera.  Unlike the Canon EF-S lenses, the DX lenses are very common.  But if you ever plan to upgrade to a full-frame sensor camera, stick with FX lenses.

So what should you buy?

The lens you need entirely depends on the types of photos you want to take.

Indoor portraits (babies/children, parties, pets, etc)

If you bought a camera mainly to take pictures of your children, take pictures at parties or indoor portraits, you should consider a fast fixed lens.  This will allow you to shoot in low light while also getting a great depth-of-field effect.

The key here is to look for a lens in the 50mm to 85mm range with a low f-number.

Inexpensive suggestions:

• Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II – $100
  • This lens is called the “nifty 50″.  It’s the cheapest lens that Canon makes, but it takes great pictures.  Every Canon shooter should own this.
• Nikon 50mm f/1.8D AF – $120
  • This is Nikon’s version of a “nifty 50″.  Every Nikon shooter should own this.

More expensive suggestions:

• Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM – $350
  • This is a much nicer version of the “nifty 50″.  It has ultrasonic focusing and a much better build quality.  It’s worth the money if you can spare it.
• Nikon 50mm f/1.4G SIC SW – $440
  • This is the ultrasonic focusing version of the above Nikon lens.  It’s worth the extra money for this version if you will be using this lens a lot.

Walk-around lens

A “walk-around” lens is a lens that you can keep on your camera most of the time.  It should have a fairly wide focal length range and work well in a variety of conditions.

Less expensive suggestions:

• Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM – $420
  • This lens isn’t cheap, but it’s fairly inexpensive by lens standards.  This is a great all-around lens for basic use.  It’s not pro-level, but it will be sufficient for most people and it takes great pictures.  The addition of image stabilization is helpful in low-light scenarios.  It’s a great lens to pair with the Canon 50mm f/1.8 lens.
• Nikon 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S DX ED VR – $620
  • This lens is great for day-to-day shooting.  It has vibration reduction to help with low-light shots.  However, note that this is a DX lens so it won’t work well on Nikon FX cameras.
• Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S ED VR II – $740
  • This is another great mid-range walk-around choice for Nikon shooters.  This lens has a very wide focal length range and will work well for almost any situation.  This is also a DX lens, so it won’t work well on FX cameras.

More expensive suggestions:

• Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM – $1050
  • Good, versatile lens aren’t cheap and this one is no exception.  This lens is very sharp and works well in a wide variety of situations.
• Nikon 24-120mm f/4G ED VR AF-S – $1300
  • This lens is a bit expensive, but it is sharp and works well in almost any situation.  Also, it is an FX lens, so it will work on all Nikon cameras.

Weddings and events

When shooting weddings, you need a combination of a fast lens with the ability to get close to the action.  This comes at a price.

• Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM – $2,070
  • This is the standard wedding shooter lens.  It has everything you need – a 200mm range to get you close to the action, an f2.8 aperture for low light usage and image stabilization to make sure your shots are sharp.  However, this lens is also expensive.
  • If you don’t care about image stabilization, Canon offers a cheaper $1,300 version of the lens without IS.
  • Canon also offers an even cheaper $1,100 version of the lens with an f4.0 aperture.  But if you are doing serious wedding shooting with indoor locations, you will need the f2.8 version
• Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II AF-S – $2,170
  • On the Nikon side, this is your go-to wedding shooter lens.  It has everything you need – a 200mm range to get you close to the action, an f2.8 aperture for low light usage and vibration reduction to make sure your shots are sharp.  This lens works on both FX and DX cameras.  Since this lens was recently updated, you may also find the earlier version at a cheaper price.

Wildlife

For wildlife, magnification is the key.  The longer the focal distance on your lens, the closer you can get to the animals you are photographing.  Unfortunately, this means wildlife photography is an expensive hobby.

Cheap recommendations

• Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro for Canon – $160
  • If you want to try wildlife photography without spending $1,500, give this lens a try.  It’s not amazing, but it is a great value.  It also doubles as a macro lens, so you can practice shooting pictures of insects and butterflies.
• Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro for Nikon – $160
  • This is the exact same lens, but made to fit Nikon cameras.

More expensive recommendations

• Canon EF 100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS USM – $1,500
  • This is a great place to start for a serious wildlife lens.  While it’s not a fast lens, the image stabilization helps with that.  Also, you can combine it with a Canon 1.4x Teleconvertor or a Canon 2x Teleconvertor to get extra magnification.
• Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM – $11,000
  • If you have an unlimited budget, why not go crazy?
• Nikon 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6D ED Autofocus VR – $1,600
  • This is a great lens for shooting wildlife.  However, it does have a couple of minor issues.  First, the lens is really heavy,  Second, the autofocus isn’t up to the specs of Nikon’s most recent lenses, so it isn’t quite as snappy.  That aside, the lens takes magnificent photos.

Related posts:

1. How to use a classic manual lens on your DSLR camera
2. How to choose a flash for your digital camera
3. How to choose a digital camera

And despite the fact that Apple has proven over the last decade that simple product lines are most effective, major camera manufacturers continue to push out a multitude of different models with incredibly confusing names.  Is a D700 or a D7000 better?  What about a D3 or a D3s or a D3x?  How does that compare to a G12 or a 7D?  Even most professional photographers can’t keep up with all of the new models.

To make things simple, we maintain a flow chart that helps you decide which camera to buy.  Just follow the lines until you end up with a camera that fits your needs!

And after you pick out a camera, check out our follow-up guide on how to choose a flash for your digital camera.

To all the Camera Nazis: Since there are thousands of cameras on the market, we are only including the best, newest, and most popular models.  No camera on this chart is a bad choice, but many perfectly fine cameras are not included.  Don’t fret if your favorite camera isn’t on the list.

Entry level cameras:

Samsung SL30 – This is good if you can’t afford anything better. It will take better pictures than your cell phone, but that’s about it.

You could also just use your cell phone.

Pocket-sized cameras:

Canon PowerShot SD780 – This is the gold standard for a hip little camera that you can carry around in your pocket, purse, etc.  It doesn’t do anything special, but it looks good and takes great photos.  The videos aren’t too bad either for a little camera.

Canon PowerShot S95 – This is a step up from a basic point-and-shoot camera.  It can capture RAW files which gives you better control over editing your images.  This a great pocket camera for photo nerds.  If you don’t know what RAW files are or don’t care, get the camera above.

Slightly bigger than pocket-sized cameras:

Canon PowerShot SX30 IS – This is a point-and-shoot camera with a massive zoom range, often referred to as a “super-zoom.”  This allows you to photograph in almost any situation with a small-ish camera.  It even has image stabilization built-in which is great when you are using the full zoom. This would be a great fit for a nature enthusiast or anyone else who wants to get close to the action.  It also has 720p HD video with image stabilization, which is a nice touch.

Canon PowerShot G12 – This is as close as you can get to a “real” camera in the body of a point-and-shoot camera.  It has everything from the ability to shoot RAW files to a built-in HDR shooting mode.  Most people who buy this camera are photo nerds who want a smaller camera to use on-the-go when they can’t carry their full-sized camera.  This is also a great camera for anyone who wants to start experimenting with more advanced photography but doesn’t want to buy a giant camera.

Hipster cameras:

Olympus PEN E-P2 – This camera tries to give you much of the same capabilities of a full-sized SLR camera in cool looking and smaller retro-styled body.  However, this camera isn’t really any cheaper than a regular SLR and the lenses it uses are only compatible with a very limited range of similar cameras.  This is a niche product that you should only invest in if you really need a small camera with interchangeable lenses (or if you are Kevin Spacey).

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF1 – This camera is similar to the Olympus PEN models.  It’s a similar size and uses the same types of lenses.  While it doesn’t have quite the hip looks of the PEN, many people consider it a better camera.  If you like this camera but want something with more features, look into the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2.

Basic SLR cameras:

Canon Rebel T2i – The Rebel series from Canon have for years been the standard entry-level SLR camera line.  The Rebel T2i continues the tradition of fantastic cameras under 1k.  This camera takes great images in most situations and has very nice video capabilities, including full 1080p video with selectable frame rate.  This is a great choice for a budding photographer or anyone who owns Canon lenses.  It replaced the Canon Rebel T1i which only supported 720p video.

Nikon D90 – This is the nicest digital still camera you can get under 1k.  This is a great choice, especially if you own Nikon lenses.  However, the 1080p video capabilities of the Canon Rebel T2i outshine it.  If you are concerned about shooting video along with photos, the Rebel T2i may be a better choice.

Lower-Mid Range DSLR cameras:

Canon 60D – The Canon 60D fits in-between the “semi-pro” Canon 7D and the entry level Canon Rebel T2i.  It’s a great choice that should be able to handle anything short of high-end pro work.  However, the Nikon D7000 offers more features for about the same price.

Nikon D7000 – The Nikon D7000 sets a new bar for price and performance.  While it does cost $1200, it has the features of a camera that costs much more.  It is an excellent choice for both still pictures and video.  If you can’t afford the price, consider the older but still excellent Nikon D90.

Mid-range SLR cameras:

Canon 7D – This is a fantastic mid-range SLR camera.  You can use this for any type of photography.  If you have Canon lenses or are interested in video, this is an easy choice.  While the Nikon model supports video as well, the Canon implementation is generally considered a little better.

Nikon D300s – This is a very solid camera.  Like the Canon, this will work for just about anything.  However, the newer Nikon D7000 is almost as nice and has a lower price.  Instead of buying the Nikon D300s, consider the D7000 or consider waiting until Nikon updates this model.

High-end SLR cameras:

Canon 5D Mark II – Unless you are a full-time professional photographer, this is about the nicest camera you will ever need.  Even then, many professionals use this camera instead of the 1D because it’s a little smaller.  With a full-frame sensor, this can handle anything you throw at it.  If you have the money, buy it.  The only exception would be if you already have a large collection of Nikon lenses or are a sports photographer and need very fast burst shooting capabilities.

Nikon D700 – Like the Canon 5D Mark II, this is “pro enough” for all but the most demanding jobs.  It lacks the video features of the 5D and has a lower megapixel count, but it is still a fantastic camera and makes up for it in other ways.  For example, the Nikon auto-focus and flash system is often considered superior to the Canon offerings.  If you have the money, buy this camera.  However, you may want to consider the Canon 5D if you already own Canon lenses or need video capabilities.

Pro-level SLR cameras:

Canon 1D Mark IV – This is the top of the Canon line.  If you need this, you probably already know it.  Buy it.

Nikon D3s – This is the top of the Nikon line.  To make things more confusing, Nikon offers the D3 in three varieties – the D3, the D3s and the D3x.  Unless you specifically need the super-high resolution of the D3x, most people consider the D3s to be the superior choice.  Buy it.

Basic tips for buying a digital camera:

1. The best prices (like those quoted here) are available at reputable online retailers like Amazon.com, Adorama, B&H, Midwest Photo Exchange, etc.
2. Avoid fly-by-night internet dealers.  These tend to have generic names and operate out of New York or California.  They often advertise cameras at significantly prices lower than the reputable dealers.  These are almost always scams that require you to buy lots of overpriced accessories before they will ship you anything.  If you order just a camera, they will refuse to ship it to you or just keep your money.
3. If you want in-person advice and long-term support, look for a local independent camera dealer in your area.  Just keep in mind that they generally can’t match online prices because they have to pay for their store.  But if you are going use a local store, buy there.  Don’t be a jerk by wasting their time getting them to show you cameras and then ordering online from someone else.
4. When you get it, shoot as much as possible and have fun!

Related posts:

1. How to choose a new lens for your digital SLR camera
2. How to choose a flash for your digital camera
3. How to use a classic manual lens on your DSLR camera

Weddings are easy money, right?

Here is a situation that must happen somewhere in the world every few seconds:

A couple is getting married and needs a photographer for the wedding.  They have a friend who is “into photography”, so they ask him or her to be their wedding photographer.  Of course, they don’t have a lot of money, so they’d rather hire a friend for a few hundred dollars instead of paying a professional.  The friend is flattered and excited to get into weddings, so he or she accepts.

Here is what almost always happens a few months later:

The big day finally comes, but the photographer isn’t prepared to handle the wedding.  The photographer doesn’t know how to wrangle a crowd of crazy in-laws and drunk guests, doesn’t have the right equipment for the lighting conditions and doesn’t have enough experience to know what shots to get.  Before the end of the wedding, flash batteries go dead, memory cards get full and equipment fails. Key moments are missed or come out too blurry to use and the resulting photos don’t look anything like the bride imagined.  The bride is crushed and the friendship is ruined.

Congrats! You took cool pictures on your last vacation! But that doesn't mean you are ready to shoot your best friend's wedding.

So now a couple has come to you and asked you to shoot their wedding.  But you think that you are different. You’ve taken pictures of your pets that friends all think they look cool.  You even have a flickr page where people comment about how great your vacation photos look.  How much different is a wedding?  Weddings couldn’t really be that hard, right?

Well, no.  They actually are that hard.

Should you accept the assignment?

With the rapid advances in digital photography technology and accessibility over the past decade, photography has become a really popular hobby which has flooded the market with new photographers.  Weddings are one of the few areas of photography where a photographer can still make a reasonable amount of money with some reliability.  Because of this, a lot of photographers are looking to get into wedding photography.

The reason that wedding photography actually pays good money is because it is really hard.  It is a high-stress job.  Wedding photographers are capturing the most important day in someone’s life with no second chances.  The clients are going to be looking at these photos for years to come.  A client who has a bad experience will remember it for the rest of their lives when they look back at the wedding photographs.  Bad experiences can (and often do) ruin friendships.

If you have any doubt about your photography skills, this is not the time to test yourself.  Don’t agree to shoot a wedding unless you really know what you are doing and feel completely confident in your ability to take good photos in almost any situation.  Politely turn down the request and enjoy the wedding as a guest.  You can still take your own pictures from the sidelines and share them with the bride and groom.

Still think you are up to the task?  Here’s a quick quiz.  You have two seconds to answer each question out loud and you must answer them in order with no back-tracking.

Question 1:

You are shooting in a dark room.  There is a large window on one side and a few candles around the room, but otherwise there are no lights.  Overall, it is quite dim.  What aperture do you set your camera on?  What ISO?  And how do you set your flash’s exposure compensation?  Where do you point your flash?

Question 2:

You are outside in a park.  It’s noon and the sun is beating down.  You are posing a group of 30 people.  What is your ISO setting?  Your aperture?  Your shutter speed?  What lens are you using?  How far back are you standing from the group?  How are you keeping everyone from squinting in the sun?  Which direction is the sun relative to the group?  And how are you going to make that three-year-old in front smile?

Question 3:

You only have space for 10 shots left on your current memory card.  The bride and groom are about to do ‘the kiss’.  Do you change your memory card now or wait until after the kiss?

Question 4:

You are outside in front of a church.  You have taken bridal portraits and family portraits of the bride’s family, but not the groom’s family.  It starts to rain.  What do you do?

Grading yourself:

If you stumbled through any of those questions or had to look anything up, you are not ready to shoot a wedding.  Instead, go find another wedding photographer and ask to be a “second shooter” on one of their jobs.  You will be able to pick everything up without putting someone’s lifetime memories on the line.  It’s a great way to learn.  You can also check out some of our other guides to help you bone up your photo skills.

If you easily answered all those questions without any hesitation, you might be ready to give this wedding thing a try.  But read on.

Preparation

The best way to be successful shooting a wedding is to prepare.  You have two main goals for your preparation:

1. You need to fully understand what the bride and groom want so that you can do your best to deliver it.
2. You need to know exactly what you are going to be doing each moment of the wedding.  Your execution on the day of the wedding should be almost automatic.

Meet with the bride

The first step in your preparation is to meet with the bride.  You to find out what she wants so that you can be sure to make her happy with your photos.

You need to find out of the bride desires more traditional photographs with lots of posed shots or a more journalistic style.  Right now, the journalistic style is very popular.  However, resist the urge to completely skip the posed family shots, even if that is what the bride initially requests.  Brides and family members will almost always value the posed family shots more than they think.  Tell the bride that she should at least do some basic family portraits to share with the family.  She will thank you later.

This is also the time to cover any payment details.  Make sure you both fully understand how much you are getting paid and when you are getting paid.  It is customary for you to get paid before the wedding, not after.

Make a checklist

Your next goal is to make a checklist of the key shots that the bride wants.  This should cover every phase of the wedding with times noted.  You can start with a rough draft and fill in the details with the wedding planner as plans for the wedding become formalized.

Here’s an example of what you need to create:

Your shot list should include times and names, grouped by phases of the wedding. Click on the image to see it full size.

Remember, the photographer is the boss while formal photos are getting taken.  Everyone is going to be looking to you for direction.  If you don’t step up and direct people, the crowd will get bored and wander and you will run out of time.  Any planning you do here will be worth it’s weight in gold on the day of the wedding.

Make sure you get names of each person in the main family shots and put those names on your shot list.  This will make it much easier to gather the right people on the day of the wedding.  It’s a lot easier to call for Dave, John, and Bill if you know their names.  This will save you a lot of time and make things run much smoother.

If this is your first wedding, a shot list will help you remember to get all the shots you might otherwise forget.

Understand the venue and make a plan

Once you know what shots you need to get, make sure you fully understand the layout of the wedding venue.

Weddings happen faster than you think.  One second you are putting batteries in your flash and the next second the bride is walking down the aisle with her father.  You have to be in the right place and ready to go.  There are no second chances.

Use your time with the bride or the wedding planner to sketch out a quick diagram of the wedding venue.  This is especially important if the wedding is outdoors or somewhere non-standard.  You need to know the entire flow of the ceremony so you can be in the right place to capture a photo of all the key moments.

Take the sketch and create a diagram for yourself:

Make sure you have a clear understanding of everything that is happening and how things will be laid out. Click to see the full image.

Using the diagram, think through the wedding ceremony and make a battle plan.  Make sure you know exactly where you are going to be when the groom walks out, when the bride walks out, when the vows are taken, etc.  Don’t depend on improvising.

This will also help you identify potential problems.  For example, it may become clear that there is no way for you to get a shot of the bride walking down the aisle from the front while still being able to get the shot looking down the center aisle of the vows being exchanged.  It may turn out that you need a second shooter during the ceremony.  Make sure you identify issues like this now, not when it is too late.

Review with the bride

Once you have your plan together, meet with the bride or wedding planner again and run through it briefly with them.  This will help you identify anything you missed, help burn it into your brain, and it will also make the bride feel a lot more comfortable that you know what you are doing.  The less she is worrying, the better for you.

Shooting the wedding

By the time the wedding arrives, you should be confident in your plan.  Now you just have to carry it out.

What to bring

At a minimum, you need:

• Your main camera
• Fully charged camera battery
• An extra camera battery
• Some sort of backup camera
• Portrait lens with a large aperture
• Wide angle lens
• Flash
• Flash sync cable or remote flash trigger
• Extra flash batteries
• Camera bag to carry everything easily
• A lot of memory cards.  Bring more than you think you can possibly use.
• Print-out of your shot checklist, with times notated
• Pen to write notes or check off your shots
• Assistant to help you, even if they aren’t a photographer

Depending on the type of wedding and the location, you may have extra lighting equipment for portraits or whatever else you think you need.  But don’t use this as an opportunity to try a new piece of gear or a new camera.  Use only items that you have used previously.  Save the experimentation for another day.  If you are renting any new lenses or other gear to use during the wedding, do not have the rented gear show up the day before the wedding.  Give yourself an extra week on the rental ahead of time to practice with the gear before the big day.

Since you are fully prepared, the day should be a breeze.  Just start working through your shot list and have your assistant mark off things as you go.

Before the ceremony

The bride may want you to capture shots of everyone getting ready.  This includes things like the wedding dress on a hanger, the bride finishing getting the dress on, etc.  Just go with what the bride wants so that she feels comfortable.

Bridal portraits

Often, brides will want some photos taken of them in their dress before the wedding or after their wedding, depending on the customs in your local area.  Hopefully you have experience doing portraits, so this part should be easy.  Just make sure to take lots of shots and try to shoot in two or three locations so you will have a lot of material to work with later.  This is also a great time to capture the bride and groom together if they will be seeing each other before the ceremony.

Along with the serious portraits, capture some fun pictures that show the unique personalities of the bride and groom.

Family portraits

Efficiency is the key to group shots.  It’s common to have a bride want photos of every family member and relative in all sorts of configurations.  Since you will have planned the order of all the shots in advance and know exactly which family member is in which shot, this should be easy.

Don’t try to shoot family portraits in different locations.  Pick one spot to save time and so that all the shots have a matching background.  Make sure both you and your assistant know the order of shots and just work through the checklist as quickly and efficiently as possible.  Have your assistant gather the next group while the current group is being photographed. Everyone will appreciate you making this part as painless and as quick as possible.

Find a good background that works for all the group shots. If you don't have to move around between shots, you can save time.

While shooting large groups, make sure you take several of pictures of each group.  Five is a good number.  You can take them in rapid succession.  That sounds like a lot of shots, but someone will always be blinking, looking away, or making a funny face in each shot.  A split second will make all the difference between a great family picture that will be cherished for years and a horrible picture where the mother is grimacing accidently.

The Ceremony

Hopefully this will be the easiest part of the job because you will have planned properly.  All you have to do is be in the right places at the right times.  Of course, take lots of pictures of the key moments in rapid succession to make sure that you get some usable shots with good facial expressions.  Just mentally follow your shot list.  You may not have time to actually pull the list out and check it off during the ceremony, but you should have a good idea of what you need to capture.

If you have free time or a second shooter who can help, get some wide shots of the entire ceremony.  If you are in a church, see if there is a balcony that you can use.  If you are outside, look for a high vantage point to use to capture the scene.

A wide shot of the whole wedding is a great companion to close-up shots of the actual ceremony.

The Reception

Shooting a reception is a lot like shooting any other dinner party.  The most important tip is to make sure you get pictures of everyone at the party.  Many new photographers make the mistake of focusing only on the bride, groom, and immediate family while neglecting to capture photos of all the guests.  After the wedding, the bride is going to want to see pictures of all her friends and family enjoying her wedding.  In addition, everyone will want to see at least a few pictures of themselves.  The more you capture, the happier everyone will be with your photographs.  Don’t leave anyone out.

Impromptu pictures of guests signing the guestbook is a great way to capture the feel of the event.

Make sure you get enough shots to capture the feel of everything that was happening.  The bride spent a lot of time planning every detail from the color of the table cloths to the food to the table decorations.  Make sure you capture all of this for the bride.

Don't forget to take pictures of the reception venue, the food, and the table centerpieces. While the bride probably won't print or frame any of these, she will appreciate being able to look back and remember all of the great decorations and food that she planned.

After the wedding

Backups

The first thing you should do when you get home is backup all of your images.  Pretend the files don’t exist until you have at least two copies in addition to the originals on your memory cards.

For the most security, adhere to the “3-2-1″ backup rule.  That means you need three copies of the files on two different types of media (i.e. hard drives and compact flash cards) with at least one copy off-site (i.e. not at your house, in case it burns down).

Post-processing

You probably already have a workflow for post-processing your images.  There’s no reason to do anything different for a wedding.

If you don’t have a good workflow, here are some suggestions:

• Learn how to use Adobe Lightroom or Apple Aperture to import, manage and edit your images.   A tool like Adobe Lightroom will let you edit many images at once and transfer the edits between similar images.  This will save you many hours of work versus trying to edit hundreds of images directly in Photoshop.
• After you import all your images to your computer, you will likely have a 1000 or more images.  Work with the images in passes.  First, go through and rate all the images really quickly.  Mark the images as unusable, workable, or great, making sure you have at least a workable image of every key moment in the wedding ceremony.  This will allow you to discard probably 75% of the raw images before you even do any image editing.  A tool like Lightroom or Aperture helps enormously in this process.

Delivery

Once you have edited down all the images, you get to enjoy the fun part – sharing the images with the bride and groom!

Whether you post the images online, burn a DVD, or produce prints will depend on what you have worked out with the bride. However, this is a great time to pick a few of the best images and post them as previews on Facebook or another website that the bride and her friends use.  This will get the bride excited to see the pictures, get the friends excited about the wedding again, and also give you a little bit of publicity.

Whatever you do, make sure you deliver the final images within the amount of time you promised the bride.  If you promised two weeks, you had better have them ready in two weeks.  Nothing will ruin an otherwise great wedding photo shoot like long delays and broken promises.

Working with clients is just as much about making them feel good as it is about delivering a good product.  Just like any other business, you want to under-promise and over-deliver.  If you think it will take two weeks to edit the photos, promise three weeks and deliver in two.  You will have an estatic client who is more likely to fall in love with the images and tell all her friends about how great a job you did.

Related posts:

1. How to take vacation photos
2. How to take outdoor portraits
3. How to take amazing photos of your dog

Meanwhile, the price of lenses keeps rising a little every year.  Instead of dropping in cost as technology improves, the prices are going the other direction – inching up 5% to 10% a year.  A good lens starts in the neighborhood of $500 but often costs much more.  Renting lenses can be a great option for occasionally experimenting with new gear, but it’s not a cost-effective solution for long term use.  Using classic lenses is another option available for the frugal or budget-limited photographer who wants to experiment with exotic lenses on the cheap.

Why use old lenses?

A new entry-level 35mm f/2 Canon prime lens sells for $319 dollars.  A new Canon 85mm f/1.8 prime lens costs $419.  Prices rocket up from there into the thousands as lenses become better built.  You can find older lenses with similar technical specifications for a much lower price.  This is especially true for traditionally expensive lenses like wide angle lenses.

Another reason to try using a classic lens is feel and shooting experience.  While this is a much more esoteric concept, shooting with a manual lens is a very different feeling than shooting with a modern auto-focus lens.  You will find yourself taking different types of pictures because of the extra thought involved.  It also takes a lot more work to shoot without all of the automatic features of a new lens, so you will learn a lot.

Which old lenses work with my SLR?

Every lens is designed to fit into a certain type of lens mount.  The lens mount is the place on your camera where the lens connects or screws on.  Different camera manufacturers design different lens mounts and they are usually not interchangeable.  If the lens you want to use is from a different mounting system, you will need an adapter to make the lens fit on your camera.

Along with the mount, each lens is designed to have the back of the lens at a very specific distance from the camera’s internal image sensor.  This is called the “flange focal distance” of FFD for short.  If this distance is wrong, the optics of the camera will be incorrect and the camera won’t be able to focus at all distances.

The distance between the back flange of the lens and the camera's image sensor is the Flange Focal Distance or FFD.

Adding an adapter between the lens and the camera will push the lens further out which adds additional space between the lens and image sensor.  This increases the effective FFD.  If the adapter pushes the lens too far out, the back of the lens will be too far from the camera’s image sensor which can cause focus issues.  If the lens is too far in, it may hit internal camera components and damage the camera.

Adding a lens mount adapter to make the lens fit will prevent the lens from sitting all the way in the camera.

Modern Canon lenses are designed with a 44mm FFD.  That means the back of the lens must be 44mm from the image sensor for the optics to work out correctly so that the picture can be in focus.  Nikon lenses are designed with a longer FFD of 46.5mm.  That means a Nikon lens must be further from the image sensor than a Canon lens to be in focus.

That seems like a bunch of lens nerd trivia right?  It’s actually the key point which determines which lenses will work well on which cameras.  Since the Nikon lens must be 46.5mm from the sensor to focus but a Canon camera is designed have the lens sit 44mm from the sensor, there is a 2.5mm difference.  So if you make an adapter that is 2.5mm thick, a Nikon lens would sit at the proper place to focus on a Canon camera body!

Because of the difference in FFD between Canon and Nikon, a Canon camera can use a Nikon lens perfectly with the proper adapter.

As you can see, certain cameras are more adept to working with certain lenses because they just happen to fit well with an adapter.  In general, you will have an easier time mounting a classic lens on a Canon camera than a Nikon camera because the Canon design leaves more room for an adapter while still allowing the lens to focus correctly.

A Nikon lens to Canon camera adapter is cheap and simple. Converting the other way (from Canon to Nikon) is much more complicated.

Because decades-old Nikon “F-mount” lenses and Canon “EF-mount” lenses still work just fine on new cameras, those lenses are still in demand and are not easy to find cheaply.  Instead, the most old common lens you will find for cheap is called an “M42 mount” lens.  These style of lenses were made starting in the 1940s and were popular through the early 1980s.  They are still made today in some areas like Russia.

An m42 lens uses a “screw mount” and requires an FFD of 45.5mm.  Based on what we’ve just learned about FFDs, that means you can easily mount an M42 lens on a Canon but you can’t mount it on a Nikon without focus problems.

Since the M42 lens  screws into a camera body whereas a Canon EF lens snaps into a bayonet-style mount, you will need an adapter.  The adapters are very cheap and are easily available on Amazon.com:

This M42 to Canon adapter can be had on Amazon for less than $10. Just click on the picture to order one.

If you want to use a lens that has a smaller FFD than your camera, a simple adapter like this won’t work.  If you ignore the FFD requirement and mount a lens like this as close as possible to the camera body, you will end up with a lens that can’t focus far-away objects.  While the exact limitations depend on the design of the lens, this option is not worth trying.

Another more popular option is to utilize a more complicated adapter that contains optics to compensate for the FFD difference.  The optics in the adapter will allow your lens to focus in all situations.  The downside is that the optics within the adapter are likely of a much poorer quality than those in your lens.  By inserting these lower quality optics between your lens and the sensor, your picture quality can be degraded.

Where can I get M42 lenses?

The first place to look for M42 lenses is your local used camera store.  They may have lots of them just waiting for a new home.

You can also buy them online.  The best places to find M42 lenses for cheap are online markets like eBay’s M42 Lens section, your local Craigslist.org site, or KEH, a popular online classified site for vintage photo gear.

There are also some great M42 lenses still being manufactured in Russia for cheap prices.  The most popular is the $180 fisheye lens.  You can even buy Russian-made Tilt/Shift lenses for a fraction of the price of a Canon model.

This is the Zenitar m42 16mm f/2.8 fisheye. Where else can you get a new fisheye lens for $180?

How do I shoot with a manual lens?

Lenses attached to your DSLR camera with an adapter are only going to work in manual mode.  You won’t be able to use auto-focus or auto-exposure controls.  And unlike your modern lenses, there is no electrical connection between your manual lens and your camera body.  This means that your camera cannot sense the current aperture setting of the lens or whether or not the lens is in focus.  To shoot with the lens, you will have to operate your camera in a fashion similar to an old manual 35mm film camera using a technique called ‘stop-down metering’.

Stop-Down Metering

1. Place the camera in Manual mode.
2. Look through the viewfinder as you rotate the aperture ring on your camera.  You will notice that the image you see gets darker or lighter depending on how much you close or open the aperture.  You will also notice the depth of field change as you adjust the aperture.
3. Select an ISO setting appropriate for your scene.  For example, you might choose ISO 100 if you are outside in the sun, or ISO 800 or higher if you are indoors.
4. Select a shutter speed appropriate for your subject that is fast enough to avoid camera shake.  1/60 or 1/50 is a good place to start.
5. Open the camera aperture all the way and focus on your subject.
6. Once your subject is in focus, stop the aperture down and half-press your shutter button so the camera will meter the image.  If the meter indicates you have enough light, go ahead and shoot.  If not, adjust accordingly.

With practice you will be able to focus at aperture settings other than wide open.  This is useful as it shortens the number of steps to take the photo

The Manual ‘Feel’

It definitely requires more skill and effort to shoot with a manual lens.  So other than saving money, why should you bother?

If you spend any time on photo sites on the internet you will see there is an endless debate between the merits of film and digital.  Hardcore film shooters love to use old manual camera bodies.  They enjoy the look of photos taken with film and respect the time and effort it takes to setup each shot.  Hardcore digital shooters love the latest technology, the ease of editing RAW files and the ability to shoot without worrying about the cost of each shot.  If you use a manual lens on a digital body, you will find some of the benefits of both worlds.

The downside to digital is that it’s easy to forget about framing a shot and just click away.  Why try to get the perfect shot when you can take 10 shots now at no additional cost and find one that you like later?  Using a manual lens on a digital body will force you to slow down and put more effort into the composition of each shot.

Here are some example shots taken with m42 lenses from the Flickr M42 group:

On the low end of lenses is where you will find the value opportunities and cheap entertainment.  It is not uncommon to walk into a used camera shop and find a table of M42 lenses where all the lenses are under $20.  I walked into a shop in town and walked out with a nice 35mm f/2.8 lens for free.  You will be able to find a wide variety of zooms and primes, some of which will be pretty fast and a higher build quality than a lot of modern plastic lenses.  The reason they are cheap is that millions of these lenses were made and very few people want them anymore.  You will not be able to stumble into a shop and find many Canon EF Lenses for under $350.

Related posts:

1. How to choose a new lens for your digital SLR camera
2. How to make the jump from automatic shooting to manual shooting
3. How to create black and white photos with a DSLR camera

Be mindful of your travel companions

The first consideration when planning your vacation is to consider how your photo obsession is going to affect any friends or family members who are on vacation with you.  While you may look forward to carrying around a camera bag, extra lenses, a tripod, a reflector set and several flashes, your significant other may not be quite as amused.  It’s hard to get great vacation photos if everyone is mad at your for slowing them down waiting for you to unpack and repack gear.  Carefully planning which gear you bring can help avoid this issue.

For vacation, minimalism is the key.  If you have piles of gear in your collection, don’t bring it all!

Here’s a suggested list of what you really need:

• One DSLR camera body
• One or two lenses specifically picked to cover the types of situations you will encounter
• Essential lens filters (circular polarizer, UV filter, and maybe an ND filter)
• One flash (if you typically use flash)
• A flash sync cable and/or remote trigger
• A compact bag to hold these items – preferably “backpack” style
• Extra CF or SD cards and batteries
• One pocket-sized camera for the times when a DSLR really just isn’t appropriate

This set of gear will work fine in most situations without weighing you down or making you look like you are on a National Geographic expedition.  Obviously you will want to adjust this list based on your specific needs.  For example, you will need an underwater camera casing and lights if you are doing underwater photography.  If you are going on an African photo safari, then ignore this list completely and bring everything you own.  But otherwise, put some real thought into what gear you take and leave everything that isn’t essential at home.

Try to choose a camera bag that doesn’t look too much like a camera bag.  If you can find something that looks like a small normal backpack with straps, it will prevent you from looking too much like a tourist and reduce the chances that you will draw unwanted attention.  Having straps also helps keep both of your arms free so that you don’t have to constantly ask your travel companions to hold gear or bags for you.  Make sure the bag you choose is something that you can carry on a plane.  You never want to check your camera gear on a plane if you can avoid it.

Learn about your destination

Before you go on your trip, try to learn as much about specific tourist sites you are going to visit.  First, look up your destination on wikitravel.org to get tips on other nearby attractions you may want to visit.  You may find ideas for other nearby sites that you want to add to your travel plans.

After you have decided on the attractions that you want to visit, search for the name of the attractions on flickr.  Then on the flickr search results, click the “Interesting” sort option.  That will show you the best photos taken in that the area.

I searched for "Taj Mahal" and clicked the "Interesting" option on the results to see the best of the best photos for the area.

Browse through a few pages of the best photos to get ideas for your own photos.  You may see lots of ideas that you never considered.  There is no better way to be creatively inspired then to see what thousands of others have already done so that you can build on their ideas and come up with a fresh take.

Time the light

The next critical step in planning is to consider how you are going to spend your days on vacation and try to plan your activities around the best times to take photos.  This is the area where most people mess up and it is the single most important thing you can do to improve your vacation photos!

As you will recall from our previous articles, certain times of day are much better for taking photos than others.  Photos taken outdoors around sunrise and sunset will look much better than photos taken at noon because the lighting will be much better.  Despite this, most people plan their vacation activities for the late morning and early afternoon when light is the worst!

Shameless plug: If you are looking for a handy way to track what time of day is best for taking photos, check out our PhotoForecast application for the iPhone and for Android phones.  It will tell you exactly when the sun will be in the best spot for taking photos for your exact location.  Best of all, it’s always with you in your pocket!

If you are going to Mexico to tour Mayan ruins, your natural inclination will be to get up in the morning, have breakfast, travel to the ruins, take photos, and then leave by the afternoon.  However, that puts you on location from about 10am to 2pm – the absolute worst times to take photos!  Instead, try to plan your activities so that you will be at your most interesting photography sites in the early morning or late afternoon/early evening.  You get much better light while you avoid the daytime crowds.

Taking pictures near sunrise or sunset will make a huge difference in the quality of the photo. Think of the setting sun as a studio light source and find an angle where it illuminates the scene in an interesting way.

Instead of scheduling your tours for the middle of the day, use that time to visit indoor museums or just sit on the beach.  Try to plan anything that you want to photograph for the very early morning or late afternoon.  If you plan things skillfully, your travel companions won’t notice a different but you will be in the right place at the right time to get the best photos possible.

Learn to deal with varied natural light

Photographers have a whole bag of tricks to work with bad outdoor light.  If you are shooting in direct sunlight, you can use a large diffuser to block the sun over your subject.  If the subject is back lit, you can use a reflector to bounce light on the subject or you can use a fill flash.  The list goes on and on.  The problem with all those solutions is they require extra gear and extra helpers to hold that gear.  You don’t want to have to deal with that on vacation.

You probably can't get away with having your significant other hold reflectors while you are on vacation. Leave the reflector at home.

If you are stuck with bad lighting despite your best planning, try shooting from different directions and in different areas until you find somewhere that the lighting is acceptable.  For example, a pocket of shade on the side of a building may provide a great place for photographing people.  Put them in the shade to cut down on the harsh overhead sunlight.

Use bad weather to your advantage

Sometimes your vacation will be spoiled by rain.  But instead of canceling your tours, push ahead and go anyway.  Rain often brings clouds which act like a giant soft box.  The clouds soften and diffuse the light.  That makes it much easier to take outdoor photos in the middle of the day without harsh shadows.

Overcast weather is great for portraits or even landscapes. Rainstorms can be interesting, too.

As long as you avoid truly dangerous weather like lightning and tornadoes, dramatic weather can lead to some great photo results.

Find a unique vantage point

If you are going to a popular tourist location on your vacation, chances are that every other tourist will also have a camera.  If you want to produce something unique and interesting, you need to go where the other tourists aren’t going.  This requires creativity and a willingness to try unconventional things.

You don't have to rent a helicopter to get this shot. This was taken from the top level of a tour boat.

Look at your surroundings and consider everything as a possible vantage point.  If you see a potential shot but have no way to get into position, consider enlisting the help of the locals.  In many areas, you can hire a water taxi for a few dollars.  Consider hiring one to take you out for your photograph even if you aren’t going anywhere.  As long as the driver gets paid, he won’t care where you are going.

Hiring a water taxi for a few dollars was all it took to get a shot from this vantage point.

Don’t be afraid to be bold.  Even if you feel self-conscious while taking pictures, most people won’t give you a second look.  Don’t be a afraid to walk into a hotel, ride the elevator to the top floor, and take a picture if it gets you a better shot.  See a parking deck that overlooks an interesting location?  Just walk up the stairs, take your shot from the top, and leave quietly.  As long as you aren’t bothering anyone, it is unlikely that anyone will bother you.

Don’t try to hide reality

Many photographers instinctively try to capture “postcard photos” that show a tourist location in a “perfect” way.  This usually means making sure there are no stray tourists and ugly buildings are in your shot.  But guess what?  You can buy a postcard in the closest shop for less than a dollar.  Instead of trying to recreate those synthetic shots, embrace the true feeling of the location.  Try to capture the actual feel of the place you are visiting.  If there is a large crowd, capture the crowd.  That is part of the story.

This is a great shot, but millions of people have this shot. Don't stop here. Try to find a unique situation to shoot that incorporates the crowd of people.

In fact, you can go a step further.  Instead of avoiding the crowd and trying to hide it, look for interesting situations.  Below is a photo of tourists waiting to get shoe covers that are required before entering the Taj Mahal.  It was an all-out yelling match for shoe booties.  This shot tells a real story as opposed to being just another boring shot of a white building.

The fight for shoe booties at the Taj Mahal

Play Around

After you get all the shots that you want, try playing with some new techniques.  Here is a fun technique to try on your vacation.

Panoramic Photos

One really fun way to share the experience of “being there” is to take panoramic photos.  This involves taking several photos while spinning in place and then stitching them together into one large photo when you get back to a computer.

It's always fun to try a few panoramic shots. Try combining them with other techniques like black and white.

The process is really easy:

1. Use manual mode on your camera and adjust the exposure on your camera to match the light outside.  Using manual mode will keep the exposure consistent between each photo and will make it easier to get a smooth-looking result.
2. Tilt your camera on the side like your are taking a portrait.  This is counter-intuitive, but it will give you more vertical coverage in your final panorama.
3. Take a photo of the scene in font of you.
4. Rotate to the left (making sure you overlap about 20% of the area of your first photo) and take another picture.
5. Continue turning and taking pictures until you cover the whole area you want to photograph.
6. Back at your computer, export the series of photos into a folder.
7. Use the “File”->”Automate”->”Photomerge” menu option in Photoshop CS3 or CS4 to open the series of photos.  It will automatically put them all together for you!
8. Crop the final photo to cut off the rough edges and show off your photo!

Creating panoramic photos is totally automated in Photoshop CS3 and newer. Open Photomerge, select the individual photos, and then click ok. Photoshop handles the rest!

Travel in your own backyard

Don’t forget that you don’t have to wait until your next vacation to take great outdoor photos of interesting places.  No matter where you live, there’s bound to be an interesting place that you’ve never explored.  Look online for parks and attractions that you have never visited.  You might find something amazing close to home!

Sunset Cliffs in San Diego, CA. Many people who live in San Diego have never visited here.

Related posts:

1. How to take amazing photos of your dog
2. How to create black and white photos with a DSLR camera
3. How to take outdoor portraits

And despite that fact that most cameras have a built-in flash mount, actually putting the flash on it is usually a terrible idea.  You will quickly discover that getting the flash off the camera and being able to fire it remotely is vital to getting good images.  In the second section of this article, we will give you suggestions on hardware that will allow you to use your flash remotely.

Note: This guide is specific to the Canon and Nikon lighting systems.  Covering every manufacturer would be impossible.  If you use a camera made by a different manufacturer, feel free to post a comment with flash recommendations for your camera!  Also, this article is focused on TTL speedlight flash systems.  It does not attempt to cover the wide range of manual flashes available.

Step 1: Choosing the Flash Unit

“Dumb” flashes

All of the flashes made by Canon and Nikon support TTL or “through the lens” metering.  This is the ability for the flash units to send out a pre-flash, have it analyzed by the camera “through the lens” and then have the camera tell each flash how much light to put out for a proper exposure.  This ability makes it much easier to capture great pictures on the go, but it also makes the flash units more costly.

If you are working in a studio where the power of each light can be dialed in carefully (or if you fancy yourself a master of manual exposure control), you may not need the ability to do TTL.  However, TTL flashes can still operate perfectly fine in manual mode so the only reason not to get TTL flashes is to save money.  But think carefully about your future needs before skimping up front.  TTL is very powerful and you may find yourself wishing you had the ability later on.

Vivitar 285HV Auto Professional Flash – If you don’t care about TTL, this is an amazing flash for an amazing price.  It’s powerful, bright, and produces amazing shots in the right hands.  The learning curve is steep since there is no TTL, but it only costs $85.

Cheap-o Flashes

Opteka EF-600 DG Super EO-TTL II Speed Blitz Flash (for Canon) – If you can’t afford anything better but still want TTL support, you can grab this flash.  It’s not particularly powerful and it doesn’t play very well with other Canon flashes, but it is cheap.  It also takes a long time to recharge between shots.  If there is any way you can afford it, get the Canon 430EX II instead.  It will be a much better investment in the long run.

Opteka EF-600 DG Super EO-TTL II Speed Blitz Flash (for Nikon) – Just like the Canon version, this flash is strictly for seriously budget-crunched buyers.  If at all possible, get the Nikon SB-600 instead.  You’ll be happier in the long run.

Small Flashes

Canon Speedlight 270EX – This is Canon’s smallest flash.  It doesn’t put out a whole lot of light, but it’s better than anything that might be built into your camera.  This flash is ideal if you have a small camera or mid-sized camera (like a Canon G11) and want a small flash to go with it.  For any other use, plan on getting something bigger.

Nikon SB-400 AF – This is Nikon’s smaller flash.  Nikon has discontinued it, but you can still buy it new from Amazon.  Since it’s going away, you might want to consider getting the SB-600 instead.

Mid-range Flashes

Canon Speedlight 430 EX II – This is a great all-around flash.  It can talk to other Canon flashes using an IR wireless signal, but it can only operate as a “slave” flash.  It can’t command other flashes.  These are great flashes to start with.  If you get a Canon 580 EX II later, you can still use the 430 EX II as a slave with it.

Nikon SB-600 Speedlight – The SB-600 is a solid flash and works fine in most cases.  However, it can only operate as a slave flash in the Nikon flash system.  So you may want to spring for the Nikon SB-900 Speedlight if your camera can’t act as a master flash.

High-end Flashes

Canon Speedlight 580 EX II – This is the top flash in the Canon lighting system.  This flash has full support for acting as both a master and a slave when talking to other Canon flashes using IR wireless signals.  If you have the money and plan to use multiple flashes together, you probably want at least one of these to act as a master flash.  It also puts out more light than the Canon 430EX II.

Nikon SB-900 Speedlight – This is Nikon’s top flash.  It can operate in wireless mode as a commander for other flash units.  It is the most powerful Speedlight that Nikon makes.  If you have the money and plan to do multi-flash work or need a lot of power, buy one of these.

Step 2: Getting the flash off of the camera

Now that you have acquired one or more flashes, you need to figure out how to get them off the camera.  Flash units mounted on the camera shoot light directly at the subject.  This makes for very poor lighting.  You can get amazing results by placing the flash or flashes at an angle to the subject instead of pointing it dead on.

There are many ways to trigger a flash remotely, both wireless and using wires.  Each has advantages and disadvantages.

Camera-controlled infrared wireless

Both Nikon and Canon flashes can be triggered using signals from a camera.  However, only certain camera bodies support this feature.

Pros:

• Full TTL automatic exposure for each remote flash unit
• Doesn’t require anything besides the camera and flash unit

Cons:

• Requires “line of sight” between camera and flash
• Only works over a limited distance
• Doesn’t work well outside in bright light
• Only supported on a few camera models
  • Canon: 7D
  • Nikon: Most newer models with a pop-up flash built-in

What to buy:

• Nothing.  If you have the right camera and flash unit, you can try this out now!

Infrared wireless with camera-mounted commander

If your camera doesn’t have the ability to act as a flash commander (or master in Canon terminology), you can buy an add-on module to act as a flash commander.

Pros:

• Full TTL automatic exposure for each remote flash unit

Cons:

• Requires “line of sight” between camera and flash
• Only works over a limited distance
• Doesn’t work well outside in bright light
• Requires an expensive add-on module

What to buy:

Canon

• Canon STE2 Speedlite Transmitter

Nikon

• SU-800 Wireless Speedlight Commander

Infrared wireless using a flash unit as a commander

If your camera doesn’t have the ability to act as a flash commander (or master in Canon terminology), you can use higher-end flash units to trigger other flashes.

Pros:

• Full TTL automatic exposure for each remote flash unit

Cons:

• Requires “line of sight” between camera and flash
• Only works over a limited distance
• Doesn’t work well outside in bright light
• Requires a top-of-the-line flash dedicated to the task of firing other remote flashes

What to buy:

Canon

• Canon Speedlight 580 EX II

Nikon

• Nikon SB-900 Speedlight

Flash Sync Cord

The low-tech solution to using a remote flash is to use a flash sync cord.  With the right cord, you can retain full TTL capabilities.  However, the cables can be expensive and can get in the way.

Pros:

• Full TTL automatic exposure for the remote flash unit
• Low tech and very reliable
• Everyone should own at least one of these as a back-up

Cons:

• Limited to just one flash
• Limited cable length
• Cables can get in the way

What to buy

Canon

• Opteka TTL Flash Sync Cord (for Canon)

Nikon

• Nikon SC-28 TTL Remote Cord

Radio-controlled Flash Triggers

For the ultimate in flexibility, you can buy remote trigger systems for flashes that use radio signals to communicate.  This avoids the light of sight limitation, but it doesn’t come cheap.  Most professionals go this route.

Pros:

• Full TTL automatic exposure for each remote flash unit (if you get the latest models)
• Very reliable (if you get the right brand)

Cons:

• Expensive
• Lots to buy – you need a transmitter plus a receiver for each flash unit

What to buy:

Canon

• Pocket Wizard FlexTT5 Transceiver For Canon TTL Flashes

Nikon

• Pocket Wizard FlexTT5 Transceiver For Nikon TTL Flashes (coming soon)

Related posts:

1. How to choose a digital camera
2. How to choose a new lens for your digital SLR camera
3. How to use a classic manual lens on your DSLR camera

But with the explosion in digital photography over the last few years, there are a lot more pictures out on the internet than there are viewers.  In most cases, it’s hard enough to find people interested in looking your photos let alone steal them.

However, if you manage to build an audience, you will have to constantly deal with people taking your images and using them without your permission.  How you decide to deal with that fact can have a major effect on your photography career and income.

Note: This article is specific to the laws of the United States.  If you live in another country and can fill us in on the rules in your country, please post a comment below with the details!

It is my image, right?

Your copyright begins when you click the shutter button.

In most cases when you take a picture, you automatically own the copyright to the image.  That means you without doing anything at all, you have the sole ability to sell the image for money.  One exception to this is if you are being paid as an employee to photograph for someone else.  In that case, the company paying you may own the image if you signed an agreement.  There are some other exceptions, too.  For example, you can’t take a picture of a piece of art or another person’s picture and then sell your picture since you didn’t create anything new and didn’t have the copyright to what you photographed.

However, having the copyright your the image does not mean you have complete control over the image.  The law allows for fair use of your image by others without asking your permission.  The rules of fair use are not set in stone, but generally someone may use your image for criticism, commentary, parody, news reporting, research or education without asking you or paying you as long as they are not depriving you of income.  For example, someone could post a small version of your picture on their blog along with a criticism of your image and it is totally legal.  So before you get mad at someone for “stealing” your image, keep in mind that they may not be doing anything wrong at all.  For more information on the rules of fair use, check out the NOLO article.

If copyright is automatic, what else is there to do?

Your goal: Get a copyright registration certificate for your images

You automatically own the copyright to your images, but the rights you get automatically are limited.  You are in much better shape if you actually register your copyright with the federal government.

Here’s something that a lot of people don’t know:

You can’t successfully sue someone for using your copyrighted image unless you have formally filed copyright registration.   The case will be thrown out because you have no legal standing.

It’s true!  If you walk by a bus stop tomorrow and see a major company plastering your picture all over it in a giant ad, you can’t actually sue the company until you register your image.  That means that now you need to file a copyright registration, wait for the registration to be processed (usually about 8 months), and then sue.

But it gets worse.  If you file a registration after someone has already taken your image, you are much less protected.  It will be much harder to convince the court that you own the image.  And even if you win, you won’t get legal costs repaid and you can only win the amount of money you actually lost due to the misuse.

If you register your image before anyone steals it, you are set!  In that case, it is simple to prove that you own the image by showing the judge your registration certificate.  And if you registered your image before it was published or within three months of publication, you can also sue for legal costs.  Finally, you will be able to sue for statutory damages.  That means that you can sue for a fixed amount of money (up to $150,000 in some cases) even if you didn’t actually lose that much money due to the other person using your image.

How do I register my images?

The ASMP provides a step-by-step guide to filing copyright registrations online.

Filing for copyright registration is easy in the digital world:

1. Create a ZIP file of all the images you want to register
2. Fill out some forms online at the Copyright Office web page
3. Upload the ZIP file along with your application
4. Pay the government $35

You can register as many images as you want at once.  The most complicated part is that you can’t mix and match published and unpublished images in the same filing.  You have to register published images separately from unpublished images.  Determining if an image is published or unpublished is tricky in the digital world since posting the image online on your website may be considered “publication”.  Your best bet is to follow the excellent tutorial published by the ASMP.

Can I stop people online from copying my images?

Firefox's built-in "Page Info" window can easily download "protected" images from Flickr.com.

By registering your images with the copyright office, you are fully protected under the law.  You may also be wondering how you can use technology to prevent people from taking your images.

Here are some common ways that people suggest to protect your images on the web:

• Using a script to block the ability to save the image in a web browser
• Embedding your image in a Flash application
• Overlaying a transparent image on top of your image to confuse users trying to click on the image to save it
• Adding watermarks to the image

All of these methods are completely ineffective at preventing theft of your images.  If a user can see your image on their screen, they can easy take a screenshot of the image and save it.  No fancy webpage tricks will slow them down at all.  And watermarks don’t prevent copying.  Often, they can even be removed or cloned out of an image using Photoshop.  Watermarks are more useful as a way to give credit to the photographer than as a means of preventing copying.

Once an image is online, it can be copied.  The only way you can reduce the copying of your images is by not posting full-size images online in the first place.  If you only post smaller versions of your images, the images won’t look good as prints.  That will greatly reduce the likelihood that someone will take your image and do something truly bad with it (like using it in a print advertising campaign).

Do I even want to stop copying?

Photographers are bred with the idea that they must control their images.  However, that is not always the best choice.  In many cases, it is beneficial to share images.

Flickr.com is a popular photo sharing site.  By visiting their Recent Uploads page, you can see how many photos were uploaded to Flickr in the last minute.  At any given time, that number is in the thousands.  And that is just one photo sharing site!

These days, obscurity is often a bigger threat than theft.  You have to compete with tens of thousands of new images being uploaded to the internet every minute.  Those images are being created by millions of individual photographers with millions of individual websites.  If you are so worried about protecting your images that no one ever sees them, you are only hurting yourself.

A popular way to share your images freely while maintaining control is to publish your images with a Creative Commons license.  By licensing your images under the Creative Commons, you are allowing anyone to take your images for free under certain limited circumstances.  For example, you can choose to allow anyone to use your images for non-commercial use and require that they give you credit any time the image is used.  You can also restrict their ability to modify the image.

While sharing your images may seem counter-intuitive, it is often quite beneficial.  By making your images freely available for noncommercial use, it helps to spread your name.  Then it might catch the eye of a business who would have to pay you separately to use the image for commercial purposes. This may not be appropriate for wedding or portrait photographers who depend on selling individual images to consumers, but it may be a great way for travel and landscape photographers to build their brand.

Licensing your work under the Creative Commons is very easy.  Just follow the tutorial.

Be realistic

DeviantArt user =pumatooth stole this photo from me and claimed to have taken it. But is this idiot worth suing?

If you find that someone has taken your work, assess what exactly is happening.  They may be legally using your photograph uder fair use.  They may be illegally using your photograph, but it might not be worth worrying about it if they aren’t making any money.  If they are making money off your image, it is probably worth taking further action.

Copyright is not an absolute power that lets you control your image in every possible way.  Instead, it is a tool to help you make money with your photos if you want to make money with them.  If you don’t care about making money, there is nothing wrong with sharing your photos with everyone.

Related posts:

1. How to take amazing photos of your dog
2. How to photograph a wedding
3. How to create black and white photos with a DSLR camera

But if you have talked to your camera nerd friends or have read anything online, you’ve certainly heard of a mysterious”manual” mode.  You’ve probably also heard that it is “better than automatic” and that “automatic mode is stupid.”

Is there really anything to this manual mode nonsense?  If your camera can take perfectly good pictures automatically, why try to outsmart it?

The problem with Automatic

The automatic exposure system on your camera has one goal and only one goal.  It wants to make sure that there is enough light hitting your camera’s sensor to produce an image.  If there is too little light, your picture will be too dark.  If there is too much light, your picture will be too bright.  In automatic mode, your camera strives to get just enough light.  Most of the time, it can do a pretty good job of this.

There are three ways to control the amount of light recorded by your camera.  By adjusting each of these three variables, your camera can make sure that every picture you take produces an image with the proper amount of light:

1. By adjusting the “sensitivity” setting on the camera’s image sensor
2. By keeping the “shutter” open a longer or shorter amount of time
3. By opening the hole in the lens called the “aperture” wider or narrower

Cameras can automatically control these three variables.  In automatic mode, your camera will decide in a split second exactly how wide to open it’s aperture, how long to keep it open, and how sensitive the sensor needs to be to properly record the image.

The problem is that changing each of these variables will drastically alter the final look of your picture!  Opening the aperture more causes the background of the picture to go out of focus.  Keeping the shutter open longer makes everything in the image blurry.  Adjusting the sensitivity of the sensor affects the overall quality of the image by adding ugly “noise”.

In automatic mode, you don’t have any control over which choices are made!  That’s why you just end up with a bunch of generic-looking snapshots.  With a little bit of practice in manual mode, you can create something much more interesting.

This shot would be almost impossible in automatic mode but is very simple in manual mode. The nice blurry background is caused by using a wide aperture opening on the camera. In automatic mode, your camera would try to close the aperture to a smaller size because of the bright light in the scene. You would get a totally different look - just a "snapshot" look.

What do I gain by shooting in Manual?

As a photographer, you have exactly two jobs:

• First, you have to make sure your final image “comes out” by capturing just enough light.  This is the technical aspect of your job.
• Second, you have to make sure that the final image is interesting by using all the capabilities of your camera to make your picture tell a story.  This is the artistic aspect of your job.

With automatic mode, your camera handles the first task for you (and quite well!).  The problem is that handling the first task means that it makes all the decisions for you which prevents you from handling the second task.

Taking creative pictures almost impossible in automatic, but even more so in low light. This shot was easily done using manual control with very little light.

Let’s go through each way you can control the amount of light coming into your camera.  Each method has side effects which change the final look of your image.

Manual Controls

Control #1: Light Sensitivity (ISO Speed)

Your digital camera has an image sensor inside of it.  This image sensor is what records the picture – it is the digital version of “film”.

The image sensor from inside of a Canon 5D mkII camera

But just like your own eyes, the sensor can see well in different amounts of light. Unlike your eyes, someone has to tell it how sensitive it needs to be.  Like the volume knob on your television or radio, this sensor has a “volume” control that controls how much light it records.  The higher you turn up the sensitivity, the less light you need to make a picture.  However, higher sensitivity levels push your camera to the limit and add ugly “noise” to your image.

Camera sensitivity is measured according to a confusing scale called the ISO scale.  The history behind the name of the scale is pretty complicated, but all you need to know is that lower numbers mean the sensor is less sensitive and higher numbers mean the sensor is more sensitive.  Typically, ISO 100 is the least sensitive setting.  The most sensitive setting varies according to the capabilities of your camera.

Here is an example of how an image appears brighter with higher ISO settings:

The ISO scale doubles each time the image is twice as bright.  So ISO 1600 is only twice as bright as ISO 800 – it’s not 800% brighter.

Note that higher ISO settings make the final image look worse by adding “noise” that appears as ugly dots in the final image.  More expensive cameras typically can operate at higher sensitivity levels without nearly as much noise.  That’s one reason that some digital cameras cost $5000 while others only cost $700.  The more expensive ones can often shoot good pictures with much less light.

Control #2: How long the camera shutter is open (Shutter Speed)

The next variable you can control is how long the camera’s opening stays open.  The opening in your camera lens is covered by a “shutter”.  When you click the button on your camera to take a picture, the shutter opens for a brief moment.  The longer it stays open, the more light comes into the camera.

Shutter speed is measured in a very simple scale – fractions of a second.  So a 1/50 shutter speed means the camera stays open for one fiftieth of a second.  That sounds like barely any time at all, but it’s actually quite a long time in photographic terms.  Anything that moves while the shutter is open will appear as blurry in the final image.  By using a faster shutter speed, you can “freeze” the action.  But to use a faster shutter speed, you need more light because the shutter wasn’t open as long and not as much light reached the image sensor.

Notice how these birds appear at different shutter speeds:

The moving bird appears quite blurry at 1/50th of a second.  But at 1/800th of a second, the flying bird is very sharp.  That’s because even a flying bird doesn’t move much in 1/800th of a second so it appears to be “still” in the picture.

In most cases, you want the shutter speed to be fast enough to capture your image without any blurryness.  However, there are many cool effects that you can do by keeping the shutter open for a long time while the camera is fixed on a tripod.  For example, water in a waterfall or ocean will take on a very “dreamy” effect if you leave the shutter open for a long time.

Notice how the ocean water in this picture has a cool "flat" look. This was done by keeping the shutter open for a long time to smooth out the water. With automatic mode, this shot would have been a boring snapshot.

Control #3: Aperture Size

The third way to control light coming into your camera is to change the size of the opening in the camera’s lens.  This hole, called the aperture, is the place where light enters the camera.  Obviously a bigger hole lets in more light than a smaller hole.

But this is where things get complicated.  Because of the way light focusing works, a larger opening causes the background of the image to become blurry.  A small opening causes more of the background to be in focus.

The scale used to measure the size of the size of the opening (again, called the aperture) is the “f-number” scale.  It sounds a lot more complicated than it is.  There is just one trick- a smaller number means the opening is bigger.   The f-number scale is what a math major would call a geometric sequence.  If you aren’t a math major and don’t know what “a power sequence of the square root of 2″ means, just memorize it:  f/1.4, f/2, f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6, f/8, f/11, f/16, f/22.

Here’s a chart that shows how the background is very blurry at big settings and sharp at small settings:

Each lens you own will have a number written on it like “F4″ or “F1.8″.  The number written on the lens is the biggest opening the lens can handle.  It can always make the hole smaller to let less light in.  Lens with low numbers like F1.4 or F1.2 are more expensive because it takes more optics inside a lens to handle larger holes.  It can also make the lenses heavier.

This also means that an F1.8 lens can open wider than an F4 lens and thus it can also blur the background more.  That’s why lenses with low f-numbers (and thus large openings) are preferred for portraits.  Portraits look good with the background blurry.  This blurry background effect is called “bokeh“.

This photo was taken with the lens set at F1.8. That means the lens was open really wide and let a lot of light into the camera. It also means that the background is completely blurry which is nice in a portrait. Photo copyright Adam Geitgey.

When you are taking a landscape photo, you don’t want a large aperture opening.  That’s because you want the entire landscape in focus.  It is the opposite of portraits.

This landscape shot was taken at F/11 so that more of the landscape would be in focus. At F1.8, most of the mountain would be out of focus which would look really bad in most cases.

How to actually take a picture

I’m sure you already know how to take a picture in automatic:

1. Set the camera to automatic mode
2. Point the camera at something
3. Zoom in (if you are using a zoom lens)
4. Click the shutter button

Taking a picture in manual is just four extra steps:

1. Set the camera to manual mode
2. Set the ISO sensitivity at an appropriate value – ISO 100 for a sunny day, ISO 400 to ISO 3200 for inside a building (depending how much much light you have in the room)
3. Point the camera at something
4. Zoom in (if you are using a zoom lens)
5. Dial in either the shutter speed or aperture speed that you want to create the desired look
6. Press the shutter button half way down.  This triggers the camera’s light meter.  It will tell you if your picture will be too dark or too light
7. Based on what the light meter says, dial in the aperture of shutter speed (whichever one you didn’t set in step 5) until the light meter tells you that your exposure is right in the middle
8. Take a picture!

Do all these steps sound complicated?  It really isn’t bad at all.  You just need to practice!  Pick up your camera right now and try shooting in manual!  Remember, the light meter on your camera is your friend.  It will help you get your exposure correct.  Listen to it and it will guide you in the right direction.

Once you are used to setting the shutter speed and aperture size quickly and can create pictures that look good, move on to the last section of this guide.

A Post-Manual World

As you practice shooting in manual mode, you will start to see a pattern.  You are setting either the aperture size and then adjusting the shutter speed to match or you are setting the shutter speed and then adjusting the aperture size to match.

Well here’s a dirty secret: Most pro photographers don’t shoot in manual mode!  Instead they shoot in “Aperture Priority mode” or “Shutter Priority mode”.

Aperture Priorty mode is where you set the aperture size and then your camera sets the shutter speed automatically.

Shutter Priority mode is where you set the shutter speed and then your camera sets the aperture size automatically.

Both modes will save you a lot of time when you are shooting.  Now that you have mastered manual, give them both a try.  Most photographers use aperture priority mode.  Shutter priority mode is more common for wildlife or sports photography where freezing the action is vital.

Recent cameras have also introduced an “Automatic ISO” option which allows the camera to adjust the ISO level automatically with each shot.  This is great when you are moving fast between different locations that have different lighting.

Enjoy!

Related posts:

1. How to use a classic manual lens on your DSLR camera
2. How to choose a new lens for your digital SLR camera
3. How to take amazing photos of your dog

A photo... without color! Photo copyright Adam Geitgey

What is a black and white photo anyway?

This might seem like a dumb question, right?  Obviously a black and white picture is a color picture… just without the color.  But it’s not that simple!

Look at this photo of a yellow butterfly in front of a red background ground:

In color, the natural contrast between red and yellow makes the butterfly stand out clearly from the background.  But in black and white, you don’t have contrasting colors.  If we turn this into a black and white print, what shade of gray should represent red and what shade of gray should represent yellow?  There are a lot more colors than shades of gray, so it is up to you to decide how to covert colors to grays.  And your choices have a huge impact on the final image.

If you convert red and yellow into very similar shades of gray, you will get a muddled mess:

In this image, there is no separation between the butterfly and the background.  Everything blends together.

By simply choosing different shades of gray to represent the original colors, we can get a very different result:

In this photo, the butterfly stands out from the background and is clearly the subject of the shot.

The point is that turning a color photograph into black and white is an art that takes practice.  It’s not something as simple as clicking “make black and white” in a program.  If that is what you are doing, then you are doing it wrong.  Read on to find out how to do it right

Step 1: Choose a photo

Not every color image is going to be interesting in black and white.  Typically, black and white images are interesting because of texture and contrast of light and dark.  Images that depend on color for their impact are not going to be good in black and white.  A perfect example of a poor subject for black and white is a sunset:

This image is interesting because of the color.  The yellows, reds, and purples look great.  The colored lights on the ship add a nice touch.  But let’s try this in black and white:

Wow, that’s a crappy shot!  Without the color, there is nothing much going on.

Instead, try to find images with motion and texture.  People also make good subjects for black and white.

Photo copyright Adam Geitgey

This photo works in black and white because it has light and dark textures and motion.  It wasn’t depending on color for impact.

Step 2: Convert to black and white

Now that you’ve picked a photo, let’s explore different ways of converting it!

Option 1: Very bad – Convert to Grayscale or Desaturate

The most obvious way to convert an image to black and white is also the worst.  Never ever load an image into Photoshop and select “Make Grayscale”.  Similarly, don’t use the “Desaturate” option in Photoshop.  Both do basically the same thing – they remove the color in the simplest way possible.  They give you absolutely no control and the results are often terrible.

This is a terrible idea.

Just don’t do it!

Option 2: Good, but harder – Photoshop’s Channel Mixer

Photoshop (and similar programs like The GIMP and Paintshop Pro) has a tool called the “Channel Mixer.”  This tool allows you to create a black and white image by mixing the “channels” of an image.

In a standard image (such as an RGB jpeg file), each pixel in the image is made up of red, green, and blue components mixed together.  All the colors you see are made by mixing those three primary colors.  By using the Channels window in Photoshop, you can see each of these color components separately:

Every color image can be viewed as separate channels.

Notice how the “Blue” channel is darker around the head of the butterfly while the “Red” channel has a little more separation there.  By using the Channel Mixer, we create our final image by mixing percentages of each of these original channels:

To use the channel mixer:

1. Click the “Monochrome” check box at the bottom.  This tells Photoshop that you want to make a black and white image.
2. Adjust the Red, Green, and Blue sliders to control how much of the each channel ends up in the final image.  Make sure the sum of all three percentages adds up to 100%.
3. Also, try using the “Preset” drop down to try different present mixes. Notice how each present makes your final image look different.
4. When you are happy with the mix, click Ok.

The advantage of the Channel Mixer is that it gives you great control over the output.  If you are an expert with the Channel Mixer, you can even play around with different image modes like LAB color for even more control.  But that is another article.

The disadvantage is that it is a pain to use and takes a lot of practice.  If you don’t make black and white images often, you are just as likely to make something bad with the Channel Mixer as you are to make something good.

Luckily, we now have even better options!  Read on.

Option 3: Very Good – Photoshop’s Black and White Adjustment Layer

More recent versions of Photoshop (CS3, CS4 and newer) have added the ability to put a Black and White “Adjustment Layer” over your image.  This gives you the control of the Channel Mixer tool but it doesn’t permanently alter your image.  Since it is a layer, you can always tweak the settings up until you make a final print.

Adding a Black and White Adjustment Layer works just like adding any other Photoshop Adjustment Layer.  Click on the Adjustment Layers icon on the Layer palette and choose Black and White:

Once you have added the Adjustment layer, you’ll see the Black and White options dialog:

It works almost exactly like the Channel Mixer, but with a few extra options.  Here is how to use it:

1. Adjust the Red, Green, and Blue sliders to control how much of the each channel ends up in the final image.  You can also control Cyans, Blues, and Magentas the same way.  Make sure the sum of all six percentages adds up to 100%.
2. Also, try using the “Preset” drop down to try different present mixes. Notice how each present makes your final image look different.
3. The “Tint” option lets you add a color tint to your final image for that “old-timey” sepia effect.
4. When you are happy with the mix, click Ok.

If you have CS3 or newer, there’s really no reason not to go ahead and use the Black and White Adjustment Layer instead of the Channel Mixer.  Unless you are doing something very unique (like mixing LAB channels), the Adjustment Layer gives you all that the Channel Mixer gives you with the ability to go back later and tweak the effect at any time.

Option 4: Very, Very Good – Lightroom’s Grayscale Mixer

Lightroom provides it’s own version of Photoshop’s Black and White Adjustment Layer.  In Lightroom, it’s called the Grayscale Mixer.  This gives you the ability to mix channels like Photoshop but it’s integrated into the Lightroom workflow saving you lots of time.

The tool is located in the Develop module towards the bottom:

This tool works exactly like the Channel Mixer and Black and White Adjustment Layer options in Photoshop except that it gives you 8 color channels to mix.  That gives you slightly more control.

However, it also lacks some of the convenience of Photoshop.  It doesn’t tell you the sum of the color percentages, so you don’t know when you’ve hit 100% without doing a little mental math.

On the positive side, it’s tied into the Lightroom preset system.  That means that you can store presets easily and apply them to any image.  Also, it is integrated into the Lightroom history system, so you can always go back and make tweaks until you make a final print.  Finally, it is really easy to apply a black and white effect to one photo and then cut and paste that effect to a large range of photos.

As long as you can find an effect that you like using the Grayscale Mixer, you should get great results.  The ability to quickly apply the same effect to a range of photos while still being able to make tweaks to individual photos really makes this a great option for processing a large photo shoot.

Option 5: Great – Nik Software’s Silver Efx Pro

The best solution I have ever seen for creating great black and white images is a software package from Nik Software called Silver Efx Pro.  Silver Efx Pro is a plug-in for Photoshop, Lightroom or Aperture that allows you to convert an image to black and white quickly and with amazing results.

Please note that I have no business relationship with Nik Software and get no benefit from recommending it.  Silver Efx Pro is just so good that I can’t ignore it.

Silver Efx Pro is very easy to use.  Once you open it, your image will be in the center and all of the different presents will be in a strip along the left:

Just click on each preset to see your image in that style.  If you find a style you like, you can use the controls on the right to fine-tune your image.

Creating a black and white image in Silver Efx Pro could not be easier:

1. Click on each preset until you find the look that you want.  There are many presents to choose from.
2. Use the “Color Filter” to control which colors in your original image stand out in the final black and white image.  Just click on each color filter until you find the result that you like the most.  This is especially important in images where there are large areas of single colors.
3. If one part of your image is too dark or too light, use the “Control Point” tool to add a new control point.  Each control point can brighten or darken one specific area of your image.  This is great for brightening up a face to give it emphasis or darkening a bright and distracting background element.
4. That’s it!  Click Ok and you are done.

I used a control point to make sure the playing card in the foreground was brighter than the white sign behind it. Photo copyright Adam Geitgey.

Extra Credit

If you come from the film world or are a fan of old grainy photos, you might be looking for a way to get a true “film look” with digital black and white photos.  If that’s the case, you may want to explore a little further.

Silver Efex Pro has some basic film settings, but another plug-in called the DxO FilmPack is specifically designed to mimic different types of film.  It allows you to choose from a wide range of film simulations to get anything from a gritty 1970s look to a modern art look.

Three other similar film simulation programs worth trying are Alien Skin Exposure, AndyPRO, and ImageNomic RealGrain.  All of these applications have free or time-limited demo versions, so try them all until you find something that lets you get exactly the film grain look that you want.

Play around!

Now that you now how to choose a good image and convert it to black and white, go try it out!   Use every different method mentioned here once and decide which makes the most sense to you and gives you the best results.

Also, try combining other techniques you have learned with black and white processing – long exposures, panoramics, etc.

Have fun!

It's a black and white panorama!

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Lighting varies during the day

Imagine that you rented a studio with nice lighting equipment, placed all the lights exactly where you wanted them, and then started taking pictures of a model.  Now imagine that despite your protests, the jerky studio owner walked in every five minutes and moved your main light a little bit higher – just enough to add ugly shadows. Then, once in a while he’d also randomly put a pillow case over the lights to further screw with you.  You’d slowly go insane resetting your other lights to compensate.  After an hour of that, you’d probably demand your money back or punch the guy.

Well, that’s basically what happens when you photograph outside.  The world is your studio and the sun is a jerk that keeps moving your main light.  The clouds jump in front of the sun, diffusing the light.  But then as soon as you get ready to take a shot, the clouds move again.  To make good photos in these conditions, you need to develop your instincts so that you will instantly recognize any lighting condition and react appropriately.

Remember, anyone can take one good photo given enough tries in front of a nice sunset.  Your goal should be to develop the skills to take good photos consistently in a wide range of lighting conditions.  It’s the difference between getting a lucky shot once and being a star player every game.

The sun is a light that you can’t control

The sun is just another light source.  Just because it is an exploding ball of flame 92 million miles away doesn’t mean it’s that much different than your flash.  In fact, the biggest difference between the sun and a flash is that you can’t control the sun.  Instead, you have to time your shooting based on the position of the sun.

The sun produces different lighting depending on where it is in the sky.  Sunrise and sunset produce fantastic lighting.  The lighting at noon as absolutely horrible because the sun directly overhead casts strong, direct shadows that are not flattering on anyway.

Shameless plug: If you are looking for a handy way to track what time of day is best for taking photos, check out our PhotoForecast application for the iPhone and for Android phones.  It will tell you exactly when the sun will be in the best spot for taking photos for your exact location.  Best of all, it’s always with you in your pocket!

The exception to this chart is cloudy weather.  Clouds positioned directly in front of the sun act like a giant soft box – even at noon.  Next time you are outside, pay attention to how much clouds in front of the sun change the shadows you see on the ground.  If the clouds are thick, there won’t be any shadows at all.

So if it is cloudy, take it as a sign to go outside and shoot portraits.  It might not be a great time to shoot landscapes, but it could be the perfect time to shoot portraits.

How to shoot at sunrise and sunset

Shooting at sunrise and sunset is great!  The rising or setting sun produces the best light you will ever get.  The only thing you have to consider is whether you want to shoot with the sun behind you or if you want to shoot into the sun.

A general rule of thumb in photography is to “keep the sun over your shoulder.”  The idea is that if the sun is behind you, it will be lighting whatever is in front of you.  That rule works well at this time of day.  Just make sure the sun is behind you, have your model do something interesting, and take some pictures.

However, you can also get some really cool effects by shooting into the sun.  This lets you get the sunset in the picture behind the model.  Since the sun is behind the model, the front side of your model will be dark.  So you have to use a flash to light the front side of your model.

But watch out!  If you use a flash directly on your model, the pure white light of your flash that is lighting your model will not match the nice orange light from the sunset behind your model.  Your model will come out looking really pale and this is not that easy to fix in Photoshop.  The best way to handle this is to put a CTO gel over your flash.

You can get a gel kit for your flash to shoot in different lighting conditions. They are pretty cheap and are a necessity when shooting sunsets.

A CTO gel is just an orange piece of plastic you tape over your flash.  This makes the light coming out of your flash match the sunset’s more orange light.  It will improve this type of shot a lot.

How to shoot during the rest of the day

If you can’t time your shooting so that you are only taking pictures during sunrise or sunset, you have to get move creative.  There are a few techniques you can use to easily create good light out of bad light.  The disadvantage is that they either require extra equipment or require that you only shoot in certain places.

Strategy One: Using shade

The simplest way to beat bright sunlight is to shoot in the shade.

This might sound really simple, but there are a few things that might mess you up.  First, make sure the model’s head is completely in shade for the best effect.  You don’t want partial shade on his or her face.  Second, make sure the background of your photo doesn’t have bright sun hot spots in it.  That can also spoil a good shot.

Put your model in the shade and make sure the background of the shot isn't too bright.

Strategy Two: Using a reflector

A second idea is to have your model stand directly in the sun but use a reflector to shine light back into the model’s face from another angle.  The reflected light can help fill in and eliminate ugly shadows.  All you need is a reflector and someone to hold it for you.  You won’t be able to hold the reflector yourself in the right position while you are taking photos.

If you don’t already have a reflector/diffuser combo, you can pick one up online for a reasonable price.

A combo reflector/diffuser is great because one item can handle both jobs. Without the cover, it's a diffuser. With the reflecitive cover on, it's a reflector.

Strategy Three: Using a diffuser and a flash

Another strategy for shooting in mid-day is to use a diffuser to create your own shade and then fill in the shade with a flash.  A diffuser is just a piece of translucent cloth on a frame that spreads and softens the light.

The advantage of this technique is that you can shoot just about anywhere without having to find shade.  The downside is that you have to lug around equipment.  Also, you will probably need an assistant or a lot of stands to pull this off since you’ll be busy holding the camera.

Use a diffuser to block the light and then fill it back in with a wireless flash.

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