5 Firework Photography Tips from Kensuke Mashita

Throughout the world, one thing nearly all New Year’s celebrations have in common is an epic firework display. An incredible visual experience, it’s natural to want to pull out your phone and photograph the fireworks. Unfortunately, it’s common to look back on your fireworks photography and feel a little underwhelmed at the images.

In fact, the combination of distance and low-light can make mobile firework photography one of the most challenging enterprises for any photographer. With the incredible low-light capability of Xperia Z5 though, it becomes a lot easier. To help you prepare for New Year’s Eve, we caught up with Sony Mobile Engineer, Kensuke Mashita, to get his top tips and tricks on how to get great fireworks imagery.

Tip 1 – Ready, Steady…

One of the most important elements of getting good firework photography and really, any low-light photography is a steady hand. Xperia Z5 already has built-in stabilisation recognition technology, so to get the best shot try balancing your camera on a hard surface or even better use a tripod. Look for the little tripod logo to know if you’ve got the camera steady enough.

Tip 2 – A New Year’s Resolution

While it may be tempting to use the 23MP setting on Xperia Z5’s camera for capturing great fireworks photography, I’d recommend putting the phone in Manual mode and dropping the resolution down to 8MP. By doing this you can limit excess noise in your shot and really improve your image.

You may want to play around with the ISO setting, if you’ve got your phone on a tripod then you can really crank this up to the maximum 12,800 setting. If not, try working with around ISO 3,200 for clean, blurless imagery.

Also, whenever working with artificial lighting, remember you can control the exposure using the EV sliders and adjusting the white balance to get interesting and different colour effects.

Tip 3 – Use Fireworks Mode

Saying all that, if playing around with settings isn’t your thing, then you’ll probably find it easier just to use the ‘Fireworks’ mode in Scene selection. This optimises the settings to guarantee the best fireworks images. There’s also a ‘Night scene’ mode that you may find useful depending on the composition of your shot. This may be really useful if you’ve got an interesting backdrop to your fireworks.

Keep in mind that even with the right settings, you’ll still need to keep the camera steady!

Tip 4 – No Flashing!

At night, flash won’t really help you capture images that are any distance away. Also, if you’re hiding indoors from the cold and snapping the fireworks through a window, a flash will reflect and spoil the shot. If fireworks are the focus, then forget about the flash.

The only time it may be useful is if you’re taking a portrait or selfie with the fireworks in the background (using the main camera). Even so, by using the flash you can lose the vividness that makes a fireworks display so attractive.

Tip 5 – Timing is… crucial

Timing is one of the big challenges of firework photography. You don’t want to wait all evening to miss New Year because your camera took too long to react. Xperia Z5’s fast autofocus is really helpful with this, taking just 0.03 seconds to focus, so you can get the exact moment you’re aiming for.

One of the other features you may want to use is Timeshift Burst mode. To get that big full firework blossom shot, set the camera to Timeshift Burst mode. When you’ve lined up your shot press the camera key. Timeshift Burst mode takes up to 61 frames within 2 seconds, starting before you’ve even pressed the camera key. All the images will show up on your screen and you can swipe through to get your perfectly timed photo.

Hopefully, Kensuke’s tips will help you make the most of your New Year’s celebrations. We’d love to see your fireworks shots so share them with us on Twitter and they may even feature on the blog.

 

10 expert photography tips for graphic designers

If you've ever had to provide photography for a client project, it can be tricky to get things just right. Follow these tips to set you on your way.

01. Listen to your client

First of all, always remember the client is king – their happiness is essential to any project. Find out exactly what look and feel they want, and the message that they wish to convey.

You're in a great position to keep the photography complementary and in-line with the brand's image, so use all your creative direction to its full advantage.

02. Keep re-touching invisible

Re-touching can be a fantastic way to iron out imperfections. However any re-touching work should be completely invisible: less is more.

If a heavy amount of retouching is required, make sure you get a good second opinion on the finished outcome. The most powerful images are created with good photography and minimal re-touching.

03. Think creatively

Find your inspiration online or out and about, and decide what you want to achieve. Some projects might require a simple approach, but originality is always a plus for creative work.

Take your ideas and let them grow: if the project allows, think of twists that you can make to a concept to make it your own.

Think creatively. Like combining photography with vector graphics.

04. Use the right equipment

Choosing the right camera is key: it needs to work for you. Make sure it has settings and accessories to compliment the uses you might have for it. Things to think about are: image quality (megapixels and built-in noise reduction), adaptability (lenses and accessories), shutter speed, ISO and tethering.

05. Create a mood board

Mood boards are a fantastic way to pull your ideas together, solidify and simplify them. Find examples of the kind of photography, lighting and tone that you want.

A mood board will help give structure and direction to a shoot, and will illustrate your ideas and overall concept clearly to a client. Try creating a digital mood board with one of these 16 tools.

06. Play with lenses

Experiment and find out which lenses work best for different situations; 28-135mm will cover you for most jobs. As a rule, use 21-35mm for a wide-angle landscape photo; 35-70mm for normal street and documentary shots; and 70-135mm for medium telephoto and portraiture.

07. Plan your shoot

Think about how many shots are needed, the time you have for a project, and if your ideas are feasible and in budget. Create a shoot schedule that all the team is aware of, and stick to it as closely as possible.

Factor in expenses and whether any licences are required for public shoots.

08. Remember accessories

Always be prepared and have spare batteries, a charger and memory cards. Think about investing in a tripod and external flash gun, and remember that you can always hire bigger equipment.
If you're not confident with large-scale main shoot equipment, get an assistant. They can be cheap and incredibly handy.

09. Shooting your own work

Try to give context to your work, shoot on location where possible, keeping it interesting to the eye and always bearing the brand in mind. When shooting still life, shoot somewhere that can be used again at a later date to keep consistency to your portfolio.

10. Familiarise yourself with settings

When shooting, consider how much time you have to turn the photographs over to the client, and what you want to achieve. Ensure you're familiar with new settings and post-production software: things like HDR photography are great time-savers and can produce some stunning effects.

 

Super-rare supermoon: Six photography tips

It happens on the night of November 14, and the phenomenon's rarity is enhanced by the fact it is our satellite's closest approach to Earth in since January 1948, 68 years ago.

So it's not something you'll want to miss. And if you're planning on bringing your own camera to the show, NASA's senior photographer, Bill Ingalls, posted a series of tips on NASA's website this past week. Here they are:

#1: Share the shot with a major landmark

Sure, the moon will appear larger than its been in decades, but Ingalls said it would be a mistake to try convey that without some kind of reference.

"Instead, think of how to make the image creative — that means tying it into some land-based object," he says. "It can be a local landmark or anything to give your photo a sense of place."

#2: Scout the location

A well-framed supermoon shot doesn't just happen on its own. Ingalls recommends you use whatever tools you need to find the right place to be to have your supermoon rise beside a major landmark.

"It means doing a lot of homework. I use Google Maps and other apps – even a compass -- to plan where to get just the right angle at the right time," he says.

If you do it enough time in advance, you can perhaps even get permission to shoot in less readily accessible places, like rooftops.

#3: Work with what you have

Even if you don't live near a recognizable landmark, or can't get permission for the right access, or don't have the latest gear, Ingalls said improvising with  what you DO have on hand can pay dividends.

In his case, Ingalls had to be creative when shooting Comet Lulin in 2009, having only basic equipment. In the end, he aimed a long telephoto lense between two trees, and used his own car headlamps to illuminate the landscape for a long exposure. The resulting shot won accolades from National Geographic. 

"I had just basic equipment and saw all these people with great telescopes making a picture I could never get. So what could I do differently?" Ingalls recalls.

Maria Czarzasty, Mississauga, Ont., September 2015

#4: Share the experience

For many, it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Why not bring friends and family, especially children? 

Aside from being a fun teaching moment for children, your companions can be ready props for your shot.

"There are lots of great photos of people appearing to be holding the moon in their hand and that kind of thing. You can get really creative with it," he says.

#5: Use your gear the right way

If you're heading out with a digital SLR, Ingalls has a few technical tips for you.

First, he suggests white balancing your camera with the daylight setting: The light, after all, is reflected from the sun.

For those carrying longer lenses, he advises you to remember the moon is, in fact, a moving object.

"It’s a balancing act between trying to get the right exposure and realizing that the shutter speed typically needs to be a lot faster," he says.

#6: Don't write off your smartphone camera

Ingalls says thought it can be "maddening and frustrating" to try shoot the supermoon with your humble smartphone camera, it can be a good challenge.

"You’re not going to get a giant moon in your shot, but you can do something more panoramic, including some foreground that’s interesting," he says. "Think about being in an urban area where it’s a little bit brighter."

As for technique, Ingalls' advice is to tap and hold your finger on the moon, then slide up or down to darken or lighten the exposure.

10 Must-Have Landscape Photography Techniques

  

In order to take a great landscape photograph I believe you have to tell a story and capture the spirit of a location. To truly achieve that you have to use different photography gear and apply different photography techniques.

I always say that nature is rarely perfect. Your images need a helping hand and with the right techniques you give yourself the best chance of taking one of those shots you want to show off to the world. The 10 landscape photography tips below will help you make more of the photo opportunities that you'll come across, when you are in search of that perfect landscape photograph.

1. Early morning and late evening are the best times for shooting landscapes. Blue hour photography and golden hour photography are the only time I venture out to take my landscape images. The reasons; the sun is not as harsh as a stronger high sun and the low angle of the light reveals shadows and textures otherwise missed.

2. When it comes to a location; the best landscapes are rarely found at the side of the road. So be prepared to go for a hike with a map or a GPS Unit in an effort to seek out the most interesting locations that not everyone captures. You can also download Photographers Ephemeris and do some pre-planning before you leave home.

3. When it comes to lenses for capturing breathtaking scenery, use a wide angle lens. A wide angle lens will allow you to include more in the frame and open up the vertical perspective. But, the wide angle lens pushes the scene away, so you can also consider using a longer focal length lens and compressing the depth of just a part of the entire scene.

4. If you have a DSLR camera that gives you control over settings such as shutter speed, aperture and exposure values “EV”, set your camera on “Aperture Priority” and use a small aperture of f/16 or f/20. This will let you keep everything in focus and the camera will set your shutter speed automatically. For the advanced photographer, use your manual settings and adjust your EV setting to achieve proper exposure after you set your aperture and desired shutter speed.

5. Because we will be photographing in low light you should anchor your camera to a tripod. Your exposure times will be elongated, forcing you to mount the camera to eliminate camera shake. This will also slow down your pace of working when shooting landscapes. This means you'll take fewer but better pictures.

6. To further eliminate camera shake, you should carry a cable release. The timer function on the camera is no substitute for a cable release. The cable allows you the release the shutter when you want to release the shutter, not 2 sec or 10 sec or 15 sec from when you want to release. The release makes it so you don't have to touch the camera at all which will definitely minimize camera shake, which is especially important for those longer exposure shots. As an aside, if your camera allows it, use the mirror lock up function.

7. I would also suggest you use a circular polarizing filter to darken the sky and saturate the colors in the landscape (this is the one must-have filter for landscape photographers). To effectively produce an image using filters, meter your scene and use graduated grey or neutral density filters to darken the sky and reduce the contrast between the landscape and the sky. Polarizing filters aren't much use for bright cloudy skies but graduated filters are. Frequently, the sky looks burned out in photos because your digital sensors don't have the range to record the brightness differences between it and darker foreground scenery.

8. Shoot RAW images rather than JPGs. The RAW image will take up more room on your memory card but the RAW image will give you greater latitude for image manipulation in post processing. This is a “must do” in my opinion. I shoot all my images in RAW so that I can sharpen and adjust colors to create the best image that I can produce.

9. If shooting the entire scene before you, whenever possible, place something of interest in the foreground of the shot to create a sense of depth. At the same time, ensure that you use that small aperture to keep everything in focus. Again, f/16 or f/20.

10. If you do not have something to ground the scene, focus one third up from the bottom of the image. This way you will maximize focus of the entire scene and give the viewer the perception that the entire image is sharp.

Most importantly: be original! Develop your own style and unique vision. Any competent photographer can duplicate someone else’s work. Truly great photographers produce unique images and avoid cliché photography. Go for non-standard viewpoints, say from ground-level rather than eye-level. Imagine the world as seen from an animal's viewpoint rather than a human's. Think what the scene would look like to a flying bird or a ground dwelling squirrel.

And don't forget to tell a story! People who look at pictures will enjoy looking at a story over a snapshot any day. Telling stories with your camera forces you to slow down and think about what you are doing. What is it about this scene that makes you want to capture it as a photograph? What moves you or attracts your eye? Is there a theme, a phrase or a point of view that you want to capture and preserve? Where is the beginning, the middle and the end?

What are some of your favorite landscapes that you've captured? Share your tips!

Come back to the Craftsy blog this Friday to learn how to capture the best photographs with natural light.

An Introduction to Advanced Photography Tips

 

 

If you are reading this section on advanced photography tips, it probably means that you are where I was over 20 years ago, hungry for more information on photography with a burning desire to improve and move on.

For what it is worth, I have never lost that feeling; it is like a true passion that has stayed with me from 13, right through my adult life where other fads and interests have come and gone or just waned.

Advanced Photography Tips won’t bore you with all the technical jargon, there is enough of that on the internet and other publications already, and I personally find it altogether quite unnecessary (unless you are aiming to become a digital engineer, retailer or “photography forum bore”).

Advanced Photography Tips won’t teach you how to cheat or enhance your images with Photoshop. There is a time and place for that, why run before you can walk with confidence?

Advanced Photography Tips won’t tell you or influence your decision on what equipment to buy. That is a matter of personal preference and your individual situation, plus it is mostly irrelevant.

What it will do is take you back to basics, assume that you are at the beginning or just getting into digital/photography, and would like to learn simply how to get better! It will teach you how to take control, take better pictures and give yourself an idea of where you want to be in years to come.

It will only explain about the necessary terms and jargon that you need to know to get you on your way. Too much information at the start of your journey will only cause to confuse you. Learn how to take great pictures every time, easily, effortlessly and consistently and then you can move on.

If you are just starting or have found your interest in this hobby fairly recently, you are so very lucky. Although film in its day was obviously the way to go, I dread to think of the time and money that I wasted on various aspects that are no longer needed with digital;

• Black and white darkroom – The mess, the time, the waste of paper and money, the chemicals (bad for environment), although it was fun!
• Colour Film processing – The waiting for 2 weeks or more for the prints to arrive, the cost, the lack of Photoshop/powerful computers for editing (what you got was what you got), the possible loss or damage to film cartridges, care and storage of negatives and hundreds of prints.
• Maximum 36 exposures – Oh the stress of being so careful when shooting as each shot was so valuable. In a way this made you think more about the photos you took but having 400+ shots on one card is such a luxury!
• Kids – With the low cost of digital cameras and complete lack of processing costs, it is so nice to give young children “free reign” to learn this wonderful hobby from a much lower age. My son at just 2, having seen Daddy with his cameras so often, already knows how to scroll through images on our digital point and shoot camera!

The aim of Advanced Photography Tips is to ease you gently into the higher realms of photography and hopefully teach you about the more technical and advanced aspects without getting too technical if you get my drift.

I have tried, where possible, to include as many example images to illustrate the points further. The quality may not be high due to keeping the file size of the book to a downloadable minimum, but hopefully they will help.

What I will do often, is refer you to other images that I have on this website.

My first piece of advice at this stage is this: Whatever camera you have at the time of reading this book, stick with it for now. When I upgraded to digital from film, I chopped and changed for a couple of years as technology improved, until I was truly happy with the quality of images coming from my camera.

I am now at the point where I can more often than not, confidently walk around with my camera and instantly know the following:

• What exposure setting to use on the camera to suit the shot I want – Knowing the ins and outs of your equipment is a priority.
  
• What lens to use and how – Or what focal length (i.e. 24mm, 35mm, 100mm) to use if using a point and shoot or advanced digital compact.
• I know what will make a good shot by using just the camera.
• I also know what will make a good shot with a little help from editing in Photoshop later – Even if the image appears a little bland at the time of shooting.
• I know when to just leave it – Burning storage space and taking too many images is a very easy trap to fall into, but can also be quite useful. Learn what to keep and what to throw away.

By the end of Advanced Photography Tips, you will hopefully feel the same way. You will have more “keepers” and feel confident that you will “see” so many more pictures as you are out and about.

Things can become so “automatic” to you, you feel like you could just blink and the image is done! Finished, edited and ready to frame. Learn to see the image before you have even taken it!

 

Freezing Water

When shooting a waterfall, photographer Jim Richardson says, you can take the clichéd route or try for something different.

Contributing editor Jim Richardson is a photojournalist recognized for his explorations of small-town life. His photos appear frequently in National Geographic magazine.

Perhaps unlocking one creative door opens another.

Somehow that’s how I felt dashing back to the Zodiacs to leave Thistle Fjord in Iceland, flush with confidence from my photographic encounter with the bird wing. If I could break through that creative barrier, what other challenges would succumb to me?

Then I remembered the cascading waterfall near our landing site. Nothing huge, just crystal clear waters sweeping past the ancient farm and dancing down over the rocks to the sea. With a couple of minutes to spare, perhaps I could pull off one more image.

First, a bit of photographic background. Waterfall pictures are moving perilously close to being clichés. I say "close" because I doubt we humans will ever lose our fascination with the delights of cascading water plunging dramatically from on high. But ... the techniques used to capture waterfall pictures have become standard fare. The most common current rage is to use a long, very slow shutter speed to turn the water into silky, silvery curtains of liquid smoothness. And lovely pictures they are. It's just that the style has been done over and over by countless photographers. Me, too—guilty as charged.

The method is simple, even if accomplishing it takes a bit of gear. You simply use a slow shutter speed, usually a half a second or longer, maybe up to as long as 30 seconds. The water in motion blurs to become as smooth as glass. The trick is getting that long shutter speed in broad daylight. You can crank the f-stop all the way down, use the lowest ISO your camera can manage, and still not get there. This is where you need to have a good, strong neutral density (ND) filter, which will cut out enough light to make the long exposure time possible. (Oh, and it should go without saying, you’ll need your tripod or a very conveniently placed rock to set your camera on.)

Well, I didn’t have either an ND filter or my tripod along, which—as it turned out—was a very good thing. That meant I couldn’t fall back on my old tricks and would have to try something new.

But there was more than mere necessity at work here. This waterfall, this setting on the coast of Iceland, was all about bracing clarity, energy, and the freshness of the moment. It was not about serenity and peacefulness, which the usual silky-water picture would have implied. Besides not having the gear to take that picture, I wanted something else.

So I went to the opposite extreme, which is often the most refreshing way out of a creative trap. I decided to try totally freezing the water with a very high shutter speed. In this case that was 1/2500 of a second, which turned the sparkling water into crystallized glass, full of dazzling shapes and totally unexpected textures. My eye could see nothing of this. It was the act of photography that revealed the possibilities.

So I kept exploring the nuances, moving closer to the side of the waterfall, able to get within mere inches of the water (without drowning my Nikon D3), seeing how getting lower put the glasslike water up against the azure sky. Held still in space, the water suggested something I knew was impossible: transparent lava.

In the end the image seemed more appropriate to this starkly beautiful land, so raw and new, so of the moment. In the middle of all this my faithful fedora blew off into the stream and up into the pool above me. Then it came swirling back by, where I could grab it, now sopping wet, but a good omen of luck within my reach.