Understanding the basics of photography and how digital images are stored is important if you want to be able to produce great images. Using tools such as Photoshop for editing can greatly enhance an image, but how it’s stored on your camera in the first place can make a big difference to what you can do to it later on.

Our Photoshop course not only tells you how to edit images, but gives you the technical understanding behind different types of image files, how colours are made up and how to understand image size and resolution. We also offer Advanced Photoshop training for those who want to take their technical knowledge further.

To get you started, here’s some information about Raw files, and when you might want to store images on your camera as Raw instead of as JPEGs.

What is a Raw File?

A Raw file is simply an exact recording of the data that is produced by the sensors of a camera. Like negatives, they need processing to be turned into an actual image file. You need specialist software like Photoshop to view them, and as soon as you make any changes to a Raw file, it becomes an image file and must be saved as a jpg, png, psd or similar. Images in the form of Raw files can’t have been manipulated, so they can be used as evidence in court.

Raw files are used to capture and store the basic information about a scene. Because of this, they are not subject to any limitations in terms of colour or light intensity. Raw files appear less sharp and more washed out because they are lower in contrast.

With most digital cameras, these Raw files are stored alongside a JPEG thumbnail, so they can be previewed on-device. Similarly, meta-data will be stored with Raw files, such as the data and time and settings used to take the photo.

What is a JPEG?

When you save an image as a JPEG on your camera, the image is compressed so it takes up less memory. With this compression, the levels are reduced significantly, which has an impact on your options for editing later on. JPEGs can be viewed pretty much universally, without the need for specialist software or processors, and you can print JPEG images straight from the camera.

When to use Raw

You can set cameras to store Raw images as default – many professional photographers choose to save Raw images because they then are not limited to specific brightness levels. One disadvantage of this is that, generally, each make of camera has a different way of encoding Raw files, which means the image comes out differently. The good news is that Photoshop has a built-in Raw converter that supports all widely used (and some not-so-widely used) digital cameras on the market.

The Raw image is the highest quality possible - it is exactly what was recorded by the camera and has not been altered in any way. This is great at both ends of the spectrum – purists know that the image is true, and those who want to manipulate the image manually can do so with complete control from scratch. For example, when colour filters are added via a computer, these can be done with more sophistication than would be possible on a camera. The main advantage of Raw images is that the photographer has a 16-bit image to work with in processing, as opposed to the 8-bit levels that JPEGs are limited to.

When to use JPEG

Many cameras can store images in both formats, which is great for those who want to keep their options open. You should definitely store pictures as just JPEG if you need to take a lot of snaps in a short time – cameras take longer to take and process Raw images. Similarly, if your camera’s memory is limited, use JPEG to store more photos.

The image quality from JPEGs is good enough for almost all kind of everyday photographs. They are still large enough to be printed, and the contrast, white balance and saturation applied as a result of storing as JPEG means you may not need to do any post-processing at all.

The main point to remember is that all images begin as a Raw file. The choice that photographers need to make is whether to convert to them to JPEG immediately, with the benefits and disadvantages as above, or whether to wait until the file is on a desktop computer where it can be converted by external software like Photoshop.

Main image thanks to Roland on Flickr.

The post What is a Raw File? appeared first on Photoshop Training UK.

This is just one of the many Photoshop techniques you’ll try out on our 2-day Photoshop course. Coming to us to train in person means having a trainer on hand to trouble-shoot and give you advice – much more useful than trying to figure out this complex software by yourself or by using online video tutorials that can easily go out of date. If this is old-hat to you, why not come on our Advanced Photoshop course?

To Use the Quick Selection tool:

1. Load your image in Photoshop and select the Quick Selection tool (hint: it’s toggled with the Magic Wand tool).

2. In the options bar at the top, specify whether to add a new selection, add to an existing selection, or subtract from a selection. Usefully, once you’ve started making your selection, Photoshop will automatically switch this option to ‘add to’.

Click on the drop-down within the options bar to change the brush size (for accuracy needed), or just use the ‘[ 'and ']‘ on your keyboard. By clicking on the drop-down, you can also change the brush size and spacing of the selection.

Checking the box for ‘sample all layers’ means all layers will be selected, based on the selection made in the one selected.

Auto-Enhance refines the edge of the image automatically. If you don’t select this, you can refine the image later, using the Refine Edge options.

3. Make your selection!

To do this, simply click outside of the part of the image you want to select, and drag the cursor around it.

This will select everything but your shape, but I usually do this as it means less time needs to be spent adding to the selection with detail within the shape.

To invert the selection go to Select > Inverse, or Ctrl + Shift + I on your keyboard.

If the Quick Selection tool has missed part of your shape (i.e. if it hasn’t distinguished it from the back ground), use the add and subtract options to refine the selection.

4. Refine Edge

Whether you selected the Auto-Enhance box before making your selection or not, you can now use the Refine Edge feature to adjust your selection. Adjusting the sliders in the pop-up window will automatically preview the change in the image. This may take a few seconds so it’s worth being patient and using trial and error to see how you want your selection to appear.

For example, here’s what the image would look like if I added some feathering – note that the slider is only half way up!

The box above includes a way of adjusting the contrast levels in the image. We’ve written a post about different uses of contrast, that you may also find useful.

Top Tip: If you want to use this selection in a new document, you can just copy and paste it over. A quicker way is to click ‘Refine Edge’ at this point, make sure your edge is to your specifications as above and click on the drop-down next to ‘Output To’. You can now copy this image into a new layer, a layer mask, or a new document entirely.

For more on masks, have a look at our Quick Mask tutorial.

Flower image by Joe Shlabotnik on Flickr.

The post Using the Quick Selection Tool appeared first on Photoshop Training UK.

People just like visual content. Whether it is images, videos or even the design on the page and site – if you grab attention with your content then you encourage clicking, engaging and sharing!

Use Images with impact to grab attention

 Every blog post we write involves a trip to Photoshop, whether it is just to touch up an image and optimise it for the web, to manipulate an image for our purposes or even to create images from scratch. Photoshop is an essential tool for anyone involved in web content.

In fact, a lot of the people who come on our 2 day Photoshop course are there to learn how to use the tool so they can make their site more attractive to users.

We also have a Photoshop for Web Graphics course that looks specifically at images for web content – ideal for any current or future bloggers!

Still not convinced? These 5 reasons should change your mind:

1. Images draw attention on a page

When creating content on your site – product pages, blog posts or any type of page – you can use images to draw your visitors’ attention to a particular point on the page.

For example, if you have a particular offer on a product just writing that into the product description isn’t going to attract attention. Create a banner or advert like image to instantly draw potential customer to the offer.

Images can be used to break up big chunks of text and, by placing an image just above the fold, it also encourages people to scan down and continue reading. They scroll down to see the rest of the image and continue to read the post.

Many heat map studies have shown that web users focus most of their attention on images on websites, so don’t just be happy with one image at the top of the page. Dot images throughout your content and keep your users visually stimulated.

2. Images demand sharing

Twitter is currently alone in a sea of image based social networks, all the others attach image snippets, or in the case of Pinterest just show an image! Users are far more likely to share your content if it has an amusing, interesting or controversial image than if it is plain text.

Especially if you work in Photography or Design, your pictures are what make you stand out and not your writing.

3. Pictures say a thousand words

If you are struggling to make a point with words then you should try using pictures to illustrate your point. How To’s and guides work better with examples and screenshots that show the reader exactly how to do something. It’s often frustrating to read a ‘how to’ post and find that the instruction doesn’t match the reality. With images you can check that you are following the instructions exactly and compare the results.

Have a look at our tutorial on saving for the web in Photoshop as an example. By annotating screen shots, Craig created images that not only helped the learner but that were easily shareable.

4. Image encourage clicks from social shares

Killer headlines are important for clicks from social networks, but images are too. Especially on Pinterest, where all users see is an image.

Your followers (or the followers of people who share your content) are more likely to click on a link that has a great image attached, not only because they want to see the image in full but also because shares with images attached stand out on social timelines.

5. Images gain traffic from Google Images Search (and other reputable image search engines)

As well as gaining traffic from social media, you should also consider image search engines as a great way to gain clicks. Make sure your image filename, title and alt title include the keywords for your content. Then, when users search for images, they will click through to your page.

Just make sure the page itself is good enough to convert this traffic, otherwise they may just turn up, nab your image and disappear, leaving a high bounce rate in their wake. If you’re worried about people using your images then add a watermark or an indiscreet logo, people are going to use your images no matter what your attribution policy is so at least make it forced attribution. If the image goes viral, your name is attached and you get great exposure!

The post 5 Reasons To Use Images to Market Content appeared first on Photoshop Training UK.

Whilst great editing skills (the ones you’ll learn on our Photoshop course), can make a world of difference, getting a great image in the first place is essential. Even if you are already a pro, sometimes it’s quite good to remind yourself of what’s possible. Revisit some old techniques and styles, or simply get some inspiration or ideas for new projects.

1/ Think about the environment surrounding your subject – what do you include? What do you leave out?

What you include in an image will make or break it

2/ Watch the backgrounds, they can work for or against your subject, try depth of field to isolate subjects or emphasise their surroundings. Use a small F number (big aperture). Most cameras will allow you to select f4, some even less.

Isolate your subject – Get close to your subject, make sure there is enough distance between your subject and the background. And use a big aperture (small F number)

3/ Try and capture personality in an image

Talk to people try and get the essence of who they are in an image

4/ Opportunities are all around, always take a small camera with you.

There are opportunities everywhere, in the cafe, on the streets, walking the dog. This was taken with a micro four thirds camera

5/ Work fast, don’t miss the moment. Get so familiar with your camera that you can move in a flash and get the image. Especially in the street,  images opportunities are often there one minute and gone the next. Don’t be ashamed of auto mode, especially in situations where things are changing fast.

Some images are only as you want them for a split second, make sure you are ready to grab the shot

6/ Have courage, quite honestly most people don’t mind having their picture taken.

Most people aren’t as scary as you think – smile and ask them if you can take their picture

7/ Be brave – take risks both with subject matter and technique.

Think outside the box, insect image using a flash and a fisheye!

8/ Tell stories with your images.

Take pictures that ask questions or tell stories

9/ Choose your moment – sometimes it’s best to wait for the right person or thing to enter the frame of an image in the right place.

I got this image by positioning myself on the ground in front of the dog and waiting for the right person to appear. What a reward! My favourite image this year.

10/ Learn to see beauty in the mundane

Good images are everywhere, the simplest things can make a good composition. Look for texture, lines and colour.

The post Great Photography Tips appeared first on Photoshop Training UK.

Look at the colours

Nothing gives an image more of the wow-factor than extreme colours – especially with landscapes, skies and eyes. Usually, if it’s too good to be true then it’s probably been photoshopped.

Changing colours is simple to do in the software, with extreme results.

Check the eyes

Speaking of eyes, if the photo is of a person, check the whites closely. Publications will often whiten the eye to make it less cloudy or remove the small pink veins that should show in every photo.

Lighting signals

Check shadows – are they all present and correct? Do they match up to both the light source and the object? Is there any unexplained shade? Does the light in people’s eyes match?

We wonder how such a badly photoshopped image can make it to the front cover of Time magazine!

Check for repetition

An easy tool to use in photoshop is the stamp tool, which simply lets you take part of one image and ‘stamp’ it over and over somewhere else. This can be used to remove parts of an image, e.g. a freckle by cloning some clear skin. The clone stamp might also be used in crowd scenes or landscapes – for instance, the same trees may be used multiple times but resized to appear different.

(Image via Hongkiat.com, who have lots more examples of bad photoshopping!)

Get up close

You’ll need proper technology for this, but if you can analyse an image to the exact pixel then you can see whether the quality is inconsistent or if different parts of the image have been blurred together.

Use a tool

Image Error Level Analysis claims to help identify when images have been manipulated, but stresses that “it’s more of a toy than anything else”.

The Photo Police iPad/iPhone app also allows you to check JPEG files, but the customer reviews are mixed at best.

Scientists at Dartmouth have also created a tool that detects how much retouching has been done to a photograph, the results of which are proven to match up with human judgement of how much a photograph has been altered.

Run a simple sanity check

As these photoshop disasters go to show, sometimes it’s just obvious when an image has been doctored.

The post How to Spot a Photoshopped Image appeared first on Photoshop Training UK.

This guest post is written by Toner Giant’s SEO Lead Ahmed Bhula. Once you have used your Photoshop skills to edit your favourite photos and shared them with your friends on your social networks, you can use the tools in this post to print them! In these digital times it is all too easy to upload a photo onto the web and then forget about it. Print your favourite ones out and cherish them for longer. Here is the post from Ahmed…

We have all heard Facebook recently purchased Instagram (a popular photo sharing tool) for 1 billion dollars. People love to share photos with their friends and the world on social sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. Now the problem is, many users love to have hard copies of pictures and printing a whole album from these sites can be a tedious task. Luckily for us, there are tools out there that do this for you…

Printsgram

For heavy Instagram users, Printsgram is the only tool you need. A simple online tool that connects to your Instagram account and allows you to create your very own poster from your photos. You can create:

• A4 Poster (I made a simple one here)
• A3 Poster
• A1 Poster
• A Photo Cube
• A4 Stickers

Best of all, it’s free!

Photobox

Photobox have developed a Facebook application that lets you print pictures you’ve uploaded to Facebook. In addition you can order prints (delivered) in the form of:

• Photo books
• Calendars
• Stationery
• etc.

Snapfish

Snapfish is similar to Photobox. You can connect to your Facebook and Flickr accounts with Snapfish and have your pictures printed & delivered to your door within 7 days. New customers get 50 pictures free, too. Like Photobox, Snapfish also offers customisable merchandise with your photos and images. The list includes:

• Cups and mugs
• Keyrings
• Mousmat
• Clothing
• Canvases
• Photo stamps
• Calendars
• and even teddy bears!

Picasa

Many people use Google’s own picture sharing site Picasa, to store and share photos online. Picasa has a great desktop tool you can download for free through which you can print your pictures or order delivered prints. Now with Google+ integration, you can print pictures shared with you on the fly!

Features include:

• Share to Google+
• Face recognition
• Photo editing effects (similar to Instagram)
• Movie Maker
• and many more!

The Facebook Friend Poster

The Facebook Friend Poster service is is quite a cool service. For those who would always like to be reminded of their friends at all times, this service tiles all your friends’ profile pictures in a clean grid. The service costs $31 (including shipping) or approx £20 for those in the UK.

The same company (Social Print Studio) offer quite a few other nifty services to print photos from your social profile if you want more…

What’s your favourit service or tool? There are a plethora out there so sometimes we can be lost for choice! Please comment below.

Previously working as the Social Media Manager at Just Search, Ahmed Bhula is a UK based search professional with a passion for design and development. He now works for Toner Giant, one of UK’s leading supplier of printer toner.

The post 5 Tools to Print Pictures from Facebook, Instagram and Other Social Sites appeared first on Photoshop Training UK.

Rhian is an outdoor dog photography specialist who runs Brighton Dog Photography.

“Photographing dogs in the outdoors can often be a challenging task, but it can be one which is ultimately very rewarding. In this article I’m going to discuss some techniques and points to remember that help me get that perfect shot.

Patience

It might seem silly to start with a point that has nothing to do with my camera nor with the dog, but having patience is always at the forefront of my mind. Dogs don’t always do or go where you want them to (I frequently only have one hour in which to get a selection of shots of a dog I have only just met, so the pressure is on) and it makes no sense getting frustrated.

The more patient you are to get the shots you are after, the more likely you will get them. It helps if you try and practice with the dog little and often. Depending on the dog they will get bored, and if they do put the camera away, go and do what the dog wants for a bit and then come back and try again.

Realise that it can take many attempts to get what you are after, so patience with yourself and your dog is paramount.

Not a dog person? Don’t worry we have plenty of photography tips for people too.

Enthusiasm

On my dog photography workshops I am constantly encouraging others to be as enthusiastic as they possibly can.

If your dog is not the best at sitting still for a photo, but they do sit still for a few seconds, then praise, praise and then praise some more. Dogs want to please you and they will be very happy if you tell them they did a good job, even if it was just for one second.

The next time they will be more likely to sit and you will have a better opportunity to get the shot you are after. Even if they only half do what you wanted, go crazy and make them think they did they best job in the world!

Where they like to go, not you

Even if you dream of taking a photo of your dog running through the shallow waters at low tide, there is very little point in trying to get this shot if your dog hates the water. You mustn’t get them stressed just so you can practice your photography. You will get the best results by taking them where they like to be the most. If this happens to be rolling round in cow pats on Devil’s Dyke then so be it!

If your dog is enjoying the experience then this will come through in your photography. Concentrate on making it their best day ever, every time. They will learn to love the camera.

Lighting

If you aim to take photographs during the ‘golden hour’ (approximately one hour after sunrise and one hour before sunset) you will stand a much better chance of achieving good lighting and a beautiful exposure.

During the middle of the day is to be avoided, especially on a sunny day in the middle of summer and especially if your dog has black fur. The contrast between the strong lights and darks can be too much for many cameras. Softer, golden lighting looks so much better and your dog will appreciate being out and about when it is cooler too.

Get on the ground

A lot of my most successful shots are taken from the dog’s point of view. In some cases where the dog is very small this will mean lying flat on the ground so I always make sure I wear old clothes.

If you do have a wide angle lens this would be the best time to use it as you can get some interesting angles of dogs looming over you.

Context

I like portraits of dogs where they take up most of the frame, but I also love images where you see the dog in the context of where they are. The image above of young Arty perfectly reflects firstly, one of his favourite pastimes (digging up the beach) and secondly, of a magical morning when he and his owner got up very early to experience low tide at sunrise on Brighton beach. The lighting was astonishing and by placing Arty smaller in the frame we can see some of what all the fuss was about.

Background

I try to place dogs in front of a background that complements the colour of their fur. It’s important that there is plenty of contrast between the dog and the background so the dog stands out.

The image above of Albert works well because the green hues contrast nicely with his black fur. Using a zoom lens I managed to blur the background which also helped Albert to stand out. His cute face also helps!

Get to know locations

There are always going to be certain times of the year when certain locations are more interesting than at other times. Stanmer Park for example is currently awash with Bluebells, and as long as you make sure your dog does not trample all over them these can provide a beautiful setting. Pretty soon there will be field upon field of Poppies up near Stanmer too.

Watch out for the Spring tide on Brighton beach and all of the parks look great during the Autumn when your dog can lark about in the fallen leaves.

Action, or the lack thereof

Getting shots of dogs in action can be some of the most fun to get, but if you have a dog that doesn’t like to move very much when you want them to, it can be quite tricky. Of course it helps if you have a camera that can capture dogs at speed, especially for the really fast ones.

My rule of thumb to get the best action shots is to shoot the dog running towards you but slightly off to one side and get them running towards the sun. Get on the floor or use a monopod for extra balance.

Mostly I shoot in Continuos Focus bursts, but sometimes I will focus on a single point and shoot a quick burst when the dog enters the area where I have focussed. The image above of Boo going after her ball was taken in Manual focus and using flash.

If you have a dog that can and does like to run, but just not when you are asking them to (don’t try and make a poor old lame doggy run around) I have a little trick that makes them move. You will need another two people (unless they are able to sit and stay and wait for you to tell them they can come) to help you. Get the first person to take the dog to where you want them to start from and when you are ready get the other person to run away as fast as they can, but starting from where you are. The first person should then let the dog go and run out of shot and the dog should run after the second person and you can get your action shot. I’ve never been in a situation when this hasn’t worked, so give it a go.

Post-production

I use Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop for the post-production of all of my images. Lightroom is fantastic for editing a large number of images quickly and for those where I feel some extra work is needed, I move over to Photoshop for some extra tweaks. Whether this is removing the odd bit of eye gloop, dust or shadows, Photoshop is amazing at allowing me to quickly edit my images using only a very small number of tools.

Generally I only use the Stamp and Spot Healing Brush tools, but I also utilise the powerful Shadows/Highlights function too which can turn some images I’m not too fussed about in to ones where I am extremely pleased. I really love colourful and vibrant images so back in Lightroom I tend to up the Vibrance and Saturation, crop where appropriate and that’s it.

Lastly, it goes without saying really but the more you practice and search for the best times to photograph your dog, the better. Be prepared to have lots of unsuccessful shots, but they only serve to make the better ones all the more satisfying to achieve.

To see more of my images please visit my website: www.brightondogphotography.co.uk

I also have a stock site which contains all of my best images which are for sale: brightondogphotos.photoshelter.com 

Become a fan on Facebook and enter my competition to win a free photo shoot for your dog.”

The post Pet Photography Tips: Getting the Perfect Picture of your Pooch appeared first on Photoshop Training UK.

I’ve been asked to name, judge and instruct a group of photographers’ work in response to a theme. The attendees will be of mixed ability some just starting out and some experienced photographers.

I’ve decided on the theme “A different point of view” because experimenting with the infinite possibilities in which something can be viewed often leads to capturing an image that is simply different. It forces the photographer to examine endless ways in which an object, person or environment can be seen and come up with something that will capture the viewer’s imagination.

This is an image of Tim Andrews, a retired solicitor who has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. He has got nearly 200 photographers to take his picture now. To get this image I am leaning over the next lane and placing the camera in the middle of his lane. Try taking images from places you cannot get to but you can place your camera.

Even the most experienced of photographers can get stuck in a rut. When you eventually develop something that resembles a style, a way of looking at things that others recognise as being “your thing” it’s easy to start looking at everything in the same way. Repeating your successes, and automatically taking an image in a particular way.

In many ways this can take the fun out of photography. For me the best kicks happen when you try something completely off the wall, not really knowing if it’s going to work or not and landing an ace. Of course there will be many failures along the way, even famous names have bad days, a card full of 2′s of spades, void of those exhilarating aces.

Beginners often beat themselves up about it, maybe because they are still trying to convince themselves that they have talent. It’s important to view your experimental days as just that – experimental. Those images that didn’t work give you the opportunity to learn, ask yourself why it didn’t work and what you could have done differently. Also it’s important to remember that those photographers that you love only publish a fraction of their work, you don’t get to see the thousands of images that didn’t make the grade.

What I am trying to stress is never, never avoid taking an image because you are afraid it won’t work. Also, that if it doesn’t work, you have still learned something useful, and it has helped you to identify something in the image that could work, and you can add that to your toolbox next time you go out shooting.

This image taken at the Brighton Naked Bike Ride was taken with the camera resting on the bench.

Opportunities are everywhere. Even the most mundane of subjects can somehow be brought to life if taken in a way that makes the viewer think.

Of the endless choices that you make before clicking the shutter, one of the most important decisions to make, the one that will ultimately have the most impact on your image, is where you are (or your camera is) in relation to your subject.

Get Down

One technique that it often associated with my images is getting down low. A really easy technique that has a dramatic impact on an image. It distorts the view of a scene, it’s different for the view because people don’t go around lying on the floor and looking up at everything, it provides them instantly with a way of viewing something in a way that they don’t see every day.

Get down on the floor or at least put your camera down on the floor and point the lens towards your subject. Try using flash, and have your lens as wide as it will go.

It distorts perspective. With people it makes their head much smaller, especially when taken with a wide-angle lens. Their feet look huge. They appear a lot bigger.

Remember that if you are shooting upwards your subject will probably be back-lit. It’s a good idea to use flash, even the fill flash on a compact will give your subject more light whilst retaining detail in the sky.

Brighton Pride – Shooting Up – Here I am holding the camera down low and walking backwards to take the shot

The advantage of shooting upwards is that you can get nice clean backgrounds, but some of your subjects might not like the unflattering double chin look!

Blue Boy Brighton’s Children’s Parade

With landscape, You will get the foreground detail in the image, the foreground will appear large in the frame. Foregrounds in shots really add depth. You can make the viewer feel like they were standing in the scene. The foreground adds context, perspective and interest.

Get low and shoot up with landscape

Watch out for focusing though. Make sure you are using the smallest aperture you can (bigger F numbers) whilst keeping the shutter speed fast enough to hand hold (unless you have a beanbag on the ground or are steadying your camera somehow). Remember a wide-angle lens can be handheld at lower shutter speeds.

If in doubt stick in P Mode and focus on the foreground, look at the camera settings and if you think it could be better with more of the background in focus then increase the F number and re-shoot.

I take images from the ground so often that I can usually see in my head what I’m going to get if I put the camera to the ground and shoot. A wide-angle lens or even a fish eye makes this process a lot easier, much less chance of chopping off heads or feet. Just have a go at this using the widest your lens will allow you to go. I still lie on the ground a lot too!

Birdseye view

A lot of drama can be added to an image by looking down. there are many famous images of the shadows people and objects make when looking down on them from an elevated position.

Stand on tiptoes and lean right over your subject holding it as high as you can.

It can work with people too. It makes their head look enormous and their feet tiny. The perspective distortion is again much more obvious when shooting with a wide angle lens.

Looking down with a wide-angle lens

If your lens is wide enough you can tippy toe and lean over to take what looks like an aerial view.

Turn it around

You should always have your horizon straight – right? Wrong! Try taking images on the diagonal, or even just a bit squiff.

Play with slanting horizons

This works well, as with any technique, when the treatment says something about the subject. Is your subject a bit squiff? Do you want your image to look like a grabbed and hurried moment?

Crooked – New York

Turn it upside down

Easiest opportunities for this sort of image are reflections in water, and shadows.

Brighton Pride – Turn your images upside down

Try and think about this before you click the shutter. You will need at least as much reflection or shadow as the subject. Sometimes you can cut off the subject altogether and just take an image of the reflection or shadow that is representing your subject.

Turn it upside down – Kew Gardens

Take one image then turn your camera upside down and look at it that way. Think of how you would improve the composition and reshoot. This is always better done in camera than as an afterthought, you will be surprised how different it will look to how you imagined – try it.

Reflections

When taking reflections you can have great fun getting images of people who don’t know they are being photographed. Shops provide plenty of opportunities for this, allowing you to capture the street and inside the shop together. Mirrors are a common theme in photography, look out for them in the street.

Look out for mirrors on the street

Glass is everywhere, keep looking at reflections as you walk through the streets. Experiment with the above, look up, look down, put your camera somewhere where your face wont go!

A technique I often use is putting the camera (wide-angle again) as close to a reflective surface as it can get and shooting from there.

Another point of view

I can think of many other ways to get alternative points of view. Try looking through things that diffuse or distort images. Try making something very big look very small or vice versa, just by getting close and shooting wide.

You can also look out for odd relationships between people or things. Find strange similarities between usually unrelated subjects, or obvious differences between people or objects in an image.

Find things that don’t look right together

You can come up with your own ideas.

Conclusion

Whether you are reading this to prepare for the task or just for some inspiration, remember your viewpoint will have more impact on your image than any other decision you make.

I can think of other interpretations of this theme too. You can interpret the theme any way you wish. A different point of view could be a comical, social or political comment captured by putting together different objects or people who make the viewer think.

Have some fun, experiment.

The post Photography Tips – A Different Point of View appeared first on Photoshop Training UK.

The challenge when promoting content on Twitter is coming up with a clickable summary for your link in under 140 characters (even less when you add a URL and space for people to retweet). On the opposite end of the spectrum, Pinterest is almost entirely visual. When you pin content, you choose which image you want to pin – if the image doesn’t catch your follower’s attention then it won’t be liked, repinned or clicked.

Your images must be Pinteresting. The best way to get interesting image? Create your own! Learn how to make images for the web on our Photoshop for Web Graphics course and you will be able to create visually pleasing, shareable images for every blog post you write. If you already have the creative ideas but aren’t sure how to use the tools then our Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator courses are perfect for getting to grips with Adobe’s Creative Suite.

Before we delve further into Pinterest, here is a quick Pinterest Glossary:

• Pinterest - the latest major social network to. A form of digital pinboard.
• Pinboard - a bit like a page, this is a virtual board for posting your content.
• Pin - the actually content posted on Pinterest.
• Pinning - the act of posting content on Pinterest.
• Repinning - when somebody reposts your pin.
• Like - very similar to a Facebook like – showing your appreciation for a pin without repinning it.

Here’s how a Pinterest profile looks:

This is an amalgamation of all our most recent ‘pins‘ in chronological order (from left to right then down). Each pin is just an image and a short description that link to a web page.

These pins are added to ‘boards’ – usually divided by categories or interests. We split our boards into the different course categories that we sell. Here is a screenshot of our ‘Photoshop’ board:

Reports from early adopters of Pinterest show that it is a great tool for internet marketing. Businesses have seen boosts in traffic – some report more traffic from Pinterest than all other social networks together! Also, Pinterest users are converting better. One of the hardest jobs for internet marketers is converting social media interest into sales. However, selling items on Pinterest does seem to work. Shop owners have found that posting attractive pictures of their products encourages their followers to click and then buy.

Increasing Blog Traffic with Images

So you’ve heard all the buzz surrounding Pinterest, set up your account and started pinning, but nobody is repinning, following or liking your pins. You need to consider your choice of images.

It isn’t enough to just use screen-grabs, logos and stock photos anymore. Creating your own images using Photoshop is likely to gain a lot more interest!

Learn how to save images for the web in Photoshop by following our Save for the Web Photoshop tutorial.

This week we published an article on our main site about new security features for the last Apple OS X Mountain Lion – namely Gatekeeper. When preparing the article for publication we thought about what image to use with Pinterest in mind.

Our options included a screen capture of Gatekeeper in action:

Or the Gatekeeper logo:

We could have gone for an Apple logo:

Or mountain lion:

Instead, we used Photoshop to create an image of a mountain lion patrolling a front gate (using our Photoshop Quick Mask Tutorial of course).

Which would you rather click on?

Within a minute of pinning this image, 12 people had liked it and two had repinned it. This is within days of setting up our account.

Although Pinterest does allow you to add a description or title to your pins, it is unlikely that its image hungry audience will read this until after you’ve grabbed their attention with a photo. It really doesn’t matter what you are linking to if the image isn’t good enough.

Pinterest is not the only way to gain traffic through your images. Gain traffic through Google Image Search with our SEO for Images Tutorial.

Why Create Your Own Images?

From a marketing point of view this spawns another conundrum. Does the image match the content?

Those bloggers who just want to drive traffic but aren’t concerned about the value of that traffic can game the system. Include a funny picture of a cat on every blog post you write and people will click and share. However, images that match the content and are correctly labelled should do wonders for your social media ROI.

With Pinterest, using stock photos isn’t going to cut it because every other blog has used them already.

While you can go mining for creative commons photos these too will have been used by others and will need the proper attribution.

However, creating original images – infographics for example – means that when your content is shared it really is your content and not the first result off Google Images.

The post Pinteresting Images – Pinterest’s Visual Social Network appeared first on Photoshop Training UK.

In this guest post Daniel Padavona looks at how you can achieve higher quality wildlife photos, looking at equipment, set up and approach. It is often frustrating to return from a photography trip only to realise that some of your favourite compositions have not coming out as well as you hoped. Attend one of our Lightroom Training or Photoshop Training courses, and learn how to enhance your photos after taking them to get the best out of your photography.

Wildlife Photography is an art form which requires major time and equipment investment. Very early morning shoots are common in the quest for the right lighting. Lugging heavy camera equipment through a dark forest to reach your destination by sunrise is also common.

The art form of wildlife photography requires specialized camera equipment, a steady hand, a knowledge of wildlife activity, and patience. In this article I will share some of my favorite tips for getting great wildlife pictures while in the field.

Lens Choice

A lot of reach is required to effectively photograph wildlife. I won’t go into the field with anything less than a 200mm zoom reach. And honestly I prefer 400mm.

Longer reach will open up possibilities, but I find them less necessary with cameras now pushing over 20 megapixels. With a 16 megapixel Canon 1D Mark IV I can bring a 400mm lens into the field and shoot at 4896 x 3264 pixels. If I crop the image in Photoshop to 2448 x 1632 pixels, I will have effectively produced an 800mm zoom.

I would rather go for less reach, and pay a little extra for image stabilization in my lens. A lot of my wildlife photography is hand held, so image stabilization is important for keeping my images sharp.

Shutter Speed and Aperture

Shutter speed and aperture are specific to what I am photographing, and whether there is one singular subject or multiple subjects. For a single subject, I prefer to shoot wide open at f2.8 and throw the background out of focus. But if I am shooting several ducks in a pond, I will selectively focus on one duck, but increase my depth of field to keep the rest in good focus.

Marine wildlife is stunning to capture so check out these tips for taking photographs at sea.

A stationary animal can usually be photographed at 1/250s to 1/400s hand held with image stabilization on. However a fast moving mammal or bird in flight will require 1/2000s to 1/3000s to capture it in sharp focus.

Use a Modern Professional DSLR

A modern professional DSLR will make your job a lot easier. The reason is simple. You will be shooting most of your pictures in the first or last 90 minutes of the day. While the light will be gorgeous, it will also be limited.

Even using a wide open aperture of f2.8, you will find yourself lacking light when pushing the shutter speed to 1/2000s or 1/3000s to capture a bird in flight. For this reason it is inevitable that you will have to raise ISO to 400, 800, or even 1600.

Older DSLRs and consumer level cameras struggle mightily with these very high ISO levels. Noise can completely destroy an image, and no amount of software noise reduction is going to save it.

However professional level DSLRs are getting better every year at handling noise. A modern professional level Nikon or Canon is a must for shooting in low light conditions at high ISO levels. I’m particularly impressed with how well the latest Canon 1-D line reduces noise to manageable levels.

Not a fan of wildlife? Perhaps taking photos of humans is more your cup of tea. Learn how to engage with your subject for eye-catching results.

The high level Nikon and Canon models are also vastly superior with their fast focusing systems. I use center point auto focus on my 1D, and it amazes me how quickly it locks onto a subject in sharp focus.

Use a Tripod

Yes, I did say I shoot a lot of hand held in the field. But no matter how fast your shutter speed is, and how good your lens image stabilization is, it is virtually impossible to avoid some camera shake with big lenses.

When I can, I prefer to mount the camera on a sturdy tripod that can handle my camera and lens. Not surprisingly I get my sharpest photos while using a tripod. It also provides a welcome break from holding the weight of the camera and lens for long periods of time.

Know Your Subject

Knowing your subject is half the battle. Understanding how an animal behaves in various scenarios is important because it allows you to anticipate action. It’s easy to miss a great shot, and you will miss plenty until you learn to anticipate what the animal is likely to do next. There is no substitute for experience and observation. Eventually you will develop a sense for what the animal is going to do next.

Once the action begins, shoot in burst mode and capture several images quickly. A subtle change in position and action will make or break an image. Put the odds in your favor by using burst mode to capture multiple images.

Conclusion

Wildlife photography is difficult business. It requires a lot of patience, and an investment in professional level camera gear to get great results. We can take advantage of the high pixel count on modern DSLRs to reduce our need for very long lenses, and thus save a lot of money in the process.

Knowing how an animal often reacts to a situation is important in helping you anticipate action, and capture winning images.

Daniel Padavona is the founder of Warmpicture Stock Photos, which licenses royalty-free wildlife images. Daniel lives in upstate New York with his wife Terri, and their children Joey and Julia.

The post Winning Tips for Wildlife Photography appeared first on Photoshop Training UK.