Awesome New Lab Features With Pixurelab by Hawaiianpix

Pixurelab by Hawaiianpix
Announcing our new lab services for everyone! 

For those of you that don't know Hawaiianpix has been a pro lab for about 4 years now. we service about 40 professional photographers in Hawaii and on the US mainland. The exciting news is that now EVERYONE can get the benefit of having a professional printer! This means you. If you are tired of standing in line at the "big box" retailers and or cruising through their store, purchasing $100's of dollars of stuff you don't need while you wait for you pictures, here is your answer. 

Go to Pixurelab and start getting great pro quality prints and much more. Sign up is free, the service is great and the images you will get will be Pro Quality! Check out our current partner newsletter just released today explaining how when you Join Pixurelab you can begin printing from your iPhone and Facebook right away! This is a unique Pro Quality Printing Service, and only available from Pixurelab by Hawaiianpix!

In this episode of Digital Photography 101: Photo Tip #104: Fun New Ways to Order Photos Digi's Workshop Digital Photography 101 is brought to you by: https://pixurelab.lifepics.com

Order Prints   |  Create a Photo Greeting Card   |   Create a Photo Book Photo Tip #104: Fun New Ways to Order Photos Greetings Fellow Photographers! Today I'd like to tell you about a few new options you have to order your favorite photos, and give you some information on voting for the most recent photo contest. As we all know, photos are not just on our memory cards and computers these days. We keep photos everywhere: our cell phones, various software applications, social networking sites, and much more. So, what if you want to order prints of the photos you have in those various apps and sites? Well, now you can! Read on for a few brand new popular ways to order your photos. Facebook Facebook photos have always been fun to look at, but virtually impossible to print through your local photofinisher...until now. To order prints of any of your Facebook photos, including photos you are tagged in, simply install the Facebook photo ordering app from your Facebook account. The app is still a Beta release, meaning your feedback is welcome to help make it perfect via the feedback link in the app. Once it is installed, select the photos you wish to order, press "Add to Cart" to put them in your shopping cart, and when you are ready to order, press "Go to Cart" to open the shopping cart and complete the order. The order is sent to your trusted local photofinisher, just as any other order you place using your online photo account. Ordering Facebook photos is a great way to preserve your memories so you can enjoy your Facebook photos anytime, even when you are not in front of a computer. Also, I've created a promo code just for you to try out the new Facebook app! Order your Facebook photos through the app and use the code FaceBook5 when you check out to receive $5 off your first order! But hurry...the promo code expires on October 28. I recommend ordering 4x6 or 5x7 prints from Facebook, since the resolution on Facebook photos is usually too low to get a good quality print in any larger size. Also, Facebook recently enabled a new feature that allows you to upload high resolution photos, so next time you upload to Facebook, choose the high resolution option for better quality prints. iPhone Imagine this: you are walking down the street and bump into your favorite celebrity. You pull out your iPhone for a quick photo, and it comes out great. But, how do you make a print? Well, thankfully, I have the answer. Download the LifePics for iPhone app. The free iPhone app lets you order any photos from your iPhone to your local store, or any store near you if you are traveling. Order 4x6, 5x7, 8x10, or 11x14 prints (based on availability). You can also access your photos that are stored in your online photo account and order those through the app as well. The app is a great way to print and preserve your memories captured on your iPhone. A similar version will soon be released for Android phones; you can download the current Android phone app now (search "LifePics" in the Android market on your phone), but the printing capability is not included yet. Adobe Lightroom Adobe Lightroom is a software application many people use to edit and share photos. Up until recently, there was no way to order those photos directly from the software. Thankfully, you can now install the Lightroom plug-in, which allows you to order all of your Lightroom photos through your local photofinisher. This plug-in is free and is a great tool for Lightroom users. People who use Lightroom often spend hours editing and manipulating a photo until it looks just right, but what's the point if you cannot print the photo to hang somewhere? Well, now you can. Install the plug-in and give it a shot! Fotobounce Fotobounce is a free photo sharing and organizing tool. It uses facial recognition to organize your photos based on who is in them, or by date, name, or a variety of other methods. And now, you can order any of your Fotobounce photos through your local photofinisher. Simply install the latest version of Fotobounce, select photos to order, and select "File," "Print" from the top menu bar, or right-click on the photos and select "print." The orders will be sent to your trusted local photofinisher, just as any regular order from your online photo account. Well, that's it for now. There sure are a lot of ways to order! Hopefully one of these methods applies to you and you have time to give it a shot. With the holidays around the corner, it is a good idea to print some of these photos now to give as gifts so you have one less thing to do in December. Keep an eye out for several new apps and integrations coming over the next few months, making it easier to order your favorite photos to your local photofinisher! Looking for Halloween photo tips? Here you go: Halloween tip number 1 and Halloween tip number 2. Happy Halloween! Order Prints Create a Photo Greeting Card Create a Photo Book Summer Photo Contest Update! Thank you so much to everyone who submitted photos for the most recent contest! The submission period ended on September 30, and I am happy to announce that the polls are open! Visit my Facebook page to view all the photos and vote for your favorite. Vote by clicking the "Like" button corresponding with your favorite photo. I will announce the winners soon after the voting period ends on Halloween night! The photos are arranged into three different albums. Check them out and vote! Are you an App Developer? Or, do you know one? I am always on the lookout for cool photo apps (mobile or software). Check out the LifePics OPEN Program to learn more about how your app can make you some money! Thanks for everyone that has shared their photos with me since the last email! I haven't posted any here because I am so busy sorting photos from the contest, but please continue to share your favorite photos for me to post in future emails. If you would like to submit a photo for me to post in an upcoming email, please use the Share via Email feature in your online account: log into your account, click the green "share" tab, and follow the steps to share via email (the photo must be uploaded to your account, which you can do by clicking "Add Photos"). Share the photo(s) with me, digipixels@lifepics.com. Feel free to include info on how you got the shot, and whether or not you used any of my tips! Become a fan of me on Facebook! I will be posting my photo tips, answering questions, and much more. Follow LifePics on Twitter for more photo tips, photo news, and other fun photo-related content!

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Hawaiianpix goes OC16 with Kalehua Featherton and Hawaii Wedding Professionals

Aloha Everyone,

Ok, So we got this call from Kalehua Featherton to be on his cable access show on
OC16 where they highlight Hawaii's Wedding Professionals. We worked with his crew at
Paradise cove for a wedding last month, and believe me Kalehua does an awesome
Hawaiian Ceremony. Check us out on OC16 all this week ( Schedule is below) or on our
Facebook post.

Show times are as follows:    

Fridays at 6:30pm

Repeats:  Saturdays at 1:30pm, Mondays at 5:00pm, Tuesdays at 6:00am & 2:00pm

Fridays at 9:00am 

Check out Hawaiianpix on OC16 all this Week!

Aloha wedding couples, wedding planners and other interested vendors!!

We are currently filming on Maui and our first couple for the reality show called “Down the Aisle on an Isle”. It is scheduled to air on OC16 starting March 2011 with bigger surprises to follow.  If you know of any wedding couples who would like to be on the reality show, let me know (see below in pink for more info). 

Here’s what our show can do for you.

Wedding couples – save up to 70% of your entire wedding expenses.  Wedding vendors and wedding planners – save up to 90% of costs for television, live streaming and 24/7 viewing access via OC16.  Hopefully, you’ve seen our show and see the quality and value in it.  Starting early next year, in addition to OC16 we plan to air the show on the west coast, once a week reaching 2.6 million homes for our destination weddings through ION Media who owns and operates the largest television station group in the US, reaching 98 million homes.  Join us!

Episode #15 – Hawaiianpix Digital Photographic Service

and Royal Weddings by Lavender

 We are proud to sponsor our third professional on Hawaii’s Wedding Professionals, Kalena Paty Photography for the month of October.  We are pleased to sponsor them with $6,700.00 worth of advertising on our television show on OC16 and will continue to support other companies or individuals by offering them sponsorships too!!

 

CONGRATULATIONS!!

Hawaii’s Wedding Professionals Show #15 – Hawaiian Pix and Royal Weddings by Lavender

Against the background of Waialae Beach, Kahu Kalehua Featheran welcomes Jerry Omo of Hawaiianpix Digital Photographic Service as his first guest.  Jerry started 8 years ago, primarily photographing weddings, but has since grown his business to also process and print photos for himself and for 40 other photographers from the islands and the mainland as well.  The ability to process and print typically results in a quicker turnaround time for prints and albums to be completed and this is a great service for newlyweds who are anxious to see their wedding day photos.

Jerry calls his photographic style contemporary classic and he explains what this means during the interview.  Although he suggests doing the formal photos ahead of the wedding ceremony, when hair, make up, dress and flowers are fresh and new, he also respects the wishes of the traditional couples who choose not to see one another before the ceremony. 

Photographic packages are available on Jerry’s website, and he is available for in person or phone consultations with couples.  Jerry also mentioned that his wife retired from the Air Force after 21 plus years of service and so Hawaiianpix also offers a 10% discount to military personnel.  Mahalo Hawaiianpix for this offer!

Kahu Kalehua’s second guests are Darcie Wharton and Gabe Gongob of Royal Weddings by Lavender.  A multi-faceted company, Darcie and Gabe offer services in wedding coordination, DJ and sound, candy bars, favors and invitations.  As the first wedding coordinator for the upcoming 2011 Hawaii’s Wedding Professional’s reality wedding mini-series, Kahu Kalehua and the HWP cameras are following Darcie as she works with one of her couples who are getting married early next year.  Some of Darcie’s many responsibilities as a wedding coordinator is to meet with the couples, help them with their needs, including working out a realistic budget and pulling everything together for them to have a memorable wedding day.  To do this, Darcie meets with her clients and goes through a series of questions to better understand and help them with their wedding plans.

Gabe has been a DJ for 18 years and has a library of thousands of songs of all different types.  With his many years of experience, Gabe is able to read the crowd and provide just the type of music that would get them tapping their feet and up on the dance floor. 

In this day of single parent families and people working multiple jobs just to make ends meet, a wedding coordinator often takes the place of or relieves some of the work that would ordinarily be handled by family members.  Also, because Royal Weddings by Lavender can provide so many different services, Darcie and Gabe offer discounts at each spot.  For example, if a couple retains Darcie as their coordinator and Gabe as the DJ, there is a discount extended.  With the ordering of invitations from Darcie or a candy buffet, additional discounts are added on, and this is their way of helping the couple to have a wonderful wedding day and get a little break in the cost.  Mahalo Darcie and Gabe!!!

 

Show times are as follows:    

Fridays at 6:30pm

Repeats:                                  Saturdays at 1:30pm
Mondays at 5:00pm

Tuesdays at 6:00am & 2:00pm

Fridays at 9:00am

Wanna be on the show, let me know!!

Top 50 Photo Tips #10 - 1

Well we have finally made it, we are into the top 10 all time greatest Photo tips. It has taken a few articles but upon arrival at the number one, no peeking. You will probably slap your head and say DUHH! Of course that is exactly what it is all about! So without further waiting let's get started on our Top 10 Photo tips of all time.

#10 Flashing someone can be very enlightening....

Ok so you have these different features on your camera, even most of the top end DSLR cameras include a pop up or controllable flash. Why don't people use these? Well the light can be unflattering in some cases but most of the time the pictures are so much better if you just pop up that flash. If you have a setting on your camera that looks like a lightning bolt, this will allow you to make changes to how the flash is set. It can be Off, on an Automatic setting when needed or just on all the time. This is especially true with point and shoot cameras. Turn this thing on even in BRIGHT SUNLIGHT and use it to fill in the shadows of your subjects. You will be so happy that you have flashed your subject, you just might do it over and over again.

#9 What The Heck Is That?
When you are lining up your shot, pay close attention to the background. This is where people's eyes will wander to when they aren't searching for your subject. What you place behind your subject is just as important as the subject itself. Remember you are working with a 2 dimensional medium here. If you put something behind your subject that makes it look like it's "growing" out of the subject, it will totally distract your viewers. Worse yet placing something that is more important than your subject either visually or in content behind them will make your viewer leave the subject of your shot. Avoid very bright objects that aren’t directly behind the subject, i.e. framing them. Avoid strong vertical lines like telephone poles and trees, avoid palm trees and placing the background too close to your subject. If you follow the guide of looking at the scene first then placing your subject into it, your viewers will never say "What the heck is that?" when they look at your images.

#8 Saving Time In Post Production
When I got my very first camera..... a long long time ago in a galaxy far far away... (that statement should tell you when I actually did get it)  the camera came as a kit with 2 lenses. There was a Normal lens and a telephoto lens. While I loved shooting with that normal lens, I really loved using the telephoto (zoom hadn't been invented yet ). Yea yea I am old. Anyway, I learned right away that if I wanted to get close to my subject and eliminate all that distracting stuff that surrounds them like other people, buildings trees etc, I needed to crop in camera. This meant getting close in some cases but because we were still working with film, you had to plan your shots a little more than people seem to do today with the throw away feature on digital cameras. Take your time, compose your images in camera look at the edges of the frame, most view finders show you 98% or more of what your final image will contain when you press the button. Use all the space wisely. Composing in camera will improve your images and save you tons of time in post production.

#7 Know Thy Subject - Keep Your Viewer Interested
Have you ever looked at an image that has so much going on that you just have no idea where you should be looking? We have all seen these kinds of pictures and they are singularly unremarkable. Your images should always have a focus, a point of interest that grabs your viewer and makes it clear that they are what this image is about. Before you snap that photo, ask yourself what it was that drew you to stop and think "I should take a picture here." Was it the brilliantly painted building, the way the elements of the scene lined themselves up perfectly ... what was it? Once you have discovered your main subject, explore it from other angles and then choose your favorite before pushing that button. Know what the focus of your image will be about before you push that button. I hear you saying .... what about stuff that happens so fast you don't have time set it up. If you find yourself in a fast moving situation that requires you to record it, anticipate what will happen next and be there before it does. Move your camera into position quickly looking through the lens and evaluating the entire scene before the event takes place. When it happens, push that shutter button.  

#6 How Low Can You Go?
One of my favorite things to do is to lower.... LOWER my ISO setting on my camera, that is. Early DSLR camera's couldn't shoot above 400 ISO without getting such a bad photo that photography it seemed, had stepped backwards rather than forwards. Today’s cameras though seem to be going in the opposite direction. Most DSLR camera's have made their minimum ISO setting 200 but have a great top end of 1600 and more in some cases. I am sad to see the lower end of the spectrum lose its grip on digital photography. I routinely shoot at 100 ISO for the smooth, quality images that can be produced there. Sure you need a little more light to work in but most of the time that isn't a problem. In fact I will change to a lower ISO to be able to achieve more desirable settings like a shallow depth of focus in bright sunlight. Shoot your images on the lower ISO settings for high quality images.

#5 Go Big Or GO HOME!!
When you bought this fancy new camera with its 10-12-18-20 megapixel rating you did it because of the higher quality you could get out of all those pixels. Why would you then shoot everything on the lower quality settings on the camera? Is it because the camera only came with a 1 GB memory card? Or that you never download your pictures to your computer and you are trying to save space? I know, maybe you have decided that because you never make prints bigger than a 4x6 you don't need all that quality?  So why did you spend the big bucks on the camera? Crank it up to 11. Use all those pixels on every single shot, you will be much happier with your prints.... which can be HUGE by the way, not to mention feeling like you are getting your money's worth out of that expensive camera.
#4 Burn Baby Burn
Can you honestly say without a doubt that you have a backup of everything you have shot in the last 6 months, year or 2? If you can then you are among the very few people that can. If you backup your work by never erasing your memory cards, that is great, as long as you keep them in some sort of storage and just keep buying new ones. If you re-use your memory cards like most of us, you should have at least 2 backups of your images BEFORE you clean that card. That means you should have transferred them to your hard drive, and then burned a disk of the files, maybe even printed out your favorites before you clear the card. Burn baby burn.... Disks are cheap and when properly kept will last for a long long time. Hard drives fail, ask anyone whose computer has ever crashed. They lost everything. It has happened to us, 2006 was a fantastic shooting year. Literally thousands of customer files on a hard drive that FAILED. Were we freaked out? Sure. Did it slow us down a little? Yep. But it didn't stop us dead in our tracks. Every single client was backed up on CD or DVD and we simply loaded them back into a new hard drive. Back up your files and if possible store your backups off site. In the event of a fire or other natural disaster you will have a better chance of recovering your work.

#3 KISS
This is one of the oldest acronyms out there but it is also one of the most forgotten. Keep your images simple, uncluttered and flowing. Your composition should be easy to follow, with a strong subject and complimentary background. Great light and pleasing lines. Keep It Simple.... Sweetheart is not just a statement, it is a photographers best friend. The more uncomplicated your images are the more appealing they are to your viewer. Keep distracting composition killers out of your shot. If it doesn't belong there... don't put it there. Think clean, clear shot, little or no background distractions, framed subjects that pop off the image at you and you will be living proof that the KISS method of shooting is the only way to go.

#2 What Happens If I Push This?
Have you ever wondered what that button on your camera was for? WHY? Get out the manual and find out. Take a class or two and learn what it is for. Are there things on your camera menu that you don't understand? You paid for this camera and ALL its features, take the time to learn what all the widgets and buttons are for. What each setting does or doesn't do. In the long run you will not only learn what they are for but somewhere along the way you will learn more about your photography. Knowledge is never a bad thing, find out what the heck that button is for. Look it up, ask a camera tech at the store you purchased the camera from or just push it to find out. Don't be afraid, in my 30 plus years of doing photography I have never pushed a button or set a menu selection on my camera that made it self-destruct. Go ahead and learn what it is for, you might actually surprise yourself with a clever new tool.

Ok here it is......... Drum Roll PLEASE........
The NUMBER 1 TIP IN OUR TOP 50 PHOTO TIPS
#1 The Definition Of Photo - Graphy
Photography literally means "Light Writing" This seems simple enough but for over 100 years now mankind has tried to master this new art form. We have changed the way we shoot, record, develop and print our Light Writings. There have been those who are considered Masters, those that were simply professionals and those that were the everyday Joe or Jane's taking pictures of their kids in the back yard. All of them have one thing in common and that one thing also separates the truly great ones in each category from the well, not so great ones. The defining factor is right there in the name of the medium. It's all about the Light. Those that are great photographers at whatever level, understand how light falls, plays and can be bent to their will. They look at it, study it and understand why it acts and reacts the way it does in relation to the subject. They manipulate it and bend it to produce a scene that captivates, excites and holds their viewers in a moment that has long since passed. The Number ONE Tip is to LOOK AT THE LIGHT, before you shoot, is it exactly what you want it to be, can it be modified in post production or on site to make it what you want it to be? Is the color, contrast, brightness what you would expect to see? In short control the light and master the medium.

We hope you have had as much fun with this list as we have had researching and bringing it to you. Understand that we by no means believe this is the end-all, be-all of photography tips out there. We are talking about an art form that has changed the face of our planet, from every cereal box we buy to the images on billboards, buses, buildings and in family photo albums. We are a nation obsessed with our images. We capture them with our phones, post them on our Facebook pages and just as quickly replace them with the next image of our lunch. All we hope to achieve here is to have our readers take time to experience their images both before and after they have made them. It is easy to be image jaded with the barrage of images we are struck by every day. Maybe after reading these tips, you will take the time to create something not just capture it, when you do be sure to post it to the web and email us. - Aloha

Top 50 Photo Tips #20-10

We have taken ourselves past the 1/2 way point in our top 50 all time best tips for photographers. For those of you who might have tuned in late, we have had a great run at this and you should really read the other articles and catch up. Before we go way into the next series of tips, it might be best to describe how we got here. After searching online for photo tips during our research, we found there really wasn't a comprehensive list of tips that we could give to folks. There were a lot of similarities between lists, even some contradictions but the one thing we noticed with all of the lists is that they were just too short. So we compiled their lists, some of our own favorites and put together this list for the people. Now we are inside the top 20, we hope you enjoy reading these tips as much as we enjoy bringing them to you.
#19 The Image Killing Disease, Centeritis
This horrible disease is pervasive in photography. It is generally caused by beginning photographers, people who think those small center dots in their cameras are a target that must MUST go on top of the main subject. Knock it off! The center of your camera is just the CENTER that’s it! There is a whole frame above, below and side to side that is just way, way going unused here. Place your subject for the best composition, not because you have a dot on their forehead!

Centeritis		Good Composition

#18 Leading Lines
A great compositional tool is to use leading lines. They can be as simple as a pattern in an object or as obvious as train tracks. Either way if you have them in your scene use em. They are a great way to direct your viewer around your image. Force them to look in a specific direction. If you do use leading lines be sure there is a payoff for the viewer. There needs to be a place they are going to if you are directing them there. Don’t just have your lines converge into nothing.

#17 Enter CompetitionsAs an amateur photographer and even as a professional, you can enter competitions. Win prizes and accolades for your work if you pass the muster.  These competitions aren’t taken lightly, you will have to bring your “A“ game.  Where ever possible, if your image isn’t selected, review those that were, try to discover why they were “more” than what you had submitted. If your image was selected quiz the jurors if possible, and above all be honest with yourself enough to listen to what they say. Your work will improve simply by the virtue of competition with others. Best of Luck!
#16 What does it look like from up there?
Perspective is a wonderful thing. Everyone has a different one and the use of different angles will totally say different things about even the same image. There is never a time that changing your perspective on a project will hurt it. Look a things from different angles, not just physical ones either. Put on your child glasses, your middle age glasses, your parent glasses, even those goofy glasses with the big nose, every project deserves a different perspective. You maybe be surprised by the results give it a try.

  #15 Zoom Zoom
Ok so you basically have a couple of choices, you can purchase a large number of “fixed focal length” lenses and spend your time not only changing endless lenses during a shoot, not to mention trying to make more money to support your multi lens habit.  OR,  you can through each others’ minimum and maximum focal lengths and spend more time shooting with a paid off Visa card.  Yes, you do sacrifice a little, higher minimum aperture speeds, shifting minimum apertures with focal length and some distortion however, these are minor compared to the ease of use, speed in which you can shoot not to mention the number of times you DON’T have to change your lens and introduce things like dust and foreign objects into your camera body cavity.
#14 You can’t have the Zoom without the VR (or IS)
What?  Most digital cameras today have some sort of image stabilizer in them or in their lenses. In this case we are talking about the stabilization that is contained in your camera lens. This nifty little gizmo will actually assist you in shooting at low light levels by reducing camera shake. You will find this on most upper end Zoom lenses and it is FANTASTIC, to a point.  In those lower shutter speed areas below 1/30th of a second and 1 full second this feature is a Godsend. It will stabilize your camera without… the need for a tripod. Woo hoo. Give it a whirl the next time you go out shooting and find yourself in low light. Keep in mind though that the camera lens is actually creating a mini vibration to offset your movements, these can be seen as actual camera shake in exposures longer than 1 second. So you might wanna turn it off when you get down that low.
#13 I had a 3 legged dog…
You have likely heard of a 3 legged dog named tripod at one point or another in your life, this isn’t about him. It is about getting great exposures  in low light though. When you go out to look for a tripod, don’t be cheap. Remember this thing will be responsible for replacing YOU as the thing that holds your very expensive camera! The latest X-mart special should not be trusted to do that. Companies like Bogen, Manfrotto (same company), Slik, Gitzo. These are tried-and-true tripod makers that have “stood” the test of time even when my dog tripod ran into them.
#12 Spare in the corner pocket
If you are a pro with one camera… I am sorry but you aren’t a pro. Every single photographer that is worth their weight will tell you a horror story about the camera that became a door stop at the wrong moment during a shoot. Redundancy, backups and spare parts are a necessary part of any shoot, pro or not! Would you go out with just one battery? Media card? Lens? If you do, you’re asking for a disaster and hopefully you aren’t charging someone for your time when it happens. Even if you have to bring along an “inferior” camera model as your backup, do it. Save your shoot.
#11 Glass Is God
Ok, anyone that knows me knows that I am a very spiritual person. They also know that I don’t really believe that Glass is God, unless of course you are talking about the world of photography. There are always time tested truths about every profession. In photography this is one of them. I am a way back Nikon User, I am not militant about it but I do know the reason I have used Nikon for so long. It is unquestionably their lenses. When I started this journey into the world of imagery some 30 years ago I was looking long term. Nikon lenses offered what others couldn’t, not only were they incredibly sharp, but they could be used on any Nikon camera body. Doesn’t matter if I am shooting with a Nikon F from 1972 or a D3X from 2009, I can use the same set of lenses. Long and short, spend your money on your lenses, Nikon, Canon or other. You WILL have the lenses a lot longer than you will your camera body. With today’s camera’s you will likely be changing and upgrading about every 3-4 years. The lenses you buy will last 5 or 6 times that length of time.  Glass is God.

Well Gang we are almost there... Next month we will be hitting our number one tip of all time. Do you think you might know what it is? Any ideas? If you have 'em email us at jerry@hawaiianpix.com or check out our Facebook page, become a friend make a guess... All will be revealed next month. - aloha

Top 50 Photo Tips #30-20

We are in the middle of our top 50 Run on the best photo tips of all time.  You will begin to notice that as we move closer and closer to our number 1 tip, they will begin to lean more toward composition and lighting specs that will require you to perform at a higher level of proficiency in order to get the shot that you want and not the one everyone else can do. Put these into practice and you will begin to see a marked improvement in your work. As will your viewers.
#29 - Be Bold
Use the dramatic times of the day to your advantage. When is the Drama? Generally when the sun is low in the sky, but it can also be at High noon. Look for the storm, look for the color, look for the strong light, casting shadows long and strong. These are the Drama times. They are a “Wow” factor and exactly what you are looking for to capture your viewer and not let them go.

#28 - Balance Elements
When you place a subject in your scene you have to be aware of the other items in that scene or lack of items in that scene. Balance isn’t reserved for the playground and the teeter tauter. Balance in an image means front to back, side to side, light to dark, foreground, middle and background, subject to surroundings. When you balance an image, your viewer is captivated by the elements of the image, keeping their attention.
#27 - Framing
When we think of an image and we think of framing, we tend to begin asking, wood or metal. But we aren’t talking about how you will display your image. We are instead talking about the “framing” of your subject within the scene.  When you capture your subject inside of a natural frame that is compositionally positioned within the image, you again are helping your image capture and keep its viewers.

#26 - Move In Close
There is a story that we tell in our classes of a student focusing on color as a subject, who turned in a wonderful photograph of a park. The greens of the grass and trees were amazing. When we as a class guessed that his color choice was green, we were astounded to learn that the color he had chosen was RED. When we asked him how that could be, he simply replied, “there is a cardinal in that tree there”.
Get close enough to cover your subject but stay far enough away to allow your subject to breathe.
#25 - Plain Backgrounds….. Aren’t Boring.
The Kiss principal of photography applies here. Simple backgrounds have the ability to help the viewer focus on the subject. While a plain background can be …… well plain, it can still have character, mood and direction and it all has to do with how it is lit.

#24 - Get Down!
Ok your subjects have a size; you need to get to that size when you shoot them. We are not just referring to people; you could be shooting a car, building or flower. Your view will be the view of everyone that sees your image. Make it the view that best flatters your subject.
#23 - If your subject moves, move with them
Panning as your subject moves can totally enhance your image, panning helps show motion in a motionless 2 dimensional image. It adds a flow to your work and creates action where there was none before. Slow down your shutter and have fun with the panning motion. It can make something stagnant, come to life.
#22 - Tic Tac Toe
Ok I just had to call this something other than the rule of thirds. This is likely one of the best known compositional tool in a photographer’s tool kit. By dividing your image into 3 sections (vertical and horizontal) (get it, Tic Tac Toe) you can place specific parts of your scene in these locations to create a more pleasing image. The things you put there are namely foreground, middle ground, and background. Keep your Horizon line out of the center of the image as much as possible.

#21 - How Deep Is Your Image
Ever since the first cave dweller decided to paint their world on a cave wall, man…. and women artists have tried to show depth in their images. We have to face the fact that we are dealing with a 2D medium that looks best when it is fooling your viewer into believing it is 3 dimensional. Add depth to your images to enhance your images.

#20 - Vertical, Horizontal and Everything In Between
If you pretend for a moment that your camera is attached to the world with a rotating pin mounted in the center of your lens. If you could rotate your camera 360 degrees around your subjects, wouldn’t you? Of course you would so do it.

It Wasn't A TRAIN WRECK, It Was Just KYC#3

Aloha AllWe haven't run our KYC3 class through the University of Hawaii's Pacific New Media Program for about 6 months and this will be the last one for the year. We had some outstanding people though that helped make this class a BIG success.

First off I want to thank Laurie Gomes our makeup artist for doing an outstanding job with the models on the day. Your work is amazing and the models looked GREAT!....Who was supposed to have their hair spiked?  Scott Barnes our favorite second shooter was there too doin the T.A. thing.... Uhhhhh that's Teachers Assistant..... We were also joined by our world famous image editor Janel Roback and the newest addition to the Hawaiianpix team our inter, Meghan Osborn. I couldn't have pulled this session off without you guys, YOU ROCK !  

Then Of course there were the models' We had Cody, Sapphire, what a great couple referred by Laurie and Abbey on referral from Dawn Nash. You guys all made this EASY. I loved the look you guys all totally go into the " urban vamp " theme of the session and the Hawaii Railway Museum was a perfect location for this. 

The session began at 8 am, we took the students through 3 different aspects of a commercial model shoot, Lighting, Photography and Wardrobe. While the Photographers don't always have control over all aspects of a session like this it is really great if they at least know how the different parts of the session work. 

Each student had the opportunity to work in each area of the session, but once the models got on set.... it was hard to find a lighting person, everyone was grabbing their cameras. The Hawaii Railway Museum was very gracious. They allowed us the " run of the yard " for the session, while it was really..... REALLY hot by the time we were done no one was complaining.

During this 4 hour shoot class, we were able to do about 3 full sets of lighting, and a few clothing changes on the models. We talked about doing even funkier photos but just plain ran out of time. Maybe at the next class...

The class is designed as a workflow class with a 1/2 day of shooting and 2 nights 4 hours each of computer work and image manipulation using both lightroom and Photoshop. The students as well as the models and our makeup artist should come away with some really great photos to use in their portfolios. You can check the links below for the next series of classes we will be running through the UH Manoa and in Mililani. If you are interested in learning more about DSLR photography from the professionals, get in touch with the Pacific New Media Department of the University of Hawaii or contact us here through our website at Hawaiianpix. - Aloha

Used Photographic Equipment, Buying Selling? What You Should Know.

Buying Used Equipment On eBay or Craigslist

First Published on AOL TIME WARNER, Oceanic Cable Leisure Section September 1, 2009 by Jerry Omo, Jr.

You all know the favorite places to buy photo equipment on line. EBay, Craigslist etc. What you may not know is just who you are buying from, worse yet, what the quality of your new purchase will be.

It is always best to inspect your camera, lens, flash or other photo accessory prior to plunking down cash for it. With online buying this isn't always possible. In this case you need to do as much investigation as possible prior to your purchase.

With Craigslist, you will find a sort of "garage sale" mentality when it comes to buying. Bargaining is really your best option here. If you are able to inspect the equipment before you buy it this is the best way to purchase used items. Here are some things that routinely go overlooked by both buyer and seller alike that will help you sale a few bucks on your next Craigslist purchase. For all equipment, it is important to find out if the sale includes the original paperwork. Does the item have the original manual? Is it still under warranty or is the original unused card available? What about the original box that it came in? These are all items that will increase the value of the item for sale.

Before you rush into the "quick sale" check online to see what the item is selling for New. Using a scale from 1 to 10, a “New” item would be a 10. These items are described as “factory new”, ”Opened box condition” or “excellent condition”. From there start deducting points, or fractions thereof for certain usage flaws.

We all know that the minute a new car leaves the dealer lot, it starts to depreciate. So too should the camera equipment, you purchase. If there is no original box, deduct 1/2 pt. This isn't that important unless you need to send it back to the factory need things like a product code for special discounts or want to resell the item yourself. If the original manual is missing this is a bigger deal I would deduct 1 full pt for this. While most manufacturers have PDF’s available for most models online, if you want an “original” manual, you would have to buy one. This is the only thing that will help restore the “value” of the used item for sale. Hey if it’s gonna cost me money, it’s a 1 pt deduction. If the warranty card is still valid, or better yet if the warranty card was never filled out, this could be a bonus. So + or - 1/2 pt depending on the situation. If you have the opportunity to view the item, inspect it for physical marks, general wear and tear scratches & especially dents. If the camera/lens is dented it indicates the camera might have been dropped, walk away in this case especially, if the unit does not have a warranty card. If you don’t, you might end up spending your money twice to replace another persons’ problem. Deduct points based on the severity of the use. Was it dirty? 1/2 pt. Heavily scratched 1 pt. Mild wear 1/2 pt.

On a lens, CHECK the front, back and inside elements of the lens for defects, fogging (mold), fingerprints and in Hawaii, salt damage or corrosion. The lens mount should be clean and have little wear, the aperture ring should be able to function properly at all F-Stops ( you may have to put it on the camera to know this. The paint on the lens should be clean, without scratches and especially dents. Major mark downs on the price of a lens includes; fogging if this is heavy the lens may be worthless all together. Look for actual mold growing on the element. If this is present -8 immediately. If the F-Stop ring does not actuate -9, if the lens front or back are scratched from improper cleaning, or have finger prints that cannot be wiped off -4 or 5.

On the camera bodies, your mounting ring, mirror dampening seal, and dirt or dust in the lens well, mirror or focusing screen are all indications of a camera that hasn't been maintained. -2 to -3 depending on how severe. Battery power is important, pull it out ask about if the charger is included for the battery if not -2 or 3 pts, this will again cost you money to replace. If when you pull out the battery check the date on the camera. If it resets to the manufacture date of the camera after having been set to the current date, this could mean serious electrical problems, again, walk away from the sale. This could potentially cost you as much as a new camera if it isn't still under warranty. Thumb through the menus, check the firmware version and date if available, these items in some cameras can be updated and should be current if they are.

Ask the seller if the camera comes with a media card, lens mount cap, pc connection caps camera straps, computer CD and connection cables to download your pix onto your computer? Lenses with lenscaps and or protective filters . Flash units usually have a diffusion cover for the flash if they are higher end units, they also have manuals that should be included. All of these "extras" if missing will range from 1/2 pt to 2 pts depending on the missing item.

Once you have tallied up all the flaws for a particular item you want to buy, finally add 1 pt for each year a camera is old, 1/2 pt for a flash and just 1/4 pt for a lens.

If your final tally is say 3.5 you would take the current going price for the same item new and reduce it by 35%. I.E. Your original 10 minus 3.5 For defects. This is what you would offer in an auction or should pay for your Craigslist purchase.

We understand that it isn't always possible to do this thorough of an inspection, especially online. So ask lots of questions of the seller, if this is an eBay sale check the return policy or email the Craigslist seller to find out if they have a policy for returning an item for defects. This will help you make an informed decision, not only about the item being sold but about the seller too. - aloha