Yesterday, I was having a tutoring session with a client that we have known for quite some time.  She said, “Poppy, remember when I picked up my portraits last Christmas and you said back up your photos?  Well, I hate to say it but I didn’t.  But it wasn’t my computer that failed, it was my phone’s memory card that failed.  All of the vacation pictures and videos of my kids, all gone.” My heart broke for this mom.  She has really adorable kids, and they are at that fun age, where they say and do silly things that are all worth capturing.  She was able to get a few of her vacation photos back because she did email them to her mom, who doesn’t use face book, so those were stored in the world wide web, halleluiah!

So if I may loosely quote Paul Simon,

‘She said it’s really not my habit to intrude

Furthermore, I hope my meaning won’t be lost or misconstrued

But I’ll repeat myself, at the risk of being crude

There must be fifty ways to back-up your memories’

Make a new plan, Stan You don’t need to be coy, Roy

Just get yourself free Hop on the bus, Gus

You don’t need to discuss much Just drop off the key, Lee

And get yourself free’

Free yourself from the worry of losing those precious memories!

Here’s the plan:

1. Upload them to your chosen place of printing; of course you are printing those awesome photos!  Creative Memories – Costco – your local printer – somewhere that is going to be around forever!  When you order prints order the disc with them, it’s about four extra clams, and worth the peace of mind, for the time being.  Who knows what the next type of digital media storage will be, but I would be willing to bet it won’t always be CDs, so those alone are not enough.
2. Email those videos to yourself on your web based email (gmail has a ton of storage, so if you are not yet a user we highly recommend it) or to your friend, grandma, or cousin that you haven’t  talked to in a while, they will get a kick out of it, and you will have that extra backup.
3. Go, do it now.  It’s really that easy.

Thank you for taking the time to go back up your memories.  I don’t want anyone to have to tell me I was right, I want you to have those precious moments captured in time forever to pass on for generations.

~Poppy

1.  Go to your camera manufacturer’s website.  For example, Canon users go to :  http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/home  or Nikon users:  http://www.nikonusa.com/en/index.page

2.  Click on downloads, or firmware upgrade tab.

3.  Follow the instructions on the screen.

It may look a little complicated the first time you do it, but don’t worry, just follow the steps.  In a nutshell, you will load the new info from your camera’s manufacturer’s website onto your memory card, insert the card into your camera, and download the new info into your camera.

What will a firmware upgrade do for your camera?  Most of the changes you may not even notice;  Internal bug fixes or an enhancement to a certain feature.  Some enhancements are much more functional, for example, on a previous DSLR we owned, the camera wouldn’t recognize cards above 2 gigs when trying to use a 4 gig card.  After the firmware upgrade, bam!  Now the camera recognized the increased capacity and the camera could now shoot twice as many images.   We recommend checking back every 3 months to see if there is a new version to update.

Hope this helps, if you need some help, feel free to contact us.

Happy New Year!

John and Poppy

JP Portrait Studio: 2 Photographers, 1 Passion.

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Here’s How to Enter:

1.  ”Like” our facebook page, you can click “like” to the right if you’re not already a fan of JP Portrait Studio.

2.  Share the contest link from JP Portrait Studio’s facebook page on your facebook page by clicking “Share.”

3.  Comment on JP Portrait Studio’s facebook page below the contest link or in the comment section below, “I want to win JP Portrait Studio’s Complete Senior Portrait Prize Package!”

That’s it!  We will draw a randomly selected entry on Monday, June 25th at 7:00 pm and announce the winner.

Here’s everything included with the package:

• JP Portrait Studio:  Digital Package 

•  Haircut and Coloring Package by Sadie Scaramozzino, located in Fuse Salon.    https://www.facebook.com/fuse.hairsalon
• A Complete Skin Consultation and One 30 minute facial service from Ande Chapman of Facial Elements by Ande, located in Fuse Salon.  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Facial-Elements-by-Ande/190583660953150  website:  http://facialelementsbyande.com/?page_id=8
• An awesome 8×8 Metal Photo Panel by Debra Benbow from Creative Photo Solutions of NCW of your favorite senior portrait.    https://www.facebook.com/Debra4CM  website: http://www.mycmsite.com/dbenbow

Anyone can enter this contest for a high school senior to win the package.  Do you know a senior in the class of 2013?  You can enter to win for them by simply following the contest rules above.  The prize package may only be used for a 2013 high school senior.  Shoot location will be within the Wenatchee Valley or in our studio, located in E. Wenatchee.  Fuse Salon is located in E. Wenatchee, behind Taco Time.

Thank You and Good Luck!

Basically there are two choices when it comes to the tradition of seeing each other or not seeing each other before the ceremony.

1.  Option 1:  You don’t want to see each other before the ceremony.  No problem, we are a husband and wife photography team.  We split off: Poppy goes with the girls for preparation photos, and I go with the guys to drink and smoke cigars.  (Not really, the guys do actually take a little time to get ready.)  Poppy and I coordinate timing with our phones so that no one accidentally sees each other.  I take the guys out and shoot a set of formals and send them off to hide.  Then it’s the girls turn.  After the ceremony, the rest of the formals are shot before the reception.   Couples that choose this option should plan some extra time in between the ceremony and reception, maybe offering the guests something to snack on before the meal is served.

2.  Option2:  You’re okay with seeing each other before the ceremony.  If possible, the majority of the formals can be taken before the ceremony.  This allows for a shorter span of time between the ceremony and the reception, or we can sneak the newlyweds off for a private shoot of just the two of them.  This is sometimes a nice bonus for the couple as well, since you get to spend a few moments alone together a midst the chaos of the day.

Of course, the are other options as to if, when, and where other photos are taken, but the tradition of “not seeing each other” definitely affects the schedule for the day.  Either way is absolutely fine with us, and we can easily accommodate any couples desires and agenda for their wedding day.  Our clients never have to worry, because together, we plan a picture perfect day, and then capture the moments as they happen.

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The majority of  landscape and scenic photography is all about clarity and maximum depth-of-field.  Most point-and-shoot cameras don’t have the ability to set the aperture manually, so you’ll need to rely on Program or perhaps a better option, Landscape or Scenic Mode.  When you activate the Landscape feature, you are telling your camera to close down the aperture for maximum depth-of-field, or overall clarity throughout the entire photograph.  This is a great mode when you’re trying to have people in the foreground while keeping background clear at the same time.

To use the Landscape Mode, look for an icon that looks like a mountain.  Since it’s a commonly used feature, it might be a button or on the dial, if not, look for the word “SCENE” or “SCN.”  The SCENE menu contains all of your different presets, different ways of telling your camera what type of picture you’re trying to capture.  Inside the SCENE menu, look for the mountain icon, or the word “Landscape,” or “Scenic.”

Note:  When using this feature, your camera might choose a shutter speed that is too slow for you to handhold the camera and still get a clear picture, a tripod would then be required.  Don’t panic, tripods are easy to use, and expand the limits to your photography, more on tripods in a future installment.

Quick tip:  If you don’t have a tripod yet, raise the ISO in increments until the shutter speed is fast enough to handhold.  How to Change ISO

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When you set your camera to Portrait Mode, usually indicated with a profile view of  a head, you’re telling your camera that you want to blur the background and foreground of your photograph while keeping your subject in focus.  This is a great mode anytime you are trying to isolate your subject and create separation from your subject and the background.

Don’t think of Portrait Mode just for photographing living subjects, think of how this mode with affect your photo.  If you were shooting a large group of people, using Portrait Mode would blur-out some of the people in the group because this mode uses a low f/stop number for shallow depth-of-field, whereas Landscape or Scenic Mode would be a better selection for a large group of multiple subjects.  Portrait Mode is best used for single subjects, whether it’s a person, a flower, or any object that you want to showcase in your photo.

To better accentuate the blurring of the background, try backing-up from your subject and using your zoom to compose your photo.  Trying to blur the background while your camera’s zoom is set to wide angle makes it difficult to create the separation of subject and background.  Zooming, and then composing, will not only help to blur the background, but narrow your field-of-view as well, bringing even more attention to the subject of your portrait, whether that happens to be of a person or not.

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Some terrible force has replaced your bright and shining faces with dark, unrecognizable, shadowy figures from the underworld, what happened?  Light, and lots of it.  Your camera did not realize that you were actually trying to take a picture of subjects in front of all that light.  Your camera automatically adjusted for all that bright light behind your subjects, and left your subject in dark silhouette.

Sometimes the results can look really cool, when you want it that effect, like a surfer carrying a surfboard on a beach during sunset, the ocean and sky look fantastic, and the surfer is only recognizable by the dark outline of body and surfboard.  But what if you want to see your subject’s face smiling with all that bright light behind them?  You have two options.

First, find the snow/beach setting in your camera’s “Scene” menu.  By selecting this mode, you’re telling your camera not to compensate for all that bright light behind your subject, you can now see your subject but the background will be even brighter, or overexposed.  The second, and usually better, option is to turn on your flash.  In program, your camera didn’t think it needed to fire the flash because of all that bright light, but you can force it fire by pressing the flash control button, which looks like a lightning bolt.  Forcing the flash to fire will now put light onto the front of your subject, while the camera’s f/stop and shutter speed will expose for the background, balancing out the exposure of your subject and the bright background.

Quick Tip:  Forcing your flash to fire will usually fix any situation when there is more light behind your subject and you’re trying to capture the subject in front of all that light.

If you’re going to fire the flash, simply move physically closer or further away from your subject to get the correct exposure of your subject and the bright background behind them.  Now you can see their shining smiles and that beautiful landscape behind them.

Are you enjoying this series?  Please consider sharing to help-out another fellow photographer, thank you!

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So your color is a little off, no problem.  Setting the correct white balance before you take a ton of awesome pictures will save you time and frustration later trying to make the colors and skin tones look right.  You can try the presets for artificial light, tungsten or florescent, but many times you’ll find that, if AWB can’t get it right, it’s best to set a custom white balance.

For best results, I recommend setting a custom white balance anytime you shoot indoors without flash.

It’s easy, here’s how you do it:

• Turn the flash off and raise ISO if necessary
• Press the WB button (or however your camera allows you to adjust the white balance: Func/set button for most Canon, or button by toggle switch for Nikon and other cameras.)
• Toggle over to icon that looks like a square with two triangles underneath it, or setting that says “custom.”
• IMPORTANT: Make sure you’re pointing the camera at a white piece of paper before you do the next step, (I recommend carrying a folded-up piece of blank white paper in your camera bag.)
• Follow the directions on the screen, it will tell you what to do, for example, “Press Shutter” or “Set DISP” are common directions.  If your screen doesn’t have a message, try pressing the shutter button, (the button you press to take a picture.)
• Some camera’s will ask “Use this photo?” Press OK.  Some cameras won’t have a message, proceed to next step.
• Take a test picture, how do your colors look now?   Is white actually white?  If so, it’s time to party!  If it still looks off, you missed something, try again.

If you get stuck on any part of this, just comment below or use the contact page and we’ll figure it out together.  I really recommend practicing this every now and then, so it will be easy for you to do and you won’t choke “in the moment” when it’s picture time and your colors are off.  You’ll only kick yourself later when you’re sitting at the computer “fixing” your photos instead of “playing” with them.

Tip:  Arrive a little early to your next event and set your custom white balance before the action begins!

If you capture the image colors correctly for your original,  then you can have a million different renditions as copies, and you’ll always have that great original to go back to.  You’re taking more control of the camera now, and with a little practice, you’ll be ecstatic with the overall improvement of your colors, and your photography.  A lot less “What the ?” and “Oh well,” and a lot more “Got it!” and “Yeah baby!”  is coming your way.

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•  AWB:  Auto White Balance, is where your camera should be set most of the time.  It works great for outdoor lighting, especially for scenic shots.
• Daylight:  Icon is a sun shining, to be used in sunlight, but not for shady areas.  Shady areas will look cyan in color when shot with daylight setting.
• Shady:  Icon is a building showing shade on side, to be used in when your subject is in a shaded area on a sunny day.
• Cloudy:  Icon is puffy cloud, is best used on a completely overcast day.
• Tungsten (incandescent:)  Icon is a standard looking lightbulb.  This is used when shooting indoors without a flash, if your test image looks too yellow.
• Fluorescent:  Icon is a skinny rectangle, best for shooting in most school gyms and classrooms.  Some cameras have 3 different flourescent settings, so be sure to pick the one that looks the best.
• Custom:  Icon is a square with 2 triangles underneath.  Many times, if AWB doesn’t get the colors right, it’s easiest to set a custom white balance.

Tip:  Taking a test shot for color accuracy and then adjusting your camera to the appropriate white balance setting before shooting a bunch of images will save you time and frustration later!

Try this:  Pointing the camera out in front of you, start with AWB and keep pushing the WB button to change the settings.  Notice how each setting is affecting the colors?

OK, what if you tried all the WB settings and your colors still look wrong?  In the next installment, we’ll look at setting a Custom White Balance.  Don’t worry, it’s so easy you’ll feel like a pro.  Stay tuned!

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Oh, that mysterious white balance.  Maybe you’ve heard of it, saw it once in your camera’s manual that you’ve somehow misplaced, or avoided the button entirely out of fear.  Fret not, adjusting the white balance is not only easy, but it will save you countless hours on the computer trying to correct your colors, or even worse, settling on colors that don’t look right because it’s easier to call it “good enough.”  Sometimes your camera gets the colors just right, sometimes not.  When the colors in your image looks like reality, then your camera is adjusting it’s white balance setting correctly, hooray!  When the colors look “off,” or not what you see when you’re shooting, then it’s time to readjust the camera’s white balance.

White balance is based on what your camera thinks is “white.”  If the camera gets white correct in it’s rendering, then all other colors will be correct.  Conversely, if what your camera thinks is white is not actually white, then all of  the other colors will be incorrect too.

Usually, your camera will do a great job shooting outside in Auto White Balance (AWB,) it’s when you are shooting indoors without a flash that you will probably need to adjust your camera’s white balance.  Keep in mind that your camera is just a super-sophisticated,  fantastic tool that sometimes gets it completely wrong because it’s doesn’t actually know what you’re taking a picture of, or exactly where you are either.   No problem.  It’s time to start talking to your camera, (without looking crazy in public.)

Next in the series, “How to Adjust Your Camera’s White Balance.”

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