The Phoblographer

HDR, or “high dynamic range” photography could divide a nation: either you love it, or you hate it. The problem is, HDR gets an increasingly bad reputation for being “hyper realistic” and painful to look at. There’s no denying that those photos exist, but there’s also a tasteful way of going about HDR, and creating a photo that is not only beautiful, but more accurately represents how the human eye witnesses a scene. Trey Ratcliff, a photographer that has built his entire portfolio around HDR, is often used as an example of someone who is able to put together absolutely stunning HDR shots.

See, The human eye has significantly higher dynamic range potential than the digital sensor in a camera, so images we take in situations with relatively high dynamic range can end up looking flat, and we lose detail in shadows and highlights. The goal with HDR photography is to bring those details back, and present a single image that does our scene justice. Here are a few tips on how to go about creating “tasteful” HDR photography.

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As photographers, we all know the friends who take way too many photos and then upload them to Facebook; causing us to sometimes cringe at them. A great example is the girl that posts way too many photos of herself (or always in the same pose.) Vimeo users Neil Chan has parodied this problem in his video, “Pro-Facebook Photographer: Marc Huelet.” In it, Marc tries to talk all about the gear he uses: which ranges very greatly from high end professional cameras to the iPhone. But he brings up a much better point: that being that it’s the photographer that takes the images and no matter how great the camera may be, it will never replace the knowledge, experience and creative vision that an individual has.

If you’ve got a couple of minutes, check out the video above. Let us know your thoughts on some of the photos that you find on Facebook.

The Kodak Brownie No. 2. Source: Wikimedia Commons

Eastman Kodak, situated in Rochester, NY, pioneer of film photography and inventor of the famous “Brownie” — the first widely available photographic camera for amateurs — just announced that they will completely back out of the camera business. Despite never being really successful on the digital camera market, the brand name “Kodak” is associated with photography like no other.

After the continuous decline of their stock market value during the past couple years, this January Eastman Kodak finally had to declare Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Read more after the jump.

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Coffee Common NYC , An event I recently shot

In my time as an event photographer, I have come up with some things that always seem to work. They are simple and clean methods that never fail. It requires something that goes beyond just having great gear. A little preparation can go  long way.

So let’s get right into it.

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First image from a ~7 Hour photo walk I recently did

Being a photographer is like playing a game of chess, you must think first before you move. No matter which style of photography I am doing, I have to  prepare myself. This can make a long  day easier because it allows me to focus on the creation of images. Read the rest of this entry »

MOD announced today a new line of straps for DSLRs, SLR, and compact cameras. Coined the: ECO straps, compact camera straps and bags, drop-in pouches for DSLR & SLR cameras, strap wraps, neck pads and quick release adaptors. In addition to the new product lines, new assortments of styles and designs have been added to existing collections. Consistent with the company’s commitment to excellence in design and quality, all new product fabrics are personally hand-selected and all products are proudly manufactured in the United States.

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