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- 04/06/14 13:05:20

During the summer time especially, many of us take photos on the beach or on lake shores. On an overcast day this seldom presents a problem. Often we take these photos while on holidays and in sunshine, the story changes.

What most of us forget is that sand reflects sunlight, unless it's very wet. When you pose your subject with a lot of sand in the background, it's like having a white wall or a light behind your subject. The light from the Sun bounces back towards the camera and fools the meter.

Your camera meter tries to achieve what is known as 18% gray. When Eastman invented roll film, he figured out that the average brightness of a scene is equal to 18% gray. I don't know whether he was right or wrong but the camera and film industries agreed with him and today all cameras are designed to balance their exposure to achieve that level of brightness.

What that means is, that when there's a large bright area in a scene, your camera will underexpose it, to achieve as near as possible to 18% gray. This of course means that the rest of the scene is also underexposed and parts of normal or average brightness are recorded as dark.

So, lets go back to your friend posing for you on the beach. If the Sun is to the side or behind her, the sand will reflect a lot of light but your friend will either be partly or fully in shadow. When you press your shutter half way down, your camera measures the light and tries to balance it as explained above. Lets say that you are taking a head and shoulder shot of your friend and she occupies about two thirds or three quarters of the frame. The camera will see this area as the most important and will expose to get it correct.

Next you want to take another shot, this time to show off your friend's sun tan, so you move back and include all of her in the frame. Now, you have to consider the colour of the sand. The lighter the colour of the sand the more light it reflects.

Dark sand presents no problem, at least not for this photo. However, if your friend has just arrived on last night's flight and is still the pasty white we Irish usually are, the problem will be the same as if she were tanned on a white strand, only in reverse.

So, we're on the white sand beach, your friend has been toasting herself for the last ten days and very proud of her deep tan. She's a dark figure, in front of a bright surface. Remember what I said about 18% gray? Your camera will try and reduce the sand to this brightness, meaning your friend will come out almost as a silhouette. She wont be a happy camper, neither will you.

There are several things you could do. If she's young, has a good figure and small bikini, you'll probably have plenty of local guys wanting to pose with her and you can use them to block the reflections from the sand. But, I'm assuming that wouldn't be your first choice.

You could use the +/- button on your camera and get it to overexpose by +0.3 or if it's very bright +0.7. You have to be very careful here. If you over expose too much the light reflecting from the sand will wrap around your friend and create a ghosting effect. It's a kind of a cloudy effect, the more your overexpose the worse it gets, until your friend disappears altogether. Don't worry, it's only in the photo(can't get rid of the wife that easily). No happy campers here either, I'm afraid.

If your camera allows, you could choose 'center weighted metering'. This will measure the light at the center of the frame and expose for that. I explained in my first blog how to use this and still frame for a better looking image, so I wont go into it here. You could end up with the same problem as above however.

Both of these solutions work, where the sand isn't reflecting huge amounts of light. For example, if the sand is a brown or darker colour or where the sun isn't very high in the sky or is partly blocked by cloud. If, however, you have a very bright day, a cloudless sky and light coloured sand, it may be very difficult to get these to work for you. The solution then is in how you pose your subject and the angle you take the photo from.

For example, you could pose your friend on her towel and shoot from slightly over head. Stand back and zoom in. If you stand too close to her and use the wide end of your lens, it will look like her head is out of proportion to her body. Don't shoot from her feet either, this will also distort her appearance. Shooting from the side is best. Avoid limbs pointing directly into the lens.

The more your friend and her towel fills the frame, the less likely it is that reflections from the sand will effect the meter. If there are grassy sand dunes, these are good for photography also. Concrete can cause problems and while black tarmac doesn't fool your meter, it will cause other problems on a hot day.

Another option is to find some trees or an overhanging canopy and shoot under them. Parasols are also good. Shade gives a more flattering light and compliments your subject, while reducing reflections. You will still need to reduce the amount of sand and other reflective objects in the background.

Early mornings and late evenings don't present the same problems. Why? Light reflects at the same angle as it hits the surface. During mid-day the Sun is almost directly overhead and the light is reflecting directly back up at you. When the Sun is lower in the sky the light hits the sand and other surfaces at an oblique angle. For example, if the sun light hits the sand at 30 degrees, it will reflect at 30 degrees in the opposite direction. As long as your subject isn't directly in front of the Sun, these reflections shouldn't be a problem. If they are, change the angle that your are shooting at, until they are not.

The colour of the light in the morning and evening is also more flattering to your subject. The closer to Sun set or Sun rise the nicer it is. At these times the light will improve Sun tans. Now you're talking happy campers.

Water both reflects and absorbs light. It all depends of the angle of the water. Perfectly smooth water absorbs almost all the light that hits it but when have you last seen perfectly smooth water? It acts like glass and allows about 95% of light to pass through and reflects the other 5%. That's how we see reflections of the sky on lakes and rivers.

When water isn't so smooth, some of it is at an angle that is just perfect to reflect the light right down the barrel of your lens and present the same problems as white sand. Experiment with your exposure, as explained above and you could get some lovely results. Move a little to one side and it can help also. However, if the reflections are still causing a problem or you don't want in you image, move so that the reflections are coming from the side.

So, that's it for now. I hope you have a great Summer and get some great shots. I haven't decided what to write about the next time but it might be a little different. I'm thinking about doing something along the lines of describing a photo shoot. Anyway, until next time take care of yourself and happy snapping.

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- 24/05/14 17:42:34

So, you're getting married in the near future and you need to book a photographer. It's not as easy as it seems and when you start to look for a suitable photographer, you'll be daunted by the choice and range of styles and services. There's so much to take into account that it's only natural to feel overwhelmed. Of course, you may already know a photographer you want to use and don't need to look any further. Perhaps your sister's or friend's wedding photographer or a friend or relation.

There are a number of things you should take into account, which will make the decision much easier. So, lets have a look and see what they are.

BudgetFor many couples this is the first factor that they take into account. They contact photographers and ask them for their price list. This is a mistake. The price list tells you nothing about the photographer, except his/her price and this should be the last thing you look at. Check out all of the other factors first, make a short list of photographers and then see which ones suit your budget.

Just like with most other aspects of life, in photography you mostly get what you pay for. You may be very lucky and find a cheap photographer who also happens to be very good. However, if all you look at is his price list, you won't know this until after the wedding, when you see your images and it's too late then. Cheap does not necessarily mean bad but it often does and you need to protect yourself against this. You may get a new and good photographer, trying to build up a business and keep his prices down to encourage bookings.

It is more likely that you'll get someone who's not very sure of what he's doing and keeps his price down, to draw customers in. Watch out for photographers who promise too much for the price quoted. For example, I've recently seen an ad for a photographer who will spend five or six hours at your wedding and supply you with 1000 to 1200 printable photos, all for €250. That's 200 photos an hour, more than three a minute. How can he pose any of these, correct the lighting, organise his subjects and all the other things a true professional will do?

Experience Experience isn't every thing but it's a big factor to take into account when booking your wedding photographer. Some photographers never improve, even if they do it for decades. Others have a natural talent and are good from the start.

Even if your wedding is going to be the first for the photographer, he should be able to show you images of other shoots he has done. You can see his style and ability from these. If what you see are badly posed, dark, too bright or display some other obvious flaw, move on to the next guy.

The more experienced a photographer is, the cooler he will keep when things go wrong. He will also work better with you and your guests. Wedding photographers have to think on their feet and have to be quick to react to changing circumstances. So many things can go wrong during your wedding that could ruin your photographs, a photographer's experience will help him to overcome the situation and still get great photos.

Personality We all like dealing with someone who has a good personality, no matter what the situation is. It is particularly important on the day of your wedding. Working with someone who has a bad personality can ruin your big day. An unpleasant photographer could upset your guests, the hotel staff or worse still, you.

It's important that you meet the photographer and see if you can get along with him. Would you have a pint with this guy? If you met him on the street, would you stop for a chat? If you get a good feeling about him, then you can work together but if you feel uneasy about him, move on.

I'm not saying that you should go meet every photographer that you contact. When you have shortlisted your photographers and seen who match your budget, meet those guys.

Style The photographer's style is also very important. Do you like his work? Remember, these photos will represent the biggest day of your life, forever. The photographer may be the world's best, the nicest guy you've ever met, the price matches your budget perfectly but you don't like his style. Don't book him. If every time you look at your images your reaction is "I don't like them", it's a waste of money. Your images should bring back pleasant memories, not make you cringe.

Contract Regardless of who you book, make sure that you sign a contract and that you are given a copy. Before signing, go through the contract with the photographer and make sure you understand it and what it obliges the photographer to do for you. If there's anything that you feel uneasy about, discuss it with the photographer. There may be a good reason for it being there and he won't change it but often, it can be changed.

Last year, a couple walked into my studio with a disc of their wedding photos. They had booked a cheap photographer to take their wedding photographs and that's exactly what he did. He didn't pose anyone and many were badly light. When they asked him to edit the photos and prepare them for a photobook, he refused, telling them that he was a photographer, not an editor.

They had understood that he would provide the full service normally given by wedding photographers. There was no contract, so they had no come back.

The contract should include full details of the services the photographer will provide, payment schedule, cancellation policy, what will happen if the photographer takes ill, when the images will be provided, does the price include an album or photobook, etc.

Spray and pray Digital photography has made it easier for anyone to set up as a photographer. However, many of the new photographers have not mastered the skills and techniques needed to produce quality images.

Many of these photographers just keep shooting, in the hope of getting some good photos. I referred earlier to a photographer offering 200 photos per hour. This is what we mean by spray and pray. You may be lucky and get some great photos but do you want your wedding photos to depend on luck?

What you need is quality, not quantity. In the days of film you may only have gotten 30 or 40 photos. I was given 30 photos and had to choose 24 for my album. While I wouldn't expect anyone to settle for a low number like this, there's no need to get several hundred. A good photographer should be able to provide you with plenty of quality images, without shooting by the hundred.

It's better to get 150 to 200 good images, than to get 500 to 1,000 duds.

One last point, it is better to book your photographer early, good ones get booked up quickly.

I hope I've given you food for thought. Choosing a wedding photographer will take time and effort and I wish you luck in your task.

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