Walk4Hearing Silent Auction - Thank You!

Thanks to everyone who supported the Walk4Hearing Silent Auction! On behalf of Chris Stern, Jason Moore and myself, I want to say how great it is to be a part of a community that is so giving and supportive. We raised almost $900 to support a great cause, and if you'd like, you can still contribute directly to Mr. Stern's Walk4Hearing page, here.

Food Photography 101 by Michael Palmer

There is really an element to good food photography that fires the pleasure centers of my brain.  I am a new foodie, and with that new trend in my life I have incorporated it with my passion for photography.

The basics to getting a good food shot.

1. It’s all about the natural light.  When setting up in a restaurant I find the best light I can use that will showcase the food and setting. 
2. Use the lowest ISO you can, that means a tripod and trigger is a MUST for slower shutter speeds.
3. Choose an aperture that showcases the food, on my first couple shoots I shot wide open at 2.8.  I find now that 5.6 and 8 are more suitable when I view them in post production.  The shallow DOF from 2.8 works great for small elements of food on a plate, but most entrees will look better at 5.6 and 8.
4. Be creative with angles, backgrounds.
5. Bring fill cards to surround the food and balance the light and even give highlights.  White plates work in a pinch.
6. Lastly, but probably the most important nugget I can give you, you must eat before you go on the shoot. 

Good luck and happy shooting!!

Michael Palmer is a good buddy and an awesome Washington DC-based photographer and blogger who runs - Michael Palmer Photography.

Thank you, Mike for the lesson on food photography, your friendship, and your support. I look forward to shooting with you sometime soon!

Walk4Hearing Silent Auction - Four Days Left

Don't forget to place your bid on awesome photographs from some amazing photographers - all while supporting a good cause. Find out more by clicking on the banner below.

Experimenting with Textures by Andrew Smith

One technique I like to use when looking for a unique result is the use of textures. This may bring to mind specific looks that we've seen in use, but in reality the results are endless in variety, ranging from very subtle effects barely noticeable to immediately dramatic changes. This variety allows an extra level of creativity in our photography processing. The idea initially became popular with traditional photography, printing the photograph on textured paper. Fortunately for us, we can layer our texture files on top of our photos and have vast control of the result.

While excellent textures are available for purchase, part of the creative process that we can utilize, and one that ensures unique prints, is to create custom textures ourselves. Interesting textures we pass by can be photographed and manipulated or they can be created from scratch.

One of my favorite textures to use is an easy one to create, which I adapted from Nitsa's excellent "Still Alive" web site. (http://nonphotography.com/blog/) Crumble a regular piece of copy paper and soak it in a container of coffee. Remove, lay flat, and air dry the paper. Scan the result and manipulate at will. I've included a small sample of one such texture, as well as a resulting photograph.

To experiment, do initial work on a photograph using your regular work flow. Once it's resized as you wish, select the crop tool in Photoshop and click "Front Image" to set the cropping tool to the image size of your photograph. Open the texture file you created and crop to those set dimensions. Drag the texture (holding the shift key down to center) on top of the photograph and release.

Select the texture layer and experiment with various layer styles and opacities. You'll most likely develop favorite styles and soon have a feel for what photographs work the best with the technique. After making initial settings, you may wish to go back and adjust some of your initial workflow decisions.

The creative possibilities are endless. Use the textures on color, black and white or duotone images, and experiment with new texture ideas. It's not often that we can utilize a new tool that is literally free to produce. Or at least for the cost of a cup of coffee!

Andrew Smith is a talented Pennsylvania based-photographer and blogger who runs - Visual Realia.

Thank you, Andy for the creative inspiration, your friendship, and your support!

TJP Photo Contest #12 - Dreaming (Extended)

Last month's theme,"Dreaming" has been extended another month. My apologies for not staying on top of reminders and updates about the contest in September - we've been a little busy. ;-)

I'm looking forward to seeing your work around the theme, "Dreaming" - Best of Luck!

Prize: $25 B&H Gift Card

Who Can Participate: Everyone, our contests are open to pros and amateurs alike

Deadline: Saturday, October 31st @ Midnight (Eastern)

How and What to Submit: Submit JPEG photos to contest@townerjones.com- make sure to include your name and contact information (in case you win). JPEGs should be at least 800x600 pixels in size, and may be resized for display.

The winner and other selected entries will be displayed on this blog.

For additional information on our contest policy, click here.