San Diego Photographer

It is that time of year again when the holidays approach and everyone is asking you what you want as a gift. Well, if you are anything like me, you usually say “I’m sure whatever you get me will be amazing!” But, I think this is the year as an adult I officially make a Christmas list. The reason for this list is that I can’t always count of my significant others and family to buy me what I would use more than once. (Or never like the case of the razor scooter, my aunt got me thinking it was the cool way young professionals got around their office- Oh boy!).  So, get ready for an array of suggestions from big to small, super expensive to low budget. A present for all of your needs waiting to be unwrapped and used every day! This list is both for you to suggest and for you to consider when getting a gift for another photography enthusiast.

I am going to start with the expensive gifts to get the best ones out of the way! Nowadays, actual cameras are expensive, but most come in these kits that are complete with all the basics to start in photography. So, asking for a camera is an amazing present and can jump start your passion for photography. We have written an equipment recommendation on good deals and everything to look for in buying a camera, so if you are looking to buy one for a loved one or friends we describe what features make a camera worth buying. 

Another expensive gift option to get someone who is passionate about photography is to get them a new lens. We have recommended a few, but having more than one lens can really take your photography to the next level. With so many lenses out on the market, we wanted to give you a hint on the lenses that really improve and expand your photography and are worth buying. The best lenses to get someone would be the 70-200mm (Not a lot of people have this one and it is an incredible lens for shallow depth of field, close-up, just about everything [Find it here] ), 50mm (Check out our Blog), and a 85mm [Canon here- Nikon here]. These are all great lenses to have and if anyone who is passionate about photography doesn’t have one of these, it could be an incredible gift. A gift of a new lens is a gift to a new perspective and world of photography.

Now, for the less expensive stuff. A lot of us do not have the financial means or  the want to blow over $500 on a friend, family member, or significant other. (Sorry, babe!) But, there are equally important gifts relating to photography that give your wallet a break. These gifts are practical and have great value! So, we all know the joke about getting tube socks from your grandma, but some things we hate buying but always need in photography are batteries and memory cards! I know, I know, the important part is that you call it a stocking stuffer because no one wants just batteries or memory card for Christmas.(Check out our Memory Card Blog) The gift, that most people don’t think of, that are awesome practical gifts for photography is a camera bag or strap. 

In most camera kits, the camera comes with the company brand embroidered on a thin strap. Anyone who enjoys taking photos or carrying around their camera around on trips and vacations knows how strenuous this can be on your neck and back. So, a great thing to invest in or give as a gift in this case is a new camera strap! We recommend giving them Sun Sniper Pro Strap [Find it Here]. This one gives incredible support with Shock Absorbers and relieves the strain that comes from having your camera strap around your neck.

In bags, a great practical bag to get your loved ones is a travel camera bag. Your camera is most susceptible to damage when you are out and about and a strong and great quality camera bag can be more important than the ever day camera bag. We recommend the Tamrac Velocity Series Travel Bag. (Check out or Travel Bag Blog) This bag is comfortable and practical for any photographer! It is aesthetically basic and sleek and does not draw attention to the fact you have expensive equipment in it. It also carries all things necessary for a trip out to shoot and does so in an organized and protected fashion with easy access to your supplies.

In the midst of being a photographer and especially in this era of computers and internet, the amazing photos taken are usually only available online or on a computer album. A great present to get any photographer is one of their photos printed to be admired. A passionate photographer is always looking to take new and interesting photos and has a handful or more of favorites and it is nice to show just how beautiful those photos are off the computer and on a wall or ledge. There is simply printing and making a photo album or putting them in picture frame option. This is cheap and is always meaningful for a photographer. Another slightly more expensive, but even more satisfying is getting the photo printed onto a canvas. This option is both fulfilling and creates a professional accomplishment feel for that photographer. CHECK IT OUT HERE There are also always amazing deals to print photos onto canvas on deal sites like groupon and livingsocial, so keep your eyes peeled. 

Finally, like me, I have everything material I need to survive and I like gaining experiences and memories in my gifts. For example, I was recently gifted a culinary tour of Coronado and got to experience it with my significant other. This was an amazing memory and turned out to be one of the most memorable and best gifts I have ever gotten because of the experience and I learned about the history of Coronado as well as amazing places to eat. Therefore, a great gift to get someone is something they would want to do, but wouldn’t think of scheduling it or paying for it in their busy schedules. The gift of learning! And not in the way you are thinking with homework and deadlines. I am talking about classes for cooking, dancing, yoga, or in our case, photography! A photography class can truly be priceless because it teaches valuable techniques and information and gives hands on experience to bring confidence to any skill level photographer. (Check our our gift certificates here). At the Right Light Photography, we have amazing value, hands-on time, handouts, and the chance to become a part of a photography community. This community shares photos and experiences, critiques, teaches, gives equipment recommendation and is there to enjoy photography with each other. Join our photography community today!

So, whether asking for a gift or trying to think of a gift to get someone, the gifts noted in this blog are all great options for any photography enthusiast. The gift of photography is both for the photographer and those around them. It documents memories and experiences in such an amazing way and brings people together.

Have an amazing holiday season enjoying being surrounded by family and friends and being grateful for everything you have. Love- The Right Light Photography Family

By: Lauren Lopez
San Diego Photographer

Most DSLR camera body kits come with a memory card to get you started with your photography. With the memory card included we often feel satisfied having just this one memory card for all of our photos. But, this week, instead of recommending just one specific brand of memory card that is the best, we are going to teach you the important things to keep in mind when buying a memory card.

The first and most obvious is to know whether your camera takes an SD memory card or CompactFlash memory card. Now, they have normal SD memory cards and then they have SDHC cards that feature larger capacities and higher data-transfer speed (SDHC cards range from 4GB to 32GB, where older SD cards top out at 2GB). Nearly all SD-compatible cameras sold today accept both SD and SDHC cards, so either will work. The easiest way to check which memory card your camera accepts is by checking online or the owner’s manual. Just make sure you don't accidently order or buy a microSD card, which is smaller and isn't interchangeable with SD memory cards. SD cards are also taking over compactflash cards in new models of digital cameras, but they are still used in some cameras and all of the recommendations for speed, class, and size are relevant for both the SD card and the compactflash memory card.

All of our cameras have something called a buffer. The buffer is the gap in time that it takes your camera to get the information (Photo or video) onto the memory card. Therefore, the first thing to look for in a memory card is the speed. The faster the memory card is, the less buffer time you will have and the faster you will be able to take a sequence of photos. Everyone knows that time when you are trying to take a sequence of quick photos (during a sports game or taking photos of a public speaker), but we have all experienced when the camera makes you wait to take the next photo. This is because it is still transferring the first photo you took to your memory card.

The speed of a memory card is the speed at which data can be written to a memory card, or read from it. Therefore, you need to consider both the reading and writing speeds of the memory card when purchasing one. The writing speed is defined as how fast your camera transfers the photo once it is taken to your memory (the screen). The writing speed is especially important when it comes to taking those quick photos in sequence like explained above. The reading speed is how fast the photos are read off the memory, either bringing it up to review on your camera or transferring them to your computer. Therefore, a high speed is beneficial in both taking a series of photos faster and saves time when transferring and looking back on photos. 

*Something to keep in mind is if you have an older camera you can get by with a slower speed memory card because the file size of your photos is smaller. In the newer cameras, the image sizes are large and take up a lot of space and take more time to process to the memory card.

Another aspect of speed is the class speed the memory card is. Class ranges from 2, 4, 6, and 10. We recommend to not bother ever buying a memory card with the class speed of 2 or 4. When shooting with a digital SLR, you might want to spend a few extra dollars to get a class 10 memory card, such as one that writes at 30MB+ per second. This will increase your performance when shooting in burst mode, and most likely shorten the time it takes to transfer photos to your computer. Other than that, the smallest class you should go is class 6 when buying a memory card.

Now, that we have gone over the speeds of memory cards, there is the simple question of the size capacity preferred. When shooting photos, a full memory card warning or lost/broken memory card can truly ruin a day of photography. You can help prevent these pitfalls by always having more than one memory card in your possession and choosing the right size capacity.

Many people always say that bigger is better with size capacity, but we actually see it differently. For hobbyist photographers, we recommend a minimum card size of 8GB. If you shoot a lot of photos or shoot in Raw mode (which produces significantly larger image files) you'll probably be happier with 8GB or you can even go up to 16GB. We do not recommend going to a memory card that has more than 16 GB because when there is too much space, the photographer usually gets carried away and doesn’t think they have to back up their photos as often. By having just one 32 GB memory card, it puts too much value on that one memory card that could get lost or break at any time. A lower GB promotes downloading and transferring photos and keeps your photos safe in your computer. So, while novice photographers can get by alright with cards in the 4GB range. We recommend a 8 or 16GB card for anyone who shoot more often or like to shoot video and doesn't want to have to transfer photos after every shoot.

The worst thing that could happen with a memory card is that your card is full or you miss a shot because of how long it takes to load your photos to the memory card. To sum up the equipment recommendation, there are two things to consider and keep in mind when buying a new memory card. 1.) Make sure the card has a high speed. Choose a memory card in a speed class of 6 or 10. This will increase the reading and writing speed and be essential for catching every photo. 2.) Don’t bother with small size capacity memory cards, but don’t go too high either. A Memory card that is 8GB or 16GB is more than enough room and promotes uploading photos as you go.

When it comes to all the expensive new equipment and lenses for your camera, sometimes you forget about the small, less expensive, but even more important pieces of equipment like a memory card. It seems so small, but with a good speed and size memory card your photography abilities expand and you don’t miss a shot. Enjoy!

By: Lauren Lopez
San Diego Photographer

Life can be overwhelming, busy, and fast and amidst the routine walk to your car or bike ride to work your surroundings fly by just as quickly. This month we are challenging you to take what you see every day and bring it to life. We want to implore you to take that something you see every day (And may not even pay attention to) and capture it in a NEW and exciting way. This is going to have you slow down and smell the roses, as they say, creating an opportunity to truly interpret a special part of your life in a new way from your surroundings, to your pet, to your favorite coffee mug! This contest is very open to everyday items, animals, or even people. The first part of this contest is finding that everyday subject that you interact with all the time and the second part is interpreting it from a new perspective or from an interesting new view or angle you choose to shoot from. Go crazy! Enjoy your surroundings, take photos, and enter the contest for a chance to WIN! 

How to Enter: 
1. Decide on an Everyday Subject: Take a Step Back photo that you want to enter in the contest (we will review photos before adding them to the contest.)
2. Use the “Enter Contest” button below and submit your information along with your photo.
3. It will be reviewed and if approved it will be uploaded to the photo album on the Facebook page (http://facebook.com/sandiegophotography) 

How to Win:
Once your photo has been uploaded there will two ways you can win.

         1st way you can win – Like last time, 3 winners will be selected based on the total number of ‘likes’ they receive for their photo. There will be 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners (see prizes below). It will be your responsibility to tell your network and Facebook friends about your photo and to have them like it. In order for them to ‘like’ your photo they must first ‘like’ the page (I got a lot of questions about this last time, so make it clear to your friends so they understand). The three people with the most ‘likes’ will win. 

         2nd way you can win – Because not everyone has a million Facebook friends, but may have a great photograph it is not fair to only grant prizes to the most popular and determined people on Facebook. Therefore, there will be 3 winners whose photographs will be selected by three professional photographers. The judging criteria will be based on composition, black & white contrast (exposure), and the overall appeal of the photo. Everyone’s photos that are submitted will be judged and three winners will be selected based on the results from the judges. However, there is one requirement for photos to be judged, you must obtain at least 5 ‘likes.’ The purpose of these contests is to promote sharing and critiquing of photos to help improve your photography skills, however if you put no effort into sharing your photos then it goes against the purpose of the contest. Anyone can easily get at least 5 ‘likes’ (one from yourself, one from your dog, your mom, and then find 2 more friends, easy enough, right?).

The Prizes
Prizes for the most ‘likes’ – 

     -       First Place will receive a 16x20 canvas print of a photo of their choice, up to 3 free classes of their choice.*
     -       Second Place will receive credit of up to 2 free classes of their choice.*
     -       Third Place will receive credit of up to 1 free class of their choice.*

Prizes for best judged photos – 

     -       First place will receive a free ThinkTank Photo bag from www.ThinkTankPhoto.com (a big thanks to our sponsor) and up to 3 free classes of their choice.*
     -       Second Place will receive credit of up to 2 free classes of their choice.*
     -       Third Place will receive credit of up to 1 free class of their choice.*

*Classes available in San Diego, CA, Dallas, TX and Vancouver, BC.

This is over $1,000 in free giveaways! So what are you waiting for….enter the contest now!

Entries will be accepted from December 8th through December 30th. Winners will be notified by January 5th to bring in the NEW YEAR!

By: Lauren Lopez
San Diego Photographer

Building a photography community has brought the need to acknowledge photographers in their early stages of photography as a business who show exceptional work. Therefore, we have the ‘Photographer of the Month’ chosen by the Right Light Photography giving the spotlight to those in our photography community that deserve acknowledgement for their contribution, photography style, and business. Once a month, we will be sharing a BIO, interview, and everything that is special about our chosen photographer! On that note, we are introducing December’s Photographer of the Month. Congratulations Dan Graham!

Photographer of the Month:
Dan Graham
Dan was born in Manhattan, New York and began his life in the big city. But, he has spent most of his time in our amazing hometown of San Diego. After high school, Dan decided to go to a local community college where he began his interest in photography and went on to study at San Diego State. While studying journalism he began getting assignments that involved taking his own pictures to accompany his writing. At that time, Dan started to notice photography was an important element of journalism, and his interest in photography began to be an important element of his life. He got caught in the world of photography and from then on he always kept it close to his heart. However, it was time to pay the bills and unfortunately photography wasn’t a financially stable job and there were no job opportunities in that field at the time. Throughout Dan’s life, he has had a successful job, is married to his lovely wife, and recently retired, which gave him the time and desire to pick up his old love of photography. 
And the rest is history...

Type of photography: Modeling, Weddings and Events

View entire profile here

Website: http://dpgphotos.com/
FlickR: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dpgsgi/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/335110009837946/
Email: DanGraham@dpgphotos.com
Phone Number: 858-602-9583 

An Interview to Learn a little more about Dan Graham:

After recently retiring, Dan had extra time on his hands and had to take a moment to figure out what he wanted to do with the rest of his life. Such a serious life question! And it didn’t take him long to remember just how much he loved photography. He jumped on his computer and searched for photography classes (to refresh him on the art) and found an array of classes being taught at The Right Light Photography. While he started with some basic courses from Jason, he became interested in developing his photography even more. The classes were the perfect balance of informal and informative, which attracted Dan to the idea of joining the PIT program. “From then I took the might leap! Just a hobby? Or a business?” Dan exudes passion as he describes the decisions he had to go through to get where he is today. Deciding to join the PIT program, Dan describes has helped him find his niche and “find the worth in his photography”. He is proud to say he is always moving forward and improving his business, DPG Photography.

When asked what type of photography is his favorite, he is quick and sure to say he loves shooting modeling and head shots. “I like taking simple, clear, and succinct shots for modeling photography.” Dan has a clear idea of his modeling style and to check out some of his beautiful photos CLICK HERE. Dan describes how, “Whatever is in the eyes is what I am shooting for. My focus always is in the eyes”. And after the attention goes to the eyes, “everything that supports the eyes gets my support.” It is clear to see that Dan loves focusing on the natural magnificence the human eyes can exude and finds that beauty in modeling photography. However, other than that he does love shooting head shots, weddings and events because he loves catching a moment and memory in photography. His favorite part of photography overall? “Creating and capturing moods through my photography...”

Following his passionate answer for his favorite photography, I asked the simple question of whether he uses Canon or Nikon. Chuckling at the question, he says he uses neither! He uses and loves his high-end Alpha 850 Sony DSLR Camera. I was slightly embarrassed for assuming, but was interested in finding out why he used this camera when the industry highlighted Nikon and Canon so much. He went on to explain how he had actually worked for Sony in a different branch and his wife actually worked there also. What he loved about the brand was the reliability in their product. “The quality is there.” We went on to discuss the recent buy out and improvement of Sony. I enjoyed this question more than the simple answer of Canon or Nikon, because I learned something new! Sony is in the running and produces just as strong and crisp photos as the other leading brands.

I went on to ask about his favorite piece of equipment for his Sony Camera and he was glad to respond with his Karl Zeiss 24-70mm lens. “95% of the time that’s what I am shooting with, especially with low light. The focusing is phenomenal and the colors are vivid.” As if he hadn’t convinced me enough about the great aspects of Sony, he delves deeper describing how the image stabilization is inside the Sony camera body and not the lens, like other brands, giving him the ability to use his old lenses, which he enjoys using also.

Finally, I asked Dan the ultimate question: Where he saw himself in the future of his photography business? “That’s a good question,” he responds. He goes on to tell me about how he would like to at least be financially viable enough to still be in photography doing head shots and events. However, the most important thing to him is that he does not want lose his desire for modeling photography. Overall, he is not focused on becoming the next billionare photographer, only on enjoying and sharing his extreme passion for photography. To continue buying equipment and growing, he understands he needs to make profit for his profession, but his true focus is on modeling and capturing the moments and memories for his clients. He ends with a fitting line, “Photography is a medium. It captures the essence of that person or that moment in a beautiful way.”

Thanks again Dan for an amazing insight into your obvious passion and love for photography and congratulations again on being this month’s Photographer of the Month!

By: Lauren Lopez
San Diego Photographer

When it comes to editing your photos there are so many different types of editing programs that are offered it is hard to tell which to get. But, on the top of everyone’s possible choices are the dominant Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Photoshop. So, which is better? Well, both being made by Adobe, they are not by any means the exact same program and actually have unique features in each that are for different aspects of photography editing. Therefore, this week we will be recommending Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3.

While both programs are beneficial, Lightroom 3 is specifically designed to feature and fulfill all of the day to day need of a photographer. Photoshop on the other hand was designed for visual artists, such as graphic designers. This is shown in the tools in Photoshop that are engineered for extreme editing and things like animation, 3D, typography, and other tools a photographer would not use on a regular basis or even at all. Even this basic description should prove just how independent each program is and how they were developed for their own specific niches.

The pros of Photoshop are that it is the world’s leading pixel manipulator, giving you the ability to control the overall feel of your image and gives you the opportunity to do artistic and creative things to your photos. However, for a regular photographer that needs basic and organized editing, Lightroom 3 is incomparable. It cannot only help you search, sort, and organize all of your image files, but it is extremely successful in organizing an efficient digital imaging workflow. Lightroom is programed to help you through the entire process of editing. Once you learn to use Lightroom you can easily and quickly empty your memory card, sort through your files, set your initial raw file conversion, alter aspects of the photo and finally send that new and improved photo to the web or your printer. Lightroom takes you through the entire editing process with speed and grace whereas Photoshop only functions as an image enhancer.

Some of the other advantages of Lightroom are that Lightroom uses something called non-destructive editing, which means you always have the original. On the other hand, in Photoshop you have to work on a duplicate of the original photo or else you will permanently alter the photo and will never be able to work off of the original again. This is really important when you want to alter images in different ways, but want to always work easily off of the original. 

“By eliminating the need for duplicate images, Lightroom offers several important advantages over Photoshop:

1. Your hard drive won’t fill up so fast.

2. You can make as many versions of your original as you want without taking up much space. Lightroom calls these alternate versions virtual copies.

3. You won’t have several separate image files representing different versions of your photos to keep track of.

4. You can re-process the image – or instantly reset the image to remove all adjustments – at any time without any loss of quality” (Haynes, 2010, Photocitizen.com).

Lightroom 3 gives you a program that is simple and easy to use with all of the most advanced features available. These features include, but are not limited to: Cropping (rotation and leveling of horizons), develop module, spot and red-eye removal, white balance, sharpening, noise reduction, exposure (auto-exposure), and color (adjusting saturation, vibrance, saturation, luminance, and hue of individual colors). These are basic to the everyday photographer and are not all that it can do. 

Lightroom 3 can, also, add alterations to your photos that can usually only be done by equipment. This program can give the effect of a gradient filter similar to your lens, but much more powerful. This program also has local adjustments via the adjustment brush. This feature lets you manually make adjustments to small areas of your image including exposure, saturation, and more. It also allows split toning, which has become very popular in editing photos and lets you apply one color to shadows and another to highlights for a duotone effect. The features this program offers are endless and simple to use.  Lightroom 3 includes over a dozen presets allowing you to play with all sorts of color and black and white effects. They also allow you to create and save your own personal presets! 

Another awesome feature of Lightroom that sets it high and above is the fact that it is painless exporting files into the program and the application feature. This application feature means when you have a bunch of images that all need the same processing (For instance, the lighting on location made a chunck of your images too dark), you can alter one photo and apply that same correction to all of the other images with a simple click of the mouse! 

Overall, Adobe Lightroom 3 has many slight differences from Photoshop and some very big ones that makes it overall the best editing program for the day to day photographer. It is easy to use, contains all the features you will need and more, organizes and creates an incredibly efficient workflow, and makes every photo look amazing! And on top of that, it has an incredible value and is substantially cheaper than Photoshop.

Find it on Amazon.com here

ENJOY!

By: Lauren Lopez
San Diego Photographer

Do people constantly tell you that you should be a professional photographer? Do you look at your love of photography as something you would want to do for a living? The new season has come to bring together another group of hopeful professionals that are interested in developing a business based on photography. We are looking for people who have the true passion and dream of becoming a professional photographer and need help to do so successfully. To start any business it takes a lot of knowledge, consideration, and work. That is why, Jason Kirby began the PIT Program (Short for: Photographer in Training). This program is an extensive 6 month training program building a successful photography business with a professional photographer with a background in marketing and personal experience constructing his very own successful photography business.

This training program will prepare you for all aspects of a photography business including developing your own unique style, defining a niche to go after in the photography world, all aspects that go into starting a legitimate and respectable business, building a clientele, and making a desirable income from your business.

A quick summary of this program begins with a group you will be working closely with that is small and personal (5-6 students accepted). This six month training program includes two group sessions a month about 2 hours each. There is also a monthly one on one coaching session to develop your niche and answer any personal questions about your business. Additionally, there is free access to any and all of the regular courses taught ranging from basic beginner classes to professional. (To see all the classes available, check out the schedule and descriptions at www.sandiegophotographyclass.com ) The most important part of this program is the fact that you will be developing and learning more about photography and the business aspect that goes along with it. In this program, there will be opportunities to get REAL hands on training at live events and shoots. There is nothing better than learning to be a professional photographer by being a part of an actual live event.

Another equally important part of the entire program is the 1-on 1 coaching sessions. These sessions are developed to meet privately with Jason and focus on the development of your business within your specific niche. You will also review the assignments in depth and address any concerns or issues that came up during the assignments. Finally, this one on one time is mostly for you to review and receive constructive feedback to improve your developing skills in the photography business.

This program is for people serious about being able to comfortably and confidently say that they are a professional photographer. It is an incredibly detailed program and has been expertly formed to cover every aspect of a photography business. However, while it is for a serious business, it is also a fun, invigorating and exciting program! This is your chance to take your hobby of photography to the next level and get paid for your incredible pictures.

This program has produced amazing photographers that are known and successful in the field of photography and the program guarantees achievement with the full dedication of its students. Learn more HERE

Application Criteria

-     Apply at http://www.pitprogram.com.

-     Must have 5-10 hours a week available.

-     Must be aspiring to become a professional photographer part-time or full- time.

-     Have the financial capacity to afford the $2,400 tuition and invest into starting a business.

-     Already have a DSLR and own or have the means to obtain a flash and high quality lenses.

-     Upload your top three images that you are most proud of.

To learn even more details, come and be a part of our Pit Program Introduction Class with in depth descriptions of the program and plenty of time for question and answer with Jason Kirby himself.

Introduction Class for this Wednesday
or
Introduction Class for this Saturday

Here is an interview with Ryan Talbot of Ryan Talbot Photography. Learn what he has to say about his experience with the program.

By: Lauren Lopez
San Diego Photographer

While we have bought the photography equipment to fulfill the passion of photography we want to embark on, it is not always the case that before we leave the house every day our camera bag is on our shoulder as sure as our keys and wallet are in our pockets. I have found some little tricks to remember and inspire you to take your camera out of the closet for more than just the birthdays and vacations.

First, one of the easiest ways to be inspired is by a person. Usually we think to only photograph our family or friends, but I urge you to find inspiration in others. There are multiple ways to find this inspiration in. 

The more outgoing option is to go out and photograph a person who catches your attention on the street or park. Think National Geographic in capturing a certain type of person that when viewed is defined as an identity. For instance, taking a picture of an athlete in his jersey with sweat still on his face can show a point of view for athletes. Or capturing a painter with their overalls covered in different colored swipes of paint creates a snip-it of that person’s identity. Taking a picture when everyone is dressed and done up captures a happy memory, but shooting a subject in their more routine surroundings captures an identity. A good way to take a strangers picture without feeling like a stalker or paparazzi is to ask them if you can take their picture for a class. This is a common tactic used in ethnography and it makes people feel better to know the photo is for a purpose and not for some odd collection. Another way to ask is to be more direct with the person and say you truly find them inspiring and would love to document their identity in a picture. A way to make them feel better about posing for you is if you ask for their e-mail or offer them yours in order to share the photo you take OF them, WITH them.

 Another less random, but equally powerful option for finding inspiration in those around you is to “not forget the little people”. Your everyday friends, family, and acquaintances spend so much time around you every day, that you forget that this time together is some of the most important time of your life. Don’t forget to document your neighbor that always helps you when you go out of town, not only for your own memories, but they make amazing gifts and show that they matter to you.

 We are around these people all the time and when thinking about our photo albums, there are most likely no professional looking photos that document these people and truly embody your relationship with them. We always bring our cameras out when family is in town to visit or at a graduation, which are all great places to take photos, but we can’t forget to find inspiration by remembering photography is about capturing the memories of our life to share with others and keep close for a long time to come.  Those everyday people that are a part of your life will be in your mind for the rest of your life and when you are telling the story of the next door neighbor you had at your college apartment or the owner of that Chinese restaurant that knows your order before you sit down, having a photo of them can make all the difference. Even if it is one picture it is important because that memory will be so special to you when remembering your past.

Another inspiration is to not forget to document the process of life and not just the outcome. Photograph’s of your graduation are vital to memories, BUT a photo of you studying for a big test is how you got to that point and it is great to get those memories too.Another example would be taking pictures of your child after her play with flowers in her hands, which is very important.BUT, taking a photo of her getting her make-up put on, or practicing her song in her room are the memories that made that first photo so important. It is the time we all put into every memory in our life to make it worth taking a photo of and I think those times are just as important and fun as the final product.

Second, another place to find inspiration is when you are trying to find ways to decorate! Nowadays, it is simple to put your SD card into your computer and upload your photos to an album on your Facebook or computer. Because we rarely now take our “film” to the hour photo at Rite Aid to make us prints, a lot of our memories and documentation is solely on our computers. While some like putting photos of people on their walls, and other like scenery and nature for decorating, we forget that we are photographers!

For example, those beautiful scenic pictures or close-up of a beautiful flower shots they sell at Ikea and Target for too much money can be taken BY US! Recently, I was decorating my room with tans and greens and needed some type of photo or image to fill my wall. Instead of going out to the store and buying an overpriced canvas photo for $100, I went to La Jolla Shores and spent a couple of hours taking loads of scenic pictures of the water, the caves, the palm trees. When I got home, I found the photo that I liked the most and got it printed onto a large canvas to put on my wall and it only cost me $30.  Not only did it look professional and go perfectly with my color palate in that room, but it was one of a kind. I got to show my photography off in a solid form for my own gratification and anyone who saw it.  

For most, the passion and enthusiasm for photography can be the sole inspiration, but for those who have started noticing their camera hasn’t seen the light of day in more time than they like, these little tips for inspiration will hopefully either give you that little push or motivate you to find your own inspirations in your life! 

By: Lauren Lopez
San Diego Photographer

Authors Note: I would love to give credit to Salvador Lopez, my brother, for the above 3 sequence of photos. He is an incredible photographer who inspires me everyday by taking me on hikes and adventures to get the best photos possible. AND, I personally have a handful of his photos as true art throughout my apartment!
 

Filters are often overlooked when considering equipment for your camera and even worse unnecessary filters are promoted. For instance, the UV filter is not necessary and is a filter with the ability that if you use certain editing or angles can be mimicked easily. When considering different filters to use for your camera, we recommend buying a circular polarizer.

What a circular polarizer does is enhances color and contrast in your photos. This becomes extremely helpful in situations including reflections from different surfaces such as glass, windows, water, etc. The filter eliminates the reflection and gives you the photo you see with your eye. For example, when shooting fish in a pond, the circular polarizer removes the reflection that commonly comes from the movement of the water.   Light rays reflecting from these surfaces can come polarized and the circular polarizer filter has the ability to select which light rays enter your camera lens and show in your photos. Also, when we go to edit our photos there is the regularly used contrast button, but with the circular polarizer it gives the colors the capability to become more saturated and appear clear with better contrast. This is helpful when you are in a setting with similar colors close together causing the different textures or shapes of these colors become blended and not truly pop like they should. This is most often prominent in pictures with light blue skies and white clouds. However, with the circular polarizer there is a definite contrast between the light colored clouds and the clear blue sky. While promoting even and honest saturation and contrast in photos, the polarizing filter does not affect the true color balance in the shot. 

When choosing a brand for the circular polarized filter, you can easily go with your correlating camera’s brand, but for a better value and with equal or better durability, we recommend the Hoya brand filters. Tiffen comes up with a cheaper price, but also are not made well compared to Hoya, Canon, and Nikon.

In general, filters are very delicate and thin, but a nice feature of the Hoya brand is that they are built with layers to build strength. They are also dust repellant and do not pick up fingerprints (unless purposely trying to smug the lens). An important aspect of a filter to pay attention to the thickness of the glass. Typically, the thinner the lens the better and Hoya circular polarized filters are equipped with a low profile frame, which includes a super thin filter frame.  Also, important is the tint of the frame. The tint of the frame allows you to have a longer exposure and collect all of the colors and details of the frame.

The Hoya circular polarized filter come in different sizes that coordinate with your camera lens, so it is important to make sure the filter fits. The sizes start at 52mm, 55mm, 58mm, 62mm, 67mm, 72mm, 77mm, and 82mm. The most common size for cameras is the 72mm and that is the size our link leads you to. To find the size of your lens, you must first choose the lens you use most often and want the filter for. (If you have multiple lenses the same size the filter can be used on all of them). Then you will look at the inside rim of the lens and it will have the brand name, the focal length (ex. 28-80mm), and it will have a number next to a circle with a line through it. This number will be your filter size and will be the size filter you will need to get. 

So, when looking for small piece of equipment that is not going to break the bank and will substantially increase the depth and beauty of your photos, a circular polarized filter! 

Find it here on Amazon.com

By: Lauren Lopez
San Diego Photographer

While there are many types of tri-pods out there, the best to begin with is usually a travel size tri-pod with good support and light weight to go with you wherever the tri-pod is needed. Out in the market there are many cheap options for tripods, but if you are going to buy just one and plan on using it in all environments (in studio and outdoors) it is necessary to buy one that will last, is durable, and strong to support your camera.

Our recommendation this week is a travel size tri-pod with all the strength and durability of the studio versions called the Benro Travel Angel Tri-pod. This tri-pod has many aspects that make it the best travel tri-pod in our books, one of the most attractive being how lightweight and compact it folds up to be, tipping the scale at 3.3 pounds without the head. This feature makes it easy to carry around when traveling, hiking, or doing practically anything.  What is most impressive by the compactness of this tri-pod is how it can be folded to be as small as 14.9-inches long and can be extended up to 59.6 inches (almost 5 ft.) tall! With this tripod, you are also given a carrying case and shoulder strap that offer maximum protection to your tripod. Benro chooses to make their products with very high quality materials, making the tripods with a weather and dust- resistant material that makes this tripod last longer and not produce that rust that quickly develops in some normal tripods once met with these factors.

When traveling out of the studio or even in some studio cases, you are left in a small cramped area or against an angle and the tri-pod is a necessary part of getting the best picture. This Benro Travel Angel is equipped with legs that can be independently locked at two different angles. This is a great sign on versatility giving you the ability to get the best picture with your tri-pod from ground level to any type of photography environment. This tri-pod deems fit to hold a general medium sized DSLR camera with a zoom lens, which can weigh up to almost 9 pounds firmly! Included on the head are two screws at each end of the plate that stop the camera from sliding out of the holder if the locking knob on the side comes loose, which can sometimes be a problem in other tri-pods and can put your camera in dangers way.  These extra pre-cautions are what support your camera when it is attached to the tri-pod and makes Benro such a quality piece. The head of this tri-pod comes equipped with matching ball heads, which have three locking knobs that are able to be separately controlled to alter the general positioning, panning, and friction control. To increase steadiness even more there is the center-column hook that enables you to add weight to the tripod in order to give it even more strength and stability.

Overall, the Benro Travel Angel Tri-pod is truly an angel when it comes to being reliable to hold your camera, being versatile in angles, and being strong and durable to last you a long time. This tri-pod is truly amazing for travel, location shoots, and even some inside, giving you the support needed to maintain low ISO settings, have slower shutter speeds, or use smaller apertures that all lead to unique and beautiful effects to your photographs. 

Find the Benro Travel Angel here on Amazon.com

By: Lauren Lopez
San Diego Photographer

Recently, The Right Light Photography’s very own, Jason Kirby, took a trip to the beautiful city of Vancouver, Canada. When thinking of vacations Vancouver is not always on the top of the list, but there is so much to do and many opportunities for some great photography. Vancouver is best known for the adventure, culture, being bike friendly, Eco friendly, entertainment, culinary, and shopping. According to Frommer’s guide, the best times to travel are December through February and April to October. Jason decided to go in the risky time of October and the best tip he could give for this is “pack for wet weather”. 

Though not his first time, he always finds something new and interesting to do in Vancouver. Vancouver is ringed by snow-capped, forested mountains (great for skiing or snowboarding) leading down to miles of sandy beaches (perfect for tanning and relaxing). It is a playground for residents and visitors including assortments of activities, culture, and food. Against the stunning scenic backdrop of the city there are infinite varieties of sophisticated restaurants and vast and fertile parks. “Cosmopolitan Vancouver is “young”--- just over 100 years old—and its outdoorsy energy complement its easygoing West Coast style.” (Frommer).

Jason has traveled all over the United States and the World, but there are some unique and beautiful parts of Vancouver that left a lasting memory. All of these places are key points of interest in Vancouver and their beauty is perfect for photography and capturing effortless and memorable photos. The places suggested by Jason included Stanley Park, Chinatown, BC place Stadium and the town of Victoria nearby.   

Stanley Park is Vancouver's first park and one of the city's main tourist attractions. It is an evergreen oasis of 1,000 acres at the edge of the bay. This park is covered by fresh and majestic variety of trees including cedars, hemlock, and fir trees. This park is full of amazing trails and offers a tranquil piece of nature very near to downtown. The park is full of an array of wildlife and it features appeal to the naturalist, the plant lover or one who would do nothing more than relax in beautiful surroundings. Stanley Park also includes the famous Seawall! This seawall goes over 5.5 miles in Stanley park and stretches a total of 13.7 miles long around Vancouver’s waterfront, from the convention center on Burrard Inlet (Coal Harbour), around Stanley Park and False Creek, past Granville Island ending at Kitsilano Beach Park. This seawall has incredible views and is a great activity to do with family or friends. If you want to find a way to experience the full beauty of Vancouver, the Seawall captures the city at its best and is ideal for a walk or bike ride. Jason found a spot about ½ mile from Stanley park on the Seawall to rent bikes and bike rode the entire seawall and truly fell in love with the beauty of Vancouver. Also a part of Stanley Park is its divine restaurants, a train, an aquarium, swimming, and golfing. Overall, there are plenty of things to do in Stanley Park that bring family and friends together for exploration and photography of Vancouver. 

A place many bypass is the Chinatown in Vancouver. Chinatown’s span all across North America including in San Francisco, New York, and many other places. However, Vancouver’s Chinatown tops the list as one of North America’s cleanest modern day Chinatowns. Founded in the late 1800’s, the popular Canton Alley was created in 1904 as a Chinese style courtyard. The Alleys were the convergence of vibrant nightlife, opera music, shopping, political and cultural activities. Today, Chinatown is an amazing place to find traditional food, shopping and cultural bonding. Jason walked through Chinatown admiring the beautiful art and decorations that filled the windows of the stores. It was also hard for him not to feel his stomach growl with the smell of amazing cuisine filling the street outside of each restaurant. With beautiful gardens and incredible little shops, the feel of Chinatown brings a truly unique experience.    

Before its remodel, BC Place Stadium was an emblem for over 25 years. It was and still is the largest event facility of its kind in the province and has hosted over 26 million people since opening in 1983. The BC Place stadium was recently rebuilt to include a new retractable roof. This roof now reveals over 7500 square meters of clear blue sky and has become a new architectural signature for Vancouver. This new cable-supported roof is the biggest of its kind in the world, and creates the atmosphere for any event, from summer festivals to football, from indoor exhibitions to trade and consumer shows. The BC Place stadium is beautiful and brings you right down to the life of Vancouver, by the water and in the midst of downtown for some great memories. Jason walked through the BC Place Stadium, but could not get tickets to an actual game. While hearing about the depth of beauty of the venue and how the spirit of the fans creates a great atmosphere, he put it on his MUST do list when returning.

Nearby Vancouver just a drive and ferry ride away, Victoria sits as a quaint beautiful city with loads of colonial history and activities. While they have nice paths to hike and a variety of restaurants, Jason decided to take his activities to the next level. He chose to go zip lining with Adrenaline, Zip line Adventure Tours. This experience is a way to get your heart pounding and get deep into nature. This experience takes you through two draw bridges and 8 zip lines that take you 150 feet off the ground at speeds close to 38 miles per hours. These zip lines range in length from 150 feet to an incredible 1000 foot long zip line that sends you flying! Zip lining is a priceless experience that should be done at least once in your life.


(<- Jason Kirby Ziplining)

Overall, Vancouver is an amazing place to go for a weekend or two weeks with plenty of activities, food entertainment, nature, and with just overall serene atmosphere. Not only is it a great place to visit, but all of these features lend themselves to great opportunities for street and architectural photography to add to your scrapbook. 

So, the next time you are trying to decide a new place to go on a single, couple, friends, or family trip, don't forget about the beautiful city of Vancouver.

Something we promote in our photography community is being able to capture everything around you from all types of perspectives. This is carried over when you travel! We want to see your amazing travel photos and want to hear where you go. We have added a new photo album to our Facebook Fanpage called Show us where you go! And we want you to share a photo of new places you have visited and an activity or tip about the place. To include your picture and experience CLICK HERE.

By: Lauren Lopez
San Diego Photographer