Scott Martin's digital imaging newsletter
thoughts, news and techniques for digital imaging professionals
Night Photography: Finding Your Way in the Dark book
Night Photography Book Announcement
Lance Keimig and I are proud to announce that Night Photography: Finding Your Way in the Dark by Focal Press, is now available in bookstores. The book combines Lance's 20 years of night photography experience, and my 20 years of digital imaging training to create the most expansive and comprehensive exploration of night photography available. At 280 pages, it includes contemporary and historical night images, creative inspiration, how-to tips and detailed discussion on a variety of techniques, including light painting, image stacking, HDR, working with star trails and much more. I was the editor and a significant contributor throughout the book. The book also includes contributions from Dan Burkholder, Cenci Goepel, Steve Harper, Tom Paiva, Troy Paiva, Shawn Peterson, Christian Waeber and Jens Warnecke.
"For most of us, when the sun sinks below the western horizon, we pack up our cameras and head for dinner. But it needn't be that way. Lance Keimig and Scott Martin have teamed to provide the most comprehensive instructions for photographers willing to explore the beauty of the night. Just published by Focal Press, "Night Photography: FInding your way in the dark" includes a history of night photography from the earliest practitioners using glass plates to contemporary artists using the latest digital equipment. The book covers topics from basic subjects such as determining exposures and photographing by moonlight to more exotic topics like high dynamic range imaging (HDR), light painting and star trails. One section details the techniques of a workflow that is applicable for both day and night digital imaging. For photographers bewildered by the increasing problem of keeping up with digital files, this alone is worth the price of the book. Keimig is uniquely qualified to guide both beginners and professionals in the subject of night photography. He has photographed at night for over 20 years and teaches at New England School of Photography in Boston. In addition, he and Scott Martin, a digital photography educator and fine art photographer, conduct a series of workshops in night photography around the American Southwest." - Bill Wright
Although the book is available at a variety of bookstores including Amazon
In conjunction with the Texas Photographic Society, Lance and I will have a book signing and talk at the historic Pearl Brewery Complex in San Antonio on Friday October 15th from 5:30-8pm. On Saturday the 16th, we'll teach a one night workshop at the Pearl Brewery where we will have access to the entire campus, including exterior areas that are usually restricted. The following week we will teaching an in-depth 4 day/night workshop in Big Bend complete with light painting and image stacking techniques.
Fall 2010 Workshops
Full Moon Night Photography in Mono Lake, California (almost full)
4 day and night shooting workshop with classroom instruction
August 22-25, Mono Lake, Calfornia
led by Scott Martin and Lance Keimig
Night Photography at the Pearl Brewery, San Antonio, Texas
1 night shooting workshop in conjunction with the Texas Photographic Society
October 16th, 2010, San Antonio, TX
led by Scott Martin and Lance Keimig
Full Moon Night Photography in Big Bend, Texas (almost full)
4 day and night shooting workshop with classroom instruction
October 20th-23rd, 2010, Big Bend, TX
led by Scott Martin and Lance Keimig
One-on-one digital workflow and printmaking workshops
Full day, hands-on training session at my printmaking studio
for intermediate and advanced photographers
by appointment in San Antonio, Texas
Screw in Solux bulbs now available
Solux has expanded their popular, high quality, broad spectrum, high CRI lights to work with the far more common Edison screw-in light fixture. They are available in the PAR 20, 30, and 38 sizes all at 3500 Kelvin for US$10-15 each.
I think the choice of 3500K will be particularly well suited for the home and home studios as it mixes well with the warm, 2650 Kelvin incandescent lighting that we are accustomed to in residential settings. Solux lights allows one to see the "true colors" (a controversial term I know) in artwork and allows for better print to screen matching than common incandescent lighting. I have use Solux bulbs exclusively in my own studio and have recommended them to my clients for years.
In-Camera AutoHDR
This review provides a little insight into what will surely become a standard feature in all DSLRs in the future: Auto HDR. Sony currently combines only two exposures (+/- 3 EV) which Pentax combines three.
Q & A
Question: "I shoot RAW format and convert to a TIFF after processing in LR3. I then open and print them from Photoshop. What options are best to select when printing: Perceptual or Relative Colorimetric for fine art prints?"
Answer: Perceptual is usually the preferred intent for fine art printing via inkjet printers for it's superior shadow detail, gray balance, and edge-gamut saturation handling. The type of ICC profile used makes a big difference, and some are significantly better than others when the Perceptual intent is used. The Relative and Absolute Colorimetric intents are useful primarily for those looking to simulate CMYK ofsett press output.
The thing that really draws my attention is that you are exporting out TIFFs of your images after working on them in Lightroom. What's the reasoning behind this step? We are moving toward a workflow that allows us to develop and retouch our images directly from the RAW file saving the final rendering only for printing, JPEG export and the like. Saving TIFFs that aren't worked on any further just takes up a lot of drive space and makes a mess. I'd print directly from your RAW files in Lightroom and try to accomplish everything else you can within Lightroom without going to Photoshop if possible. In addition to the drive space savings and excellent print sharpening, the speed and flexibility of a purely parametric workflow direct from the RAW file has a significant impact on the creative process. Old habits die hard but it's healthy for many photographers today to try and minimize their Photoshop usage while prioritizing usage in either Lightroom or Capture One which are both modern, RAW file, parametric workflow applications.
Feedback
As always, I love to hear from creative professionals. Please email me and let me know what you are up to. Thanks! - Scott Martin
© Scott Martin - Digital Imaging Training and Consulting - www.on-sight.com
postal: 816 Camaron Suite #207, San Antonio, TX 78212 - email: scott@on-sight.com
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