Shawn Pustay recently visited the Outer Banks, NC and participated in two Sunrise and Sunset Photo Workshops, Sunset at Jockeys Ridge, and Sunrise at Manteo Waterfront.
Shawn e-mailed us about the workshops she attended, “I really enjoyed both you and Dan B., I learned a lot at both workshops.”
These are some of the photos she captured during the workshop’s.
Shawn, thank you for letting us share these wonderful images with everyone else.
For most people photography starts as the sun rises and ends with sunset. Unfortunately these people are missing some of the best and most productive times to photograph. Twilight is that time when there’s just a hint of color in the sky. There is approximately a 10 minute window when the light is just right for twilight photography. It happens twice a day 1/2 hour before sunrise and 1/2 hour after sunset. Why is it worth getting up so early or staying out that late? When photographing at this time the sky turns a cobalt blue and contrasts beautifully with the warm hues of morning and man-made lights. This phenomenon happens whether it’s raining or cloudy, no matter what the weather is. It is a perfect time for capturing city skyline’s, or anywhere there are man-made lights. I suggest keeping the cameras white balance setting on daylight, as this ensures capturing the beautiful cobalt blue color in the sky. You will need to use a tripod because the shutter speeds will be long. I think you’ll agree, it’s definitely worth the extra effort of getting up earlier and staying out later.
At our Weekly Sunrise and Sunset Photo Workshops you will learn to take advantage of the beautiful twilight time.
Buy a card or print of this photo.
All lenses have a built in star filter. To get the star effect stop your lens down to a very small aperture opening (large f-stop number). Any small pinpoint of light will become a star. Lens apertures are constructed of blades and the number of blades determines the shape of the aperture.The number of points on the star reflects this shape. By counting the number of points you can tell how many slides the aperture opening has. If you’re star has eight points then the aperture opening is an octagon. More expensive, better quality lenses have more blades in the aperture, to keep the aperture as round as possible. This helps make the boca (out of focus areas in a photograph) more pleasing. Wide-angle lenses seem to work best for this technique because the light source has to be small or a pinpoint in the photograph.
High-key sounds like something to do with music, actually I’m talking about high-key photography. It is just as the name implies, the image’s key tones are high or light instead of midrange. The tones are moved up, or high on the exposure scale. A high key photograph can be made by intentionally overexposing an image in the camera or by using Photoshop’s curves or level adjustments.
Pier into the Light
This image of Kitty Hawk Pier was exposed two f-stops over what the camera metered. The camera was on a tripod with a long shutter speed which turned the waves into mist.
High key images are very easy to make. Simply use the exposure compensation dial on your camera to over expose one or two stops. Give it a try, I know you’ll be pleased with the results.
Here are a few student photos from recent workshops I have taught. I had a wonderful time sharing experiences with the students and I’m proud of the work they have produced.
Thank you. Dan Waters
This is just a little reminder that the Ocracoke Photo Excursion is coming up soon.
Please bear with us as we are working to get the website up and running. The workshop schedule will be posted soon. So check back often.
