One thing that Johnny Jet is known for, besides the great deals, is taking some incredible snapshots of his travels. And anyone who follows his Twitter and Facebook knows that he loves taking beautiful pictures.
Just imagine what kind of amazing photos you could take if you had the proper tools. With this week’s contest you’ll be able to!
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 allows you to easily manage, edit, and track all of your photos. The leading software for digital photographers, Lightroom 4 offers some amazing updates that have never been available from Lightroom before. You are able to keep track of where your photos were taken with the new map module, and making keepsakes has never been easier with the photo book creation tool. Lightroom 4 helps you create gorgeous coffee table quality books with your very own pictures inside.
How: We want your photography tips! Leave a comment below with your best tips for taking stellar pictures, or tell us your favorite feature on Lightroom 4! Include your name and an email address. All official contest rules apply. Contestants must either subscribe to Johnny’s newsletter or follow him on Facebook or Twitter.
What you’ll win: You’ll get the latest version of the renowned Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4 (retail $79.00) as well as a Blu-ray copy of The Greatest Places, a film originally shot for IMAX theaters that features seven of the world’s most geographically incredible locations, to help inspire you!
When: The last day/time to enter will be on Tuesday, November 6th at 6pm PT. The winner will be announced Thursday, November 8th and be contacted by a JohnnyJet.com representative.
Post process your photo’s. You will be forced to examine your own work and from that, find all your flaws, what you like, and what you don’t like. You will become your biggest critic and from there you will grow in skill and style.
One of the features I’m most excited about is the advanced color editing, that sure would be fun to play with! Thanks so much for this contest! I like Johnny on FB! :)
Smile! It doesn’t matter if you’re doing a studio shoot, photographing your family around the Christmas tree, grabbing frames for the newspaper, or showing off your new cactus on tumblr; a happy photographer is a successful photographer. Models will relax more, babies won’t cry as much, and strangers on the street will be less likely to assault you.
Forcing yourself to relax can help not only with shake and stability, but also your ability to compose your shot. It’s hard to be creative when your tense, and when you’re tens behind your camera, your ability to read the situation suffers. So kick back, grin a bit, engage with your subject(s), and let the photography flow!
My favorite feature of Lightroom 4 is the enhanced ability to bring out even more details in shadows and highlights.
Shooting in manual is not always needed. Plenty of professionals have shot in A or S mode. Work on your composure first, make sure everything is in the frame and let the camera do the extra steps. Manual is great but it doesn’t make you better than anyone else. Getting the shot matters. Plenty of famous photojournalists have shot in A or S. Watch the movie “War Photographer” and you’ll see James Natchwey in it covering different situations.
Shoot photos of kids from the kids height.
Just because you CAN go pro doesn’t mean you SHOULD go pro. Make sure the you can deliver every single time, in every single condition, before you jump into shooting for other people.
Always try to shoot during the golden hours (dawn or dusk) nothing better than natural lighting. Shoot in Aperture priority mode, always think about rule of thirds and constantly think about what are you trying to show in the picture.
Stop worrying about gear. Just get out and shoot. Your cellphone counts as a camera! If it’s all you have, and you see a good photo, just take it.
When shooting anywhere, remember:
Shoot in raw. Just do it.
Alternative perspectives are your friend. Try down low, from up high, slight tilt, from behind your subject (depending on what it is).
Shoot during the magic hour and don’t use Auto White Balance. Learn what the Kelvin scale actually is and set your numbers for warmer or cooler shots in camera.
Learn to read your histogram! Your LCD is small and the histogram will give you a good idea of your exposure.
If your debating about shooting for a client, remember the three P’s.
Price: It must pays reasonable for the project’s needs.
People: The client needs to be enjoyable (or tolerable at least) to be around and work for.
Project: It needs to be something you’ll enjoy doing!
If your client’s shoot doesn’t have two of these three; don’t shoot for them!
When shooting models:
Don’t be afraid to tell them how to move and pose. Such as, “relax your right hand, tilt your head up and a tad to the left. Lean more on your left leg. Chest out more.”
People stiffen up in one pose the more they stand in it, let your models move around every so often to freshen up.
A static pose of action will never convey action the way action will. If your model is doing something, have them actually do it! The muscle groups in action and clothing will flow better and the image will look more convincing. The same goes for a smile. Don’t have them fake an emotion, ask them to feel the emotion for you to capture. The more genuine the shoot, the more genuine (generally) your image will be.
Lastly, Photoshop can fix almost everything, but why spend hours in Photoshop when you can do it in camera. Take the time to make it real before you and let your camera do the rest.
Just be comfortable. No matter how much training or skills you have. If you can’t be comfortable with your camera or model, nothing will be fun. Just relax and have fun.
Remember you are responsible for 100% of the frame. Take the time to compose and pay attention to everything in the view finder before clicking that shutter.