Ansel Adams Exhibit in Oshkosh June 22-Oct 21, 2012

Ansel Adams: Masterworks
From the Collection of the Turtle Bay Exploration Park, Redding, CA
June 22 – October 21, 2012

Mount Williamson
The Sierra Nevada, from Manzanar, California, 1945
Photograph by Ansel Adams ©2012 The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust

Throughout the summer of 2012, the Paine Art Center and Gardens in Oshkosh presents Ansel Adams: Masterworks, a major exhibition featuring 48 of the artist’s most iconic photographs. The only venue in Wisconsin to host this remarkable exhibition, the Paine is thrilled to offer regional audiences the rare opportunity to see the renowned photographer’s finest works in person.

Known for his grand views of the American West, Ansel Adams (1902-1984) created extraordinary photographs that are among the most recognized and celebrated images of the twentieth century. This collection of photographs represents a selection Adams made late in life to serve as a succinct representation of his best work. Called “The Museum Set,” this exceptional series reveals the importance Adams placed on capturing the breathtaking beauty and splendor of this country’s natural environments.
This exhibition was organized by the Turtle Bay Exploration Park, Redding, CA. Exhibition tour management by Landau Traveling Exhibitions, Los Angeles, CA.

http://www.thepaine.org/exhibitions/ansel-adams.html

Monday Lesson 2012

Monday Lesson 2012 (topics to be expanded on as the week continues)

Image Quality:

• The image quality is indicated in megapixels.
• This number is determined by multiplying the number of pixels in the height of the image by the number of pixels in the width.
• Always set the camera for the highest quality.  (L for Large or Fine and we recommend that you pick the Large choice that is the smooth curve because that will be even less pixelated.  To find this setting go to your Menu and "Quality" or "Image Quality" should be one of your options.)

ISO Setting:

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Low Light Example

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Grainy Factor

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• The ISO number indicates how quickly the sensor will react to the lighting.
• When the ISO setting is lower (100), more light is necessary with a longer exposure.
• When the ISO setting is higher (1600), less light is necessary with a shorter exposure.  As the ISO number increases, the image will appear more "grainy" or "noisy".

 White Balance:

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•  White balance should be adjusted so that you get the most accurate colors for your environment as possible.  Different kids of lights have different colors and you need to compensate for those variables in your photography.

Exposure Modes:

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• TV (time variable)  Stopping motion or blurring motion is best done using the TV mode.
• Stop Action (fast shutter speed ex: 1/800)
• Blurred Motion (slow shutter speed ex)1/5)
• AV (aperture)  This controls your depth of field
• Manual -You adjust the shutter speed and f-stop
• The B setting (bulb) is located in the M mode after the longest shutter speed.  The shutter will stay open as long as the shutter release button is held down.  This setting is used for time exposures.

 Shutter speeds - The length of time the shutter is open. 

• 1/1000 1/500  1/250  1/125   1/60

• 1/30   1/15  1/8  1/4  1/2  1"  2" 4"  8"  15"  30"  B

• A tripod should be used when the shutter speed is a smaller number than the focal length of the lens.  For example, 50mm lens should not use a shutter speed slower than a 1/60 to prevent camera motion.

Aperture - The diameter of the lens opening.  This is measured in f-stops.

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• f22  f16  f11  f8  f5.6  f4  f2.8  f2  f1.4
• The larger the f-stop number, the smaller the opening.  On digital cameras there are also "half" settings for both the shutter speeds and f-stops.
• The smaller the number is the shorter your depth-of-field is.  As in, you will focus closer to the camera.  The larger the number the further your depth-of-field is.  As in, you will focus further away from your camera.

Exposure Compensation:

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• You want to set your exposure to the middle (o) or even a couple stops below.  Generally it is better to be slightly underexposed than risk being over exposed and losing data.  You can lighten up dark areas but you cannot darken up white. The goal is to have detail in the white areas as well.

 Uploading your pictures to your camera:

• There can be a cord that goes from your camera to your computer.
• There can use a card reader
• When you connect your camera or card to your computer you will often see a prompt that says "open files in folder".
• You can click this and you will see all of your images
• You can click "Edit" - "Select All" - "Copy" and then open your desktop folder and hit "Edit" - "Paste".  
• Your pictures will now be on your desktop 

Beginning Digital Photography - Sunday Night

 Organizing your photos:

• Always save them in 2 places (memory card, computer hard drive, flash drive, external hard drive, CD...)
• Make a folder on your desktop (right click -  new  - folder - type a name for your folder).  Double click on this folder and you can make more folders that are labeled by day or by project.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmarTa22J2Q (YouTube "how to" clip)
• You can view your images by double clicking on them or open them in Adobe Bridge or iPhoto.
• When you are working on your photos and doing Photoshop adjustments always remember to hit SAVE AS so that you do not lose your original.  Whatever method you choose to keep track of your edits is up to you.  
• Some do ".letter" ex) .b  .c   .d
• Some do ".number" ex) .2    .3    .4
• Some rename their photos
• Some do ".type of adjustment"  ex).levels      .coloradjustment    .cropped
• RAW is another way to shoot your pictures but it saves it as an enormous file size because it records all of the information from when you took the picture.  Before you can actually use the image you have to process it in Photoshop.  It is an amazing tool and option but if you are not comfortable with this you can always stick with JPEG.
• When saving your pictures we recommend you use JPEG and TIFF.  JPEG is a smaller file size and is more easily transferred via memory cards and email.  However, with every edit and save you lose a little bit of the file information and will eventually notice pixalation.  TIFF files will not lose that information and you will save the various layers in Photoshop (that will make sense later).  However, the file sizes are a lot larger and do not transfer as easily.  We recommend that you edit using TIFF and save a final image in JPEG to share with everyone.

Improving your photographs technically:

• Always start with the highest photo size (Large).  You can reduce the size later but this will give you the best quality.
• ISO (reacts to the light).  When you are in bright lights use 100-200, dark lights 800 and an average pick is 400.
• F Stop is like the pupil of your eye.  When a room is dark your pupil gets larger and when a room is light your pupil gets smaller.  The same thing happens within your camera and it is called aperture.  We will talk about this more later.
• P (program) and A (auto) will pick your selections for you.
• M (manual) - You pick both the shutter speed and f-stop, while watching the exposure scale.
• TV (time variable - sometimes S)- You pick the shutter speed and the camera picks the f-stop.
• AV (aperture variable - sometimes A)- You pick the f-stop and the camera picks the shutter speed.
• Informational site: http://www.cambridgeincolour.com/tutorials/camera-exposure.htm

White Balance:

• Your camera will adjust differently to the different light.  A fluorescent bulb will light pictures differently than natural daylight.  Therefore, you need to set your white balance before each shoot so that your colors will be more accurately recreated in  your photos.

Focus:

• If you are using auto focus, press the shutter slightly to lock the focus, then continue to press until the shutter releases.
• Auto focus will focus on the center of the image.  You can counteract this feature by pressing the shutter slightly to focus and then moving your camera before taking the picture.
• If you are using manual focus, carefully adjust until the subject is sharp.

Recommendations:

• Brace yourself.  Hold your arms to your body.
• Hold your breath as you cautiously press the shutter release.  For some, slowly breathing out while you go to take your pictures will also help.  Don't be talking.
• Use a tripod in low light situations.
• Get close to your subject.
• What the background because images in the back could interfere with your composition.
• Position the light to your back or side to avoid a silhouette shot... Unless that is what you are looking for!
• Pay attention to the quality of the lighting... Watch for where the light is coming from, the harshness of the light, the shadows it produces, the color of the light...etc.