Photo of the day - April 2021

[StrollerEd]

I’m not sure if this is relevant for your question, but we had this discussion awhile back.

Is digital photography a lie?!

With the various techniques and post processing we all get involved in these days I have been asked by a few of my friends if I’m lying to them when I ask for their opinions on some of my shots. Some of my friends are off the opinion that a digitally enhanced / edited picture is essentially a...

forums.macrumors.com

I recall reading that thread, and have browsed again. I am not particularly focussed on art or artifice, but rather whether the extent to which the malleability we often attribute to the digital medium was absent in the pre-digital era. Movies - moving pictures - are an interesting case. Is there any essential difference in digital capture (and post-processing)?

 

[StrollerEd]

I'm sorry if I have caused confusion, and perhaps upset to @Apple_Glen_UK .

As I said, I've been working in the digital domain for at least four decades: asking what was different about the digital was a way of uncovering appropriate ways of tacking hard problems. (Archival responsibility and digital preservation evoke concern about 'recordness' and fixity, for example.) I was suddenly struck with the thought that in photography - of still or moving stills - perhaps the question was worth asking.

 

[Apple_Glen_UK]

I'm sorry if I have caused confusion, and perhaps upset to @Apple_Glen_UK .

As I said, I've been working in the digital domain for at least four decades: asking what was different about the digital was a way of uncovering appropriate ways of tacking hard problems. (Archival responsibility and digital preservation evoke concern about 'recordness' and fixity, for example.) I was suddenly struck with the thought that in photography - of still or moving stills - perhaps the question was worth asking.

No, I'm not upset in the slightest!

I've always enjoyed photography but take it a lot more seriously these days. And with the help and inspiration of this forum I think I take better photos now.

 

[StrollerEd]

No, I'm not upset in the slightest!

I've always enjoyed photography but take it a lot more seriously these days. And with the help and inspiration of this forum I think I take better photos now.

I'm pleased about that . I think we are alike re photography - especially the benefits (and limitations) in post-processing.

 

[cdcastillo]

An assortment of craniums I have at the office (I use the iron one to hang my Fundidores cap)

 

[Darmok N Jalad]

Many cameras today have burst modes that could be a lot like taking a video with the rate of fire you can now achieve through e-shutter. My camera has a 6K function that basically takes a video with the intent that you can go and pull the frame you want. I can see the appeal (like for BIF), but I don’t really use those options as an amateur. I’d rather just get my shot one-off or walk away with nothing. If I was shooting a rare find in nature, maybe I’d consider it?

 

[Apple fanboy]

Many cameras today have burst modes that could be a lot like taking a video with the rate of fire you can now achieve through e-shutter. My camera has a 6K function that basically takes a video with the intent that you can go and pull the frame you want. I can see the appeal (like for BIF), but I don’t really use those options as an amateur. I’d rather just get my shot one-off or walk away with nothing. If I was shooting a rare find in nature, maybe I’d consider it?

Trouble with those 30 shots a second cameras is 30 very similar shots to look through and choose which one is the best.
I rarely shoot out of single shot mode. It matches my patience when it comes to editing.

 

[MBAir2010]

I've always enjoyed photography but take it a lot more seriously these days. And with the help and inspiration of this forum I think I take better photos now.

Since the autofocus broke or something on the Nikon camera, i need to zoom in my self and hopefully take a great shot, which improved and woke up the photography experience, but some photos lose that clarity or sharpness, and altering that is software can only improve the photo slightly.
i was wondering if those with 4K or other high res monitors can tell the difference?

 

[mollyc]

I'm sorry if I have caused confusion, and perhaps upset to @Apple_Glen_UK .

As I said, I've been working in the digital domain for at least four decades: asking what was different about the digital was a way of uncovering appropriate ways of tacking hard problems. (Archival responsibility and digital preservation evoke concern about 'recordness' and fixity, for example.) I was suddenly struck with the thought that in photography - of still or moving stills - perhaps the question was worth asking.

you might want to start a separate thread if this is something you'd like to discuss seriously. It will get lost in the POTD thread. ?

 

[Clix Pix]

Since the autofocus broke or something on the Nikon camera, i need to zoom in my self and hopefully take a great shot, which improved and woke up the photography experience, but some photos lose that clarity or sharpness, and altering that is software can only improve the photo slightly.
i was wondering if those with 4K or other high res monitors can tell the difference?

In a word: yes. At least on my 24" 4K LG Thunderbolt 3 monitor attached to my 2018 MBP..... Those with higher-resolution displays would also be able to see the difference, even more. It's not a good look, let's just say that.....

There is a difference between presenting an image in which the entire thing, including the presumed intended subject, is just plain wholly out of focus and presenting an image which has deliberate, intended blur in some areas of the image while at least one or more areas, sometimes quite small, are also rather sharp for a specific artistic effect..... That's where the whole depth-of-field thing comes into play, as well as use of specific lenses to achieve the desired impact.

Aside from that, when shooting animals, either pets or wildlife, the best approach is to get the eyes sharp, and after that, everything else is golden. That's not always possible, though, of course, since the subject isn't going to always be cooperative and pose in just the right position at the right angle, with an eye glinting due to natural lighting and catchlights.....

 

[mollyc]

 

[Clix Pix]

Trouble with those 30 shots a second cameras is 30 very similar shots to look through and choose which one is the best.
I rarely shoot out of single shot mode. It matches my patience when it comes to editing.

Uh, yeah, tell me about this! I am still way, way behind on culling because it's so hard to sort through 65 images of Alfred standing in pretty much the same position, image after image after image, just to see if I can manage to snag the one which really IS the best one to work on in editing and display for public consumption..... Somehow it seems easier to just buy more external drives to stash all the files on!

 

[ruka.snow]

Trouble with those 30 shots a second cameras is 30 very similar shots to look through and choose which one is the best.
I rarely shoot out of single shot mode. It matches my patience when it comes to editing.

This used to be really easy when Aperture was still a thing. Instead of 2000 photos to sort, you had the 400 odd stacks of various bursts and could filter down to the best in each stack then edit that. Lightroom and Capture One lacking stacks has made it a wee bit overwhelming.

 

[StrollerEd]

Once again, a past-midnight post from me. Ludlow after heavy rains on Welsh mountains need to flow somewhere. July 2009. Olympus compact X250

 

[someoldguy]

Branch Brook Park today
G9 , 12-60@28 , f5.6@1/1000 , ISO 200

 

[Allyance]

Nice composition, I always try to find some branches or a tree to help frame the picture.

 

[Allyance]

Mt. Ranier 2009 Olympus E-10

 

[AlaskaMoose]

Trouble with those 30 shots a second cameras is 30 very similar shots to look through and choose which one is the best.
I rarely shoot out of single shot mode. It matches my patience when it comes to editing.

This is a very useful feature for bird photographers taking photos of fast moving birds in flight, where only a few of the images within the burst are desired. It's also useful to take photos of anything that is moving (runners, dog-sled racing, and so on).

 

[kallisti]

The way I'm interpreting this is that he shot it in slow-motion with the video component on his iPhone camera and then took a frame from that to create a "still" image, then did a little tinkering in an iOS editing app to make any needed adjustments and that was that..... The problem for me is that it doesn't look real, looks as though the cat image was just stuck/inserted into another image rather like a composite is done, because in spite of the cat's outstretched leg position obviously showing him in motion there is no indication or sense of movement in the same way in which one would achieve that by "panning" with a still camera. In that kind of shot the cat would be clear but the background would be nicely blurred, suggesting speed and movement.

I look at it somewhat differently.

While shot as a slow motion video, a similar result could have been obtained with a fast shutter speed shooting at a high frame rate in a burst. And then choosing the best frame out of the burst. Similar to what happens in sports photography.

As you noted, a different look could have been achieved by panning (adding more apparent motion by having motion blur in the background), but I really like the “unnaturalness” of the image, freezing a very brief moment in time.

I find it to be a striking composition/capture that really grabbed my attention.

@Apple_Glen_UK, kudos. A nice image that you achieved in a way I wouldn’t have thought of .

 

[Buck987]

 

[kallisti]

I don't post many images of my son. Sharing this for a couple of reasons.

Taken with a Sony A7R3 and Voigtlander 50/2 APO-LANTHAR @ f/5.6.

MF. Many people might think that MF isn't doable for pics of people/kiddos. It can be. Don't get me wrong, AF can be nice. Especially if it is accurate and repeatable AF. But MF shouldn't be ignored.

The Voigtlander 50/2 APO-LANTHAR is an amazing lens for Sony. It is *really* amazing. Better than any other 50mm prime for Sony. The only downside being MF, which isn't always a downside depending on subject.

Can't share a large enough version of this image that showcases the sharpness of the lens. But the rendering, the bokeh, the lack of common aberrations just blow me away. An amazing lens for the Sony mount if AF isn't critical.

 

[r.harris1]

I look at it somewhat differently.

While shot as a slow motion video, a similar result could have been obtained with a fast shutter speed shooting at a high frame rate in a burst. And then choosing the best frame out of the burst. Similar to what happens in sports photography.

As you noted, a different look could have been achieved by panning (adding more apparent motion by having motion blur in the background), but I really like the “unnaturalness” of the image, freezing a very brief moment in time.

I find it to be a striking composition/capture that really grabbed my attention.

@Apple_Glen_UK, kudos. A nice image that you achieved in a way I wouldn’t have thought of .

I agree. I enjoy the composition a great deal, the freezing of the moment in the arc of the jump. Your Digby images always seem to grab his personality @Apple_Glen_UK , which is difficult with a cat (or any animal, I suppose).

 

[Apple fanboy]

This used to be really easy when Aperture was still a thing. Instead of 2000 photos to sort, you had the 400 odd stacks of various bursts and could filter down to the best in each stack then edit that. Lightroom and Capture One lacking stacks has made it a wee bit overwhelming.

Whatever the software, I just don’t really shoot that way. I’ll take a few if it’s birds or other animals but not usually that many. 400 of one scene? I’d sooner not do any photography than go through that lot!

 

[Apple fanboy]

This is a very useful feature for bird photographers taking photos of fast moving birds in flight, where only a few of the images within the burst are desired. It's also useful to take photos of anything that is moving (runners, dog-sled racing, and so on).

I appreciate that. It’s just not my style.

 

[Apple fanboy]

I don't post many images of my son. Sharing this for a couple of reasons.

Taken with a Sony A7R3 and Voigtlander 50/2 APO-LANTHAR @ f/5.6.

MF. Many people might think that MF isn't doable for pics of people/kiddos. It can be. Don't get me wrong, AF can be nice. Especially if it is accurate and repeatable AF. But MF shouldn't be ignored.

The Voigtlander 50/2 APO-LANTHAR is an amazing lens for Sony. It is *really* amazing. Better than any other 50mm prime for Sony. The only downside being MF, which isn't always a downside depending on subject.

Can't share a large enough version of this image that showcases the sharpness of the lens. But the rendering, the bokeh, the lack of common aberrations just blow me away. An amazing lens for the Sony mount if AF isn't critical.

View attachment 1757495

Depends on how young your eyes are! I tend to use MF only for some macro.