In a press release today, Nikon announced that the upcoming RAW video feature on the Z6 and Z7 will require a hardware update to function, including a service fee. The company also released dedicated lookup tables (LUTs) for the Z6 and Z7 when shooting N-log video over HDMI.
Photography Life
Above photo created by Kate Luber
Every year when it is time to go back to school, a little bit of melancholy sets in at our house. Another year has passed. My babies are a year older. (And so am I which is almost more cause for panic!)
But I want to celebrate the changes rather than mourning them. So I pick up my camera.
This year, as the kids head back to school, I encourage you to pick up your own camera. Let back-to-school be the event that allows you to see changes over the years. Allow it to be a reminder to capture who they are as they set out on a new year of growing.
Use these ideas to document the start of the school year to hold onto a little bit of who they are now.
A large part of why the start of school can feel sad is that it is the end of those lazy summer days. There is something so magical about lazy days with no schedules or to-do lists. And yet, when there is “nothing happening,” we often forget to take our cameras out.
So before you send everyone off to school, capture them in their summer state. Document the cartoon marathons and midday naps. Take a picture of bare feet in the back yard and cereal for dinner.
When you look back, these photos will probably matter more than most. It is so easy to forget how small they were and these simple little moments are the ones you can’t recreate.
Who here loved packing her backpack with fresh school supplies each fall?! I love capturing my kids as they get ready for a new year at school and there are so many creative ways to do it.
My kids always get new clothes for school and it’s so cute to watch them feel fresh and fancy as they head off to school. It also makes for the perfect photo opportunity as they are feeling their best!
Let your kids play model in their back to school clothes and take them out for a fashion photoshoot to show off their style. The kids will feel great and you will be able to document their age, stage, and style in your pictures.
School supplies are another photo-worthy subject. Books, papers, pens, backpacks, notebook paper, scissors, glue sticks…anything you can imagine! They are colorful, classic, and instantly connect with the viewer who will know that all of these things mean school time.
I just love this shot by photographer Kate Luber. The flat lay on the dark table lets the colors of the supplies shine while those little hands at the bottom of the frame add a personal touch.
So don’t just send those supplies off to school with your kids! Let them be part of the story as you document the back-to-school memories.
Of course, backpacks are school supplies like the items listed above. However, I feel as though backpacks deserve their own category when it comes to back-to-school photos. They are an opportunity for personal expression. They show a child’s growth as your little one grows into that big bag. And they are an instant signal that learning is ahead.
When my son was younger he had a ladybug backpack that he loved. As he got older, he wanted a Star Wars backpack. Now he has a huge backpack that almost does not fit on his back and it shows me how small he really still is.
Every morning last fall, this was what I saw on my way to the car. My beautiful baby boy with his huge backpack and it always made me laugh. It is a memory worth keeping.
Let your child’s backpack not only tell the story of back-to-school. Let it show who they are and how they choose to navigate the world. And of course, capture it with your camera.
Do you have daily routines that happen every day before and school? Of course you do! Even if your routine is that you are routinely running around throwing at granola bars at kids and rushing them out the door before they miss the bus!
These are memories that are definitely worth capturing.
My daughter is always so sleepy in the mornings and takes her sweet time getting up to have breakfast. While this can be somewhat stressful at times, its also part of our life. I know I will miss these days when they’re gone.
Think about the things that you might overlook when choosing photo-worthy moments. Those daily happenings that can feel insignificant until they are gone. Toothbrushing, breakfast preparing, hair braiding, shoe tying.
Kids grow and evolve and these routine moments grow and evolve with them. Take the time to document the routine to remember.
Another great way to remember every year is to use words. Whether it be a chalkboard, a letter board, or a simple piece of paper, write down the things that will help you remember this unique school year.
Consider including the date, your child’s name and age, the teacher’s name, the name of the school, and the grade level.
I love this capture by Jamie Eilts as she chose to write down the feelings of her son’s first day on her sign. Maybe your sign would say, “Break out the wine!” Either way, it is a great opportunity to capture the emotions of the back-to-school routine as well as the event itself.
We don’t have these beautiful schoolbuses where I live in Sweden. Still, nothing is a better symbol of school than a big yellow bus. People everywhere recognize this classic vehicle!
Even better, that cheery yellow color is amazing for photography and really makes your images pop. So if your kid climbs in to one of these buses everyday, make sure to capture it!
Use the feelings you have for when school starts and turn them into something creative. Be inspired by a fresh start. And know that as you snap away, you are capturing precious memories of your family that will be cherished this school year and for years to come.
The post How to photograph all your back-to-school memories appeared first on Clickin Moms blog: Helping you take better pictures one day at a time.
Clickin Moms blog: Helping you take better pictures one day at a time
Photographing herpetofauna has its own special considerations when shooting in tropical rainforests. In this article, I will go through the various aspects of herpetofauna photography and discuss some of the challenges.
If you decide to move to another post-processing tool and you want to completely remove all Adobe Creative Cloud applications, you might come across software removal issues. In this article, I go through the process of completely removing Adobe CC and its applications.
Photography Life
Did you ever see the episode of “Friends” where Rachel and Monica host two separate parties? People kept sneaking out of Monica’s party because she was playing games with lots of rules.
“No, rules are GOOD! Rules help control the fun!” she yelled, running frantically after the escapees as they darted out the door and across the hall. Well, people didn’t know what they were missing at Monica’s party, because I agree with her – rules help control the fun!
You see, at a joyful family photo shoot, you need precisely these two things: fun and control.
My family sessions are happy. I love when kids have fun at photo shoots with me. And they love it, too!
But if I let them just go nuts I will lose them (sometimes, quite literally!). So instead, I play games with them. The simple rules of the games keep everyone in line and keep them having fun. This allows me to get the genuine moments, expressions, interactions, and movement I love in photos. Everyone stays engaged while I maintain control of the session.
When you play games during your family photo sessions, whether they be with clients or with your own family, you will immediately see stronger connections and interactions between your subjects.
Even better, your subjects will enjoy having their photos taken. Even the dads! Happy clients look wonderful in their pictures, and they also talk to their friends. It’s also much easier for me, the photographer, when I know people are having fun. I’m not scrambling to figure out what to do next with my subjects because they are already entertained.
These are the five games I play most often with kids and families. I save these for after the “smile-at-the-camera” shots are all done. The kids may be getting a bit restless and everyone is more comfortable with the photographer. The family is ready to move and play! It’s a wonderful way to insure that we all leave on a high note with photos we love.
Start by having the kid or kids stand directly in front of the parents. Have them all hold hands in a circle, but with everyone facing you. Instruct the family that they are going to to walk toward you on your signal.
But here’s the “surprise!” Before your signal, say secretly to the kid(s), “Now, when you walk toward me, you want to see if you can get away from your parents. Your parents may let you get away… and then again, they may not. Who knows?”
The kids will usually start giggling before the game even begins. When you signal, they start walking and you start snapping away. The parents will probably tug on the kids’ hands gently, trying to keep them from getting away, and the kids will pull back and laugh. Some kids will leave it at that, and some kids will really pull hard and break away completely.
The fun is in the variety that you can capture with different families using the same activity! As long as they are laughing and connected, it’s all good.
The great thing about this game is you can get a lot of shots really easily. Just keep photographing as they move toward you. First capture the whole family. Then start zooming in on just the kids and their special interactions.
As with any game, you’ll have to read the kids’ personalties and make adjustments if necessary. While this game works for most, you may have to tweak it a bit if you have a serious rule-follower. With those kids, you place less emphasis on the rules and instead tell them it’s okay to laugh and giggle.
The great thing about this game is you can get a lot of shots really easily. Just keep photographing as they move toward you. First capture the whole family. Then start zooming in on just the kids and their special interactions.
As with any game, you’ll have to read the kids’ personalties and make adjustments if necessary. While this game works for most, you may have to tweak it a bit if you have a serious rule-follower. With those kids, you place less emphasis on the rules and instead tell them it’s okay to laugh and giggle.
I love this game for getting dads to loosen up and have fun with their kids. (You may be shocked to hear this, but some dads do not love posing for family photos! Ha!) However, this game works really well with mom, dad, or even grandparents.
Here’s how to play. Take your sneaky adult aside and arrange for a secret signal. Tell him very quietly that when you give the signal, he is to sneak up on the child or children and do something to surprise them. He can scoop and tickle, grab, toss, hug, spin, turn a kid upside down. Anything he wants that’s cuddly and not TOO much of a wild surprise! The only rule is that he should try to keep the kids facing the camera.
Then, you go set the kid or kids up for a sweet posed picture. You decide if you want to tell the kids that there is a surprise in store. If you do choose to tell them, instruct the kids to look at you no matter what happens. If you have a very serious rule follower, don’t emphasize this part too much. I have learned that some kids will be so focused on following the rule that they will stare fixedly and seriously at the camera. While that is hilarious and adorable, it’s not quite what we are going for here.
Finally, get yourself in position. Give your sneaky adult the secret signal and start snapping away. The fact that the kids don’t know what’s coming and the adults are the one “breaking the rules” is what really makes this one sweet, genuine, and fun.
Pro tip: Raise your shutter speed enough to freeze your subjects’ motion. Consider using a more closed-down aperture (a higher f-stop number) to give you a larger depth of field. This way your subjects are less likely to slip into an area that will be out of focus.
Most of us played this game as kids ourselves. It’s fun is in its simplicity.
Set up an activity or some kind of movement and get ready to yell out commands. “Red light” means stop the motion. “Green light” means go.
This game is GREAT for a really wiggly kid that just can’t seem to stop moving. You stay in charge, and the kid gets to move around, but there are moments of happy (relative) stillness so you can at least get a few smiling shots without limbs flying everywhere.
I do this with the whole family and also with kids alone. You can capture the kids in motion (GREEN LIGHT!) and also when they stop (RED LIGHT!). For this game I have kids running, twirling, sneaking, leap frogging, and more. Just do whatever works.
Remember when your parents were the strongest people in the world and could lift you up so high you felt as though you were flying? That is the feeling you are trying to capture with this game.
I find this game to be especially good for the littler ones who may be feeling shy and wanting to be held. And it is a life-saver for toddlers who won’t stay in one place.
The game is delightfully simple. Just have one or both parents “fly” the child toward the camera like an airplane. You get bonus points for making realistic airplane noises. That’s it!
Pro tip: Focus on the child’s expression, and use a narrow enough aperture that the parents recede into the background.
This activity is a favorite because it creates a great connection with the camera while also eliciting the best kinds of wild giggles. I absolutely love delivering images that are this happy and engaging to my clients!
For this game, have the kids sit on a grownup’s legs. Have the grownup hold on to the children around their waists. Instruct the kids to lean toward you. “More. More. Come on, more!” (They will probably flop over, laughing.) “TOO MUCH!! AHHHH! Go back!”
Do it again. Keep taking pictures. So cute.
Pro tip: Shoot with as narrow an aperture as possible while still being able maintaining your focus on your subjects. If you have more than one kid playing this game, you’ll have to choose your settings carefully.You want the children’s faces to be in focus, but adults to recede into the background.
Games are perfect for making your next family photo shoot fun, connected, and happy for the clients and friends you photograph. And I hope YOU have the most fun ever, too!
Use these and also make up your own games on the spot. Kids are great at coming up with ideas – see if you can turn those ideas into games and activities for natural interactions at your sessions.
If something doesn’t work, don’t worry. Just take a few shots and then make a change and try something else. As long as you stay in control of the fun and keep things moving, you’ll get plenty of wonderful shots. And your subjects will love working with you.
Happy playing!
The post 5 Games to play for a fun-filled family photo session appeared first on Clickin Moms blog: Helping you take better pictures one day at a time.
Clickin Moms blog: Helping you take better pictures one day at a time
