50 Things Photographers Need To Know About Focus

50 Things Photographers Need to Know About Focus by John Greengo Pdf

While focusing your camera seems like it should be a no-brainer—there’s autofocus, after all!—it’s often not a simple task. Depending on the shooting situation, your camera, and the countless scenarios that can “throw off” the focus, the task of achieving sharp images with great focus can be deceptively challenging. If you’re a passionate photographer eager to learn the best ways to achieve tack-sharp focus in your images, these 50 focus-based principles are exactly what you need to take your work to the next level. With photographer and author John Greengo as your guide, you’ll quickly learn nearly four dozen techniques for achieving focus in every shooting situation. You’ll learn: • How to optimize autofocus no matter what kind of camera you have (DSLR or mirrorless) • How to master manual focus • Which focus modes and focus areas work best for different situations • How to use your camera’s autofocus aids, such as magnification and focus peaking • Techniques to keep your camera stable, either handheld or on a tripod • How shutter speed and aperture affect sharpness Written in the author’s friendly and approachable style, and illustrated with examples that clearly show how each technique can help you capture great photos, 50 Things Photographers Need to Know About Focus is designed to be an effective, fast, and fun way to learn how to achieve great focus in your images—no matter what situation. TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1: Focus Basics Chapter 2: Autofocus Chapter 3: Mirrorless Autofocus Chapter 4: DSLR Autofocus Chapter 5: Customized Autofocus Controls Chapter 6: Autofocus Aids Chapter 7: Autofocus and Lenses Chapter 8: Manual Focus and Lenses Chapter 9: Exposure Control for Focus Chapter 10: Advanced Focusing Techniques Chapter 11: Other Focus Topics

A Photographer's Guide to Focus and Autofocus by Alan Hess Pdf

Autofocus changed the way photos are taken, making it easier to capture and keep the subject in sharp focus. Since autofocus was first introduced, it has become much more complicated, offering different focus modes, focus types, and focus points. What started out as a way to simplify the photo-making process has turned into a complicated endeavor with numerous choices and settings. A Photographer’s Guide to Focus and Autofocus: From Snapshots to Great Shots is here to answer all your questions about the focusing system in today’s cameras and their various autofocus modes. Photographer Alan Hess covers the simple basics of focus: manual focus versus autofocus, the best focus modes to use, and how focus works in both DSLRs and mirrorless cameras. Then he discusses more advanced topics, including autofocus sensor types, back-button autofocus, and focus for DSLR video. There is much more to autofocus, and focus in general, than just pushing the shutter release button and hoping the image is sharp and in focus. With this book, you’ll learn how to get the right focus in your images, no matter what the occasion. Follow along with your friendly and knowledgeable guide, and you will: Learn the top ten things to know about focus, including how to use the focus controls on the camera, how to pick the autofocus point, and when to use pre-focus in your images Address common autofocus issues such as dealing with low contrast or low light, or shooting through obstacles like glass or a fence Develop troubleshooting techniques for what to do when the autofocus doesn’t work properly Work with both manual focus and autofocus and learn tricks to achieve better focus in video And once you’ve got the shot, show it off! Join the book’s Flickr group to share your photos and tips at flickr.com/groups/focusandautofocusfromsnapshotstogreatshots

Mountain Ranch by Michael Crouser Pdf

"The ranches where Michael Crouser so affectionately captures these scenes tell a story of staying power, of joy in the beauty of the world, of gratitude for the working animals—the dogs and the horses—of midwifery and husbandry, of seeing the seasons through. . . . It is a pleasure to be brought into this out-of-the-way part of the world with such understated passion." —Gretel Ehrlich, from the introduction The mountain ranches of western Colorado preserve a way of life that has nearly vanished from the American scene. Families who have lived on the same land for five or six generations raise cattle much as their ancestors did, following an annual cycle of breeding, birthing, branding, grazing, and selling livestock. Michael Crouser spent more than a decade (2006–2016) photographing family cattle ranches in Colorado, intrigued "not by the ways their lives are changing but by the way they have stayed the same." He was, he says, "most interested in the traditional elements of these traditional lives, . . . what they call 'cowboying.'" Intimate without being sentimental about the realities of ranch work, Mountain Ranch's duotone images capture the raw and basic elements of a hard and basic life. In the afterword, Crouser pays verbal tribute to ranch people who are "the real deal," whose seasonal round of work forms the subject of the acclaimed nature writer Gretel Ehrlich's foreword. Portraits of eight men and women who eloquently describe their long lives on Colorado mountain ranches complete the volume. The ever-increasing commercial and residential development of traditional ranch land and the economic difficulties facing a new generation of ranchers threaten the future of cattle ranching in the mountains of Colorado. Mountain Ranch powerfully records the last vestiges of a tradition that exerts a nearly universal fascination and mystique—cowboying in the American West.

The Photographer's Guide to Yosemite by Michael Frye Pdf

Here is a comprehensive handbook designed to help all photographers — from beginners to experts — capture the landscape, flora, and fauna of one of the best places on earth. These tips and directions from Yosemite local Michael Frye are an indispensable resource for anyone who wants to take better pictures in Yosemite and elsewhere. Last updated over a decade ago, The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite has been revised to include advice especially for digital photography, and includes new full-color reproductions of Frye’s own work to serve as examples and inspiration. Every aspect of photographing this magnificent park is covered, including: In-depth descriptions of nearly 40 outstanding locations Information on the best months and times of day for successful shots Detailed maps indicating prime viewpoints Tips on technique and equipment More than 100 stunning full-color photographs

Focus In Photography by John Neel Pdf

Focus is an important artistic tool, directing your viewers into and around your image, but a technical challenge too. In this book, the first serious treatent of the topic in the digital age, John Neel shows how a mastery of your lens will greatly enhance the quality and 'wow' factor of your photographs. Never losing sight of what real-life photographers need to know, Focus in Photography will let you master bokeh and other focus techniques, giving you a complete understanding of optics-and what actually happens to light within the camera in your hand. Richly illustrated with John's own amazing images, and drawing on his well-known authority in the field, it will be a valuable asset to students of photography, enthusiasts looking to refine their art, product photographers and commercial shooters alike.

The Moment It Clicks by Joe McNally Pdf

THE FIRST BOOK WITH ONE FOOT ON THE COFFEE TABLE, AND ONE FOOT IN THE CLASSROOM Joe McNally, one of the world’s top pro digital photographers, whose celebrated work has graced the pages of Sports Illustrated, Time, and National Geographic (to name a few), breaks new ground by doing something no photography book has ever done—blending the rich, stunning images and elegant layout of a coffee-table book with the invaluable training, no-nonsense insights, and photography secrets usually found only in those rare, best-of-breed educational books. When Joe’s not on assignment for the biggest-name magazines and Fortune 500 clients, he’s in the classroom teaching location lighting, environmental portraiture, and how to “get the shot” at workshops around the world. These on-location workshops are usually reserved for a handful of photographers each year, but now you can learn the same techniques that Joe shares in his seminars and lectures in a book that brings Joe’s sessions to life. What makes the book so unique is the “triangle of learning” where (1) Joe distills the concept down to one brief sentence. It usually starts with something like, “An editor at National Geographic once told me...” and then he shares one of those hard-earned tricks of the trade that you only get from spending a lifetime behind the lens. Then, (2) on the facing page is one of Joe’s brilliant images that perfectly illustrates the technique (you’ll recognize many of his photos from magazine covers). And (3) you get the inside story of how that shot was taken, including which equipment he used (lens, f/stop, lighting, accessories, etc.), along with the challenges that type of project brings, and how to set up a shot like that of your own. This book also gives you something more. It inspires. It challenges. It informs. But perhaps most importantly, it will help you understand photography and the art of making great photos at a level you never thought possible. This book is packed with those “Ah ha!” moments—those clever insights that make it all come together for you. It brings you that wonderful moment when it suddenly all makes sense—that “moment it clicks.”

Macro Photography by Don Komarechka Pdf

Step into a world of photography that most artists consider magical. The closer you get to things, the more fascinating they become. Unimaginable details can be captured with the aid of special photography techniques and equipment, detailed at length within these pages. Macro photographers play by a different rulebook. The challenges faced from the subject matter, the equipment and even the laws of physics make this an ambitious genre of photography. It can be abstract, it can tell stories, and it can spark your imagination. Author and “Mad Scientist” photographer Don Komarechka covers every area of macro photography, from simple beginnings and tips to help you get the most out of your first macro lens, all the way through a masterclass in the obscure. Topics include: - Redefining the rules of composition - Finding and exploring narratives we ignore - The challenges of magnification - Camera equipment choices and recommendations - Inexpensive ways to get “closer” - Controlling and sculpting light - Overcoming shallow focus - Using water droplets as lenses for enchanted refractions - The art of photographic discovery: “what if?” - Winter macro: snowflakes and freezing soap bubbles - Ultraviolet fluorescence macro - Stereoscopic 3D macro photography - MANY more topics down the rabbit hole

The Enthusiast's Guide to Exposure by John Greengo Pdf

If you’re a passionate photographer and you’re ready to take your work to the next level, The Enthusiast’s Guide book series was created just for you. Whether you’re diving head first into a new topic or exploring a classic theme, Enthusiast’s Guides are designed to help you quickly learn more about a topic or subject so that you can improve your photography.

The Enthusiast’s Guide to Exposure: 49 Photographic Principles You Need to Know addresses what you need to know in order to shoot great images with powerful compositions. Chapters are broken down into a series of numbered lessons, with each lesson providing all you need to improve your photography. In this book, which is divided into 11 chapters that include 45 photographic lessons to help you conquer your exposures, photographer and author John Greengo covers light, aperture, shutter speed, ISO, exposure modes, and much more. Example lessons include:

• 4. The Light Meter and Metering Modes
• 6. The Exposure Triangle
• 10. Using Fast Shutter Speeds to Stop the Action
• 18. Advanced Auto ISO Settings
• 21. Getting the Most Out of Aperture Priority Mode
• 27. Maximum Sharpness and Hyperfocal Distance
• 28. Using Exposure Compensation to Get the Shot
• 37. Capturing Great Silhouettes
• 39. Focus Modes and Focus Points

Written in a friendly and approachable manner and illustrated with examples that drive home each lesson, The Enthusiast’s Guide to Exposure is designed to be effective and efficient, friendly and fun. Read an entire chapter at once, or read just one topic at a time. With either approach, you’ll quickly learn a lot so you can head out with your camera to capture great shots.

Good Pictures by Kim Beil Pdf

A picture-rich field guide to American photography, from daguerreotype to digital. We are all photographers now, with camera phones in hand and social media accounts at the ready. And we know which pictures we like. But what makes a "good picture"? And how could anyone think those old styles were actually good? Soft-focus yearbook photos from the '80s are now hopelessly—and happily—outdated, as are the low-angle portraits fashionable in the 1940s or the blank stares of the 1840s. From portraits to products, landscapes to food pics, Good Pictures proves that the history of photography is a history of changing styles. In a series of short, engaging essays, Kim Beil uncovers the origins of fifty photographic trends and investigates their original appeal, their decline, and sometimes their reuse by later generations of photographers. Drawing on a wealth of visual material, from vintage how-to manuals to magazine articles for working photographers, this full-color book illustrates the evolution of trends with hundreds of pictures made by amateurs, artists, and commercial photographers alike. Whether for selfies or sepia tones, the rules for good pictures are always shifting, reflecting new ways of thinking about ourselves and our place in the visual world.

The Photo Cookbook by Tim Shields Pdf

This Photo Cookbook is your quick and easy guide to creating your own jaw-dropping pictures without complicated and boring explanations, using the camera or phone you already have. Award-winning Chefs use recipes to create amazing dishes, and if you follow their recipes, you can create the exact same dishes. This Photo Cookbook contains 30 recipes you can use to take amazing photos. Want to shoot a glorious sunset? There’s a recipe for that. Want to create amazing compositions? There are 8 recipes for that. Want to take a stunning portrait shot with a blurred out background? There’s a recipe for that, too. Every recipe is short, to the point, and stands alone. The Photo Cookbook was written by award-winning photographer Tim Shields with thousands of students in his photography programs. Take the best photos of your life using the camera or phone you already have And the best part? Every recipe comes with a how-to video! Just open the regular camera app on your phone and point it at the QR code on the page, or tap the QR code when reading on mobile phones and tablets. When the link pops up, tap it and the video will start. You don’t need any new software or apps.

Focus On Composing Photos by Peter Ensenberger Pdf

As digital cameras and software packages become more advanced, seemingly by the minute, it has become easier than ever to overlook the basic elements which have always resulted in the best photographs, no matter how fancy (or primitive) the camera itself. Composition is the single most important aspect of creating great images, no matter what level of photographer you happen to be. No amount of digital wizardry can turn a badly composed image into a picture you would want to display. While many books on composition tend to overcomplicate the subject, this book breaks down everything you need to know into small, digestible chunks of information that you will actually remember once you're out and about taking pictures. Instead of plodding through long and complex pages of text, this book supplements the necessary information, such as the basics of the rule of thirds and how to get good highlights and shadows, with tons of gorgeous, full color images that actually show you what to do and how to do it, rather than just telling you what to try. You'll be amazed at the gorgeous images you'll create, whether your passion is for photographing your family, pets, travel adventures, nature, or anything else.

Focus and Sharpness by Ernesto Martinez Pdf

Sharpness in photography is an aspect that obsesses all photographers, especially in our beginnings, because there are many factors that influence it and it is not always easy to control them. Many of us consider sharpness as the base or the culmination of a good image. Identifying what are the aspects that influence the lack of sharpness of the photographs will make you aware of them and will allow you to anticipate the error. With this new book we are going to delve into the whole universe related to the " Focus and Sharpness " of our images and we will learn to Photograph in High Resolution. Sharpness is not everything in photography, but mastering it is a big step for any photographer to take a leap in quality in their photographs. The Book is part of the series [ Higher Training in Photography ], an encyclopedia that brings together all the subjects that a photographer must master in his professional training. The series includes the following titles: 1. Black and White Art 2. Color and Photography 3. The Exhibition 4. Focus and Sharpness 5. Photographic Lighting 6. Composition and Photographic Language 7. The Digital Camera 8. Photographic Objectives 9. Practical guide of Lifhtroom 10. Photoshop for Photographers Contents: The Concept of Sharpness Lens Ratio and Sharpness The Focus Mechanism Methods to Maximize Sharpness The Sharpness: Good Focus and good grip of the Camera Image Stabilization Systems The Trepidation. Your hands also move Focal Length and Jitter ISO, Noise and Sharpness Leveraging the Camera's Live View Mode Equivalent Resolution and Apparent Resolution of the Objective MTF charts to measure the sharpness of a target The Target Sweet Spot Diffraction and How It Affects the Sharpness of Your Photos Hyperfocal and its Relationship with Sharpness App's to Calculate the Hyperfocal Distance The Circle of Confusion Camera Settings for Focus. Choose an Auto Focus Mode. Choose a Focus Area Mode. Choose a Focus Point. Which Focus Mode To Use In Which Situation Lock Technique:

Beginner's Guide to Photography by Anonymous Pdf

This book provides an introduction to the art of photography, aimed specifically at beginners. The author offers practical advice on buying and using a camera and taking and editing photographs. Readers will learn about the technical aspects of photography, such as exposure and aperture, as well as tips on how to shoot great photos in different settings. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

The Blind Photographer by Julian Rothenstein Pdf

The blind photographer cannot see a butterfly perched perfectly still on a flower, a bowl of sweet-smelling fruit, or a child's rattle on a darkened floor, but the mind's eye is sharply focused. How then, do blind or partially sighted people capture such extraordinary images? The photographs in this revelatory book suggest a deeper truth: that blindness is itself a kind of seeing, and that those who can see are often blind to the strangeness and beauty of the world around them. As the blind photographer Evgen Bavcar writes, "Photography must belong to the blind, who in their daily existence have learned to become the masters of camera obscura." Through the photographs of more than fifty blind or partially sighted people from around the world, this exhilarating book—the first to explore this phenomenon in all its vibrancy and diversity—will make you see differently.

Road to Seeing by Dan Winters Pdf

After beginning his career as a photojournalist for a daily newspaper in southern California, Dan Winters moved to New York to begin a celebrated career that has since led to more than one hundred awards, including the Alfred Eisenstaedt Award for Magazine Photography. An immensely respected portrait photographer, Dan is well known for an impeccable use of light, color, and depth in his evocative images. In Road to Seeing, Dan shares his journey to becoming a photographer, as well as key moments in his career that have influenced and informed the decisions he has made and the path he has taken. Though this book appeals to the broader photography audience, it speaks primarily to the student of photography—whether enrolled in school or not—and addresses such topics as creating a visual language; the history of photography; the portfolio; street photography; personal projects; his portraiture work; and the need for key characteristics such as perseverance, awareness, curiosity, and reverence. By relaying both personal experiences and a kind of philosophy on photography, Road to Seeing tells the reader how one photographer carved a path for himself, and in so doing, helps equip the reader to forge his own.