Friday, June 30, 2023

Research Team Develops Method for Reconstructing Environments Using Reflections in Eyes

11:45:00 PM

Advancements in technology are getting increasingly outlandish with each passing day, particularly in our little neck of the woods. 

Person showing green and black eyelid closeup photography. Photo by Arteum.ro

And today’s headline is no different, but, for once, it doesn’t exactly involve artificial intelligence. 

A team of researchers has found a way to take the reflection in a person’s eyes and recreate the environment they are viewing. In other words, they can “see” what the subject is viewing.

If that’s not just a little bit creepy, we don’t know what is. That said, we can see many uses for this in law enforcement and the like.

Writing about their work, the team notes “The reflective nature of the human eye is an underappreciated source of information about what the world around us looks like. By imaging the eyes of a moving person, we can collect multiple views of a scene outside the camera's direct line-of-sight through the reflections in the eyes. In this paper, we reconstruct a 3D scene beyond the camera's line-of-sight using portrait images containing eye reflections.”

Of course, all of this is still nascent in terms of development, but we can only imagine where it goes from here. So, how did they do it?

“The cornea geometry is approximately the same across all healthy adults. Because of this fact, if we count the pixel size of a person's cornea in the image, we can compute exactly where their eyes are. Using this insight, we train the radiance field on the eye reflections by shooting rays from the camera, and reflecting them off the approximated eye geometry. To remove the iris from showing up in the reconstruction, we perform texture decomposition by simultaneously training a 2D texture map that learns the iris texture.”

In other words, it reverse engineers the image the viewer sees and removes the iris layer that might cloud or obscure relevant information in order to achieve that. 

You can check out some examples on the team’s website here

Any thoughts on this research are welcome in the comments.

We have some other headlines for you to read at this link.

[World From Eyes]

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30. Juni 2023

4:17:00 AM

Das Bild des Tages von: Georg Kroemer

Im Ausblick habe ich heute ganz viel Streetart für Euch.
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Thursday, June 29, 2023

21 Dreamy Photos Of Shells

7:45:00 AM

In June and July, it's common for people in Europe and the US to go to the seaside and enjoy vacations. While you walk barefoot along the shore, which is a rewarding and relaxing experience, you maybe have a habit of searching for pretty shells. Many of us used to do that as children – why not keep doing it now? Once you make a beautiful collection of shells, you can photograph them and create stunning summertime memories.

Before we share with you 21 gorgeous photographs of shells, we suggest you take a look at this helpful e-book about the creative approach to photography. The Creativity Catalog will help you make better compositions, be more mindful of lightning and understand how to use colors in a clever way.

Photo by Giulia May
Photo by Sarah Granger
Photo by Rayyu Maldives photographer
Photo by Nika Benedictova
Photo by Dagmara Dombrovska
Photo by Stefan Kunze
Photo by Philipp Deus
Photo by Anna Auza
Photo by OhTilly
Photo by Sahra Peterson
Photo by Lycheeart

Having troubles with inspiration? Spark your creativity today, with these fun and challenging assignments from The Creativity Catalog!

Photo by Waldemar Brandt
Photo by Dagmara Dombrovska
Photo by Jeremy Zero
Photo by Max Letek
Photo by Content Pixie
Photo by Adrianna Calvo
Photo by Pixabay
Photo by Brett Sayles
Photo by Sunsetoned
Photo by Karolina Grabowska

Download this comprehensive e-book by Photzy covering 20 chapters of creativity-sparking assignments!

Further Reading:

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29. Juni 2023

5:16:00 AM

Das Bild des Tages von: Harald Biecker

Im Ausblick haben wir heute ein Schattenspiel mit Lampe.
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New AI Project from Google Promises Infinite Selfie-Generation Capabilities

12:45:00 AM

Fears that artificial intelligence is going to make everything creative obsolete are not totally unfounded but we have to admit that we didn’t expect it to potentially put selfies to rest once and for all.

Person holding space gray iPhone 5s taking picture. Photo by Antoine Beauvillain

Google announced that it is working on an AI project that would, in essence, learn a user’s face and then impose that in a variety of ways so as to generate selfies that were never taken. Depending on where you stand on the authenticity debate with social media, this would decidedly be in the more artificial category.

So, what are the hopes that this could become a reality? Google cites the selfie trend and its impact on tourism in its outline of the positives that the project could create. As for the rest of us, a reprieve from selfies once and for all doesn’t sound terrible.

Vice president of Google Creative Lab, Robert Wong, introduced the company’s project at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, PetaPixel reports.

Of course, there are debates about whether any of this is a good thing in the long run but there isn’t much doubt as to whether or not the tech is possibly capable of creating artificial selfie portraits. We’ve covered stories here about AI creating holograms out of deceased relatives, changing the weather in a picture, creating avatars for marketing purposes, and, last but not least, the ability to create images using text descriptions. All of this, too, has come with lawsuits and bans on AI-generated work on stock photography websites. Even so, again, freedom from selfies might be a worthwhile endeavor, debates about AI aside.

Are selfies on the verge of obsolescence thanks to AI? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

For more headlines, check out our photography news.

[PetaPixel]

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Wednesday, June 28, 2023

How Many Pictures? Photo Statistics That Will Blow You Away

5:46:00 AM

Photography has come a long way since its invention, and it has become an integral part of our lives. With the rise of smartphones and social media, taking photos has become easier than ever before.

The number of photos taken every day is genuinely staggering, thanks to the fact that a huge majority of people have smartphones these days. A digital camera is also a pretty standard gadget these days, and not only for people who consider themselves photographers! It’s also worth noting that storage space such as iCloud or GDrive is used worldwide, and it has a lot of capacity. This means that people use photo storage for their digital photos (both raw files and jpeg files) regularly.

If you use social media, you probably see more than 3.2 billion images and 720,000 hours of video shared daily.1 This includes images captured on smartphones, digital cameras, and other devices.

Some Staggering Photo Stats

  • The total Number of Photos…
    More photos were taken in the last two years2 than in the entire history of photography before that.
  • The Impact of Smartphone Photography…
    As of 2021, it's estimated that there are more than 3.8 billion active smartphone users3 worldwide, and most use their phones to take photos.
  • Selfie Mania…
    According to a survey4, people take more photos of themselves than they do of their friends or family.
  • No really…
    Selfies make up a significant portion of all photos taken, with an estimated 93 million selfies taken every day5.
  • Women vs Men…
    Women take more photos than men6.
  • The Most Popular Camera for Photographers is…
    The most popular camera used on Flickr is the iPhone7.
  • Where we share photos…
    Facebook is the world's largest photo-sharing platform, with over 350 million photos uploaded daily8.
  • About Instagram…
    Over 95 million photos9 and videos are uploaded to Instagram every day.
  • About The Future…
    By 2030, around 2.3 trillion photos1 will be taken annually.
Photo by Juliana Marta

Now we’re going to cover in-depth several interesting stats regarding photography! 

How Many Images Are Uploaded To Instagram Every Day?

Staggering Instagram Statistics

Instagram is currently the most popular platform for sharing photos and videos. In a way, IG is the loyal companion of every photographer who wants to reach a wide range of target audiences. 

According to recent estimates, approximately 95 million photos and videos are uploaded to Instagram daily. This number includes posts from individuals, businesses, and other organizations. It's worth noting that this number may vary depending on factors such as major events, holidays, and other social phenomena.

In any case, that’s a massive number of files! 

Photo by Alexander Shatov

How Many Images Are Uploaded To Facebook Each Day?

Facebook Photo Stats

Facebook isn’t that popular nowadays compared to Instagram, especially among younger generations. However, it’s still going super strong regarding picture sharing. 

As of my knowledge cutoff date of September 2021; it was reported that more than 350 million photos are uploaded to Facebook daily. However, it's important to note that this number may have changed since then due to various factors, such as changes in user behavior or updates to Facebook's policies and features.

Photo by Alexander Shatov

How Many People Are On TikTok?

TikTok Stats

TikTok usage is on the rise, especially among the younger populations. This platform has 689 million active accounts, and it was installed 2.6 billion times10.

Photo by Alexander Shatov

How Many Images Are Uploaded To Flickr Daily?

Flickr Photography Statistics

According to Flickr's latest official statistics, there are currently over 100 million registered users on the platform, and more than 10 billion photos have been uploaded to Flickr since its inception. It's worth noting that the number of images uploaded to Flickr may vary depending on various factors, including the popularity of the platform and the number of active accounts.

When it comes to Flickr upload statistics, the number of photos uploaded daily is roughly 25 million photos, while the number of photos shared daily is around 3.5 million11. The most popular cameras that Flickr photographers have are Apple (54%), Canon (23%), and Nikon (18%).

Flickr has a very detailed collection of stats, so for example, we know that their popularity by countries is the following: USA (31.03%), UK (9.83%), Germany (5.26%), France (4.62%), Canada (4.17%), others (45.09%). 

Regarding gender distribution, 60.73% of Flickr accounts are male, while 39.27% are female.

How Many Photographers Are On 500px?

500px Photography Statistics

500px is another popular platform for sharing photos. You can also purchase commercial photos on this website or sell your own work.

Since 500px was launched in 2009, it's built up an enthusiastic community of 18 million accounts12 across 190 countries, and it’s still growing!

500px is also an excellent platform for photo competitions – check out their quests; there are new ones every month! Two main types of their quests are those that are open to anyone and commercial photography quests.

Screenshot of 500px.com

How Many Pictures Are On The Internet? 

This is such a tricky question to answer! 

It is difficult to determine the exact number of pictures on the internet since the amount of digital content is constantly growing and changing. There are many raw files and jpeg files all over the internet, and it would be interesting to know the answer to another related question – what is the file size? For instance, raw format photos take much more storage space.   

Now back to the original question, according to a 2021 estimate by How To Geek, there are currently over 2 billion websites on the internet, many of which likely contain thousands of images. Additionally, social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are estimated to have billions of photos uploaded. Therefore, it's safe to say that there are billions, if not trillions, of pictures on the internet.

In November 2020, Google announced that more than 4 trillion photos are stored in Google Photos, and every week 28 billion new photos and videos are uploaded.13 on Google Images. By 2030, there will be 382 billion images on Google Images.

How Many Photos Do You Have On Your Memory Card? What’s The Average Camera’s File Size?

How about your memory cards? Also, do you know how many jpeg photos or raw files are currently in your camera or computer? That would be fun to know and hard to guess… Personally, I have no idea how many photos are on my hard drive or my sd card at the moment! If you have a few memory cards, it’s even harder to guess this correctly.

Regarding the file size, the average file size from a professional camera with a full-frame sensor is typically around 20MP (5600 x 3740 pixels) to 30MP (6709 x 4474 pixels)

Photo by Bhumil Ccheda

How Many Pictures Does The Average Person Take In A Day?

This is a pretty interesting question. It actually made me think about how many photos I, as a photographer, take in a day. It’s so hard to make a correct estimate! Perhaps younger people take far more pictures than people in their 50s or 60s.  

The number of pictures the average person takes in a day can vary widely depending on various factors, including age, occupation, interests, and lifestyle. According to a survey conducted by InfoTrends, a market research firm, the average person takes around 22 photos daily14.

However, this number is likely higher among younger people, who tend to take more photos and are more active on social media. It's worth noting that this survey was conducted in 2015. With the increasing prevalence of smartphones and social media, the number of photos taken by the typical person may have increased since then.

Here's some additional info – according to our 2023 data, the average user has around 2000 photos on their smartphone. iOS users have around 2400 photos, while Android users have around 1900 photos.

How Many Selfies Are Taken A Day?

Selfies have become, in a way, a pretty standard part of our everyday lives as soon as smartphones got a front camera. 

According to a report by Eksposure, people take 93 million selfies daily. Another report by Statista, a data analytics company, reported that in 2020, over 1 trillion photos were taken worldwide, and it's likely that a significant portion of those photos were selfies.

This is probably not surprising, but the average 16 to 25-year-old woman spends around 15 minutes taking 3 selfies per day, or 5 hours a week, according to Beauty site FeelUnique.

Photo by Samsung UK

The Onward March Of Photography

With the rise of smartphones and social media, taking and sharing photos has become easier than ever before. As we look to the future, it's clear that photography will continue to evolve and play an integral role in our lives. Also, we take more and more pictures these days, and their quality increases exponentially (bigger file size, better resolution, etc), which means that the role of professional photographers is getting more specific and hence narrowed down. 

Analyzing various stats might not sound like the most fun thing to do, but it can undoubtedly help us realize some interesting facts when it comes to our photography habits! 

Sources:

  1. https://ift.tt/CV16rkW
  2. https://ift.tt/3MtCeEi
  3. https://ift.tt/n5GcFgP
  4. https://ift.tt/95N8LTm
  5. https://ift.tt/KJWOTlp
  6. https://ift.tt/njZVMl0
  7. https://ift.tt/2lo0ItJ
  8. https://ift.tt/DMbH4sO
  9. https://ift.tt/Nyep2Hg
  10. https://ift.tt/OktiLbv
  11. https://ift.tt/mzXP7Yj
  12. https://ift.tt/TWrJOHS
  13. https://ift.tt/QKsNExM
  14. https://ift.tt/pFO5ZQJ

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28. Juni 2023

5:16:00 AM

Das Bild des Tages von: Andreas Koch

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Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Huion Kamvas Pro 13 (2.5K) Review

8:46:00 AM

Introduction 

This is not the first time that I have reviewed a Huion product.  A few months ago, I looked at the Inspiroy Dial 2 and was impressed by it. In that article, I mentioned how Wacom had had its own way for many years. However, now there are a number of other companies competing in the same market, not only for graphics tablets but also for pen displays. 

The Wacom Cintiq Pro range has been the de facto standard for a number of years. However, these displays are relatively expensive, and there is an increasing number of better-value options on the market. One such product is the Huion Kamvas Pro 13 (2.5K) pen display tablet. As with all Light Stalking reviews, although the product was supplied to us, we maintain full editorial control of our review, and Huion will not see this before it goes live. 

What Is A Pen Display?

Most of us are aware of or perhaps even own a graphics tablet. Pen displays take this to the next level by incorporating a monitor into the graphic’s tablet. Think iPad connected to your main computers and operated using a graphics pen. 

A pen display is a graphics tablet that allows you to draw directly onto a screen. By Jason Row Photography

They are extremely useful tools as they allow the photographer/artist to draw directly onto the screen that they are viewing the image. This allows not only for very precise micro-adjustments but also greater efficiency as they do not have to keep referring to a bigger screen. 

The Huion Kamvas Pro 13 (2.5K) is one such device. As its name suggests, it incorporates a 13-inch diagonal screen – this is the working area and does not include the bevels and buttons. The screen resolution is 2560 x 1600, with an impressive 145% of the sRGB gamut and a 1200:1 contrast ratio.  So let’s look at it in a little more detail.

Unboxing And General Setting Up

As with the previous Huion product I reviewed, the packaging is well-designed, almost Appleesque. The box contained the pen display, the pen with a pen base. The pen base, like with the Inspiroy, contained plenty of extra nibs.  

There is a foldable stand on which to place your display, this has a very good range of positions from completely flat to around 45 degrees. You will need to play around to find what angle is most comfortable for your own style. There are also a number of different cables for connecting to your device, we will come to them later. You can use these cables to connect to a laptop, desktop – Mac or PC, as well as any Android device with USB-C ports. iPads with USB-C ports, like the iPad Pro, are not listed as compatible. However, a search on Google does suggest this is possible. 

The Kamvas Pro comes in a well-designed box. By Jason Row Photography

There are two main ways to connect your Huion Kamvas Pro to your device. The first is using the supplied three-way cable. This connects to your computer via USB and HDMI (for the display output. The third cable is a USB power cable. This must be plugged into a USB power block – this is not supplied, but any block with an output over 5v/2A will work. 

The other way to connect your Kamvas Pro is via direct USB-C. This involves plugging the upper socket of the display into a USB-C output on your device. The lower socket is then plugged via a USB-C cable into a charging block. Both of these methods are well described in the well-designed and clear online manual. 

There are two main ways to connect the pen display, cables are provided for both. By Jason Row Photography

Connecting My Mac Mini M1

I did encounter some brief issues connecting my Mac Mini to the Kamvas Pro. M1 Minis have a strange bug with the display output. My Mac Mini is connected to an Iilyama ultra-wide via HDMI. This is the primary display, and when I plugged in the Kamvas Pro via the USB-C/Thunderbolt port, I had no signal error. I found the eventual solution was to boot the Mac Mini from the cold with the Kamvas Pro already switched on. Then the Mac recognized the Kamvas as an external display. 

Installing The Kamvas Pro Drivers

This is done once the display tablet is connected. They can easily be downloaded via the online manual, and installation on MacOS was a simple affair. Once installed, the drivers give you access to the pen display setup screens using the Huion Tablet app. 

You must calibrate and set up your Kamvas Pro using the downloadable app

The app allows you to define a number of different parameters on both the display and the pen. These include the area in which the pen works, defining the buttons on the left side of the screen – these can be tied to multiple different options, and setting up the pen’s sensitivity. 

You can also use the MacOS display preferences to define the position of the Kamvas Pro relative to the main display. It is best set as an extended display rather than a mirrored display. 

There are 7 programable buttons on the side

A long press of the Kamvas Pro power button will reveal a hidden pen-enabled menu. This allows you to define the color setup of the pen display. You can change the degrees Kelvin, the color space as well as the aspect ratio of the display. 

Adjusting the Kamvas Pro pen sensitivity

Setting Up With Lightroom And Photoshop

You may need to play around a little to get a Lightroom/Photoshop workflow that suits you. To use the pen display, you will need to define it as the main display in both Lightroom and Photoshop. You can then use your main monitor as an auxiliary display. I have my main display to show the full image while editing on the pen display. 

In Use With Lightroom And Photoshop

Let’s get the negatives out of the way first. I am 55 years old, and my close-up eyesight is not what it used to be. Even then, a 2.5k resolution on a 13-inch screen is way too small for me, and I suspect others to use it easily.  

The other negative, again, stems from the screen size. You have to make sure you fully calibrate your screen/pen before working. Being a 2.5k resolution in a small area, if the pen calibration is slightly off, it will be magnified on the screen. This makes working very difficult. However, with an accurate calibration, all is well. 

If your eyesight is not what it used to be, Huion also has a 16in 2.5 display and a 24in 4k. Both of these would not require you to be so close to the screen.

I found the 13″ Kamvas Pro a little too small for my older eyesight. By Jason Row Photography

That said, once dialed in, the Huion Kamvas Pro 13 is a joy to use. The pen is responsive with plenty of subtlety in its sensitivity. There are no issues with your hands touching the screen when drawing, even without using the included glove. 

The reaction time of the screen is fast and responsive, although there is a slight lag seeing adjustments appear on my main screen. That may well be down to my graphics card than the display tablet.

With a good amount of adjustment in the stand, it is very easy to find a comfortable drawing position. There is something very natural about drawing and directly seeing the image under your hand. It’s a back-to-basic way of creating art in a digital age. I enjoyed using the Kamvas Pro in both Lightroom and Photoshop.

There’s One More Thing

An interesting side use of the Kamvas Pro is as an external monitor for video editing. You can use the pen to help work in finessing an edit; however, because it’s a high-quality display with a wide color gamut, it is ideal for monitoring color grading. This makes it appealing to hybrid photographers who can not only use it for editing photos but also for videos.

In summary, I have found using the Huion Kamvas Pro a rewarding experience overall. If I were to purchase one for myself, I would probably go for the 16-inch screen as my eyes do struggle with 13”. 

Regardless of the size, though, the natural feeling of editing directly to a screen takes a lot of beating. The wide color gamut, responsive pen, and comfort make this a powerful tool for photographers wanting to improve their editing workflow. 

Further Resources:

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27. Juni 2023

5:17:00 AM

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Monday, June 26, 2023

How To Use Intentional Camera Movement For Creative Photography

11:46:00 PM

Creative and trick photography go hand in hand and it is something that can feel unreal, creating a kind of illusion in the viewer. Creative or trick photography is not difficult at all and in fact, if you know how to use the camera and play with the shutter speed and specific camera movements, there are a lot of creative images that you can capture. These are special methods that you would not otherwise use in your day-to-day photography. 

Image by Ebor

There are many types of photography that use special methods and one of those is Intentional Camera Movement Photography. In this article, we will look at how to use intentional camera movement for creative photography

What Is Intentional Camera Movement (ICM) Photography?

Generally, photography requires having the camera as still as possible and having the shutter speed at the right amount of time to capture sharp images. Photographers are always looking for ways to eliminate camera shake and motion blur in their images unless it is intentional. 

But, is motion blur or camera shake a bad thing? Not if you are intending to use that for artistic or creative purposes. 

Experimenting by slightly reducing the shutter speed than normal and then moving your camera when the shutter is open can produce interesting effects in photographs. You will be amazed at the creative results.

So, Intentional Camera Movement or ICM is a photographic technique where you use slightly slower shutter speeds and move the camera when the shutter is open. To start with, think of the panning technique, but not by tracking a moving subject, but by panning across a still scene like a landscape. 

How Is Intentional Camera Movement Done in Photography?

In intentional camera movement (ICM), you are intentionally moving the camera along a path when the shutter is open. ICM is also a form of long exposure photography and hence you need to use a slow enough shutter speed that will allow for some movement to be recorded when the shutter is open. 

There are no hard rules when it comes to ICM and there is no right or wrong settings. So experiment with your creativity and create brilliant abstract or artistic photos using ICM

Intentional Camera Movement Technique

ICM is a technique where the photographer is free to create what they have visualized. You are not focusing on the sharp details in a scene, but using the lines, colors, textures, contrast, etc., to create interesting images. By moving the camera, anything specific that stands out in a scene, for example, colors, textures, etc., become blended creating a smooth transition from one to another. The transition depends on what direction you move the camera and how fast you move and create a photograph that is abstract in nature.

When it comes to the technique for ICM, it greatly depends on the shutter speed and how fast or slow you are moving the camera. Both these factors contribute greatly to how the resulting image looks.

There are many ways in which the camera can be moved which we will discuss in a bit, and the technique is, to smoothly move along whichever direction without abrupt stops in between, so you get a smooth and seamless pattern in the resulting photograph. 

Image by Geralt

Gear Or Equipment Required For Intentional Camera Movement

ICM is a technique that can be done with almost any gear that you have in hand. By that, we mean even a smartphone can be used, which we will be discussing later in this article. Here are some of the basic gear requirements for ICM photography.

Camera

You will need a camera that allows you to shoot in manual mode. This will help to have control over the exposure of the image. You need to manually adjust the shutter speed, aperture value, and iso values to get the best ICM shots. 

Best Lens Or Focal Length For ICM

Any lens apart from an ultrawide lens can be good for ICM. We would recommend that you use focal lengths between 18mm to 135mm. Again this depends on what you are shooting and what results you are expecting. 

Tripod Or Monopod

Using a tripod or not depends on what you are shooting and how long the exposure will be. If you have steady hands to shoot 1 to 2 seconds exposure, then, by all means, do it. Some may struggle with holding the camera steady when moving and so a tripod or monopod will help achieve smooth movements and avoid movements in undesirable directions. It would be helpful if you can have at least a monopod in hand for tricky situations.

Filters

Whatever time of the day you are shooting in, you will need a correctly exposed image after the long exposure. Times like golden hour, blue hour, night, heavily overcast days will be favorable, but bright daylight can be a problem for ICM. In these cases, it will be useful to have a couple of filters in your bag to control the amount of light entering the camera and reaching the sensor.

Here are some filters that would be helpful:

1. Circular Polarising Filter (CPL)

The first choice of filter to reduce the amount of light entering the camera slightly would be to use a polarising filter. If this does not help, and the light is still too bright, you can move on to using an ND filter.

2. Neutral Density (ND) Filter

A neutral density filter will be the best choice when the light is too bright in the scene. You can use a 2 stop or a 4 stop ND filter depending on the amount of light you need to cut off. 

3. Graduated Neutral Density (GND) Filter

When using ND filters, there are times where there may be huge variations in light intensity between the sky and the landscape in the scene. If you are in a situation like that, it is best to use a graduated ND filter. 

If you wish to know what filters can be used for different scenarios, here are a few detailed articles on these subjects:

Camera Settings For Intentional Camera Movement

Camera settings for ICM are similar to long exposure photography and here are the settings in general for ICM. These settings vary for different scenarios and the output you are looking to achieve, but you can try these as a start and then make adjustments depending on your visual interest. 

1. Focus

In general, manual focus can be great for ICM photography. If you are shooting a landscape and are confident that you will get the focus in the right place, then you can use autofocus. For subjects at a closer distance, manual focus is the best way to go.

2. Shooting Mode

Set the camera to shoot in manual mode as this will give you full control over the exposure settings. Also, when the shutter speed is the main deciding factor for ICM, you can also try shooting in Shutter Priority Mode. Set the shutter speed to the desired value or about ⅕ to ½ of a second and then, the camera will take care of the other settings. 

3. White Balance

Set the white balance depending on the light in the scene. You can use one of the presets in the camera or manually set the temperature manually if you are confident. If you are confused, leave it on auto and adjust it when post-processing. So make sure to shoot raw.

4. Metering Mode

There are quite a few metering modes that you can use in your camera. Matrix metering should work well for ICM, but if you are worried that a part of the scene is brighter than the rest, you can try center-weighted metering. 

5. Shutter Speed

The most important setting that needs to be taken care of for ICM is the shutter speed. Your shutter needs to remain open long enough to capture blur when you move the camera. As we discussed previously, the resulting effect in ICM depends on the shutter speed and the speed with which you pan across a scene. 

Choosing a particular shutter speed also depends on whether you are handholding your camera or using a tripod. Exposures like ⅕ of a second up to one or two seconds can be done handheld depending on how steady your hands are. In some cases of ICM, we do not want any other motion other than in the direction we are moving the camera. So for longer exposures, to get a smooth and seamless blend of the elements and colors in the scene, it is advised to use a tripod.  

For a start, start with a shutter speed between 1/5s or 1/2s and practice ICM. Once you are confident, with the technique, try longer exposure times like 2 or 3 seconds. With longer exposure times, the textures start to smoothen off. Also keep in mind that for a given “shutter speed and speed of camera movement,” the blur is more for longer focal lengths, compared to wider focal lengths.

6. ISO

ISO is the sensitivity of the camera’s sensor to light. The higher the iso, the higher the sensitivity to light. So it is good to keep iso to the lowest possible. Set the iso to either 100 or 200 or the lowest your camera will allow, as it varies between cameras.

7. Aperture

It is good to use narrow aperture values because longer shutter speeds will let in a lot of light into the sensor. This could be f/22 or even f/32 depending on what the lens allows and your shutter speed. On a bright day or when the sun is high up in the sky, using the lowest iso and narrowest aperture will not help and you may need to use either a circular polarising filter or a neutral density filter depending on how high or low the light intensity is. 

Time Of The Day

When it comes to shooting ICM, since we make use of longer shutter speeds, low light situations like the blue hour, golden hour or an overcast day are the best for ICM photography. If you are in a situation where the light is bright and you need to photograph using ICM, then try using a circular polarising filter first. If that doesn’t help, make use of a 2 or 4 stop ND filter depending on the available light in the scene. 

Note: If using a polarising filter, you will get the best results when you use it at 90 degrees to the Sun. Moreover, polarising filters help to get rich colors and eliminate any unwanted glare and reflections in the scene that can cause highlighted streaks in the resulting image.

Handheld Or Tripod?

Hand holding the camera or using a tripod for ICM can be a personal choice depending on the exposure time and what you are looking to achieve. Using a tripod will help to avoid movements other than the direction of movement resulting in smoother straight lines. With handheld movements, you have the flexibility to position yourself at desired angles, perspectives and try various movements that may not be achievable when using a tripod. 

ICM requires a lot of practice to master. So move the camera well enough to record visible movement rather than a slight movement which may look like a camera shake. 

Camera Movements For Intentional Camera Movement

Once you are happy with the settings, try and take a few test shots to see how the images turn out. For a particular scene, a specific “shutter speed and camera movement speed” combination will work the best. Besides these, you will also need to decide in what direction and how you will be moving the camera when the shutter is open. Again, every scene and situation demands different approaches and it depends on your creative vision. 

Here are some ways in which the camera can be moved for interesting ICM results. 

1. Vertical And Horizontal Panning

You can pan the camera vertically or horizontally in a single smooth movement when the shutter is open. If you are looking for a smooth effect, you need to make sure that there are no up and down movements for horizontal movement and no left and right movement for vertical movement. Hold your camera at eye level with both hands, tuck your elbows in and swivel (turn) around. If you do not have steady hands, a tripod or monopod with a suitable head will help you achieve this.  

If you are looking for a slightly wavy kind of output, then you can achieve that by hand holding the camera and shaking it slightly when panning, when the shutter is open. Also, try a back and forth movement if you think you have enough shutter speed to achieve this.

2. Diagonal Panning

Diagonal panning can also help achieve interesting images and most of the time you will need to achieve this when hand-holding the camera to get the desired output. You could try attaching the camera in a diagonal position on the tripod or monopod and check to see what you get!

3. Rotation

Besides linear movements, you can also try rotating the camera around an axis when the shutter is open. This rotation could be a full 360-degree rotation or a part of it depending on what you are looking to achieve. For perfect rotation around an axis, you will definitely need a tripod as this will not be achievable when holding the camera in hand. 

4. Zooming

For the zooming technique using intentional camera movement, you may need a glider on which you can move the camera towards or away from the scene when the shutter is open. The glider will help achieve a smooth effect. You could also try doing it yourself if you can move forward or backward with just one foot forward or backward when the shutter is open, to achieve a smooth desired result.

Another way to achieve a zoom effect is through using a zoom lens where you can zoom in or out of the scene when the shutter is open.

5. Freestyle

As the name suggests, in freestyle, you can move the camera in any desired direction, but in a meaningful and artistic way, so you get creative photographs. 

6. Stop And Pan

The stop and pan method can give some interesting results if you have one subject in the scene that you need in focus. This can help create stories using intentional camera movement. 

For this method, focus on the main subject manually, release the shutter and stay in that position focused on the subject for a fraction of a second, and then pan. You can do this once or as many times as you wish – pan then stop, pan again, then stop, etc. 

You could also pan, stop for a fraction of a second, and then pan. Each of these methods will give a different effect. Be creative and work on your own style.

7. Panning At Different Speeds

The speed with which you pan or move your camera can also have a considerable effect on the resulting images. Shoot a particular scene using different speeds when moving the camera and see what looks or works the best.

8. Shoot From A Moving Vehicle

This is another interesting way to shoot ICM photographs. Shoot images from a moving car or other vehicles. The settings are similar to the above movements and the only difference is that the car is moving your camera. On a very important note, do this only from the passenger seat after taking all the safety measures for yourself, others, and the camera.

9. Combination Of Two Or More Of The Above

Once you are confident with the techniques above, take your ICM photos to the next level by combining one or two methods above. It could be zoom and pan, rotate and zoom, etc. 

Note: All these movements above can be done fast or slow depending on the effect you are looking to achieve. 

Interesting Subjects For Intentional Camera Movement Photography

You can shoot anything and everything using the ICM technique and shooting it creatively matters a lot and requires quite some planning. Here are some suggestions for subjects that are best for ICM:

  • Look for scenes like landscapes, meadows, fields, etc., that have contrasting and striking colours. 
  • Look for interesting patterns, shapes, light and shadows as these can contribute to interesting ICM photos. 
  • Spring and autumn seasons can be the best for shooting ICM landscapes.
  • Look for beaches and seascapes especially during the golden hour and blue hour, so you can capture the rich colour palettes in a beautiful way. This can be good for horizontal ICM photos.
  • You can also try ICM with the waves crashing on the shore. Be sure to include interesting colours in the scene and to keep the camera safe from salt water.
  • Jungles and forests can be interesting locations especially for vertical ICM photographs. The can evoke a mysterious mood in the resulting photo.
  • Night lights in the city can also help to create interesting ICMs. If it is a busy street or streets with some activity, it can help to create a ghost or haunted effect. Watch out for any bright lights and avoid them in the frame as they can create bright highlighted streaks and ruin the photo.
  • You can also shoot still life, flowers, toys to get semi abstract images. Using the pan and stop or zoom methods can be a great way to create interesting and fun shots.
  • Even at times when you do not go out for ICM photography, if you find an interesting subject that will be a good candidate for ICM, then capture it.
  • Be creative and use human elements wisely in ICM images.

Backgrounds For Intentional Camera Movement

When choosing backgrounds for intentional camera movement, especially when you have one or more subjects in the frame, look for contrast and interesting colors. All these matters for interesting images that have some depth. 

When choosing colors, look for contrasting or complementary colors, so you can create contrast and interest in the photograph. Also, look for variations in tones and light intensity. This will help to create an ICM photograph that has good depth and mood.

Textures and geometrical patterns are other interesting factors that can be incorporated in ICM. These can result in images that have soft textures and variations in the image.

ICM Using A Smartphone

If you are wondering if you can do ICM using a smartphone, the answer is yes. As with the camera, you need long exposure times and during the long shutter speed just move the phone camera in the intended speed and direction. You can attach the phone to a tripod if you wish to.

Most native camera apps for smartphones come with options for long exposure, but if you do not have that feature in your phone, there are apps that can help you shoot ICM photographs using a smartphone – it can be an iPhone or an Android phone.

Shot on iPhone using the Slow Shutter Cam. Image by Dahlia

Here are some apps that will help you shoot ICM using a smartphone:

1. Slow Shutter Cam

This app allows for photographing creative long exposure images including ICM shots using a smartphone. This app is paid and is available for iOS.

2. Camera+ 2

This is another paid app for iOS and the slow shutter preset will help you capture long exposure images so you can make ICM photographs as well. 

3. ProCamera

This app for iOS is again paid and the manual settings will allow you to use longer shutter speeds to capture ICM images.

4. Camera FV-5 Lite

This app allows users to set exposure values manually just as you would do in a DSLR or any camera that allows for manual settings. This app is free and is available for Android.

Image by Photoholgic

Tips For Successful Intentional Camera Movement

  • Burst mode can help seamlessly take a few shots across a scene. You can choose the best later.
  • ICM involves trial and error for different scenes and lighting conditions and with practice, you will get an idea of what works best for a scene. 
  • When starting ICM you will be getting random effects on the screen. Some you may like and some you may not. If there is something that isn’t quite like what you envisioned, do not delete, but come back to it later. Moreover, these images will help you to improve and learn what speed and direction of movements yield what kind of results.
  • Avoid strong highlights or light spots in the frame as these can create bright stripes that look awkward and can be distracting in the frame. 
  • Be creative and enjoy the process. You can photograph landscapes and other subjects the way you never thought was possible before.

Intentional camera movement can be a fun and addictive type of photography. Practice a lot and take a lot of shots in each location with different types of camera movements, different speeds in camera movement, and different shutter speeds. 

Have you tried ICM before? What are some tips and techniques that you followed? Please share your experience and tips in the comments section below. We would love to know!

Further Resources:

  1. 3 Free Guides for Capturing The Wonder Of Movement in Your Photography
  2. 7 Interesting Abstract Photography Ideas
  3. How Blurring People Can Give You Amazing Images
  4. Here’s Why Motion In Photography Produces Such Compelling Images
  5. 7 Creative Effects You Can Achieve With Slow Shutter Speed

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26. Juni 2023

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Sunday, June 25, 2023

25. Juni 2023

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Saturday, June 24, 2023

browserfruits 26.2023

11:17:00 PM

Die browserfruits sind wieder da! Ich hoffe, Ihr habt einen kühlen Platz und könnt es Euch gemütlich machen, um in den heutigen Linktipps zu stöbern. Mit dabei sind natürlich auch wieder zwei aktuelle Bücher, Videos, sowie ein kurzer Hörtipp.
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24. Juni 2023

12:17:00 PM

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Der Ausblick zeigt, welche schöne Ästhetik Lochkameraaufnahmen haben können.
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Thursday, June 22, 2023

21 Clever Motion Photos

5:46:00 AM

Motion in photography refers to the technique of capturing the sense of movement or the illusion of action in a still image. It adds a dynamic element to photographs, allowing viewers to experience the energy, speed, or flow of a subject. There are two primary approaches to capturing motion in photography – freezing motion and motion blur.

We'll explore both approaches with the following 21 photos!

Also, don't forget that capturing motion is also about amazing composition. If you’d like to get better at photography composition and learn concepts that go beyond the basics, you should take a look at Kent DuFault’s guide to advanced composition.

Copyright Brendan Church
Copyright Tyler Nix
Copyright Ben Collins
Copyright Hans Isaacson
Copyright Sam Pearce
Copyright Avi Richards
Copyright Austris Augustus
Copyright Tadas Petrokas
Copyright Visax
Copyright Colin Lloyd
Copyright Kelvin Zyteng

Advanced Composition will ensure you create motion shots that pop. You'll get more out of your photography and start taking images that will truly capture your creative vision. If you’d like to improve your composition skills and learn concepts that go beyond the rule of thirds, do take a look at Kent DuFault’s guide.

Copyright Kyndall Ramirez
Copyright Cintia Matteo
Copyright Hans Isaacson
Copyright Ilya Shishikhin
Copyright Clay LeConey
Copyright Engin Akyurt
Copyright Dustin Humes
Copyright Vazgen Harutyunyan
Copyright Vadim Koza
Copyright Mikita Yo

We hope you've enjoyed these inspiring motion shots. If you want to improve your photography composition and learn new strategies, take a look at Kent DuFault’s guide Advanced Composition. 

Further Resources:

  1. 4 Fun Ways To Show Motion In Your Photos
  2. How To Harness The Art Of Motion In Photography
  3. How to Capture Outstanding Motion Photos With Panning
  4. 15 Impressive Long Exposure Photographs That Beautifully Capture Motion
  5. 3 Basic Methods Of Capturing Motion In Photography
  6. Here’s Why Motion In Photography Produces Such Compelling Images

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Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Nina Baisch wie fotografierst Du das Eigenleben von Gebäuden?

11:17:00 PM

Nina Baisch ist Architekturfotografin mit einem beeindruckenden Hintergrund. Sie studierte nicht nur Kommunikationsdesign in Schwäbisch Gmünd, sondern auch Innenarchitektur in Stuttgart sowie Architekturgeschichte- und Theorie an der ETH Zürich. Zusätzlich ist sie Regionalbeirätin der Landesgruppe Baden-Württemberg im Bundesverband Architekturfotografie.
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DPReview Announces Return with Gear Patrol Acquisition from Amazon

9:46:00 PM

Too often it seems like we’re bringing news about one thing closing or shifting gears and, rarely, do we have a comeback tale like today’s yarn.

A table topped with lots of different types of cameras. Photo by Christian Mackie

You might recall that DPReview announced its closure some time ago and it was a huge blow to the community.

But we’ve got some great news today and, as the headline states, DPReview is back and under Gear Patrol’s ownership after the group acquired the legendary website from previous owner Amazon.

And the best news of all is that it promises to keep the same team readers came to know before. That said, there will be substantial synthesis with the new ownership.

“Gear Patrol is at its heart a brand focused on helping people find the best products for their needs, so they are a strong supporter of DPReview’s core mission of enabling anyone to tap into their creativity by breaking down the complexities of gear, technology, processes, and techniques used for creating photos, videos, and mixed media. Looking ahead, our vision is to provide an unparalleled combination of inspiration, insight, education, and community that unlocks and amplifies our customers’ potential to create.”

Users really shouldn’t expect many major changes, however, and the press release basically outlines how the biggest change starting today is that users of DPReview will be under Gear Patrol’s Terms of Service rather than the previous regime. Other than that, nothing else will change. Of course, if someone wants to get rid of their account, they say that can be done.

You can check out the full release here over on DPReview.

Any thoughts you might have on the return of DPReview are welcome in the comments below.

You can find some of our other headlines on Light Stalking at this link.

[DPReview]

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About Us

Time Trap Photography is dedicated to freezing those special moments in life that can be revisited and admired for generations to come. - Shannon Bourque

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“Life is like a camera. Just focus on what’s important and capture the good times, develop from the negatives and if things don’t work out, just take another shot.” — Unknown

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