Ask Karen anything. {Karen doesn't accept Anonymous questions.}
Recent Responses
-
-
I'm not sure I understand your question. Ask again?
-
I'm not sure I understand your question. Can you ask again? Thanks.
-
Hi, I'd love to answer your questions about cookbook photography! Can you include them here? Thanks!
-
There are so many, I wouldn't know where to start! For beginners learning about the techniques of film photography and about the darkroom, I recommend Henry Horenstein's "Black and White Photography, A Basic Manual". (I see that he's come out with one for Digital Photography too.) For theory I recommend, "Photography in Print" a collection of essays edited by Vicki Goldberg. And I like to read PDN (Photo District News) which is one of the best industry magazines out there.
-
I always bring my Profoto strobes to weddings, but I normally don't use them until the reception. Although if the ceremony is set up in a location with extremely dim light (I've shot ceremonies in theatres, auditoriums, and hotel ballrooms) then I will use them.
-
Hi Annie, thanks for watching our video! Since the house we were shooting in had a mixture of bright rooms and dim rooms, I used strobe lighting as a fill for a few shots. I used it mainly, for the end of the day dinner table pictures where people sitting and toasting and the room was getting dark.
Yes, I did calculate how much strobe to use based on an ambient meter reading and a strobe meter reading. On some of the shots, I mixed them by popping the strobe and using a slightly longer exposure to get more ambient light into the picture. -
I'm sorry to hear you are encountering such "demanding" clients.
Editing is an important part of every photographing project. Whether or not the editing is done in-camera, or in post-production.
Perhaps you should outline in the contract that there is an editing process. Estimate a number of images they will receive, consoling them by saying they will receive most of the images shot, just not the blinking ones or improperly exposed ones. -
Thanks for your question. I use both the Contax 645 film camera and the Canon 5D Mark II at weddings. You may not be seeing the EXIF date because they are film images you are looking at.
-
If you are metering with an incident light meter, then hold the bulb out, facing the camera, around the level of your subjects face. it doesn't have to be exactly at chin or nose level, assuming the light is about evenly distributed on the subject's face.
If you would like to overexpose the Portra 400 film, set the light meter to 200, yes. -
Hi Francesca! I think the best advice would be for him to enroll in a class and be prepared to purchase a good quality camera for this class. It can be a local class in Italy with a top art school. (I will be offering workshops in 2012 on film shooting here in the US, so stay tuned!)
-
If you are metering with an incident light meter, then hold the bulb out, facing the camera, around the level of your subjects face. it doesn't have to be exactly at chin or nose level, assuming the light is about evenly distributed on the subject's face.
If you would like to overexpose the Portra 400 film, set the light meter to 200, yes. -
If you are metering with an incident light meter, then hold the bulb out, facing the camera, around the level of your subjects face. it doesn't have to be exactly at chin or nose level, assuming the light is about evenly distributed on the subject's face.
If you would like to overexpose the Portra 400 film, set the light meter to 200, yes. -
Hi Erika! Thanks for your question. I'm not that fond of watermarks as I think they are distracting. i think adding a linked credit is sufficient. Best of luck!
-
Thanks! Yes, rating your 400 Portra at 200 ASA is the same as overexposing it by 1 stop (i.e. +1).
-
No I never use the auto focus on my Contax. I only use manual focus. It comes more naturally to me and I find it quite precise.
-
I use a few different cameras including the contax 645, mamiya rz67, sinar 4x5, and canon 5d mark ii...
-
Thanks Gina, I love that you shoot film too! Your site is beautiful, keep up the great work! Karen
-
Thanks for your question. In a dark room, with 400 speed film there are certainly possibilities for exposure, like underexposing and overdeveloping the film but I wouldn't do it that way. Plus, if your meter reads 400 ASA, f2 @1/8th of a sec, you are 3-4 stops under what you can physically handhold without any shake. Shooting at a quicker shutter speed would underexpose your film significantly more than your film can really handle.
Turning your dial to 1/60th or 1/125 sec, rating your film at 3200 or 6400, (3-4 stops over the meter!) and overdeveloping (pushing) the film would cause considerable grain and loss of detail in the shadows. It's a look, but it's not a look I like, especially for color.
You may do some tests though and see for yourself, perhaps you will like it!
I would either use a tripod, or use higher speed film.
Hope this helps! -
Hi again! Exposure is a combination of aperture, shutter speed and film sensitivity (ASA/ISO). You are missing one variable, your shutter speed. What did you hand held light meter tell you in that room you were shooting in? Was it slower than 1/30 sec? Do you own a tripod?
I do not recall what my exposure was in Rita's living room, but it's irrelevant. I would just follow your meter, and if it says you need to do a longer exposure, use a tripod. -
You haven't told me what film you are using though. And the meter reading. I'm not really sure what you are asking me.
-
