Master Photography

Links for the show survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd6K1QNhvmzHvQqp5AUjf5a1HgeZgKdXUBdyqLKKtQEs7mg4Q/viewform?usp=sf_link Camera Cleaning PDF: https://brentberghermphoto1.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/CameraCleaningmpp.pdf Camera Cleaning Products There’s a host of items I like to use for camera cleaning and I’d like to start with those and then we’ll get into technique. Also, I’m going to make a PDF available that has all these items in there. It’ll just be free and open for you to download. No need to sign up on an email list or anything like that. The link will be in the show notes. We’ll look at external cleaning first.  * Basic ClothsThese are the type of cloths that you can get anywhere. I like to go to the Walmart automotive area and find the cheap microfiber cloths they have there. It’s usually something like a pack of three for $2 or something like that. These are for cleaning exterior surfaces only.https://amzn.to/2PgtBqa* Camel Hair or other soft bristle brush. This is great for cleaning particulate debris from lens and filter surfaces. It’s also great for getting dirt from around the lens mount, it can reach where a cloth can’t.Usually these are available at camera shops or other art supply shops.https://amzn.to/2W7XV7Q* Regular Microfiber ClothsThese are the items specific to lens surfaces and for the screen on your camera. I wouldn’t use the basic cloths I started out with on lens surfaces.https://amzn.to/2N6a21b* Zeiss pre-moistened wipeshttps://amzn.to/2Nbazib* LensPenThis device is great for removing smudges on lenses and the camera screen. It’s a brilliant device for sure.https://amzn.to/2ohPSsI* Cleaning SolutionI’ll use any cleaning solution you can find at a shop for glasses. This is good for lens surfaces and the body too. I also will buy my microfiber cloths at the eyeglasses area at Walmart, or any place really. They’re available everywhere.https://amzn.to/33VR7Nf Interior cleaning tools. Now it’s time to look at the interior of the camera. Anything that is below the lens mount is considered the inside of the camera for me. * Bulb or Rocket blower. These come in many shapes and sizes. Some also have an “anti-static” feature. I’m not convinced that’s hugely valuable.Generally, these are available at camera shops and maybe at the electronics counter in Walmart or Target.https://amzn.to/2MGYlyN* Focus Screen SwabsAll to frequently, I’ll just use my finger with a microfiber cloth wrapped around it, at least for a full frame DSLR, I can usually get it done. If not then I’ll wrap it around something else that’s smaller. Not necessary for a mirrorless camera.These are available at camera shops.* Sensor ScopeThis device is invaluable at helping you see where the dust is on your sensor. Get one that’s set for your camera, either a DSLR or mirrorless. They are designed to sit on the lens mount and with the decreased flange distance with mirrorless cameras the DSLR scopes won’t work so well.https://amzn.to/2JibMn4* Sensor Klear by LensPenThis is a brilliant device that I only use sparingly, or when I have to.Pretty much only available in a camera shop.

Jeff sits down with Dima Sytnik, co-founder and CTO of Skylum, to talk about the artificial intelligence tools available to photographers in Luminar 4.

The Conversation Scott, we have you here to tell us a bit about the NextGEN plugin by Imagely. You work for Imagely and you even have a podcast called WordPress for Photography Podcast. Tell us a little about you as a photographer and the company you work for. I’m a WordPress user, and I teach it at the university. Right now I have two classes so you could say I’m “all-in” on WordPress. Jeff, before we go any further, please tell the people listening what WordPress is and how it fits into our lives. Jeff: WordPress is something called a Content Management System. It is a tool that helps a person create a website without having to know the technology to build web pages like HTML and CSS. It is actually free software that you could download and run on your computer, but it isn’t really useful that way because the whole point is to build a website and that means you need to have it running on a computer that is always connected to the Internet. Instead, you pay a hosting provider to run the WordPress software for you and then login as an administartor to set things up how you want them to look. WordPress is especially useful for blogging. Lots of photographers write blog entries for every photo shoot as a way of sharing the service they provide with potential clients. WordPress works really well for writing text. It is not really made to do a great job of displaying your photos in a compelling and pleasing way. You can solve that problem by adding something called plugins that expand the capabilities of WordPress. Kind of like how adding an extension to a browser provides enhanced capabilities to the browser. Plugins spice things up and make it possible to make websites run on WordPress look more modern. Because WordPress is software so heavily used to design and run websites today, about 33% of all sites online are run on WordPress, there are hundreds of thousands of plugins available. Some are free, and of the free plugins very few are actually useful. The good ones you have to pay for and you really want to pay for. You know me, I am on a hobbyist budget and don’t will work really hard to not pay for things or find the least expensive way to get the job done. Paying for a plugin to get the functionality you want is a good thing with plugins because you know then that there is a person or a team behind the plugin keeping things updated and supported. Scott, the beauty of WordPress is that it seems that it’s endlessly customizable. But one thing that has eluded photographers for so long is facilitating image sales, in particular, print sales. But your NextGEN image plugin is fixing that. Tell us some of the features of your plugin that says “this is why you should buy this plugin” and then we’ll get to these print fulfillment ideas next. Now let’s get to the print fulfillment. Walk us through this step by step. * Automated Print fulfillment setup* Service is commission-free and white-labeled* First lab: WHCC with shipping to US and Canada, Other labs? International Shipping?* Shopping cart integration?* How are the files managed? Can I set up different unique files for each print size? Do I have control over which print sizes I can sell or is it just a provided list.* Does the plugin show the crop for the different print sizes? Does it allow the user to do a custom crop?* Anything else about the plugin? Doodads: Jeff: Logitech MX Master Wireless Mouse ($60).  I have recommended this mouse before and I love coming back to some of the things that have been work horses for me.  This has been my mouse for four years now and I still just love it. Really good for photographers. $60 may sound like a lot for a mouse, but trust me it is worth it! Scott: SwitchPod ($99).

Learn about in-person sales and how it helps portrait photographers dramatically improve their income.

Find out the impact AI and computational photography is having on photographers in 2019.

Recommendations on the flashes, light stands, umbrellas, softboxes, and backgrounds a photographer beginning with lighting should invest in here in 2019

Jeff and Erica talk about tips for fall mini sessions and matching a corporate headshot.

Fall Colors In the Northern Hemisphere summer is basically over and we’re looking forward to the changing seasons. Fall is coming and we figured we’d talk about ideas for shooting fall colors today. I love shooting fall colors when I get a chance to do it anyway, but in my area we don’t get a whole lot of fall colors. Do you get many fall colors in Utah, Jeff? Tip 1: Use a polarizer. Using a polarizing filter will really enhance the color. Use it even if it’s completely foggy. There’s so much moisture on the leaves that’s scattering the light and using a polarizer will cut through that. What can be interesting or frustrating is that different objects in the scene may be affected differently than other objects, so you can see some items get all saturated with color while others wash out. Usually things all work the same, but I’ve seen that happen when shooting waterfalls with lots of foliage. Tip 2: Watch the exposure. With rich colors I find it way too easy to overexpose my images, and maybe it’s only one color that gets overexposed. I may seem rational to place yellows and bright oranges at a certain spot on the histogram but you may be making them too bright, especially if one of the channels clips which can be easy to do with fully saturated colors. Experiment a bit and if you’re shooting in raw you should have no problem if you’re within a stop or so of where you need to be. The same goes for sunsets and sunrises, hold that exposure back a bit to maintain richness of color. Tip 3: Zoom in. Too many photos lose their excitement for lack of a significant subject that is highlighted. Fill the frame with color, then back off a bit too. I like to try and really study a subject photographically. And zooming in can really make a difference in making that color pop. Whether it’s a cluster of trees, a few leaves or some berry bushes on the mountain side, making the subject prominent is what I’m talking about here. Tip 4: Look for contrasts. This is a season like no other. Especially if you are shooting in an area that has a mixture of trees such as aspens and evergreens. The brilliant colors next to the deep greens can really make for a great contrast of color, texture and shapes. All these things can provide extra interest in the scene. Tip 5: Think about the lighting. If the light is rather flat go for isolation and maximizing your saturation of the subject. Zoomed out scenes can also work wonderful especially if you have some fog or other weather happening. If you have a high contrast scene such as a bright sky above a ridge of color, consider using an exposure blend so detail can be held in both areas of the image. This can be very difficult to do with trees though since the wind will be blowing the leaves along the edge where it goes from a darker area to brighter, and that will create a very challenging environment to deal with in post-production. In this scenario I’ll try and balance the exposure as best I for both shadow areas and highlights and then I’ll double process the one file and exposure blend that in Photoshop.If the scene is harsher light, try moving to a spot that allows you to backlight the leaves. They will glow and radiate color. It can be very interesting to create leaf patterns that are backlit and they just look brilliant. The branches usually turn to a silhouette so they are a strong graphic element. Tip 6: Water. There’s so many ways to incorporate water into your fall shots. Rivers, lakes, ponds and streams all have the ability to greatly enhance the mood of your scene. Reflections are probably the most popular way to compose with water. Whether you’re getting a wider shot of many trees along the water’s edge or zooming in on rocks or branches that are in the water and you’re gettin...

Jeff answers a listener question about how to merge and move Lightroom Catalogs.

Jeff and Mark Morris nerd out about new tripod legs and ball head from new manufacturer Colorado Tripod.

Jeff and Brent talk about the new features in the 8.4 update Adobe released of Lightroom Classic and if GPU acceleration is actually working this time.

Jeff and Erica talk about four reasons and four tips to pivot your photography business

Jeff and guest co-host Greg Benz talk about why Greg prefers doing capture sharpening and noise reduction in Lightroom and Adobe Camera Raw over other methods in Photoshop or in other non-Adobe tools.

Jeff talks about how much memory Lightroom needs and his MASSIVE Lightroom Hardware Testing Project he has recently taken on

Jeff and Brent share thoughts on the specs announced for the Sony a7R IV camera that will be released in September 2019.