The Low Light Photography Field Guide

by Michael Freeman

Overview

In bright light, it is far easier for a photographer to take a beautiful photograph with their DSLR. When the sun starts to go down or perhaps they are shooting indoors, a whole new skill set is needed. This new addition to the successful Field Guide Series will help photographers shoot what potentially could be the most lovely image without the help of the sun. No more harsh flash photographs with dreary backgrounds and no more blurry night shots that were exposed too long. Opening with a section on the qualities of different kinds of low light, the book then deals with ways of overcoming gloomy situations, whether shooting hand-held or on a tripod. Post-production fixes are also covered, allowing the reader to turn difficult shots into real works of art. Written by a renowned photographer and author, this Field Guide will become a foundational part of every photographer's library or camera bag.

• This portable guide is an essential solution to help you solve one of your biggest challenges: creating beautiful imagery with little natural light *Your camera manual can only take you so far—this tool will take you steps far beyond
• A handy addition to a camera bag on any photographic field trip for handy information and inspirational imagery

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781907579790
Publisher:	Ilex
Publication date:	11/28/2011
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 1.25(h) x 9.00(d)

About the Author

Michael Freeman is a renowned international photographer and writer who specializes in travel, architecture, and Asian art. He is particularly well known for his expertise in special effects. He has been a leading photographer for the Smithsonian magazine for many years, and has worked for Time-Life Books and Reader’s Digest. Michael is the author of more than 40 photographic books, including the hugely successful Complete Guide to Digital Photography and The Photographer's Eye. For his photographic educational work he was awarded the Prix Louis Philippe Clerc by the French Ministry of Culture. He is also responsible for the distance-learning courses on photography at the UK's Open College of the Arts.

Table of Contents

Section 1: Low Light, Light & the Sensor, Thresholds & Trade Offs, The Range of Light Sources, Contrast Issues, Restoring Highlights, Revealing Shadows, Shadow Realism, Color Temperature, White Balance, Key Camera Settings, Natural Low Light, Artificial Low Light, Color Temperature Blending, Selective Color Change, Profiling for Color Section 2 :Hand Held, Choosing Hand Held or Locked Down, Steadying Techniques, Steadying Equipment, Stablizing Technology, Fast Lenses, Focus at Full Aperture, Defining Sharpness, The Technical Edit, Identifying Types of Blur, Repairing Focus Blur, Repair to Extend Focus, Repairing Motion Blur, Repairing Combined, Blur Types, Gross Motion Blur, Frame Selection, Tracking for Sharpness, Making Motion Blur Work, Raw for Low Light, Double-Processed Raw, Hand Held HDRI, Pseudo-HDR, Types of Noise, Software, Adding Flash Section 3: Locked Down, Tripods, Tripod Technique, Heads, Clamps, Motion Blur with Tripods, Long-Exposure Noise, Image Averaging for Noise, Coping with Contrast, Photoshop Exposure, Blending, Manual Blending, High-Low ISO Blending, Blending Software, HDR Imaging, HDR Generation, Tonemapping, Photomatix, Photoshop, FDR Tools, Easy HDR, Ghosting

Glossary, Acknowledgements, Index