David Hood Photography

In the days of black and white printing from a film negative in the darkroom, photographers would pass a small object to “dodge” or block the light passing through the negative from areas of the print paper that they wanted to make lighter – thus reducing the exposure.  Conversely, they would use their hand or a piece of cardboard with a hole in it to “burn” or focus the light only on to areas of the print that they wanted to darken – thus increasing the exposure. 

The Dodge/Burn tool on the left side of the Photoshop tool bar performs the same function in digital photography editing.  Note that the Burn Tool is pictured here; simply right-click on the tool to see/select the Dodge Tool.  Use the Dodge Tool to paint on areas of the photo that you want less exposed (lighter) such as shadow areas, and use the Burn Tool to paint on areas of the photo that you want more exposed (darker) such as highlights.   In the Options Bar at the top, choose a brush tip and the set brush options (0% hardness recommended).  In the options bar, select one of the following from the Range menu: 1) Midtones – Changes the middle range of grays; 2) Shadows – Changes the dark areas; 3) Highlights – Changes the light areas.  Next, in the Options Bar click the airbrush button  to use the brush as an airbrush.  Alternatively, select the Airbrush option in the Brush panel.  Finally, click on  the Protect Tones option to minimize clipping in the shadows and highlights. This option also tries to keep colors from shifting hue.

Note that applying the Dodge or Burn tool to the “background layer” (the layer seen to the right of the screen when you open a file in Photoshop) permanently alters the image information. To edit your images non-destructively, it’s always best to work on a duplicate layer.  Also note that there are other Photoshop techniques for changing the tonal qualities of a digital image.  Some of these will be the subject of future blog posts.

With a little practice using the Photoshop Dodge/Burn tool, can help you improve your photographs by reducing the harsh differences between highlights and shadows.                                                  

If you are new to digital photography or want to learn effective Photoshop editing techniques that will add a “wow” factor to your photographs, please consider teaming with me, Albuquerque’s Photography Tutor, as your personal photography coach.

Capture the Wonders Found in Travel and Life                                Email: d300dave@gmail.com

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I was gratified to receive a note from Albuquerque author J. Allen Whitt thanking me for my “great work” in providing a head shot for a revised book cover for his award-winning novel Notes From the Other Side of the Mountain (available from Amazon.com).

There are subtle but important differences between a portrait and a head shot. A good head shot should capture the personality of the client and provide the best possible professional (yet realistic) representation of the client.  A portrait, however,  sets a mood and suggests a story. Lighting, coloring, and expressive poses, and venue (studio vs. local) often effect the transformation between a head shot and a portrait.

I enjoy head shot photography because I’m a good listener and after 40+ years of experience in government and industry I have a unique capability to work with clients to best portray their personalities through a photograph. These same skills carry over to working with clients seeking a portrait that suggests a mood, circumstance, life event, or story.  If you live or work in the Albuquerque area and need a professional head shot or portrait photo, please contact me for a free, no obligation consultation.

Capture the Wonders Found in Travel and Life                        Email: d300dave@gmail.com

Book Cover With Head Shot on Back Cover

Completed Novel Cover

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Portrait of Author J. Allen Whitt

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A panoramic view of the Continental Divide from Monarch Peak, Colorado.

Capture the Wonders Found in Travel and Life         Email: d300dave@gmail.com

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For DSLR Owners – A stable tripod is a must; and a small flashlight can be a great help if you need to change camera settings in the dark. Get to the venue early enough to stake out a good position and to set up your camera while there’s still enough light to manually focus. Put your camera on a tripod and turn off the vibration control or stabilization function on your lens. Using autofocus, focus on the point where the fireworks will be ignited. Then move your camera/lens settings to manual focus and fine tune the focus to maximum sharpness – use your digital zoom button and live view mode if you have those functions. Once properly focused, don’t change the focus unless you move to a different location – tape the focus ring to the lens if necessary. If you can’t see well enough to focus, set the focus to infinity. Set your camera to manual mode, then set the aperture to f/11, the ISO to 100 (not auto), and use a shutter speed somewhere between 2 and 8 seconds. The longer your shutter is open, the more “bursts” you’ll capture in one photo. Do not use flash. Use a remote shutter release if you have one, or use the camera’s delay timer set to 2 seconds to fire the shutter. 

For Point & Shoot or Smartphone Owners – Again, a tripod is a must. If your device has manual mode and manual focus capabilities, by all means use them. If not, use a scene mode set for fireworks, starry night, or the like – these will set the focus to infinity and will use shutter, aperture and ISO settings similar to the above. If you use manual focus, set it to infinity.  Autofocus should be avoided – at night it tends to “hunt” for a focus point and you’ll likely get a blurry picture. And again, disable the flash.

I’m available for one-on-one tutoring if you live in the Albuquerque area.  

Have a fun, safe and happy July 4th holiday!

I took this photo last year with my Nikon D7100 affixed with 18-300 mm zoom lens at 90mm. Aperture f/11, ISO 100, shutter speed 8 seconds. Your mileage may vary. 🙂

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I was pleased to say “yes” today to Bandelier Elementary School (where grandson Billy is in the 4th grade) when they asked for permission to use this photo in their school yearbook.  This capture was made last October at the kickoff to Albuquerque’s annual International Balloon Fiesta.  Two balloon teams came to the school early in the morning and showed the kids how the balloons were prepared for flight – their demonstration was a big hit!  My photo will be featured on a page surrounded by other candid photos of the day’s events.

Capture the Wonders Found in Travel and Life                                  Email: d300dave@gmail.com

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