Svenler's Fashion & Commercial Photography Blog

Canon introduces 120 Megapixel sensor

admin — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 02:48:36 +0000

Canon's 120 MP sensor

As Canon mentions in their latest press release, they just developed a 120 megapixel APS-H-size CMOS sensor that is also capable of HD video. The sensor is 29.2 x 20.2 mm big and has a resolution of 13,280 x 9,184 pixels. According to Canon, the images from this sensor “maintain higher [...]

What is a Test Shoot and is it different from a TF* shoot?

admin — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 19:12:11 +0000

Alright ladies and gents, here we come to a question that seems to cause a lot of confusion with people because one person thinks that everyone should know what they are talking about and the other person does not want to seem stupid by asking questions. Depending on who you talk to, a test shoot [...]

Flickr: How to get noticed and increase your exposure

admin — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 23:40:15 +0000

I just recently signed up for Flickr and spent about a weekend figuring out what gets you the best exposure and what gets many viewers to notice you. For me, Flickr is not only a place to display my photos, but also a marketing tool that links back to my main website (Imaginis Photography) and [...]

Lightning / Thunderstorm Photography

admin — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 22:29:12 +0000

Last night, I tried lightning photography for the first time with some amazing results. Since I was not sure about the proper exposure for lightning photography, I was playing around a little before I got the camera set properly to ISO 100 at f/8.0 with a 15 second exposure. All the pictures looked really good [...]

Sweet Spot: Nikon Lenses – Primes and Zooms

admin — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 03:40:43 +0000

Definition: What is a Sweet Spot? Technically speaking, the sweet spot of a lens is the f-stop, where chromatic aberrations and vignetting are at a minimum and sharpness (resolution) is at a maximum from the center to the edges. Non-technically speaking, the sweet spot of a lens is the aperture at which the lens gives you [...]

Modeling: How do I improve my Expressions?

admin — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 17:34:28 +0000

Many amateur- and freelance models (and even some professional models) that I meet seem to have a problem with their expressions. While they may look outstanding, they fail to convey desired emotions with their face and their eyes. To help all of you out there who have such problems, here are some pointers to help [...]

Funny Finds: That doesn’t make you a Model Music Video by Robert James

admin — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 03:13:13 +0000

Alright, I know some people may get offended, so take it for what it is – a funny song about an issue that people talk about.

If the YouTube link does not work for whatever reason, you can also find the video here.

Jennifer Ohlsson: Model Posing 101 and Tips

admin — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 23:15:06 +0000

Model Rates: How much do agencies charge?

admin — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 02:04:55 +0000

If you are serious about your photography and want to book an outstanding model, your best bet is to go through an agency. Not only do most agency models fit the general requirements of the fashion industry as excellent clothes hangers, they also know how to pose and will certainly help you create better pictures [...]

How do I know if an agency is a scam? – How do I know if an agency is legit?

admin — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 18:28:39 +0000

Models frequently ask me if this or that agency is a scam or if it is legit. When there is a computer around, I can usually tell pretty quickly. If not, I can tell if I have worked with said agency or how the model has been treated. When contacted by an agency, every model [...]

Definition: What is the difference between Fashion Photography, Commercial Photography, and Editorial Photography?

admin — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 22:55:31 +0000

For those of you who can’t wait for the elaborate answer, here is the quick overview:

Commercial Photography sells a product. Fashion Photography sells a lifestyle. Editorial Photography sells a story.

Now for those of you interested to learn more, please read on. Just take note that the borders between those different types of photography are fluent and may [...]

Memory Cards: Low End vs High End

admin — Mon, 03 May 2010 23:19:52 +0000

A little while ago I had a discussion with someone about memory cards. In his opinion, all memory cards are the same and you should just buy the cheapest one. In my opinion, memory cards are different with respect to the manufacturing quality and the quality of the internal parts. In order to stop him [...]

Freelance Model Rates: How much can or should you charge?

admin — Sat, 01 May 2010 21:56:05 +0000

Dasha - One of the best freelance models I ever worked with

I constantly see this question: “I am a model. How much should I charge?” from amateur- and freelance models and most of them actually think that there is a general answer to this question. While agencies work with fixed rates and fixed commissions, [...]

How to prepare your pictures for Stock Photography

admin — Sat, 01 May 2010 16:35:56 +0000

A little while ago, I wrote an article about the best Microstock websites for people to earn easy money with their photographs (here). I received a few responses from people asking me how to prepare their photographs for approval and how to use keywords, so I decided to write an article on this topic as [...]

How and Where to make money with Microstock Photography

admin — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 16:23:39 +0000

Several fellow photographers have been asking me about Stock Photography and Microstock Photography, so I found it time to write a little compendium. While I understand that there are several Macrostock photographers out there who dismiss the Microstock model, I feel like it has a not insignificant earnings potential.

While you need to upload at least [...]

Photography: You get what you pay for…

admin — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 23:52:32 +0000

While the judge made several unqualified statements with regards to photography and equipment, it still holds true that one gets what they are willing to pay for. While the market is flooded with photographers who are willing to shoot at very low prices, the quality you will receive from these photographers is simply below what [...]

Photoshop Disaster: Big Head, Tiny Body

admin — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 02:41:07 +0000

I always thought the acting in those Spanish soap operas was odd, but it’s nothing compared to their head to body ratio…

Thanks to my wife for finding this. The original can be found here.

Why do photographers charge so much?

admin — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 17:26:55 +0000

I bet many of you have heard a quote along this line before, usually followed by “Target only charges (insanely low amount) for a portrait.” I tell those clients to go to Target to have their portraits taken and come back to me when they aren’t happy with them. Other people ask, why I charge [...]

Model Photography: How touchy can or should you be?

admin — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 17:22:34 +0000

First of all, if you don’t know the difference between touching and groping, you may want to look it up. Some photographers seem to be very concerned about touching a subject, I am more concerned to keep models from touching me. Just joking.

From my experience, touching a model or any other subject can ease tension [...]

Model Posing Guide: How to pose a model

admin — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 17:19:47 +0000

While most professional models know how to pose and are very aware of their surroundings and the lighting, many amateur models are unaware of their bodies and have problems finding a pose that goes with their body type and your concept. Ideally, the model will pose on her own until you tell her to hold [...]

How to photograph Weddings

admin — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 17:10:34 +0000

Photographing weddings is a tough job to do, especially if you have no idea where to start or what to take pictures of. If you follow a few simple guidelines though, and know at least the basics of photography, you should be fine. To help you understand the implications of wedding photography and the different [...]

How to create realistic HDR images

admin — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 05:12:26 +0000

Many of you probably have seen HDR (high dynamic range) images in the past. Oversaturated images with strong shadows and highlights that look very surreal. To do such a thing, simply go into Photomatix Pro and play with the adjustments. Doing so is not the purpose of this article though. We will be talking about [...]

Fraud Warning: Darien Small Scam

admin — Sun, 03 May 2009 21:54:13 +0000

The following is from an e-mail I received from a friend. While it is certainly a good thing to know the current names of fraudsters, it is probably more important to know their schemes. If someone contacts you with something that sounds even remotely fishy, check that person’s references to make sure he or she [...]

Photograph against the Sun

admin — Fri, 01 May 2009 05:19:42 +0000

Many people have heard that one should never ever and under no circumstances photograph against the sunlight. Hence, most people shoot others with the sun hitting the subject’s face, which causes very off highlight-shadow combinations which usually come along with squinty eyes or grimaces.

My wife is not much into photography, when asked, she actually hates [...]

Canon’s DPP – Digital Photo Professional Download

admin — Fri, 01 May 2009 05:07:13 +0000

Last week I ran into a little bit of a problem. I wanted to install the latest version of DPP on one of my computers but I realized that during a clean-up, we had thrown all the Software CD’s away.

I went to Canon’s website and checked for a download link, but for some reason, Canon [...]