White Balnce, applied.

This is the original image. To correct the white balance, I used the method of white balance in photoshop. Here is how to do it:
# Select an image with white balance issues
# Image->Adjustments->Levels
# Click on the eye dropper on the lower right (the far right one that says "Set White Point"
# In the image click on something that should be white
# It will automatically correct the image with that point being plain white
So that is what I did. I click on the part of the picture of the white on the sign ( on the top left, the white in the middle of the blue). This set the white balance. Here is the corrected image.

White Balance and Color Temperature

Color temperature is a characteristic of light important to photography. It is a measurement in degrees Kelvin indicating the hue of a specific type of light source. Low color temperature implies warmer light (yellows and reds) while higher color temperatures impllies (more blue) light. Different lights give off different temperatures. White balance is telling your camera that a certain color is white. Even if the light appears blue, you're saying "hey, that's white not blue." The human eye views many shades of white, as white. But the camera can not decipher what is white if it has a different hue to it. So, there is a setting on the camera in which you can point your camera to the object in the light you want to be viewed as white.
Here are some common color temperature, measured in Kelvin.

1500 K Candlelight
2680 K 40 W incandescent lamp
3000 K 200 W incandescent lamp
3200 K Sunrise/sunset
3400 K Tungsten lamp
3400 K 1 hour from dusk/dawn
5000-4500 K Xenon lamp/light arc
5500 K Sunny daylight around noon
5500-5600 K Electronic photo flash
6500-7500 K Overcast sky
9000-12000 K Blue sky

Here is an example of unrealistic white balance, and the same photo with the white balance correct on the camera:

1. Incorrect.

2. Correct.

I hope you now understand white balance and color temperature.

Environmental Portrait

An environmental portrait is a portrait taken in the subject's natural environment. In an environmental portrait, the subject is shown in a setting that shares information about the person's life or interest.

This is an example of an environmental portrait. It shows ballerinas in a ballet studio, where they actually would be dancing, as opposed to just having a blank or unrealistic backdrop.

More Types of Portraits:

Candid: A candid portrait is a portrait taken without posing or communicating with the subject before taking the photo. In a candid portrait, the subject can appear to either be aware or unaware of the photographer's presence.

Posed: A posed portrait is a candid portrait in which the photographer has somehow communicated with the subject, to change what they are doing, like a change in body position or expression, in front of the camera.

Formal: A formal portrait is typically planned out. Communication between the subject and photographer have been discussed, such as clothing, position, expression and background.

Rules of Thumb for Portraits:

1. The body of the subject should not be turned directly toward the camera

2. Avoid bright colors or bold prints on clothing

3. The body of the subject should not be turned 90 degrees from the camera

Photo-enhancing skin color

The tutorial I used was on enhancing the skin color of a subject in an image. The tutorial I used is:

http://www.photoshopu.com/?p=33

This tutorial is very detailed and the instruction are easy to follow. Overall, I think it takes some practice to get the skin tone right and not looking too over saturated.

Here is the before image:


And here is the after:



It's not perfect, but I learned a lot doing this tutorial, and it is pretty useful.

Depth of Field--photos

So, taking photos of these dinosaurs, showing different depths of fields. Here are 4 photos:

In this photo, I used a greater depth of field, and all the objects are in focus:

This photo shows only the closest subject in focus:

Here, although more difficult to do and it isn't as clear what is in focus, the 2nd subject is in focus, while the others aren't focused as well:

Finally, this photo shows only the furthest subject in focus:

Depth of Field

Depth of field is the range of distance around the focal plane which is acceptably sharp.
The depth of field depends on:
-focal length
-sensor size
-aperture
-focal distance
The depth of field does not, all of a sudden, change from sharp to unsharp. It is more of a gradual transistion. Actually, everything immediately in front of or behind the focusing distance begins to lose focus, although it may be so slight that our eyes or resolution don't perceive it. Since there is no definite point of definite transition between sharp and unsharp, the term "circle of confusion" is used to define how much a point needs to be blurred in order to no longer be perceived as acceptably sharp. This is an exaggerated diagram of circle of confusion. In reality, it would be just a tiny fraction of the camera's sensor area.
An acceptable circle of confusion is loosely defined as one that would go unnoticed when the photo is put onto an 8by10 print, and viewed from 1 foot away.
These are three photos taken from the same point, with different focuses.



How aperture affects DOF:
As the aperture gets smaller, the depth of field is increased. If you want very great depth of field, use a very small aperture. If you want the effect of a blurred background, with a smaller amount of the picture in focus, set a higher aperture. This means to set the f/stops smaller if you want the photo having a greater DOF.

The focal length is how close to the subject your actual lens is. With a longer focal length of the lens, the DOF will be shallower because the lens is closer to the subject. If you use a shorter lens, the background of the subject will be less blurred. If a very long lens is used, the back of the subject will be very blurred, since you are so far zoomed into the subject.

Sensor size:
The actual size of the sensor affects the Depth of Field. The smaller the sensor size, the greater the depth of field is at a given focal length and f/stops. Sensor are classified by their crop factor. Using this, the sensor is compared to a frame of 35 mm film. If a camera has a ratio of 1/4.5 (the one being the comparison to the frame of film) it has a smaller sensor size than that with a ratio of 1/3. The greater the denominator, the less the sensor size.

Homecoming Week

Here are a series of photos from homecoming week, with some pumpkin carving. Enjoy!


Taken after soccer practice on 10/17/07 at about 5 pm at the La Conner Middle School soccer field. This is Hana Van Pelt and Robin Coe, carving pumpkins for LCHS girls soccer team Senior night on 10/18/07. The pumpkins will spell out "Thank You Fans," one letter on each pumpkin.

The LCHS girls soccer team members hard at work, still carving pumpkins. They didn't have any spoons to scoop out the pumpkin flesh, so they did it by hand.

One of the pumpkins, a final result. This is Anna Raymond (left) and Galena Graham's artistic take on the common letter "O."

So that's the end of the pumpkin story. The pumpkins looked great, each holding a candle, in the dark at our Senior Night Game.

I will put the other Homecoming week photo story in another blog a little later.