"Seven Photo Techniques"

Image #1       LIVE VIEW; Big Brown Press Conference ... The new Nikon D3 and D300 feature a function called LIVE VIEW. This through the lens display on the cameras LCD screen is perfect for many situations like overhead team huddle pictures at a football game, setting up remote camera positions when the eyepiece is inaccessible to look through, or in this case, the over head view at a press conference. The LCD screen of the D3 and D300 is so vivid and clear even from a very steep angle that composing a picture without looking through the view finder is now no guess work at all, but easy to do. Simply turn the Release Mode Dial to the Live View function, press the shutter to activate Live View, and compose your image by looking at the LCD screen rather than looking through the eyepiece, then press the shutter to capture the image. For this picture I did just that and held the D3 high over my head and composed the scene by looking at the LCD screen even though the camera angle was tipped down towards the press conference it was still easy to see the screen. Nikon D3, ISO1000, 1/200 at f2.8, Nikon 14-24mm Lens, Manual Focus (pre focused on the gentlemen being interviewed), Live View, WB 5560K, Picture Control STANDARD, Lexar 8G Flash Card.

Image #4       SWING PAN; Whirl Wind Workout ... The Swing Pan, as I call it, is my own technique and is similar looking to a very slow shutter pan action image that has a rear curtain sync flash. Although no flash is used, the swing pan does make use of a slow shutter speed pan action, but with a major difference. Once the shutter is released, the photographer must instantly follow the "click" with a very quick horizontal movement (swing) of the camera in the same direction your subject is moving. The result is a frozen image (looks like a flash was used) that also has a long panned motion following the subject, in the same frame. This gives the image a pan action with rear curtain sync flash appearance. Trial and error are the only way to achieve this technique and learn what shutter speed, and how much/how fast a horizontal swing movement is needed to make the image work. It is difficult, but very unique when accomplished. I might make 5-10 attempts before achieving the one picture with look I want. This image made during early morning exercise is one of my better examples of the "Swing Pan". Nikon D3, ISO100, 1/2 second at f22 (with 2X Neutral Density Filter to help reduce the exposure time), Nikon 70-200mm G VR Zoom Lens, 3D Focus Tracking with 51 Points, WB 9090K, Picture Control VIVID, Lexar 8G Flash Card.

Image #5      PAN with REAR CURTAIN SYNC FLASH; Calvin Borel ... Now that I have explained the Swing Pan I feel I should also explain a more common technique of Slow Shutter Pan with Rear Curtain Sync Flash. Rear Curtain Sync means the flash from your strobe or Speedlight will occur at the end of the exposure duration rather than at the start of the exposure duration. The result is a pan action image where the subject is then frozen by the flash. In this picture, jockey Calvin Borel is walking out of the winners circle after winning an earlier stakes race on Kentucky Oaks Day, the day before the Kentucky Derby. The slow shutter speed of 1/8 of a second causes him to have some motion blur until the flash from my SB800 Speedlights freezes him at the end of the exposure duration. Think of it like this, "Click-Pan-Flash." I click the shutter and pan (follow Calvin) as he begins to walk by me, then the SB800 flashes and he is frozen by the flash at the end of the 1/8 second exposure. Nikon D3, ISO100, 1/8 at f11, 24-70mm Lens, 3D Focus Tracking with 51 Points, WB 3030K, Picture Control STANDARD, Two Nikon SB800 Speedlights (rubber banded together Tandem) each with Warming Gel and a power output of +0.7, Nikon SU800 Commander, Lexar 8G Flash Card. NOTE: I used a very cool (blue) WB of 3030K and then countered the blue with warm light from my SB800 Speedlights with warming gels, (see February 2006 Workshop at the Ranch: My Moody Blue Location Lighting Formula.)

Image #6      SPIN with REAR CURTAIN FLASH; Paddock Ladies ... Identical to the previous text accept this time I decided to spin the camera counterclockwise rather than panning the camera. My paddock ladies were not moving, but standing still. A gust of wind came up just as I took the picture so I spun the camera to give the image more of a blustery day feel to it. The results is similar to the previous picture of Calvin Borel in that there is deliberate movement as the exposure (start of the spin) and then the flash freezes the subjects at the end of the exposure. This image is one of my Derby hat favorites of all time. The ten women were just standing there as Haley (with SB800 Speedlights in hand) and walked by before the wind gusted. I simply said, "hi ladies", and they all struck a pose. Haley held up the SB800 Speedlights about 10 feet off camera to my right, Click-Spin-Flash in 1/8 of a second....then the rain came pouring down. Also note that the same "moody blue" stylized cool blue WB and warming gelled Speedlights were used for this image as was used for the image of jockey Calvin Borel. Nikon D3, ISO100, 1/8 at f14, Nikon 14-24mm Lens, 3D Focus Tracking with 51 Points, WB 3030K, Two Nikon SB800 Speedlights (rubber banded together Tandem) each with Warming Gel and power output of +1.3, Nikon SU800 Commander, Lexar 8G Flash Card.