Ok , you want to watermark you photos, first you have to ask why you want to do it and the pro’s and con’s of watermarking an image. check out the list below. Personally i don’t care for watermarking, people will use an image and don’t even know that it is wrong, just do a google search for images and it so easy to find the one your looking for. i have better things to do, than to play cyber police, and try to prevent my images from being stolen or used against my will. Most of the images on the web are low resolutions anyway, so you can’t do anything with it except put it back on the web.

If i have to use any type of water marking i will make a frame around the image so it doesn’t distract or cover the image. look to example below.

Pros:

1. it’s copyright for your image.
2. you get credit for you photo.
3. Marketing your brand.

Cons:

1. It takes times.
2. Easily can be removed by photoshop
3. Distraction to the image.

after going through all the options of watermarking, and you still want to do it, here are some software to watermark your images.

1. Photoshop
2. Lightroom
3. Aperture
4. iWatermark

Adobe Photoshop CS5 [Mac]

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3

Aperture 3

iWatermark

 

1. Use a Tripod
The most important tip is to secure your camera to something that will ensure it doesn’t move during the taking of your shots. This is especially important in photographing fireworks simply because you’ll be using longer shutter speeds which will not only capture the movement of the fireworks but any movement of the camera itself. Using a Tripod with accomplish this.

2. Remote Release
One way to ensure your camera is completely still during fireworks shots is to invest in a remote release device. this can be optional because they range from $20- $200 depending on which one you purchase. This will help with the camera shake but you still need to anticipate shots and the fireworks as they illuminate the sky.

3. Composition or Framing Your Shot
One of the most difficult parts of photographing fireworks is working out where to aim your camera. Remember it’s going to be dark, so where the fireworks will explode is like playing marko polo in the sky. best practices is to scout out the location that you want to shoot and plan out where to be, depending on what lens and the shot you want to get. most shows will only last a few minutes, show you want have a second chance to get the shot you want. and if you want more than one shot you need multiple cameras.

There are two main ways of framing shots, vertically (portrait) or horizontally (landscape). it’s up to you how you want to frame it but i find that landscape framing is good if you want a wide shot or far away, thats why it’s called landscape, duh……. and
portrait if you want a tighter shot of the fireworks, especially if you want to get the long tails of the fireworks before it burst into a huge fireball. but really its really up to you, some like vanilla and some like chocolate.

4. Focal Length and point
One of the hardest parts of photographing fireworks is having your camera focused on the right part of the sky at the right time. This is especially difficult if you’re shooting with a longer focal length and trying to take more tightly cropped shots. try to focus on something below on the ground where the fireworks will be and that will give you a good idea where to focus, or for the more advance people, manual set your focus to infinity if you are far and wide. you always can shoot wide and crop, but when you crop photos you loose pixels and quality.

Going on, if you don’t know about these things below read this post first. read more about aperture, shutter speed and ISO here

5. Aperture
Aperture controls the depth of field of a photo, most photographers recommend using with f/8 to f/16. Try experimenting with these ranges to get the best results.

6. Shutter Speed
This will control how bright and clear the fireworks will appear in the photo. shorter shutter speed will create sharper and focused images and longer shutter speeds will have more of a glowly kind of look. trying starting off with 2-3 seconds exposures and make changes accordingly. If you have a shutter release this is where it really comes in handy, you can focus on looking into the sky and timing each shot and enjoying the show at the same time.

7. ISO
Shooting at a low ISO is preferable to ensure the cleanest shots possible. shooting at ISO 100 will give you good results.

8. Using a Flash
Don’t use it! turn it off, think about what a flash does, it lights the subject, and depending on how far away and how bright the flash is, it will not impact your shot in this case, unless you are 5 ft away from the fireworks or you have a flash the size of the sun, both of these options are not possible.

9. Shoot in Bulb or Manual Mode
Shooting in manual mode will let you have control over all the settings that are listed above, so don’t use any auto mode, especially auto focus, when everything is dark it will take a while to focus and you might miss the shot you want, focus on one firework burst and then turn off the autofocus, unless you change lens or move your position all your shots will be in focus.

10. Experiment and make changes
Check your results as you shoot the fireworks, make sure your getting awesome shots. by changing any of the points listed above will change your results of your photo. which one to change is up to you depending on how you want your photo to come out. I highly recommend that you look on the internet for “fireworks” and see what type of photos you want to capture. plan accordingly on how to get the shot you want. remember most fireworks shows last between 15-30 minutes and usually once a year, you won’t much have time to figure it out on the fly, so plan it out. remember great photos are not taken, but created.

Looking on the internet to charge multiple Canon batteries (LP-E6) for my DSLR Canon 7D and found this awesome from Delkin, it’s a dual charger and charges two batteries simultaneously, tells you how much left there is to charge and is won’t break the bank usually online around $50 gets you a dual charger and two plates. The charger can charge all sorts of different camera’s batteries so don’t forget to get the plates for the EP6 batteries.

The Delkin will charge the official Canon batteries and the third party ones no problem. Whereas the official Canon charger can only charge official Canon batteries. Big downside to 3rd party batteries is they cannot communicate with the camera properly so you have no idea how much power is left in them.

Buy here Delkin’s New Dual Universal Battery Charger

Delkin Press Release

Delkin’s New Dual Universal Battery Charger Wins Prestigious DIMA Award for Outstanding Design & Innovation

Poway, CA. January 30, 2008 – Today Delkin’s new Dual Un iversal Battery Charger was honored with the 2008 DIMA award for outstanding design and innovation. This unique charger for digital camera batteries combines universal compatibility among battery models with the ability to charge two batteries simultaneously. The need for a charger that can recharge two batteries of different models, voltages and even chemical composition at the same time has sprung up from the growth and development in the digi-cam market.

“It is now common for households, or even individuals, to own multiple digital cameras,” said Anna Lopez, Delkin’s Battery Product Manager. “Many photographers own point and shoot cameras for day-to-day shooting, and a digital SLR for more serious photography. Different camera models seldom use the same battery, forcing photographers to carry an array of chargers.”

Delkin’s Dual Universal Battery Charger is a single, two sided charger that uses individual charging plates specific to each camera battery, so it can charge almost any digital camera battery model. Since Delkin’s charger and charging plates are purchased separately, each buyer can customize the charger to his or her own needs. Anyone who subsequently upgrades his or her camera equipment and needs to charge a new battery model can simply purchase the additional charging plate for a fraction of the cost of a new charger.

Many manufacturers try to reduce the overall number of charging plates with complicated multi-plates that charge ten or twenty different battery models. While this helps reduce manufacturing costs, these multi-unit charging plates are confusing to use, so the rate of error can be high. Worse, it presents a safety concern for anyone who accidentally connects their battery to the charger incorrectly. Delkin’s single model charging plates are simple to connect and use, eliminating any safety concerns and reducing user error.

Another useful feature of Delkin’s dual charger is the charge status indicator built into each side of the charger. Each indicator includes four LEDs that accurately report the charge status of each battery being charged. This feature is beneficial as it helps the photographer estimate the time it takes to charge each battery.

“The battery market can be a tough business to compete in.” admits CEO Martin Wood. “Our Power product line is focused on innovation and uniqueness, which is the key to our success. When we create a new Power product, we look at our customer’s needs and find out what benefits are missing from current products available. We then create a product that exceeds their expectations.”

Delkin’s Dual Universal Battery Charger is available with a removable 110/220v US, EU, or UK power plug and a vehicle adapter, and with model specific charging plates. Charging plates for most digital camera batteries may be purchased separately, and are found at digital camera stores worldwide and on Delkin’s website at http://www.delkin.com. MSRP for the charger (with vehicle adapter) is set at $54.99, and two-packs of charging plates can be purchased for $4.99 each. An advanced “smart” AA/AAA charging plate is available for $9.99 that can be used along with the full array of Delkin charging plates. The Dual Universal Battery Charter is UL, CE, FCC and RoHS certified and listed, and protected by a two year warranty.

All of Delkin’s new products introduced at PMA can be found in their booth A231 or online at http://www.delkin.com.
Delkin Devices, Inc. is based in Poway, California, and its European branch office is located in Birmingham, England. Delkin has been “Making Photography Better” since 1986. From SensorScope cleaning products and Archival Gold Media to Pop-Up Shades and Power batteries, Delkin products deliver premium quality, innovative designs and an ongoing dedication to superior customer service. Delkin Devices and its products have become worldwide industry leaders in both OEM and consumer markets. Delkin branded memory cards continue to be a leading choice among professional photographers and others passionate about digital photography.

Like always, we were looking on the internet “googling” away for a DOF calculator and couldn’t find a good one, so we decided to make our own. if you know about DOF, jump down to the bottom of the post or follow the link here to depth of field calculator if not read on about how depth of field works.

This post is about the DOF – depth of field calculator. what is DOF?

Answer: Wikipedia on DOF
In optics, particularly as it relates to film and photography, the depth of field (DOF) is the portion of a scene that appears acceptably sharp in the image. Although a lens can precisely focus at only one distance, the decrease in sharpness is gradual on each side of the focused distance, so that within the DOF, the unsharpness is imperceptible under normal viewing conditions.

In some cases, it may be desirable to have the entire image sharp, and a large DOF is appropriate. In other cases, a small DOF may be more effective, emphasizing the subject while de-emphasizing the foreground and background. In cinematography, a large DOF is often called deep focus, and a small DOF is often called shallow focus.
The DOF is determined by the camera-to-subject distance, the lens focal length, the lens f-number, and the format size or circle of confusion criterion.
For a given format size, at moderate subject distances, DOF is approximately determined by the subject magnification and the lens f-number. For a given f-number, increasing the magnification, either by moving closer to the subject or using a lens of greater focal length, decreases the DOF; decreasing magnification increases DOF. For a given subject magnification, increasing the f-number (decreasing the aperture diameter) increases the DOF; decreasing f-number decreases DOF.
When a picture is taken in two different format sizes from the same distance at the same f-number with lenses that give the same angle of view, the smaller format has greater DOF. When a picture is taken in two different formats from the same distance at the same f-number using lenses of the same focal length, the smaller format has less DOF.
Cropping an image and enlarging to the same size final image as an uncropped image taken under the same conditions is equivalent to using a smaller format under the same conditions, so the cropped image has less DOF.

When focus is set to the hyperfocal distance, the DOF extends from half the hyperfocal distance to infinity, and the DOF is the largest possible for a given f-number.
The advent of digital technology in photography has provided additional means of controlling the extent of image sharpness; some methods allow extended DOF that would be impossible with traditional techniques, and some allow the DOF to be determined after the image is made.

Here’s what you been looking for DOF depth of field calculator use this as only a tool, we are not responsible for any mis calculations or any un-sharp images that are taken from this calculator.

Happy shooting and hope you enjoy your next photo session. aloha!

We were looking online and found a post on another photo blog about a photoshop action to make this polaroid montage, but when we went to download the file, it was no longer available. We decided to make our own action and share it with you. if you haven’t used actions with photoshop, it is an automated task so that you don’t have to do it manually. hope you enjoy this photoshop action, enjoy and have fun with it.

Sacrifice your next cup of coffee and donate $3.99 to support this website. Aloha!
click here to download polaroid photoshop action.

How to use this Action.

Good luck and enjoy!

aloha thedigidarkroom.com

This is just an introduction to show you what we use and how we set up our workflow on the computer. this is also a test for many more screen cast tutorials to come. enjoy and thanks for watching