Andy Austin - Photographer: Blog

Top Ten Photography Myths

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 23:26:42 GMT

The following is a list of the top photography myths that I hear. The bold is the myth followed by the explanation as to why it's not true. I hope you enjoy! And if you do, make sure to like Peak Photography on Facebook or comment below with your thoughts!

1.dSLRs are only for professionals: In years past this may have been true, with dSLR prices being in the thousands and lenses prices the same. Camera manufactures have really begun to market to the amateur crowd, and you can now buy great quality dSLRs for under $700.

2. Photography is too expensive: This goes along the lines of #1, but technology continues to get more affordable for the average American. Yes, if you want the top equipment then you’re looking at a very pricey hobby. Which brings me to my next point….

3. You need great equipment to get great pictures: It’s important to remember it’s not the camera that makes the picture, it’s the photographer. Some of my favorite and most popular shots were actually done on an entry-level dSLR. While great equipment can lead to a better shot, sometimes it’s just more important to get the picture.

4. Photography is too difficult: Once again, camera companies have made huge advancements in camera equipment to bring it to the masses. While you’re more likely to get a better shot if you’re using manual modes where you can get exactly what you want, you may end up missing the shot if you’re toying around with settings. The auto modes (aka the green button) do a great job at capturing a moment and are simple to use.

5. The camera is more important to the lens: Camera bodies change yearly, lenses are the real investments. I have a lens that is probably 12 years old and still works great, expensive lenses are built to last for decades. A great lens on an average body is way better than a great camera with an average lens (I’ll be writing a whole blog on this issue in the future).

6. Canon is better than Nikon and Vice-Versa: This is a debate that has waged on for decades and will continue to wage on forever. But the truth is they both offer similar products for similar price points. Once you do invest in one it is smart to commit it. This is the reason why I’ll always shoot Canon; I have far too much money invested in Canon lenses to switch over to Nikon. Each camera has its positives and negatives and it’s smart to do research as to what’s best for you.

Sunset over the Bridger Mountains

Bridger Mountain Panorama- Bozeman, MT: Prints here

7. You MUST shoot RAW to get good pictures: I’ll be writing an entire blog on how much I love shooting RAW instead of jpeg, so don’t get me wrong I love and highly recommend shooting RAW. But there are some photographers who will say it’s an absolute must to get a good shot, and that’s a myth. For the average person I would advise against shooting RAW. Because if you’re the type of person who grabs the image right off the chip and uploads it to the internet, well RAW will make your pictures look worse!

8. You lose quality every time you resave a JPEG: This one is semi-true… you do lose quality, but it’s not noticeable unless you were opening and resaving hundreds of times. This myth has been told time and time again, advising against opening repeatedly in Photoshop. But tests are showing that it’s just not true.

9. Film is better than digital because it better represents reality: This is a common myth for one reason, photoshop. Now this could be true, it is easier for a photographer to manipulate a photograph beyond reality. But even without a true overhaul, the majority of photographers do edit their pictures in one way or another. But here comes the myth buster, film photographers used to do editing in the darkroom too. While it was more challenging, photographers like Ansel Adams were masters of “dodging and burning” in the darkroom. Now this myth is subjective as some digital photographers have ruined photoshop for the rest of us.

10. The megapixel myth: This is my personal favorite, often people think that you need a lot of megapixels to get a good quality image. But look at professional cameras over the past 5 years, every year they have been getting better without increasing their megapixels. More megapixels don’t necessarily mean better images. I have a Canon 30D that I’ve retired, but it only has 10 megapixels- the same as a lot of smart phones. But the picture quality is far superior on the 30D, that’s because a lot goes into an image instead of just megapixels. When do more megapixels come into play? The more megapixels the bigger you can blow up an image and the big megapixel cameras could do some huge murals if you wanted.

I hope you enjoyed this blog, if you have any suggestions for a new blog you can email me or leave a comment below. If you did enjoy this article, buy a print! Print sales keep me shooting and feed the starving college student ;)

Happy Shooting,

Andy A.

Owner/Photographer

Peak Photography of Montana

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Metallic vs Matte vs Canvas Prints

Sun, 24 Mar 2013 20:55:09 GMT

This is a question I'm often asked, what's the difference between Matte and Metallic prints and how should I frame them? I'm also asked to compare prints vs canvas often as well. So I decided it was worth a blog post and I will try my best to answer both questions.

I have done countless hours of research to find the top of the line suppliers for my clients, so you can rest assured that whichever way you decide to go will lead to the best quality product.

Matte Prints

Let's start with the most basic of prints, the Matte print. These prints are what I refer to as "standard prints", although there really is nothing standard about them. They are beautiful prints, and have extremely accurate color representations of what you see on your monitor. They are nice because they don't have a "shine" to them and therefore don't reflect a lot of light. They also don't show fingerprints like glossy and metallic prints do. Colors look nice, but not as nice as metallic colors. Making matte prints very nice for skin tones (portraits) and black and white shots such as this shot of Lone Peak in Big Sky, MT.

The nice thing about matte prints is how versatile they are. You could print any image on them and have a steller result. For framing you could frame them normally (pop them in a ready made frame from Michaels) or you could have them matted and framed professionally. They are of archival quality and resist fading for up to 100 years.

Metallic Prints

Now on to my personal favorite, metallic prints. Metallic prints are mind bendingly gorgeous for color and depth rich images. Instead of reflecting light, metallic prints seem to absorb light. Which is why I recommend putting metallic prints in a place where they will get some direct light (either near a window or a light). Metallic prints almost have a 3D quality to them and accentuate every color in the image. For this reason, metallic is perfect for landscape photos. Water looks especially nice when printed on metallic. The only downside is you have to be careful when handling as it is easier to get fingerprints on the image (I'll tell you in a second how to prevent this).

Below is an example of a 30x40" metallic print I did for Bobcat football alumni Steven Foster (Prints of Bobcat Stadium here)

The biggest question I get concerning metallic is how do I frame it? And it's not quite as easy as pop in a frame and go. What I recommend is getting the "Foam Mountboard Add-On" in the cart, I sell it at cost which is $15. I recommend this because to frame metallic you should frame it without glass as glass takes away from the unique look of metallic prints. And to frame without glass the print needs to be rigid or else it will just fold through the frame, this is where the mountboard comes into play. I also recommend getting the "Lustre Coat Add-On" as it seals the print and makes it much tougher to get fingerprints on it. You won't see the lustre coat, but just know it's there and doing its job.

Gallery Wrapped Canvas Prints

Last but not least is canvas, which is becoming more and more popular in the print world. It was long considered a lower quality alternative to prints, but not anymore. The supplier I use has stunning reproduction qualities and it almost looks like a print wrapped around a frame. It's not until you get very close to the canvas that you can see the beautiful texture of the canvas. I've used canvas for every type of print, from landscape to wildlife to portraits and it never ceases to amaze me. The canvas that I use is actually fairly solid and is pretty durable when compared to metallic and even matte prints. They are also coated in a UV protectant which keeps it from fading.

One nice thing about canvas is that it shows up ready to hang. People often see that it is more expensive in the beginning, but don't factor in that you won't have to frame it. The above canvas of the Grand Prismatic is mine (prints here of the Grand Prismatic) and it is the centerpiece of my living room. Most of my house is filled with canvas as it's an inexpensive way to decorate that looks great. You can also do canvas groupings that really bring a livingroom to life (email me for specific price quotes on groupings, there is a discount for bulk orders).

I hope you learned something from my blog, and if you still have questions don't hesitate to contact me here.

Andy A.

Owner/Photographer

Peak Photography of Montana

Bald Eagles vs. Red-Tailed Hawks: An Aerial Battle

Fri, 15 Mar 2013 20:40:08 GMT

Hello all! This is my first blog post on Peak Photography of Montana. I hope to post from time to time about awesome experiences I have out in the field as well as tips and tricks I've learned through years of travel!

It all started yesterday when I was out for a walk with my sister and our dogs in a field out near my dad's office in Billings, MT. We saw two Red-Tailed Hawks sitting in a tree maybe 30 yards in front of us. Well as we walked towards their tree we realized we were under their nest. So they swooped off of their tree and did a slow pass above us to see what we were doing. This allowed me some great shots:

Red-Tailed Hawk

So that brings me to today. My sister gives me a call to rush out to the office because these two bald eagles are sitting in a tree out front.

So I do, and there they are:

Pair of Bald Eagles

I snap a handful of pictures before they fly off...

So as they leave so do I. Then I see them again, flying in a field. So I follow them only to realize they're heading back for the farm. So I turn around and park. I realize they are heading for the trees where the Red-Tailed Hawks live, so I sprint towards the trees. And boom, full on aerial battle between the two eagles and the two hawks (who are half the size of the eagles). The hawks are quite feisty for their size and end up chasing off the eagles.

The pictures weren't my best work as I was shooting right into the sun, but there are still some pretty cool shots that came from the experience!

A red-tail hawk took on a bald eagle A red-tail hawk took on a bald eagle A red-tail hawk took on a bald eagle Anyway, that's it! I hope you enjoyed my first blog. If you did enjoy it, all I ask is you share it with a friend who you think would enjoy it too! Comment below if you have any blog topics in particular you would like me to write about.

You can purchase all of these shots, as well as check out the rest of my wildlife shots here: http://www.peakphotographymt.com/wildlife

Cheers,

Andy A.

Photographer/Owner

Peak Photography of Montana