How to Take Better Action Photos of Dogs

By: Dave Spates

#Pets#Dogs#Photos

If you enjoy photographing your pets, and dogs, in particular, this article will help you take better action photos of dogs. Learn what camera equipment to use, the best settings, and general tips for success.

The Camera Body

If you want to take better action photos of dogs, I recommend a camera body with a fast burst rate. From my experience, five frames per second is the minimum. If your camera has a faster frame rate than that, you are going to increase your keeper rate as long as your approach and technique are on point, which we will get to shortly. I personally use Nikon’s D610 and D7000 and have great success with photographing dogs in action.

The Camera Lens

I recommend long and fast lenses. I’ve tried to photograph action shots with the 50mm f/1.8, and the Tokina 100mm f/2.8, with very little success. While both of these lenses are incredibly sharp, they are soft wide open and do not focus well on moving subjects.
Longer lenses with fixed apertures generally focus on moving subjects much faster than shorter lenses. They also keep you and your camera gear safer. Think about it. If you have a 45 point Border Collie running full speed right at you, you need to get the photograph and get out of the way quickly.
A longer lens will give you the time you need to move once the dog starts to fill the frame. I personally use the Nikon 300mm f/4 and sometimes I’ll even throw a teleconverter on it for extended reach and cleaner bokeh.

Camera Settings

Setting Your Autofocus

I recommend locking your autofocus directly in the center of the frame. When photographing action shots of animals you don’t have time to be moving the focus point around. I also suggest using AF-C (Continuous focus mode, called Servo on Canon), which may also be called autofocus continuous, AF-Continuous. This is the setting I always use when trying to get action shots of dogs.

Set your Camera to Burst Mode

Make sure you check your camera drive setting. I know it’s common sense, but make some kind of reminder, though, a checklist you look at before capturing action shots. I’ve been photographing animals for over a decade, and still screw this up sometimes. It wastes time if you don’t have your camera set to burst mode and also wastes the dog’s energy. Dogs can only run for so long and you need every opportunity you can get within that time frame.

Photographing Running Dogs

When I photograph dogs running, I aim to get them looking straight into my camera lens. I want the dog running directly toward me, and I focus on as much eye contact as possible. So to consistently get great photographs of dogs running in this manner, you’re going to need some help.

What I do to accomplish this is have the dog owner or an assistant stand fairly far away from me. I will then position myself on my belly, using my camera bag to stabilize the lens. I try and keep my back to the sun when outdoors. This will help me get the shutter speed that I want to photograph the dog running. I shoot for 1/1250th of a second to 1/2000th.
I’ll first take a test shot to make sure my exposure is right. Then I have the assistant throw a tennis ball right at me. I usually tell them to try and hit me with the tennis ball. This sends the dog running full speed, right at me. I will also instruct the assistant to quickly move to the left or right as soon as the ball is thrown. This saves me tons of time later in post-processing by not having to remove them from the background with Photoshop.

Photographing Dogs Catching Frisbees

This is a little trickier and complicated to pull off compared to photographing running dogs. The goal is to get the dog in mid-air right before he is about to bite down on the Frisbee. I use pretty much the exact same camera settings and approach that I do for photographing dogs running.
I do change one thing, though, and that’s the camera shooting angle. I like to shoot from the hip. Meaning the camera is around my hip level. I’m not actually shooting from the hip, but kneeling down on one knee. Following the dog chasing the Frisbee, I bump the focus until the dog is close to the target. Then holding down the shutter button, I burst out some shots until the buffer gets filled.

Photographing Dogs Jumping

This is simpler than capturing the two types of dog action shots mentioned previously. It definitely requires an assistant to pull off consistently, though. You also don’t need a lens as fast or long to photograph docs jumping compared to the other types of action shots. Although, I prefer using long lens simply because it makes a smoother, more out of focus background.
Here’s how to do it. Position yourself so the dog is in only one-third of the camera frame or less. Check your exposure. Have an assistant hold up a toy, a tree branch, or whatever the dog is interested in enough to jump up and grab. Have the assistant hold it up high, with their arm extended as long as they can. This is incredibly helpful when it comes to post-processing.

Look out for the Safety of the Dog

You can photograph a dog all day just lying around and looking cute. When dogs are running and chasing Frisbees, they get tired. If you are doing a pet photography session and want action shots, this is going to happen incredibly fast.
The dog owners don’t always prepare for it, but I’ve done this many times, and I always prepare. I keep several bottles of water on me, along with a collapsible drinking bowl. If the dog is panting heavily, give them a rest. If they drink a 16-ounce bottle of water in less than a minute, you may want to wait a while before attempting more action shots.
Some factors that you need to consider when shooting action shots are how hot it is, the dog’s age, and the breed. Certain dog breeds handle heat better than others. This is also true for exercise needs. If you are a professional pet photographer, you should be well aware of what the dog’s exercise needs are as well as how well they handle the heat.

So I hope that you find these tips helpful for taking better action photos of your dogs, or those of your clients. Any action photography takes some practice so keep at it and you’ll start to have more keepers over time.

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How to Make Dramatic Photos with Backlight

By: Mat Coker

Most people don’t notice light. But visual artists do. Light is one of the essential ingredients in your photographs.
Light can be tricky to deal with until you understand camera settings. But once you’re familiar with your camera, light is wonderful to play with in your photos.
Personally, I love backlight. It adds a sense of drama and beauty to your photography.
I’ll show you examples of backlight with food, landscape, and portrait photography (studio and outdoors).

#Backlight#Photography#Camerasettings

In order to achieve backlight in your photo, have the main light source behind your subject coming 

toward your camera. In this photo, you can actually see the warm setting sun as the source of backlight.

What is backlight good for?

I love backlight because it adds depth and drama to an otherwise flat, two-dimensional photo.
Backlight helps to bring out the texture of objects that you photograph (sidelight is good for this as well). Texture is created through a combination of highlights and shadows. Since photographs are two dimensional, texture adds depth to your photo.
A strong burst of backlight adds drama to your photo. Think about the bursts of light at a rock concert or other performances. The temperature of the backlight (warm or cool) adds to the drama of the photo.
The backlight source might be in your photo along with your subject (as with the sunset photo above). Or the light source can be outside of the frame (as long as it illuminates your subject).
Any source of backlight can be used creatively, but sunlight, windows, and strobes are among the most popular.
The principals of backlight are the same no matter what camera you’re using, even your phone.

This ice-covered tree is backlit by the sun. Without backlight shining through the branches, this tree 

would not have stood out so much.

Food

It’s great to begin practicing backlight with food. Backlight can be used to illuminate steam and bring out the texture of the food.
While any light source will work, many photographers love using window light to illuminate food.

The light source is not visible in this photo, but there is a window backlighting the food and making 

the steam visible.

This food was photographed while still in the oven. The warm backlight is coming from the oven light.

This is an example of soft backlight produced by a large window. I wanted to bring out the texture in 

the cookies. An iPhone 4s was used to capture the image and Lightroom was used to process it.

Your food photos will be less flat and have more pop to them when you use back (or side) light. Just look for a window or any other light source. Get creative and use the light from fridges, stoves, and lamps.
The great thing about practicing backlight with food is that if you can’t reposition the light source, you can easily reposition yourself and the food.

Landscape and Nature

Once you get the hang of backlight with food, use it to add drama to your landscape photos. In most cases, you won’t be able to reposition your backlight source since it will likely be the sun. However, you can always reposition yourself in relation to the sun and your subject.

I saw this scene as I looked in the rearview mirror. I couldn’t resist pulling over to take a photo. The 

setting sun is the light source for this scene. You can’t see it in the frame but it’s behind the trees

to the  left. Notice how the electricity wires are shining and standing out from the dark trees in the 

background.

The setting sun behind this crab apple tree caught my eye during a walk. I came back with my

camera and found a perspective where the sun was visible filtering through the tree. An aperture

of f/11 was used to create the starburst effect.

A combination of backlight and water droplets on the lens created this special effect. I don’t 

recommend letting your lens get wet, I was using a waterproof case. The case was still wet from 

using my camera underwater.

Portraits

I love to incorporate backlight into portraits to accent the emotion. Beautiful or intense moments are brought out even more with the use of backlight.

Studio

The best part about backlight in a studio is that you can position your light source any way you like.

Two off camera flashes were used to produce this dramatic backlight.

Superheros are dramatic characters by nature. Using harsh backlight instead of soft front light is

better for bringing out the nature of the subject.

Natural light

When using natural light, you’ll have to position yourself and your subject according to the light source.

This little guy is backlit by the setting sun, while the big open sky in front of him illuminates his face.

Troubleshooting

One of the biggest problems about backlight is that your photo may turn out as a silhouette when you don’t want it to.
You’re likely using a semi-automatic setting such as aperture or shutter priority. Your camera sees the bright backlight and meters itself accordingly. You can use exposure compensation to help you avoid unwanted silhouettes. Try setting your exposure compensation to +1 or +2. You’ll need to experiment according to the light conditions.
If you’re experienced then manual mode might be the best option for you.

The main light source is the sky in the background. The sun has not risen over the horizon yet.

Practice backlight with everything

Once you get the hang of it, you can introduce backlight into all sorts of situations. Use it to bring
out texture and to heighten dramatic moments.

Concerts are a wonderful place to have fun with backlight. The rapidly changing lights will create a

 challenge for you. Take lots of photos and be happy with the few that work out.

I love how golden hour can add a nostalgic feel to photos.

Use a combination of low angles and backlight to make your photo more exciting.

I always wait until evening to visit the beach. That way the sun isn’t shining straight down onto the

 sand. Instead it shines down at a lower angle, creating texture through shadow and highlight.

I love my little guy’s hair. There is a window just above him as the source of backlight.

 

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Top Tips for Editing Music Photography

By: Carl Spring

#Metadata#Music#Photography

So in my last article, we looked at how you can get to shoot live music. Hopefully, some of you will have used that article as the motivation to actually get out there and shoot. Great! If you haven’t, what are you waiting for?
This time, I want to write based on a comment I received about how to edit music photography, with some top tips to get your music editing to rock god standard. There is no right or wrong way to edit photos. You have your style of editing, and I have mine, so when looking at this if you think ‘I prefer more contrast’ then simply add more contrast.
I use Capture One Pro editing software. I know a huge percentage of you use Lightroom, but in reality, things are very similar. The buttons are in different places, but they do the same thing. What I want to do with this article is give you some pointers, rather than an exact step-by-step guide. Like all good recipes, you need to adjust for your oven and how spicy you like your food. With that said, let’s get cooking.

Speed

The thrill of a gig fades, for the fans, for the bands and for the publications that put the images out there. While speed is not super important when editing for small bands, I would always advise you to get your editing done as soon as possible. That way if you are delivering images to the band, they will still be hyped about the show and seeing your amazing photos will make them even more excited.
When I am editing for a publication, the idea is to get the images out as soon as possible. Therefore my editing technique is designed with speed as a factor.  For portfolio images, or ones you love, by all means, go into Photoshop and remove things, touch up the skin, etc., But in general, this is not required.
This tight deadline means you have to sometimes decide against removing the distracting lights or fire exit sign. It is much quicker to do now that Capture One, Lightroom, et al. have these features built-in. However, be warned, you can still easily get caught up in this process.
Many of you may be starting out, so you can spend time finessing the details a little more. There are many great tutorials on DPS about Photoshop and more advanced editing techniques, so make sure you read up on them if this is something you want to do.

Editing Starts in Camera When Shooting

I can’t stress this enough. The tendency to overshoot is strong! In a digital age, we can shoot and delete so quickly that we get carried away. The thrill of being at an event shooting live music can add to this, as you want to get THE shot. However, try to restrain yourself a bit. Every image you shoot is something you have to go back to and edit, so bear this in mind. That said, I have been guilty and when a singer is bursting around the stage, shooting at the camera’s max FPS is something that can help you get that great shot.

Metadata (AKA the Boring Habit That is Good to Get Into Early)

Metadata is the information that is attached to your file. It includes camera settings etc., but when you shoot for organizations or stock agencies, you need to include metadata within your images. It is best to get into this habit early.
Make your contact information into a preset, so it can be added easily on import to save time. The first data you need to add is the content field, which contains the following sections:
Headline
Description
Category
The ‘Headline’ is simple. Put the name of the band performing live at XYZ Venue. If you have a shot of the lead singer, then add that information. For example, on this image, the Headline is ‘Diet Cig. Live at The Rescue Rooms Nottingham. Dot to Dot 2015.’
With the description following as ‘Alex Luciano of the New York band, Diet Cig play at Nottingham’s Rescue Rooms as part of the Dot To Dot Festival.’
I saved the most important until last – ‘Keywords.’ You use Keywords for image searches within your catalog, or within a picture library or publication where you have submitted the image. For example, on this shot, the image includes keywords such as ‘Fender Guitars’ and ‘Vans.’ It’s amazing how many times people ask for a musician playing a specific guitar brand, or playing in a particular brand. So make it easy on yourself and use keywords to find them. I think the weirdest request I had was for artists performing in slippers. Unfortunately, I have none in my catalog. However, this goes to show how keywording in all the details, may come in handy.
Start this process early. Otherwise, before you know it, you’ve shot so many gigs without it that the thought of adding metadata to so many images means you don’t do it at all. Get into the habit, and it is painless. Leave it until later, and you won’t do it. Trust me! My first year of shooting live music has no metadata to this day!

Culling Images

You now need to narrow it down to a reasonable set of images to edit. I recommend around 10 to 15 max. You have to be ruthless in this selection process! When choosing shots, you may need to focus on minute details (and sometimes even perceived differences) to narrow it down. The key here is to be ruthless. Just like a holiday slideshow from your relatives – no matter how fantastic you think they are, nobody wants to see all 128 shots of a band that are in focus and well exposed. You want a small set of images that capture the intensity of being there. That way, they have much more impact. You will wow people rather than have them thinking ‘isn’t this shot just the same as the last one?’

This is what a typical image out-of-camera will look like. The color is out, there are some exposure 

issues, but this is a great starting point.

White Balance / Color Correction

White Balance and Color correction are the hardest part. You find so many variations of color at a concert that getting a realistic skin tone may be impossible. In this case, you can either embrace the colors or go to black and white. It comes down to your eye, and you may have to compromise.
As the screenshots show below, in mixed light, this can be quite extreme because your cameras’ white balance can miss by quite a way. Regarding camera setting, I leave the white balance on auto. Lighting changes so much in a concert situation, that even guessing what mode to set it to is not practical. Leave it in auto. Let the camera do its best, and then (and I hate to use this term) fix it in post.
This is where you choose if you want it in black and white. Sometimes you have a great shot, but the color is beyond fixing (red light is killer, and for some reason, lighting guys love red!). So the only option is black and white. Now as I said in my last article when doing this for media outlets, black and white is generally a no-go, but for personal work (and even portfolio) there is nothing wrong with black and white. I love the look.
The other option is to go with the color and let it be part of the atmosphere of the photo. I have a shot of Ian Brown from the Stone Roses (whom I idolized as a youngster) looking through his tambourine and straight down the lens. The lighting meant that I would never be able to get natural skin tones, so I embraced the color and edited it with that in mind.

Colour balance makes this image much better, but there is still work to do.

Exposure

Once you have your color set, you can begin to work on exposure. Similar to any other editing you do, but the main difference is how much you use the ‘recover highlights’ and ‘shadows sliders.’ Concert lighting is usually high contrast, especially if you have the background lights in the shot. Using the recovery sliders can help here. Background lights are generally the only time I do a bit of retouching. If I have a fantastic photo with a distracting background light, I quickly remove it. This
is the beauty of only having ten images to edit rather than 75. You can spend a little more time with each image, even when you are on a tight turnaround. Another tip here is to lower the saturation to help take the edge of hard colors. You can also work with individual colors too, which helps.
For the image we are working with here, I reduced exposure by just under 1-stop and recovered the highlights. I also added a little clarity & contrast to the image for more punch.

Levels/Curves

For my final tweaks, I use ‘curves.’ You can also use ‘levels,’ but this is down your preference. Whichever you use, it is a case of working with each color channel to create a more balanced final color. Tweak the contrast until you are happy.
With the image we are using here, I tweaked the ‘mid-tones’ a little. I adjusted each of the red and green channels, making subtle changes (subtlety is key here) to get a better balance of color in the image.

Crop

If needed, you can crop the image. I’m not going to bore you with how to, but it is just something to keep in mind. Remember, a little crop can remove things like fire exit signs a lot quicker than Photoshopping them out.

Final Tweak

I always like to add a small vignette to my images. Usually very subtle, but I just like the way it draws attention to the subject. I think sometimes it is more a force of habit rather than necessary. Again, this is up to you.

Last Check

Walk away from your monitor for a couple of minutes. Grab a drink, or go to the bathroom. The key is to get away from the screen for a couple of minutes. You can easily push things like contrast too far without realizing. So take 2-minutes away then come back and check if you are happy.

The final image that went to the publication.

Copy, Paste, Tweak, Repeat.

When editing more images from the same show, the starting point is always copying and pasting the settings form the image you already edited. Generally, this gives you a great starting point. However, the lighting for the first song and the third song are not always the same, so you may have to start from scratch. As with anything, the more you do, the easier it becomes. 

Black and White

The color version of this show just wasn’t working for me, but I loved the energy, so decided to go

 black and white. Finally, let’s go through black and white. I always follow the same process as for
 color photos as above. It helps me to know if a photo works best in black and white or color. With this
image, I couldn’t get the color right. To me, it lacked something, but I loved the energy. So, I decided
to try black and white instead.

When converting to black and white, I always start with a preset because I find ‘Capture One’ has some great ones. The preset is used to get the image close to what I want and then I tweak to my taste. Using black and white is a savior for when the light is mostly red. Red can make for some amazing black and white photos. However, when you know you have to deliver in color, it’s great that the sound of the music drowns out your swearing at the lighting technicians!

Black & White made this image pop, and a quick crop removed the distracting photographer to create 

this final image.

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How to Photograph People: 7 Tips for Photographers Who Never Photograph People

By: Lynsey Mattingly

#Photography#People#Photographers

No matter what type of photography you specialize in or prefer, at some point you will find yourself having to photograph a human, or multiple humans. For favor, for fun, or because they share your genetic make-up or home address. If you own a fancy camera, there you will be at least once in your photographic life (but probably many more) where you will find yourself taking a portrait. Taking pictures of people is much different than beautiful mountains, scenic oceanscapes, historic architecture, butterflies, plates of food, or whatever it is that you usually photograph. Here are some basic tips to get the best portrait possible, especially for you if don’t usually see a human on the other side of the lens.

#1 Be realistic

Don’t overpromise your abilities or expect too much out of yourself. If someone asked me to take a picture of the snowcapped Rocky Mountains, which, as they have been my entire life, are right outside my window and something I know like the back of my hand, it would not be a good picture. I lack the skills for landscape photography, and more importantly, the interest. In my favor though, people aren’t likely to ask me to take a landscape image near like a non-portrait photographer will be asked to take portraits. Be upfront if you are willing to try it so that in the event it doesn’t go as planned, it won’t bother you enough to affect how you feel about photography in general.

#2 Simplify everything

Backgrounds, clothing, props, light, etc. – simplify everything. Give yourself a running start out of the gate by having a solid foundation to work with. Look for flat or level backgrounds, horizon lines that don’t run through people’s heads, even lighting, and solid colors. I can’t emphasize this enough. The details which are the focus should only relate to the person, whether it’s a portrait of just the face or a full body, everything else should compliment this, or completely disappear to the viewer’s eye.

#3 The easiest setting I know

At the risk of starting a heated discussion or this becoming a dumping ground for comments debating otherwise, I am going to share what I consider to be my best general setting and equipment advice.
First a few disclaimers: I shoot Canon and have no idea if these will translate to something else. Also, you must promise you will not be upset if this doesn’t work for you; sometimes finding what doesn’t work is just as important as finding what does (I tell myself this often to justify my many mistakes). Lastly, taking a great portrait is a lot more complicated than just one setting, but you have to start somewhere. There are likely to be people who disagree with my advice and I hope that this could start a supportive discussion on what has worked for others, rather than unhelpful commentary. Now, on with it…

• Using natural light only if at all possible, dial in your ISO for something that makes sense; ISO 200 if it’s bright, 400 if it’s cloudy but even, 600 if it’s darker.
• Shooting in Aperture Priority mode will allow you the most room for error, and is how many portrait photographers shoot regularly.
• I like the f-stop to be at f/2.2 for one or two people, and f/2.8 or f/3.2 for groups of three or more (obviously this is speaking very generally and would best be used as a starting point to find what works for you). These settings will give you that “portrait blurry background effect” known as good bokeh.
• Shooting in RAW will give you more wiggle room later when editing, though it takes more space on your memory card.
• Use a prime lens if you can; I shoot nearly everything I take with my 50mm L1.2. This is a fancy lens no doubt, but any prime lens will typically be faster (have a larger maximum aperture) than a zoom lens, and with everything else going on, I find that using my feet as my zoom is one less adjustment my eyes and hands have to do.
• I typically underexpose my images one stop. This works for me because I like to get the details and then bring it back up as needed myself in post.

This may not work for you, and there is absolutely no shame in running everything you aren’t sure about on auto. This doesn’t make you less of a photographer. All it means is that you think in this scenario, your camera – a magnificent piece of machinery that was created by thousands of professionals over decades with countless research, information, and experience – might guess better than you. That’s all.

#4 Shoot from their eye level or higher, and at an angle

While photographing a person from below and not capturing an amazing view of 15 chins they don’t even have is possible, it’s not easy. For the best, most flattering set-up, shoot at their same eye level or above. I often have people kneel down and look up at me while I remain standing. As someone who has 20 different chins that only come out and play for pictures, I’m sensitive about this one and I find that even a child with the most adorable chubby cheeks and double chin is best photographed on a level playing field.
Additionally, taking pictures of someone straight on is both unflattering and uninteresting. Asking them to twist at the waist, shoulders, or neck and not face their body square-on, but rather follow their face’s direction will not only be much more forgiving to any subject (every single human has one eye that is smaller than the other – I’ve researched it), but will also make for a more professional finished portrait.

#5 Don’t command a smile

Don’t command a smile, or instruct “cheese!” or say “hold still!”, or anything that could be interpreted as you attempted to force your feelings, or agenda, onto your subject. Even if you are going for a serious tone, and are trying to catch an image when they don’t realize or least expect it, you are much better off engaging them in conversation than setting up the moment and expecting a single second of utter perfection. A true portrait is genuine at its very least.

#6 Resist the urge to run your final images through every Photoshop trick you’ve ever learned

If you don’t usually photograph people, the idea of playing around with editing tools might be fun. There are so many! This one turns their eyes into laser beams. This one makes their skin look like pure plastic perfection. It’s fascinating, I get it. However, if you’re wanting to stick to the basics, there isn’t much that needs to be done. Clean up blemishes with the Spot Healing Brush Tool, run a basic sharpen (I like the oddly named Unsharp Mask at 60%/2.0/0), and adjust your color and levels if needed. If I get stuck while editing an image, I ask those thousands of professionals what they think by running auto color, tone, and contrast just to see what it does. It nearly always takes everything too far, but it gives me an idea of where I want to go sometimes, just by showing me where I don’t.

#7 Don’t try to turn it into something it’s not

Oh how I wish this image had a little more POW. A little zing. I’d love it if her entire face was showing and her hair was either more haphazard, or more perfectly fanned out. I wish there was more background showing. However, this is not a picture for a fashion magazine cover, but rather an image of my stepdaughter I took with my iPhone. We were on a walk and I spotted the purple flowers on the ground and told her to go lay in them. And because all of my stepdaughters do whatever I say, and think that I am totally magical, she raced right over and did it. Then an enchanted unicorn wandered up and flew us home. It’s drastically cropped, not necessarily for effect, but because she was giving me a snarl and wearing a very busy shirt. Is this a portrait? To me, it is. It’s a perfectly fine, authentic image and the subject herself loves it.
That is probably the most important thing when taking pictures of people.

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Levitation Photography – 7 Tips for Getting a Great Image

By: Danielle Ness

#Levitation#Photography#Floatingimages

Levitation images are magical! They draw the viewer in and make them think about what’s not quite right. If you search the internet for levitation photography, you will find amazing examples. However, levitation photography hasn’t become wildly popular yet. I assume it’s because levitation photography looks really difficult. I think most people would be surprised to learn that in its most basic form, it’s just compositing two or more images in editing software.
Like most portrait photographers, I shoot what I’m good at, and mostly stay inside my little portrait box. Recently, I decided I needed to get my creative juices flowing again and get out of my comfort zone. Levitation photography caught my eye. I learned the basics of how to create such images from posts like this: How to Shoot a Mysterious Levitation Photo.
My first levitation experiment was rough, to say the least. I knew the basics of how to accomplish a levitation photograph, but the images turned out mediocre. The best part though, was coming home after the shoot and writing down all the things I had learned to make my levitation images better for the next time. Below, you’ll see the lessons I learned, so you don’t have to learn the hard way.

Preparing for the Shoot

Tip #1 – Gather Your Equipment

In order to create a levitation photograph, you must have: a camera (that has manual focus capabilities), a tripod, a willing model, a strong fan (if your model has medium to long hair), and something to prop your model up (a stool, chair, or ladder). If you have a camera remote, bring that along too.

Tip #2 – Tell Your Model What to Wear

Clothing can make or break a levitation image.

• Solid color clothing is best. Prints and patterns can make it difficult if you need to clone out certain parts of clothing or liquefy fabric.
• Tell your model not to wear a jacket or sweater. Anytime the model lays upside-down, or sideways, the garment should be hanging down. But if he/she is laying on a stool, the jacket won’t be able to naturally hang leaving the image looking less realistic.
• If you’re going for a feminine levitation shot, long dresses, skirts, or extra flowing fabric can help create the look you’re going for.

Tip #3 – Shoot on a Cloudy Day

Sun and harsh shadows have the potential to create a lot of extra work for you in post-production. Editing out the stools and ladders, yet keeping a realistic shadow of your subject can turn into a job for Photoshop experts.

During the Shoot

Tip #4 – Shoot from a Low Angle

You will want to shoot from a low perspective to give the illusion that your subject is high in the air. However, be mindful of how low you are. If you are lower than the prop your model is standing/laying on, the prop will block parts of his/her body. It is safest to shoot in line with the top of the prop your model is on. Having your model situated at the very front of the prop will also lessen the chance of cutting into the body.

When I erased the garbage can, parts of the model’s body looks like it went missing since it was hiding behind the garbage can.

Tip #5 – Always Photograph the Empty Background

When preparing to photograph the frames that will create your final levitation image, follow these steps.

1. Set up your shot with your model in the frame.
2. Plan the angle you are going to shoot from and set up your camera on the tripod.
3. When your model is in place, choose the focus point on your subject.
4. Set your camera to manual focus and don’t touch it!
5. Take the different shots suggested below, in Tip #6, without moving your focus point or your camera.
6. After you’re sure you’ve captured all the images you need with your model and props, remove EVERYTHING from the scene. Photograph ONLY the empty background. This is the most important image you will take.

Tip #6 – Take Multiple Shots to Create One Image

The most basic levitation image is a composition of two or more frames. At the bare minimum, you will need at least a shot of the background and one of the model in that background.
Most great levitation images use a few more frames to add interest and make the final image more provoking. Here is a list of some shots you might want to take all without changing the focus and position of the camera:

1. Model on the prop(s) – the focus of this shot is on what the arms, legs, and body are doing.
2. Hair and facial expression – the focus of this shot is to capture the models expression and hair moving like it would naturally if the model was really in that position (floating straight up, blowing behind her, etc.). *Hair dryers and small fans are not strong enough to propel hair in specific directions. The longer and heavier the hair, the more powerful the fan needs to be.
3. Clothing – the focus of this shot is to capture the movement of the clothing (if needed). If your model is being pulled one direction, what direction should the loose fabric be moving?
4. Additional props – the focus of this shot is to photograph any extra props you want in the picture (if desired).
5. Empty background – see Tip #5 above to learn more about the importance of this shot.

Shot 2 is a perfect example of how a strong fan would have made the shot more realistic with her hair blowing behind her instead of being held up by an assistant. We did not need to photograph additional props for this image, therefore, we did not do a “Shot 4” for this composition.

After the Shoot

Tip #7 – Putting the Images Together

Many levitation photographers use Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop to create their final images. Regardless of your software choice, it is recommended to first color correct the series of shots so they are all the same. Lightroom has a great “sync” feature to make sure the exact same settings are applied to the entire series of images.
Next, open the images in an editing software like Photoshop. Start with the empty background image. Next, add in the main image of your model as a layer with a “Reveal All” mask. Simply use a black paintbrush on the mask to remove the props supporting your model. The end of this article describes each step in more detail. Repeat those steps for each frame you’d like to add. Finally, you can merge your layers and put the finishing touches on your final image. Then voila, you have a gorgeous piece of levitation art.

1 – Empty background shot is the bottom layer, with the model image above it. 2 – Select the model image and go to “Layers”> “Layer Mask” > “Reveal All”. 3 – Select the paintbrush, make sure it is black. 4 – Simply brush over the props that you don’t want to show in the final image.

Creating levitation images lets your fantasies become “realities”. Don’t let the laws of physics prohibit you from creating true art For more inspiration, check out these great levitation images to see what is possible.

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