{"id":13868,"date":"2015-10-15T17:20:53","date_gmt":"2015-10-15T17:20:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.walkhighlands.co.uk\/news\/?p=13868"},"modified":"2021-01-19T13:49:25","modified_gmt":"2021-01-19T13:49:25","slug":"shooting-the-breeze-shooting-people-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.walkhighlands.co.uk\/news\/shooting-the-breeze-shooting-people-part-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Shooting the breeze \u2013 Shooting People (Part 1)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"DavidIn the first half of a 2 part series, David Lintern looks at photographing people in the outdoors.<\/em><\/p>\n

So, shooting people \u2013 instantly more complicated than what we\u2019ve looked at up until now, with all their confounded moving around and cluttering up the scenery! Yes, I know it\u2019s annoying, but I\u2019m not talking about that kind of annoying, or that kind of shooting \u2013 a camera, ladies and gentleman, use a camera!<\/p>\n

I\u2019m going to concentrate on settings, position and lighting in what follows \u2013 there\u2019ll be more to come later on some other aspects. The second caveat is that while I spend a lot of time photographing landscapes on my own, what I really love to do is photograph people in the landscape, to try and illustrate a relationship with the places they love. So I\u2019m coming from that sort of approach. <\/p>\n

Let\u2019s start with something simple, that many of us take \u2013 the momento summit shot.<\/p>\n

\"iso<\/a>

iso 200, 28mm, f9, 1\/500th sec. Pleased as punch on the way to Gharbh-Bheinn<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Here\u2019s Tony, a regular Walkhighlands forum user, on a Skye Corbett I joined him for. Tony is a keen (and good) photographer, and I had the notion that he might not have many of himself on the hills because he\u2019s always behind the lens, so it would be a fun thing to turn the tables a little. It\u2019s a very conventional shot stylistically, but here\u2019s what works technically: The shutter is fast because people move. Yes, even Tony, who\u2019s happy to be the subject for a change! The desired effect here is to freeze action and a faster shutter guarantees that. The big depth of field (f9) and wide angle (28mm) focal length works in this case as it means there\u2019s plenty of context to the shot – I took care not to crop the cairn and we are in an amazing place – but it wouldn\u2019t have been so effective had Tony not been isolated from the background by siting him against the sky. This way he stands out\u2026 which he should, as the photo is really about him being there. Lastly, the photo is lit from the left, which means his face is not in shadow, (especially important because he\u2019s wearing a brimmed hat). Lighting is key for all photography, but a lack of thought about it when shooting people is especially obvious. Even with today\u2019s frankly amazing digital cameras, don\u2019t expect to shoot into the sun and not get a silhouette. On the other hand, go ahead and shoot into the sun all you like if that\u2019s what you want \u2013 it can be very effective. <\/p>\n

\"iso50,<\/a>

iso50, 24mm, f20, 1\/80th sec. Tired on the summit of Sg\u00f9rr nan Gillean<\/p><\/div>\n

This is the end of the Rum Cuillin Traverse<\/a>. Here, the figure is nicely highlighted against the translucent sea, and the grass and foreground rocks are picked out to add interest. Due to the fact we were both shattered and moving very slowly, I got lucky here and the relatively slow shutter was enough to freeze movement. I moved into position beforehand and had time to adjust, so there\u2019s no excuse for my sluggish shutter speed settings. There is, however, a reason – beyond being tired and dehydrated. I\u2019ve chosen a silly high f-number (and therefore a compensating low shutter) because I\u2019m trying to control the points of the \u2018star\u2019 \u2013 that big one in the sky called the Sun. At lower F numbers the sun can get a bit squishy and ill defined, and I wanted the Sunstars as defined as possible. In this case I don\u2019t mind a bit of lens flare (those bubbles around the Sun) \u2013 it kind of adds to the atmosphere. If you\u2019ve got the hang of these photo articles, you\u2019ll be asking \u2013 why didn\u2019t he just up the ISO and shutter a bit and not risk motion blur? Good question, for which I have no good answer, other than \u2013 ISO was a fiddle to access from the menu on this camera, and I was a broken man by this point!<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve said it before, and here\u2019s a good place to repeat the message. Don\u2019t rely on your zoom \u2013 move around your subject, find the best position for them composed in or against the landscape. You\u2019ll need to get yourself into position physically before they do, which may mean walking, running or whatever ahead (or behind) and laying what my regular victims have come to dread as a \u2018camera trap\u2019. After a while, this becomes so intuitive you\u2019ll forget how you ever did things differently. I personally love the challenges it brings (I can\u2019t, however, speak for my subjects!). Specifically, don\u2019t expect your companions to find their optimum position in this wonderful landscape for you. The world looks different where they are. And they are probably thinking about their lunch.<\/p>\n

\"iso<\/a>

iso 160, 17mm, f10, 1\/400th sec. Fogbog on a winter ascent of Cruach Adrain<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Here\u2019s an example of where the landscape is a limiting factor in my efforts to light and position. I have moved ahead, and the subject is sited perfectly at the edge of a fog bow (\u2018stay there, please, don\u2019t move!\u2019) and he\u2019s wonderfully lit\u2026 but so am I. Sometimes, standing on the top of a hill, there isn\u2019t anywhere else to put myself in order to avoid shadows. It\u2019s why I often try side lighting, and one of the instances in which commercial photographers (which I\u2019m not) may choose to use flash. Generally I\u2019d avoid showing you a photo with my own shadow like the plague, but in this case I don\u2019t mind \u2013 it shows what a spontaneous shot it was. Informality is definitely a good thing in hill shots – just don\u2019t make a habit of casting your own shadow in every shot, and avoid casting a shadow on your subject!<\/p>\n

\"ISO100,<\/a>

ISO100, 24mm, f7.1, 15th sec. Andy shows us the ropes<\/p><\/div>\n

It might be useful to look at a couple of examples taken to illustrate specific stories, in both cases for magazine editorial. Here we have Andy, an outdoor leader based in the Cairngorms, demonstrating efficient throw-bag technique for river rescue. As you can see, it\u2019s daytime, overcast, and a dynamic scene. I\u2019ve used a low ISO, a medium depth of field, and quite a slow shutter speed. I\u2019d have preferred a slightly lower f-number, but the subject was moving around quickly and my relative distance to him was dynamic also. Despite its imperfections, I quite like this photo because it conveys the speed required for river rescue. In this instance, the blurring caused by using a relatively slow shutter speed on a fast moving subject served the story well: If one needs to deploy and then repack a throw bag, it\u2019s good to be able to do it very quickly \u2013 somebody\u2019s life may depend on it. Often images of people outdoors are posed and therefore static, but blurring from movement isn\u2019t always a bad thing, especially in faster outdoor activities like running and biking. Moving outdoors is what we do. I\u2019ve still to perfect the classic moving-camera-blurred-background bike shot, sadly.<\/p>\n

\"ISO160,<\/a>

ISO160, 67mm, f4, 250th sec. Chatting at the foot of Meall Ceann na Creige<\/p><\/div>\n

As is now something of a tradition in these photo articles, I\u2019ll finish on a photo that didn\u2019t work at all, but maybe rounds up a few of the things I\u2019ve touched on here. I still get annoyed with myself for this shot! Why? Well\u2026 what is the eye drawn to in this photo? And what is in focus? If you\u2019re not sure, click on the image and take a closer look.<\/p>\n

This is mountaineering instructor Sam Owens briefing Walk Highland\u2019s very own natural history columnist Ben<\/a> at the base of a beautiful scramble in Torridon last summer. Sam is on the left, and slightly out of focus, whereas Ben is sharp. If I had to choose, I would argue that it\u2019s much more important that Sam is in focus, not Ben, as he is the more \u2018active\u2019 or dynamic part of this image. The image isn\u2019t 100% bad \u2013 the background isn\u2019t as important as the interaction, so that\u2019s deliberately knocked out of focus, due to the low f-number. Secondly, the shutter speed is fast enough to freeze the motion of Sam\u2019s hand, which in this instance is positive \u2013 blurring might have been distracting (the hand is not important, the briefing is). But a clear fail on my part, not to have the protagonist in focus, which means the image is not usable for anything other than \u2018how not to take a photo\u2019. It really bothers me that Sam\u2019s hand is barely in frame, too – bloody amateur (me, not him!) How would I improve this shot? Either by refocusing on Sam at f4, or by widening the focal plane, say up to f5.6, to make sure I got both people sharp. How far I am away from the subjects is also crucial here, but that\u2019s for another time\u2026<\/p>\n

To read more about the building blocks of photography, see M for manual<\/a><\/p>\n

To read more about composing your shot, see framing your photos<\/a><\/p>\n

To read more about shooting outdoors at night, see Night Photography<\/a><\/p>\n

Want to improve your landscape and nature photography? Check out our listings for Scottish landscape, wildlife and nature photography workshops, hides and holidays<\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the first half of a 2 part series, David Lintern looks at photographing people in the outdoors. So, shooting people \u2013 instantly more complicated than what we\u2019ve looked at up until now, with all their confounded moving around and cluttering up the scenery! Yes, I know it\u2019s annoying, but I\u2019m not talking about that kind of annoying, or that kind of shooting \u2013 a camera, ladies and gentleman, use a camera! I\u2019m going to concentrate on settings, position and lighting in what follows \u2013 there\u2019ll be more to come later on some other aspects. The second caveat is that…<\/span> <\/p>\n

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