tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36455941470363292342012-02-15T22:17:59.845-08:00Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.comBlogger191100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-1846734994062224632010-08-08T21:46:00.000-07:002010-08-08T22:26:54.130-07:00

Last night I went to the Bomb the Music Industry! concert at the University of California, San Diego's Che Cafe. They played with Skamakazi and San Diego's own Grim Luck! It was my second time seeing Bomb the Music Industry! at the Che Cafe, and I knew it would be a good venue for photos. I decided to bring my camera (a Canon Rebel T1i) because it's the only concert venue I know of that doesn't

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-72628538681874845502010-08-08T21:44:00.000-07:002010-08-08T22:02:32.014-07:00

Last night I went to the Bomb the Music Industry! concert at the University of California, San Diego's Che Cafe. They played with Skamakazi and San Diego's own Grim Luck! It was my second time seeing Bomb the Music Industry! at the Che Cafe, and I knew it would be a good venue for photos. I decided to bring my camera (a Canon Rebel T1i) because it's the only concert venue I know of that doesn't

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-57384013746487897242010-08-08T21:39:00.000-07:002010-08-08T22:02:36.535-07:00

Last night I went to the Bomb the Music Industry! concert at the University of California, San Diego's Che Cafe. They played with Skamakazi and San Diego's own Grim Luck! It was my second time seeing Bomb the Music Industry! at the Che Cafe, and I knew it would be a good venue for photos. I decided to bring my camera (a Canon Rebel T1i) because it's the only concert venue I know of that doesn't

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-70899815984232406582010-08-08T21:38:00.000-07:002010-08-08T22:02:49.575-07:00

Last night I went to the Bomb the Music Industry! concert at the University of California, San Diego's Che Cafe. They played with Skamakazi and San Diego's own Grim Luck! It was my second time seeing Bomb the Music Industry! at the Che Cafe, and I knew it would be a good venue for photos. I decided to bring my camera (a Canon Rebel T1i) because it's the only concert venue I know of that doesn't

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-271393728865128882010-08-08T21:33:00.000-07:002010-08-08T22:02:55.045-07:00

Last night I went to the Bomb the Music Industry! concert at the University of California, San Diego's Che Cafe. They played with Skamakazi and San Diego's own Grim Luck! It was my second time seeing Bomb the Music Industry! at the Che Cafe, and I knew it would be a good venue for photos. I decided to bring my camera (a Canon Rebel T1i) because it's the only concert venue I know of that doesn't

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-25319991868406396612010-08-08T21:31:00.000-07:002010-08-08T22:02:58.975-07:00

Last night I went to the Bomb the Music Industry! concert at the University of California, San Diego's Che Cafe. They played with Skamakazi and San Diego's own Grim Luck! It was my second time seeing Bomb the Music Industry! at the Che Cafe, and I knew it would be a good venue for photos. I decided to bring my camera (a Canon Rebel T1i) because it's the only concert venue I know of that doesn't

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-76118856090021418232010-08-08T21:29:00.000-07:002010-08-08T22:03:02.174-07:00

Last night I went to the Bomb the Music Industry! concert at the University of California, San Diego's Che Cafe. They played with Skamakazi and San Diego's own Grim Luck! It was my second time seeing Bomb the Music Industry! at the Che Cafe, and I knew it would be a good venue for photos. I decided to bring my camera (a Canon Rebel T1i) because it's the only concert venue I know of that doesn't

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-20090113666763634882010-08-08T21:21:00.000-07:002010-08-08T22:03:05.861-07:00

Last night I went to the Bomb the Music Industry! concert at the University of California, San Diego's Che Cafe. They played with Skamakazi and San Diego's own Grim Luck! It was my second time seeing Bomb the Music Industry! at the Che Cafe, and I knew it would be a good venue for photos. I decided to bring my camera (a Canon Rebel T1i) because it's the only concert venue I know of that

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-8675506571358122242010-08-08T20:58:00.000-07:002010-08-08T22:01:13.782-07:00

Last night I went to the Bomb the Music Industry! concert at the University of California, San Diego's Che Cafe. They played with Skamakazi and San Diego's own Grim Luck! It was my second time seeing Bomb the Music Industry! at the Che Cafe, and I knew it would be a good venue for photos. I decided to bring my camera (a Canon Rebel T1i) because it's the only concert venue I know of that

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-52098034910778381662008-07-18T16:27:00.000-07:002008-07-18T22:28:30.816-07:00

An interesting technique I learned from a high school friend is the "reverse lens macro." Basically, it takes advantage of the fact that a lens works (i.e., focuses light) in both directions.This technique allows you to focus on a subject that is very close to the camera (within a few inches), closer than with a regularly-mounted lens. This can be used as an effective cheap macro solution.

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-82792068420280021562008-07-17T21:04:00.000-07:002008-07-17T22:28:57.009-07:00

I find that my pictures tend to look better with a slight vignette (when the corners are darker than the center of the picture) because it draws the attention to the center:In this post, I'll discuss three separate ways to create a vignette effect in Photoshop, with a few pros and cons of each. I'll go over the steps briefly, so please email me or leave a comment if you want more detailed

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-36987441534953692852007-12-21T19:26:00.000-08:002007-12-21T19:53:45.853-08:00

Yesterday I posted an article (Photographing Smoke) about taking pictures of smoke. This article will explain how to add color to your smoke pictures. This was the picture I ended with yesterday:1. Open your picture file in Photoshop (or a similar program).2. Create a new layer.3. Use the brush tool to paint colors over your smoke in a new layer (color can be applied in other ways too; try

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-91133358560980547082007-12-20T20:05:00.000-08:002007-12-20T21:10:15.538-08:00

One thing I've been doing a lot lately is photographing smoke. I think it makes some really interesting abstract shapes, especially when you get a really simple shape in the smoke. And it's not all that hard to do; it just takes a little patience.Ideally, you should have a camera with flash, manual focus, and shutter speed control. If you don't have some of those features, you can probably

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-39630750167275455002007-08-09T00:11:00.000-07:002008-12-09T22:53:25.441-08:00

Sometimes it's cool to mix up your photography by experimenting with different angles. Rather than taking your pictures straight on, try moving yourself to a different position until you find a different perspective on the scene. Instead of taking a frontal picture of a group of people, maybe find a balcony above that you can take the picture from. Sometimes you'll end up with some pretty good

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-89521728213445250652007-08-02T23:19:00.000-07:002008-12-09T22:53:25.606-08:00

This is just a quick post to show you the opposite of my previous post. In the last post (Working with Slow Shutter Speeds), you learned how to leave the shutter open longer to expose the camera to more light and create photographs that show the passing of time.High speed photography can be used to capture very fast motion, while still giving a clear picture (see the example at the end of the

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-63558344491893727132007-07-30T23:47:00.001-07:002008-12-09T22:53:26.272-08:00

Many digital cameras (from digital SLRs to simple point-and-shoot cameras) now include an option to adjust the shutter speed, or how long the shutter of the camera is open. This allows you to capture not just a moment in time, but maybe a few seconds, or more, in your pictures.The above picture is of the Champs-Élysées, a very busy street, in Paris, taken from the Arc de Triomphe. For this shot

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-69837542276069484602007-07-28T23:31:00.000-07:002008-12-09T22:53:27.725-08:00

Almost everyone who has picked up a camera has heard of the rule of thirds, but not everyone uses it when composing their photographs. And while some photographers write it off as a trite technique, there's no denying that it can improve your pictures.The idea is to envision a 3x3 grid when looking through the viewfinder of your camera. Imagine where the grid's lines would cross, and place your

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-751128218406132222007-07-28T18:07:00.000-07:002008-12-09T22:53:28.396-08:00

So I'll start this blog off with a quick post about using the blend mode known as hard light. If you've used the layer feature in Adobe Photoshop, you probably know that there are a multitude of blend modes, from normal to overlay to soft light, among many others. These blend modes can be used for a variety of effects, including special effects as well as simple photo touch-up.I like to use the

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3645594147036329234.post-78168453278679761642007-07-28T17:30:00.000-07:002007-07-28T23:36:30.425-07:00

Well, I decided to start up with another blog again. My idea for this blog is to post pictures I've taken/edited (only a few at a time) and write about maybe what's in the picture, any special techniques I used to take it, any editing techniques I used, etc. Maybe I'll post some before and after shots. I hope to make this into a blog that can help other people produce better-looking

Matt Soavenoreply@blogger.com1