1/750
f/5.6

This was an image shot for a client that manufactures high end robes. I wanted to capture the feeling of having a luxurious robe draped over your body in the warmth of the afternoon sun; to create a sense of peace and calm to associate with the robe. To achieve this image, I had the model walking slowly on the beach directly at the sun and the ocean and used a lens hood to keep my 70-200mm lens in the shadow and prevent lens flare.

1/500
f/8

This was an image that I hadn’t planned and never would have created had I not had my camera on my shoulder and ready to fire. We were on the ferry, leaving dock, as this entire scene started forming. The moody sky and the oily look of the water with the weathered dock was magical. But we were moving away quickly, so I got a series of shots as we left and the view kept changing. But this is the one. What’s crazy is that original file of this image is almost 17 megapixels and zooming in allows you to actually recognize the faces of those people waving goodbye.

1/80
f/8

This is a great example of when to use a really wide-angle lens. I stood right behind the chairs, and shot down, in order to get this perspective. The morning was very dark and gloomy with a thin layer of fog on the water. Sometimes, photographers shooting landscapes get sad when there’s no sun. But if you pay attention to light and dark, you have the potential to make a great black and white. In looking at my settings, I realize that for even greater depth of field, I probably could have increased my aperture another stop or so before the shutter speed got too slow to hand hold.

I recently came across this print of a very photogenic ex-girlfriend. I worked on this shot in the pool with her forever. It was in 2000 and I was just starting to get excited about photography on a pro level, shooting with a bad-ass Nikon D1. We were on vacation in absolute paradise; a little spot called Verana, in Yelapa, near Puerto Vallarta. I was learning how to balance flash with daylight all manually. She was very patient…. You should almost always use a fill flash in bright midday sunlight. Otherwise, you end up with dark shadows on people’s faces. You need to manually turn the flash ON with your small digital cameras that you think will flash whenever necessary. What most people don’t know is that your camera doesn’t know to use a flash in the daylight, because there is plenty of light. What you are doing is just filling in the dark shadows manually.

1/180
f/7.1

In keeping with the beach theme, here is a lovely example of when you might want to watch your exposure. As the sun sets, it creates long shadows which can fool a light meter and over expose your image. Here, my sister Jill, is mostly in shadow, as is the building wall in the background. What you want to do here is expose for the light, not the shadow (which is what your automatic setting will do). You need to manually adjust the settings or use your exposure compensation to drop it down 2/3 of a stop or so. At sunset, the light is much softer and warmer in tone. So the way it falls across her back here is much more flattering than it would be at midday.

1/400
f/11

I love this image for many reasons, especially the contrast in color and light. You might almost think I had the kids wearing those short on purpose. But I was just walking down a pier and these kids kept jumping off just as a wave would pass by, making it deep for only a moment. What I love are the brightly colored red and blue shorts, coupled with the dark shadows created by the angle I’m at in relation to my light source (the sun) and the boy jumping in the water. I am shooting perpendicular to my light source, such that the light falls across sideways, creating graduated shadows and visual depth.

In my travel photography workshop, we will discuss this image at length, including the settings used and why.