My last post you found out that I like all board sports, especially skateboarding. From this Blog anyone would guess that I love photography; I photograph things that interest me. In this post I am sharing tips with young photographers / beginner photographers.

The photograph you see above I took this summer at the skate park in Round Rock Texas. It’s very sad that I still don’t know the name of that skate park and I have been there almost everyday for the past week. It’s a photograph of a skateboarder in action. After skating, I got my camera out got on my skateboard and started taking images; all of a sudden everyone was excited about landing the tricks. I captured this image shooting in continuous mode with my Nikon D70.

There is a lot of talk about sports photography right now. What camera we should use, shutter speed, when should you turn off and don’t turn off the Vibration Reduction a.k.a the VR (if you have that function in your lens); then you say to me Dwayne what the hell are you talking about. I am providing you the simple tips to you need as a young photographer / beginner photographer to get to that point. How I did it and how I still do it. Tip number one shoot what you love. Example you probably would never see me on the side lines shooting at a Curling tournament because I don’t find sliding a circular block on a piece of ice and guiding it with a stick exciting (but you probably could find me there if I got contacted by ESPN and they were talking my universal $ language). But then some would say Dwayne you shot the Michael Jordan at his Celebrity Invitational Golf Tournament and golf is just walking around hitting a ball on a stick; the difference is that I played golf and I grew to love it. So until it snows in Bahamas and I get to do some curling, no curling for me. “Lets get back on topic Mr. ADD!” Don’t be afraid to take out the camera. Chances are that your are going to have everyone looking at you the minute take your camera out; just be the rockstar and photograph rockstar images. I remember reading an article about sports photography; “Photographers must react as quickly as the players” http://www.photographytips.com/page.cfm/97 on an older site Photography Tips.com. That saying is so true. Feel the energy, get into the sport (that’s why I recommend you shooting what you like), react quickly and enjoy the moments. The photograph you see above I connect with the skater looking through the lens made me feel as if I was about to stick the trick. Most important, use what you have. I feel in love with photography when I took images of my friends at school using point and shoots, build up a bond with the camera; you might read articles saying that you need 80 – 200m lens, super- long telephoto lens, you might need a Nikon D3, D300 or D700, but honestly what you need at this point to get familiar with shooting in different environments, building up your character and simply enjoying photographing right now. To rap this up, at the beginners stage you need to get familiar with yourself holding the camera, being behind the camera and connecting with what ever you are shooting.

How should these tips help your photography?

* You learn why it’s important to photograph what you love.

* How to connect with whatever you are shooting with by feeling the energy.

* Hopefully you will start taking your camera out anywhere and feel comfortable doing so.

Useful Links:

(I want you to get familiar with photography terminology; even though we might not use some things as yet it’s nice to know about them so when we do we can get into action.)

- What is shutter speed? [here’s the link]

- What is Vibration Reduction or VR lens? [here’s the link]

- What is a telephoto lens? [here’s the link]

- How to shoot in continuous mode on a digital camera? [here’s the link]

- Interested a Nikon D70? Think about buying the Nikon D90 it the latest one. [here’s the link]

I hope the holidays are treating you right and I hope you enjoyed spending time with your family and love ones; the seasons are meant to be enjoyed so enjoy them. This was my first Christmas away from my family back in Bahamas, however they know I love them dearly. I spent my Christmas in Austin Texas opening the most presents I ever opened at once in my life at my girlfriend’s house with her family. The two photographs you see above are a little glimpse of what’s been going on in my life ☺. Both were photographed with the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W90. It’s a great camera by the way. Only thing I dislike about it, and dislike about every Sony camera is that they don’t use mini USB. Everyone knows they do it so when you lost a your cord you have to purchase a new one made by Sony. It sucks, but I guess they think it adds value to their products, it you want to look at it like that. The two photographs you see above I call my “life ya life” photographs ☺. That’s me enjoying bowling with my gf and her little sister (just me in the photograph though ☺, and yes Lucy I know I could have been out of the cold in the Bahamas on the beach). The second is probably everything I need in my life in one image (except a few plane tickets and a Nikon D300 or D70, in a few years that will be except some yacht fuel and a Nikon D3x). I was about to change my grip tape on my board for the first time. It came out pretty nice. The magazines you see are my favorites, Photoshop Magazine and Layers Magazine. Go and sign up now! [here’s the link]

Talking about fuel I provided a website link my favorite channel on TV, Fuel TV (at the bottom of the post in the useful link section). I also enjoyed trying tearing up the skatepark. If you didn’t know now you know. Yes, other than photography I do love all board sports, most favored skateboarding. I still have plans in my head of getting one down in the Bahamas someday we need one; if anyone reads this and has a connection or wants to build a park down in the Bahamas for the kids please don’t hesitate contacting me, I will find you locations and we can talk business you provide the money and I provide my time then we are equal ☺.

About my “live ya life” photographs?

People come to my Blog because that this is most chill, sickest place to chill out and read sweet stories by the planets Martian. Not a Blog bogging you down with technical shit to make your life much more complicated than it already is. I photograph to create memories, I think I know the camera pretty well so I provide simple tips and techniques to make photography enjoyable. I am also running on with my head so big because I love my readers so lets get to the point. My “live ya life” photographs were taken with the point and shoot W90 by Sony; what was I thinking? Well the first one of me bowling, I wasn’t thinking of anything because my girlfriends little sister took it and touched it up in lightroom (soon save enough money to purchase 2.0). The second photograph I used composition; learn about that on my other post [here’s the link] it was about portrait but read it and fit the gaps I will provide more information about that at a more appropriate time. To sum this up, Merry Christmas, I hope you got everything you wanted, enjoy photography and enjoy the rest of the holidays!

Useful links:

Buy a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W90 [here’s the link]

My favorite channel! Fuel Tv [here’s the link]

Enjoy skateboarding at Skateboard.com [here’s the link]

P.S. Feel free to send me an email about your Christmas, how it went. If you have great photographs you took and would love to share them on the Blog let me know and I will pick a day to display all of the readers photographs photographed over the holidays.

How To Shoot A Photograph At Night Without Using Flash, The photograph of the model you see above is one of my first roommates (Joel Boyd) at the Savannah College of Art and Design. Yes Joel I know you were annoyed by me asking to take photographs of you, but thank you for helping me share my stories with the world.
In this article, I will tell you how I went about with the shoot at the Savannah College Of Art and Design, teaching you how to take a photograph of a model at night without using flash. I used a Canon 5D to photograph this image without flash and you can what technique I used on the Canon 5D from yesterdays post [here’s the link], and in this post I will teach you how to take that photograph at night without using flash with a point and shoot camera.

Once again I am going to stress telling you to take photographs of your friends, it really helps you develop an eye for photographing people so when it’s your time to shoot the real models you will feel confident ☺ (believe me everything is possible with confidence, well almost anything). At the cafeteria I asked a friend of mine (Scott Vanarsdale) to use his Canon 5D so I could practice night portraits without using flash. It was my first year playing around with such an advance camera. This night was a great night for me because I was able to get two photographs I am really proud of; the portrait of Joel and the landscape photograph from yesterday’s post.

In order to take a photograph like this you will need a few crazy friends that will allow you to take their photographs ☺, you will need a tripod and if you have a dslr camera use yesterday’s post; if you have a point and shoot you can follow me with this post. I am going to teach you how to practice taking the photograph without flash using a point and shoot digital camera. At that time I was playing around with the camera getting used to it. To take a photograph like this one at night of a model without flash you use the same technique as taking the one of the landscape in yesterdays post. The only difference is using the ambient light around you to help light the model. When I first starting using my Canon SD630 I could I always wondered how to take a photograph at night without flash, and not getting that blur. To stop getting that blur when I used my point and shoot camera at night I attached a tripod to my camera [buy a tripod], turned the flash off, turned the timer on and then let the magic happen. It’s simple it’s easy and it can make you enjoy your photographs and my photography for you enjoyable.

How should these tips help your photography?

* You learn to take photographs with your point and shoot without flash at night.

* You learn that it is possible to get that image without blur at night when you turn your flash off.

* You remember that photography is made simple and enjoyable for beginners ands professionals with a few extra tips.

Useful Links:

-Buy a Canon SD630 Power shot [here’s the link]

-Buy a Canon 5D [here’s the link] (Save $1,910.95)

- How to use a tripod. [here’s the link]

- Buy a tripod [here’s the link]

This image along with the image along with the other model from Switzerland laying out on the beach are the first two photographs I loved and made with my title as a lifestyle photographer. Both of the photographs were only made for practice. You might call this one a lifestyle photography others might call it a portrait I call it a beautiful image. Thank God I used a beautiful model, other wise it wouldn’t be a beautiful image *InsertDT’sSillyFace*

I will forever keep this composition on lock. When I mention composition I’m talking about the placement of the subjects within your image (for those who don’t know what it is ofc).

I’ve been shooting a lot! The only way you are going to figure out what compositions work for you is to go out and shoot a lot more. But, compositions are definitely something to think about when making an image, especially a portrait.

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DT.

@DwayneTucker add me to your Twitter now.

This is a Photograph Of The View From The Bridge Connecting Nassau With Paradise Island Bahamas.

As you can see, over time, I’VE CAME A LONG WAY! But, without days like these I would be no where. I still love this photograph and I will always love this photograph. Days like these, photographing for the love of photography, are the days that made it possible for me to do compensational work.

When I did this I had nowhere near the amount of stress of I have now from that view finder being to my eye. If though I said I do my work for me, I really have to do it to please the people that puts the bread on the table. It’s funny to me that, that’s the way it works. Looking at it from another angle, I still did it to please the person who used to put the food on the table, and I used it as a reminder who why she was paying so much gad damn money to send me to school – my mother.

I loved afternoon’s like these. That summer my friend Andrew D’Albenas and I would take his boat out and photograph the afternoons away. This particular evening I went with him and my brother-in-law. We docked the boat to get some conch salad underneath the first bridge that connected Paradise Island, Bahamas with the capital. After we ate we walked to the top of it for me to make this image (I enhanced it later using Lightroom.)

It still amazing me how many things I see in this photograph I would have done differently if I did it today. I’m able to identify my preferences because I push myself every day to get better, that’s all I can do from this point. With that said, I wouldn’t be surprised if in five years, five months I’m able to identify the things I would do differently if I made that image today.

At the time, composition was in my mind. In fact it’s the word I preach the most to the photographers that look up to me. I don’t know what my exact thoughts might have been for this photograph, but if I was to guess it would have probably been to relate / bringing the attention of the artificial light turning on with the sun setting within the distance.

I could really care less about what was actually going on in my mind, but I what I do care if about is that if you get the message what I’m saying in this article. I want you to do it for the love of doing it. As photographers I want us to go out and make more pictures, say fuck what everyone else thinks, don’t be afraid to be judge from what you make when you photograph, but, at the same time listen to when others share their thoughts with you. You’re going to become a better photographer when you do it for the love of it!

P.S. I mentioned the headache photo shoots etc. to please the clients. If I didn’t love seeing them happy I wouldn’t stress myself; I still do it for the love of it.

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DT.

@DwayneTucker add me to your Twitter now.

The photograph you see above is the photograph that made me fall in love with photography. I owe that moment to the rest of my life.

My later years of high-school bringing a digital camera to school was banned. I was in love with photography even then, so I had to figure out a way for me to still take photographs. I joined the yearbook club. I knew if I joined the club I would still be able to photograph. My assignments were usually the after school sports events (whenever I wasn’t playing basketball). In my free time I usually walked around on lunch breaks when I wanted to get away from everyone, and I would photograph.

I’m pretty sure I was using the Canon PowerShot A590IS 8MP Digital Camera with 4x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom at the time; it was the camera the school bought for us to use.

At that time all I knew was to leave the camera on the green icon, push the button and the camera would automatically do it’s thing. I knew nothing about lighting etc.

I was outside of the art room and at the perfect timing with the sun lighting these flowers I point and shoot – POW!

I shit you not I was SO excited about that photograph. On the weekends I worked at a place called Geoffrey Jones & Co. (A company for all GE home appliances in Bahamas) and I couldn’t stop talking to the staff about the photograph I made that week. My goal was to some how get it to Microsoft for them to use within their desktop background selection.

The excitement I grabbed from this photograph made me wanted to pursue photography as a hobby, now it’s my job.

I would have never discovered that excitement if it weren’t for me wanting to photograph something. When you’re done reading this get up off of your butt and photograph something.

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DT.

@DwayneTucker add me to your Twitter now.

Michael Jordan at the Michael Jordan Celebrity Invitational Golf Tournament on Paradise Island, Bahamas at The One and Only Ocean Club’s golf course.

This is one of these portraits that I’m happy with. It was a cool shoot over there at the Ocean Club Golf Course.

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DT.

@DwayneTucker add me on your Twitter.

As the mentors tell me, “The difference between a photographer and a great photographer is that a great photographer always has a camera with him/her.” I’m in this to be one of the greatest that has ever done it; therefore I always keep a camera on me, even if it’s the one from my cell phone.

The image above was shoot at the old Green Parrot / Hurricane Hole Marina on Paradise Island, Bahamas. I took a weekend trip back to the island for a bit and went to dinner with a friend of mine. After dinner we sat at the end of the boardwalk and this image was our view.

It’s easy for you to make a photograph like this, no tricks need, not even a tripod. Back track, back track, okay maybe a tripod is better for to take an image like this using ambient light. In fact using a tripod is the correct way to make an image like this. However, the great photographer didn’t have a tripod at all times only a camera.

Okay let’s get down to the dirty. If you don’t have a tripod find something to rest your camera on where it won’t move; if you have the tripod mount your camera on it. For this image I placed my camera on the boardwalk with my lens cap underneath the lens to level it. Learn purpose of the f-stops, iso and shutter speeds. A quick little lesson: The lower the f-stop example 2.8 what I used to make this image the more light comes into the photograph, the lower the ISO the better quality of the photograph or we can say less less noise in the photograph (I’m a fan of noise but not for this image), the slower the shutter speed the more light that comes into the camera and the higher the shutter speed the less light goes into the camera.

With that said, for this image / for you to photograph an image like this one using ambient light (available light) use a lower f-stop, and a slower shutter speed. Easy right? Go and make some photos!

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DT.

@DwayneTucker add me on Twitter.