Photo Tutorials...

[Chuck Gardner]

To follow up on comments in my photo threads I put together a new tutorial showing how to enhance a digital photo with a few post processing steps in Photoshop. I did it in PDF format so it can be downloaded and printed for reference. It is at http://super.nova.org/DPR/Technique/PostProcessing.pdf Warning: it is a 4.6 MB file

I've also got about 40 other photo tutorials at http://super.nova.org/DPR/ Most are written for people seeking to learn studio lighting who use DSLRs and already have a basic understanding of camera operations but there are some on compostion and basic technique such as how digital exposure works, using hot shoe flash and to hold a camera steady. If you are a Canon shooter I've got an entire section on how to use the Canon wireless flash system effectively.

I did a brief intro thread, but here is more background...

My interest in photography dates back to high school when getting involved in SCUBA diving convinced me to buy a Nikonos II u/w camera to share what I saw -- not too many people did SCUBA in 1969 But I got hooked on photography, sold my dive gear and bought cameras. A few years laterin 1972 I was fortunate to find a job working for a top wedding photographer named Monte Zucker, which is where I learned much of what I know about lighting, posing, etc. I didn't like the wedding business job much and through another quirk of fate got a job at National Geographic in the photo labs making photo compliations for maps and reproducing photos for the magazine and books. From there I got into printing, which uses a lot of photographic technology and went digital long before consumer digital cameras hit the market. For the past 25 years I've managed various parts of the USIA/State Dept. printing operations, spending 11 of those years in the Philippines. There I renewed my interest in diving and underwater photography but didn't do much above water shooting until getting my first digital in 2001 re-kindled my interest which waned in the early 1980s when my overseas move forced me to give up my B&W darkroom I was using for Zone System work.

Because I could scan my film on high-end scanners at work I didn't buy my first digital camera until 2001. It was just a Kodak point and shoot. My next one was a Minolta D7Hi. When I moved back to the States for the final time in 2001 I contemplated doing photography again as a post retirement business and bought a set of studio lights and a Canon 20D and lenses to test the water. I started participating of photo forums and writing critiques which morphed into tutorials, which is how my tutorial web site evolved. But after 25 years as a bureaucrat decided I didn't have the desire or motivation to run a photo business and most of the shooting I've done for the past few years has been for our church, neighbors or on trips. In addition to my tutorial site I've got another where I post my photos: http://bossa.nova.org it is mostly a collection of my earlier digital stuff because I haven't found time to update it.

I've known the Lilley clan for about 10 years now by virtue of meeting and marrying Belinda, who they sponsored through medical school and informally adopted as a member of their family. That's why I'm happy to contribute here anyway I can be useful. I know squat about fishing - except observing how they behave underwater from my diving experience -- so my only contribution can be here in the photography forum.

If you check out my tutorials and find they don't address questions or problems you have feel free to send me an e-mail. I often get questions by e-mail from people who visit the tutorial site and several of the tutorials are actually recycled e-mail exchanges.

Chuck Gardner

[Kansas Fly Fisher]

Chuck - welcome to the forum and I, for one, will be hounding you about questions. I've downloaded your PDF file and will start working on some of my photos today. I'm sure many questions will follow.

Thank you for your interest in sharing this information.

John

[Danoinark]

Chuck, we really appreciate your contributions and look forward to

reading more about this interesting topic. Thanks

Dano