http://www.benjaminarthur.com Your Picture. My Passion Fri, 14 Jan 2011 08:18:46 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 http://www.benjaminarthur.com/blog/learn-to-shoot-in-manual-mode-m//comment-page-1#comment-546 Pish Fri, 14 Jan 2011 08:18:46 +0000 http://www.benjaminarthur.com/?p=559#comment-546 Benj, I'm loving your blogs!  We did work together on many occasions in the early days - and I remember both of us experimenting like mad with the different modes and getting highly frustrated!  Infact I only use manual when I'm in the studio and I can control the lights - I obtain the exact shadow, dimness, half light whatever with the lights and then 'twiddle' the camera to replicate the light.  If you shot the special light just using shutter or the aperture setting the picture result is completely different.  Studio lights are a totally different kettle of fish to natural light.  I still find it hard to read natural light unless I have a fixed lens.  It's something I must get to grips with. Another point is that sometimes when I am with a client, they look at my 5 year old Canon 5D and tell me they've just bought a Mark II or whatever (probably £5k body only).  However  if they've got such an expensive camera why do they hire a photographer?  No amount of money can buy a creative eye AND expensive cameras don't take good pictures - its in the operator knowing how to read and understand light and their camera.  You should control the camera and the camera should not control you. Benj, I'm loving your blogs!  We did work together on many occasions in the early days – and I remember both of us experimenting like mad with the different modes and getting highly frustrated!  Infact I only use manual when I'm in the studio and I can control the lights – I obtain the exact shadow, dimness, half light whatever with the lights and then 'twiddle' the camera to replicate the light.  If you shot the special light just using shutter or the aperture setting the picture result is completely different.  Studio lights are a totally different kettle of fish to natural light.  I still find it hard to read natural light unless I have a fixed lens.  It's something I must get to grips with.
Another point is that sometimes when I am with a client, they look at my 5 year old Canon 5D and tell me they've just bought a Mark II or whatever (probably £5k body only).  However  if they've got such an expensive camera why do they hire a photographer?  No amount of money can buy a creative eye AND expensive cameras don't take good pictures – its in the operator knowing how to read and understand light and their camera.  You should control the camera and the camera should not control you.

]]> http://www.benjaminarthur.com/blog/a-talent//comment-page-1#comment-529 Learn to shoot in Manual mode “M” « Benjamin Arthur | Photography Wed, 12 Jan 2011 00:31:51 +0000 http://www.benjaminarthur.com/?p=289#comment-529 [...] with and I'm not a camera techie by any means! An encounter 6 months ago with my friend Paul Pacey in his studio revealed that he shot in Manual mode almost all the time. I was convinced by [...] [...] with and I'm not a camera techie by any means! An encounter 6 months ago with my friend Paul Pacey in his studio revealed that he shot in Manual mode almost all the time. I was convinced by [...]

]]> http://www.benjaminarthur.com/blog/learn-from-the-old-masters//comment-page-1#comment-520 Pish Mon, 10 Jan 2011 13:23:12 +0000 http://www.benjaminarthur.com/?p=456#comment-520 I'm absolutely with you there.  Any budding photographer should completely forget going to photography classes and instead, teach themselves how to use the camera by just practising like a mad thing and learning the technical info from the web.   Like you said Benj, the best use of time is attending art classes to study old masters - figurative sculpture, painting, drawing and learning to look.  The fundamental rule for any photographer is to look, imagine, think, learn to read the light and translate it into you camera - and the only way to learn is to spend hours practising - and it will sink in, eventually. Light and composition are my best friends - and have great fun with it - as did the old masters.  I'm absolutely with you there.  Any budding photographer should completely forget going to photography classes and instead, teach themselves how to use the camera by just practising like a mad thing and learning the technical info from the web.  
Like you said Benj, the best use of time is attending art classes to study old masters – figurative sculpture, painting, drawing and learning to look.  The fundamental rule for any photographer is to look, imagine, think, learn to read the light and translate it into you camera – and the only way to learn is to spend hours practising – and it will sink in, eventually.
Light and composition are my best friends - and have great fun with it – as did the old masters. 

]]> http://www.benjaminarthur.com/blog/introducing-the-all-new-www-benjaminarthur-com//comment-page-1#comment-4 Stouffie Stouffs Fri, 26 Feb 2010 19:49:30 +0000 http://www.benjaminarthur.com/?p=56#comment-4 Dear Mr. Arthur, may I qualify myself as one of those people (amongst the 100's+) that have encouraged you to follow your heart and utilize the immense talent that you have.  I, for one, look forward to your images and now WORD to support your work.  Thanks for engaging us all, my first purchase is forth-coming  :-D Dear Mr. Arthur, may I qualify myself as one of those people (amongst the 100's+) that have encouraged you to follow your heart and utilize the immense talent that you have.  I, for one, look forward to your images and now WORD to support your work.  Thanks for engaging us all, my first purchase is forth-coming  :-D

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