Archive for October, 2011
I was just reading an interview with, Kevin Schafer, a professional natural history photographer with many well known magazines to his credit, in the North American Nature Photography Association’s (NANPA) 2008 NANPA Expressions. The topic was ethics and accuracy in nature photography. Schafer made the point, as photographers we need to be honest. Captions, for example, need to disclose that a wildlife photograph was of an animal in captivity, if indeed that was the case. Or, that a significantly altered or contrived image was “Photoshopped,” for example.
I agree. But I also think we need to be careful to differentiate between images produced for artistic purposes and those with which we seek to influence opinion. I recall reading that Ansel Adams used every tool at his disposal to make certain his images accurately represented the scene he was trying to capture. I think, though of course I never knew Mr. Adams, that he would embrace the modern digital capabilities.
So should we.
Unfortunately, integrity is always an issue in today’s society. As nature photographers we ought to be concerned about the potential for the credibility of our craft being degraded because of misrepresentation. Photojournalists need to be held to one standard and I think this should include those whose images are intended to influence thinking on such hot topics as the environment, for example.
Still, if our images are supposed to simply be beautiful images that grace the walls of our homes, businesses, and galleries there are many applications – Photoshop and Photomatix being just two that I personally use – that can help us achieve some amazing affects. I don’t think it is necessary for these types of images to be tagged with descriptions of what was done to achieve their “beauty,” any more than it might have been necessary for Norman Rockwell to disclose that a yellow canoe in his painting was actually gray in real life. What difference does it make? Would we appreciate his art any more or less with this knowledge?
When we’re displaying the image for purely “artistic” purposes, I don’t think the details on how the image was produced are necessarily pertinent. Whether hanging in my gallery or in your home or office, what we focus on is not impacted by the tools used to get to the final result.
However, that said, I’ve learned in my gallery, that such tags often interest and are appreciated by the viewer. I’ll sometimes display two versions of the same image which have been rendered differently. Often, the brief description of how I captured the picture (and/or processed it) helps sell the image.
Who is Thomas D. Mangelsen? Thomas Malgensen is a Nebraska resident, he is known as one of the world’s premier nature photographers. Mangelsen’s love of environment, his living in the outside, and business success were greatly influenced by his father. A devoted sportsman, Harold Mangelsen took his sons to favorite blinds along the Platte River in Nebraska to chase and watch the gigantic flocks of ducks, geese, and cranes that move around through the vicinity From these outings Mangelsen learned the significant lessons for photographing in the meadow, as well as patience, waiting for the right instant, and understanding animal behavior.
Photos are a big part of people’s lives. It’s the only way we are able to capture and take note of memories. From photo albums to digital photo frames, photo storage and sharing has grown massive. Today, the most popular way of sharing pictures is through photo galleries on websites and on social networking pages. But if that’s not enough for you we’ll give you a step by step guide on how to build a photo gallery website. It’s when you have a personal domain and web address with albums and pictures in. Why build a photo gallery website? First of all you get a chance to store all your beautiful images in your own personal space on the World Wide Web. You also get to improve your photos with easy to use editing features, and update your friends via RSS feed if ever you have uploaded new photos. A photo gallery website will also allow you to share your photos on other website, choose a theme for every group of photo depending on the event, and create photo slideshows to entertain your visitor.
How to build a photo gallery website is easy. With all the free software available online, you could get started in no time. But first you have to create a website. Here’s how you go about the whole thing:
1. Choose a domain – The domain name is your address on the web. It comes after www. and it ends with an official domain name extension such as.com,.net, etc. This is what the people type on the web browser when they visit your site so it’s important to pick something easy to recognize and remember. Keep it short, simple and use a word or name that reflects your site’s general concept. You can find a domain name online such as Act Now Domains. You can register there and pay for it. They will assure you whether your chosen name has a duplicate or not.
2. Choose a web host – A web host serves up your website online so that when someone enters your domain name on the web browser your site appears. Go to iPower for example and get a less expensive plan for starters. The web host you choose should have good support.
3. Create the website – There are step by step website tutorials that you can follow or you could get a website builder from web hosts. There are also website software programs you could use to build the website by yourself. Keep your site simple and pleasing to the eye. Don’t place blaring music or slow loading graphics. After all this, you have to upload your website to your web host account.
4. Choose a photo gallery software – There are software tools you can get for free that automatically generate thumbnails and HTML code that display your image collections on your website. Such tools will optimize and resize your pictures and create web pages with photos, links and full-sized images. These programs also have customized features that will control appearance of web pages and allow other people to view them. And example of these tools would be the Java Album and Gallery wizard.
Now that you know how to build a photo gallery website, collect those photos and start sharing!