Film or Digital

Specializing in fine portraits of Families, Children and high school Seniors for over 30 years in Hawaii.
First I want to announce that I've changed the title of my book from "Creating Your Perfect Portrait" to, "The Guide to YOUR Perfect Portrait". After much thought and discussion I felt the original title sounded too much like a "how to" book for photographers, when it's really a guide for people wanting to have a great portrait made for them.

Secondly, I've been meaning to get back to this for at least 2 weeks now...but have been struggling with the cover art for my book. Now it's settled, I want to share a bit more of the book itself. This is an excerpt from the 4th chapter: "What to Expect"...

As explained in the first chapter, a portrait is more than just a photograph. Besides the planning and preparation, and then the photography, after you’ve chosen the image you want made into your portrait, there will need to be work done to the image. Things like removal of blemishes, softening of lines and wrinkles, whitening teeth, and more.

Back in the day when film was the only option there were a number of artists who were trained and skilled in “retouching” negatives, and doing certain kinds of artwork to the prints. Those days are past now, and the art of negative retouching and art working the prints is also a thing of the past. Today all the enhancements and artwork are done digitally.

How does this affect your portrait? Well, if a photographer uses film, in order to do the enhancements and artwork, the negative will need to be scanned and a digital file made from it. Then the work is done to the digital file. Or a print can be made from the film negative and the print scanned to make a digital file to work with.

The problem with scanning is that with every scan a little detail is lost. With every little bit of lost detail you loose some quality and sharpness, which will affect the final print, and limit the maximum size that can be made. So, it’s better to work with the original image, and it therefore makes better sense to work with a photographer who uses digital capture.

The Name Remains The Same

And so does the science and the art...of photography, that is!

Yes, there's a 'D' (digital) added to cameras and lenses, and indeed the capture media and post production are now digital, but photography is still photography. That is recording light and shadow. The tools have changed a bit, and all for the better in my opinion.

That wasn't my opinion when digital was first gaining a hold of the market, but improvements in digital media and printing has come a long way, baby! I worked with film for over 20 years, and most of that film was medium format, so I was used to the results of a larger negative. It's been ten years now since I made the switch to the digital format and printing.

I won't go into a comparison of film to digital here. That's for another blog...and it's been done endlessly...And I've engaged the subject before. Suffice to say that Kodak has announced it will be retiring film in just a few more years.

The thrust of this post is that even though the media has changed, photography remains photography. True, digital cameras do have advanced metering, faster focusing, and better program modes, and all that does improve the chances of making a good photograph even if you don't know any more than to point the camera and press the shutter release button. But all that would be true now even if we still used film rather than a flash card. It's just the result of ongoing development.

What makes a great photograph? 1) A great subject; 2) Great composition, (framing); 3) Great Lighting, and : 4) Perfect exposure. Other things can play a part such as focus and depth of focus, and of course post production. All these factors are exactly the same as they have always been.

Post production even remains the same as before digital, except that the tools have changed. Where before digital, one would have to make test prints and adjust the color balance and density by the use of filters and length of exposure on an enlarger, now we use computer programs like Photoshop and Lightroom, etc. And where retouching and dodging and burning to get the look one was after, with film all that was done by painting on the negative and using dodging paddles and masks in the enlarging process. Now with digital, all that is again done with computer programs. Digital is a lot "greener", that's for sure!

The thing is that the tools have changed, but great photography still requires working knowledge of how to make a perfect exposure with your camera. It still requires knowing how to manipulate light, and an "eye" for composition. And if you're working with people, it still requires knowing how to help people pose and be at ease in front of the camera.

The Digital Revolution in photography has made it so that the photographer can have control over the entire process of image making without spending time in a dark room with smelly and toxic chemicals. However, creating great photographs still requires the skills and artistic talent that it always has. So, the name remains the same, and so does the science and art!

For more articles on photography, and to see my take on the whole "Digital VS Film" thing, go to http://www.paramountphotography.com and click on Articles & Links. Feel free to leave your comments! ALOHA

Pride & Prejudice: Why I don't give printable images on disc

The question is asked more and more frequently these days, and it came up again just this week. "Will you give us a copy of the photographs on disc?" More and more people are wanting and expecting that when they hire a photographer to make portraits or photograph their wedding, they will receive a disc of images that they can print themselves, or take to Wallmart or Costco to have prints made.

I understand the reasons for this, but it still irritates me! When all photographers used film, it was rare that negatives were offered as part of the deal. That business model was in existence, but it represented a very small percentage of photographers. And typically it was wedding photographers who sold a package including the photography, (of course), an album or albums, and the negatives. Basically they figured that they would probably never get a re-order anyway, so why not give the negatives to the client since otherwise they'd just be storing them and taking up space.

That business model was rare with wedding photographers, and even more rare with portrait photographers! Fast forward to the Digital Age.... For some reason with the advent of digital photography and the availability of reasonably priced digital cameras, a huge number of people who like making snapshots, and their friends tell them how nice their photos are, fancy that they can market themselves as "professional photographers".

I have no problem with competition. I think it's wonderful that more people are enjoying photography. I think the digital revolution is the best thing that's happened to photography in years! Maybe ever! However, there are standards that need to be met before one can conscientiously call themselves a professional photographer!

You see, photography is both art and science. Ever since cameras have been mass produced there have been people who have enjoyed making snapshots, and many have been talented hobbyists. There have been 1000s of snapshots that were lucky enough to really come out good! But because every now and then a snapshot comes out really nice, doesn't qualify one as a professional!

What has happened in recent years is that a lot of folks have got themselves a good DSLR, and having some luck with shooting in program mode have made some good photographs. Then they figure, "Well, look at this...I can make photos as good as the Sears studio, (or name your favorite big box store or studio), so now I can hire myself out and make an income with my camera!" This has been the beginning of the dumbing of America when it comes to professional photography.

I don't know if you've noticed, but I sure have...The decline of quality images in a lot of professional mediums, such as magazines and PR publications. That is what happens when the first priority is to get the photos as cheaply as possible. This becomes the case when there are so many amateurs professing to be professional, and willing to work for near to nothing. You then get buyers thinking they're doing their employer a service by saving money, when what they're really doing is a disservice because the images they get are just barely good enough. As a result the employer's products are represented by photographs that don't do them justice.

The biggest problem with this is that over all, expectations are lowered and quality continues to decline. When this happens in commercial photography, the general public begins to lower their personal expectations for photography. Besides, just about everyone now has a printer capable of making pretty nice photo prints. So why not hire the photographer that will "shoot and burn", and you get the images and can print them yourself for pennies? Smart investment...right?

Not in my opinion. As an artist and businessman, I've never given the negatives to my clients. True, when working with film I would turn over the negatives to my lab, then after seeing the "proofs" I would give instructions for enhancements and retouch, etc., and leave it to the lab to complete. Now with the digital work flow, I do the art work and enhancements myself. And now after firing at least 6 labs for letting their quality control go downhill, I've invested in a state-of-the-art printer, and do the printing and finishing myself as well.

Does that sound like a professional who doesn't care how the finished product turns out? I think not! In fact, the reason I don't give the digital negatives, or the enhanced and artworked images to my clients is beacause I DO care how the finished product turns out! And I believe that it is the responsibility of the professional to make sure the finished product turns out right.

As I mentioned I've fired several print labs. They generally start out doing a good job because they want the business, but then after a while they quality control goes down. When that happens both time and money is lost because I refuse to deliver sub par results to my clients. And I have a very high standard when it comes to my work.

Here's the thing...I specialize in portraiture: Families, children and high school seniors, because I'm passionate about it! I love photographing people! I love watching their expressions and hearing their comments when I deliver their portraits to them. I know I'm adding joy to their lives with the work I do for them.

I've given clients permission to have a particular portrait reproduced for greeting cards or invitations in the past. As a courtesy. Mostly because it cost's me more to print them than what they can get them done for at a discount printer....But, I've seen some horrible reproduction of my work...and that sickens me! I put my time, no, I put my heart and soul into creating beautiful photographs. I spend my time doing enhancements and art work to the photographs so that they are as beautiful as they can be. Because I care! I should then turn the images over to the client to go fend for themselves and try and get a decent print from them? NO WAY!

I spent many years studying photography. I went to school to learn all about color harmony, composition, balance, and how to achieve various different results with my camera. I apprenticed with a master photographer. I've been creating portraits now for over 30 years. I put my time, experience and artistry into every portrait I make. I won't stop there! I make sure the color and density is right, and I print the portraits I create. And if they don't look right, I do it again! I will only deliver the very finest, most beautiful finished portraits possible. It just makes no sense to invest passion, time, experience and artistry into making beautiful portraits, then let just any printer, who has nothing invested, and doesn't really care how they turn out, print them. And that's why I don't give the printable images on disc to my clients.