Comparing 50mm 1.8 Lens to 50mm 1.4 Lens With Side-By-Side Images With Same Settings

One of the first lenses I invested in is the Canon 50mm 1.8 lens. I do think this is a fantastic lens, especially when compared with the kit lens, and I use it without hesitation.
That said..
I also own a dreamy L lens. (You can see my lens comparison blog post here)

The L lens is amazing but very heavy. When my husband and I decided to go on a vacation backpacking overseas this summer, I hit a crossroads: Do I bring the 50mm 1.8 or the 85mm 1.2?

The 85mm is the superior lens however it is very heavy. However on a vacation I want the best quality.

The solution?

We invested in a 50mm 1.4 lens.

It’s not as nice as the 85mm 1.2 but nicer than the 50mm 1.8 – a great compromise.

The day I got it I was anxious to try it out and see what I thought. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but what I discovered really surprised me.

Based on my one test (I plan to do more!) the 1.4 seems greatly superior to the 1.4!

These are the test shots I did.. Keep in mind I sat at the same spot, used the same camera, with the same settings, with no lens hood and no filter on either lens & none of the photos are edited in any way except the text and size.  The only thing that changed is the lens.

Left side is the 50mm 1.4 and the right side is the 50mm 1.8

Left side is the 50mm 1.4 and the right side is the 50mm 1.8

So there are my side-by-side image comparisons using 2 different lenses – remember they were taken with all things equal and they are not edited in any way except for adding the text to the image and reducing the size of the image to post online.

If you’re well convinced that you would like a 50mm 1.4, here’s a link to the lens on Amazon.

I will try to do another round at a different location soon!

-Christine Ann
Duluth MN Family Photographer

Photo Examples Of How Font In A Watermark Affects Look Of Photos

It was 2 AM and my frustration levels were high.  I had created many different watermarks/logos but none of them really fit me or cued that magical “hallelujah” music inside my mind.
I had an idea of what I wanted I just couldn’t find the right components to make it happen.  Trying out so many different things got me thinking about how incredibly  much a watermark affects how a viewer views your photos.
If you slapped a generic watermark together and called it a day, it might be time to step back and reconsider.
A watermark is a very simple concept.. it’s basically something you put on all your photographs to reduce photo theft and to let people know who took it, yet everything about your decisions in watermark reflect a style that becomes a part of your brand.
You may not realize it but every aspect of your watermark affects how a photograph is interpreted.  Things to consider when creating your watermark stamp is:
Font, Opacity, Color, Size, Placement, Wording, Consistency
We’ll go through each of these in this post as well as compare the same photo with different watermarks so you can see how the watermark affects how the photo and your brand/style comes across.

FONT

This is pretty self-explanatory.. the first thing to consider and decide on is your font.  The font alone makes up a large portion of how your photographs are interpreted.  I have gone through hundreds to find mine!  The font should be consistent.  It should ideally tie in with fonts used on your website, which are the same fonts used on your contracts and business cards etcetc.  Keep your brand consistent.  There are so many fonts that convey different looks and styles.  Some are very elegant, some are very informal “handwriting” ones, some are sans-seriff, some are cursive etcetc.. and this makes a big impact!  Let’s take a look at the same photo using different fonts.. everything else is the same except the style of font in these images.

^This is how I chose to watermark this image with all the above factors in mind.

OPACITY

Opacity is how “see through” the watermark is.  5% opacity it will barely show up and 100% opacity means not see through at all.  You may be surprised to learn that the opacity of your font plays a pretty big role in how the font ends up looking.  I never use font at 100% opacity.  Ever.  I try to stick around 20-30% (sometimes have to go higher if it isn’t showing up well in the photo).  Part of my watermark style is that I don’t want it to take away from the image or distract from it, so I like mine simple, small, transparent, and away from the subject.

^Compare this image with the one above it.  The one above it has the font around 50% opacity and this one is at 100%.

COLOR

The color of your font is surprisingly important as well.  IMO pure white or pure black rarely work and color can work depending on the style but for me I always choose a light grey and a darkish grey and switch between the two based on what the image is (if it’s light or dark).

^Compare this image to the ones above it (which are a light grey color).

SIZE
The size of your watermark also impact the image.  This is all personal preference but I prefer mine to be small.  I feel that big watermarks are very distracting and take away from the image.

^This is the same watermark, just bigger.  Makes a big difference.

LOCATION

Where you choose to put your watermark is also pretty significant and can change everything.  I personally like to hand stamp all my photos so I can figure out where it would look best.  I consider my watermark part of the image and I work with the image.  Yes it is more time consuming but I think it’s worth it.

^  Notice how my original placement is a part of the photo and it works with it whereas in this one it seems like I’m trying to hide it or it’s an afterthought or generically stamped on all photos in the same lower left hand corner.  That can work for some people especially if consistency is important to them but for this stamp and my style I really dislike it down there.  Lower corners do work well for some logos though :).  Not trying to say what is better or worse just keep in mind that placement affects the photo.

Here’s a quick comparison of my watermark compared to one that pays no mind to all the points above (except the font is the same):

Quite a difference in how you interpret that image, eh?

SIMPLICITY/WORDING

What does your logo look like?  Is it simple or complex?  Is it font only or does it have an icon with it?  All this affects how the image looks.  For my style, I like simplicity, that’s why I chose not to include “Christine Ann Photography” in this logo.  I am considering adding my city & state though since there are multiple Christine Ann’s out there but I’m not sure yet.  I haven’t “launched” this logo yet, I’m still trying to be 100% sure with it before I do.

^ Notice how adding the extra information really change the look/feel of the image compared to when it just said “Christine Ann”?

CONSISTENCY

Your watermark / logo should be consistent with your style of photography.  Below I compare the same image with 2 different watermarks so you can see how much the watermark affects the look of the photo.

^Photograph with my watermark on it

^I just put this logo together really quick to show that for an emotive/serious sort of style you wouldn’t want something informal and fun/funny.  However if you do a lot of kids portraits, you may not want something formal and would prefer something more fun.  So the “right” way to do it is different for everyone but just be sure to assess the style of your photography and the style of your website/branding before choosing your watermark.

To top off this blog post I thought I’d do a few examples of how different the photo can look based on just what the watermark is doing/looks like so you can see how it does impact the final image.

 

 

And there you have it.. a bunch of photos to compare together to see how the watermark plays a role in your style and branding.

I should note that there is really no right or wrong answer in here.  What works for one person will not work for another, it’s all very subjective and personal.  I have my personal preferences about what looks best but I have no doubt there are people reading this that think some of my “playful” watermarks are better than the one I use, haha.  It’s okay.  I just wanted to write something up to help people be very aware of their watermark, what it’s currently conveying, what they want it to convey and assess if it is conveying that or not.

I just started my business last year and while I knew I wanted a watermark I like, I really had no idea it made as much impact on a photo as it does until recently when I was trying to decide where to go with mine.  Hope this has made everyone aware of things they may not have been before!

-Christine Ann

Duluth MN Family Photographer
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How To Add Color To A Black & White Image With A Layer Mask/Photoshop Layers Explained

A Beginner’s Tutorial On How To Use Photoshop Layers, Layer Masks, And Bring Back Color To A Black And White Image (All-In-One!) With Image/Screenshot Examples
*Note:  This article might look long/hard but it’s because it’s written assuming you know nothing about how to use Photoshop so it’s just very thorough.. this is VERY easy and fast to do!

Many years ago my husband got Photoshop for me.  I was super excited.. I opened it up and was so overwhelmed I didn’t open it up again for another year!!!!  WHen I did open it up a year later, it was because I had seen an image on Facebook and someone noted on it “Edited with auto color in Photoshop”.  “Auto edit????  I can do that!”.  And I excitedly opened it back up.  Once it was re-opened I started playing around with it more and learning new things about it.  I was still very confused about how you could add color to a black and white image and my husband explained it like this: Imagine you have 2 photographs.. a color photograph, and a black and white version of the exact same photograph.  Imagine you put the black and white photograph on top of the color photograph and then take an eraser and erase away parts of the black and white image to reveal the color beneath it.  ta-da!  Like magic, I now understood the concept of Photoshop layering! The very first thing I learned how to do with layers was add a pop of color to a black and white image.  You can do it as I stated above (layer a bw image on top of a color image and use the eraser tool to erase away the bw image to reveal color) but the issue with doing it that way is.. what if you make a mistake?  What if you erase away too much?  You cannot go back to add the black and white back.  For that reason I want to teach everyone how to use a layer mask.  With a layer mask (VERY easy to do!!!!) you can remove parts of the top layer AND bring them back again!  And you can use it for endless different projects beyond a selective coloring/color pop image! I’m a very visual learner so that’s how I like to explain things as well.

^STEP ONE:  Open The Image
We’ll start with what your image looks like when you open it in Photoshop:

^STEP 2:  Duplicate Layer
This is the step where you layer 2 images on top of one another.. do do this by going to the layers palette, right click on your layer, and select “duplicate layer”.  You can also simply go to your menu on top of the screen and click “Layer>New>Layer From Background”.

^STEP 3:  Turn The Top Layer Black And White
Make sure your top layer is highlighted in the layers palette and then turn your image black and white :).  You now have a black and white image on top, and a color image on bottom.

^STEP 4:  Add A Layer Mask
This is where you add the layer mask I was mentioning earlier.. this mask will allow you to remove parts of the black and white image as well as bring back parts of the black and white image.

^STEP 5:  Select A Black Paintbrush
Your layers palette should now look like this.. the white box next to your bw image is the layer mask.  You will use the black paintbrush to remove the black and white image, and the white paintbrush to bring back the black and white image.

^STEP 6:  Verify Your Layer Mask Is Selected
If you have anything other than the layer mask selected, this will not work and the paintbrush will work normally (adding a white or black streak on the image).

^STEP 7:  Paint Anywhere You’d Like To Add Color Take your paintbrush and paint anywhere you’d like to add color!  It’s that easy!  If you run over the lines, it’s okay.. you can turn it back to black and white which we address in the next step.

STEP 8:  Select The White Paintbrush To Bring Back The Black And White Image
Change the color of your paintbrush to white and paint over anywhere you did not want to bring the color back.  It helps to scroll in very close to the image, use a brush that isn’t 100% soft, and make the edges as clean as possible.  It looks very sloppy when the color runs outside the lines.

^The image after cleaning it up with the white paintbrush (again verify that your layer mask is clicked on!).

^STEP 9:  (Optional Step):  Reduce The Opacity/Strength Of The Colors
I always feel that bringing back the full strength of color in an image is just too intense/harsh.  For this reason I like to make it sort of a blend of half black and white/half color.. this tones down the coloring a lot and makes it look much more gentle and blends better.  (This is just my opinion and what you like may be different!  I compare a full strength color pop image to a partial strength color pop image here if you’d like to compare for yourself).

^This is the image with the coloring reduced by 50%.. it blends much better.

I’d like to make a quite note that the above images are not ones that I would choose to do.. They are only edited this way for the purposes of this article.  If I brought back color to anything I would choose the boots but for the purposes of this article I wanted to choose something that was easy to see and overall I just prefer this photo in color :).

I really hope this helps you all learn some more about how to use layers in Photoshop and how to add color to a black and white image!

-Christine Ann

Duluth MN Photographer

Photos From 85mm 1.2L Lens.

Which lens you decide to use on your camera has a big impact on how the photo turns out. A big contendor in the photography world for people who are very invested in photography is the 85mm 1.2L lens by Canon. This is the first professional level lens I invested in and I am very fond of it :).
The first thing you have to decide when picking a lens is if you want a prime lens (does not zoom in and out) or a zoom lens (has a range of how close or far you can get to the subject by rotating the lens to zoom in and out). THere are advantages and disadvantages to each (perhaps a future blog post topic 🙂 ) but one of the best and most noteworthy features of the 85mm 1.2 lens is that the aperture can reach .. *drumroll* .. f/1.2! The lowest number you usually see on a zoom lens is f/2.8 so this is quite a big difference on the prime, however you do lose the ability to zoom in and out. The f/1.2 is amazing for when you want to get as much light into the camera as possible and also if you want a very small depth of field (meaning only one thing will be sharply in focus and everything else will be blurred).
The f/1.2 is so sensitive that on my full frame sensor camera body (how far 1.2 takes you depends on a handful of factors including your camera body), if I focus on someone’s nose, their eye will be out of focus. It’s a very very narrow depth of field and very unforgiving for in focus images! There is a learning curve to harnessing this power. I would not recommend using any new equipment at a shoot that you haven’t practiced with in advance. YOu will probably get some out of focus images when you start out with this lens. I try not to go to 1.2 anymore, personally. f/2 or higher is usually ideal but if there is low light or if I want a certain look I will bump it down lower.

Anyway, I wanted to make a blog post showing image examples of photos taken on the 85mm f/1.2L lens so people could take a look and maybe it could help people make more informed purchasing decisions.

I do need to explain that I reduced the image size significantly to post to the web. Standard web size is 900×600.. the originals are around 3800×5700 so they don’t reflect the same quality as they do out of the camera but I hope it gives a good idea.. especially since the originals are better :). If you would like to see a full resolution version of anything just ask in the comments! I am happy to post!

Anyway, without further ado….

^f/3.5

^f/2.8

^f/1.8

^f/1.2 – wide open!

f/1.8

^f/1.4 – close to wide open :)! If you’re shooting this low you must nail the focus spot!

^f/2.5

f/1.4. I was able to take a photo with one fairly dim light on @ 1.4.. this low aperture also created a very nice bokeh effect on the Christmas tree.

^f/1.8 (This lens is great for Christmas lights!).

^f/2

^f/1.8

f/1.6. Notice how narrow the focus is.. the arm is in focus and his entire body is blurred.. there’s about a foot between what is in focus and what isn’t. If the aperture were higher (around f/4+) the arm and body would both be in focus.

^f/1.8

f/1.8. Loving how blurred the background is! Notice how even the front of the scarf is blurred.. 1.8 is not a very large depth of field.

f/1.8

^Here’s one at f/1.2 – this is as low as it can go. I am going to do another blog post soon zooming in so you can see the eyes are in focus but even the nose is out of focus. It still looks okay zoomed out but if you zoom in you’ll see how sensitive the focus is.

^f/2.8

^Wide open at f/1.2. To do this shot over I would have used a higher aperture since her hair is blurred out but I still love this photo :).

^Another photo taken at f/1.2. I’m trying to include a lot at 1.2 since a lot of people are curious about what photos like at that aperture.

f/1.8 portrait

^f/1.4

^Here’s a shot taken at a higher aperture of f/4. As youc an see.. still plenty of lovely bokeh :).

^f/2.2

^f/2.2

f/2

^f/2.2

^This is a full res version of an image taken at f/1.2 – click on it to see full detail.

To see zoomed in versions of the photos to see how the depth of field looks up close at f/1.2 check out this article.

If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to ask!

-Christine Ann
Duluth MN Senior and Family Photographer Website
Duluth Photographer Blog
Duluth Senior and Family Photographer Facebook Account

This one thing may be ruining your photos (with image comparison).

There is one thing that we all start off doing that may be ruining your photographs: using the on-camera pop-up flash.
I thought it might be beneficial for people learning about photography to see image comparisons of photos taken with natural sunlight (in front of a window or outside) vs photos taken with the on-camera pop-up flash. Most professional photographers overwhelmingly prefer shooting with natural light however we all own external flashes and diffusers for the times where natural light just isn’t working or happening. I think we all start out using it and over years of experience and learning come to realize there are better alternatives. Some things that the on camera pop-up flash does: it creates horrible shadows! Both behind the person you are photographing and also oftentimes under their chin, depending on their angle. It creates these tiny pin-lights in the eyes (the reflection in the eyes is a tiny little dot in the pupil). It makes people squint and blink. Children complain about it hurting their eyes and it just all around looks mostly unnatural. The hair gets mega-highlighted and colors look shiny and overly textured/vibrant.

Alternatives to pop-up flash:
The best alternative: find great sources of natural light – usually in front of a window or in the shade outside.
Another great alternative: Buy a lens with a low aperture. They go down as low as f/1.2! You can handle most situations with this ability but your focus will have to be perfect (Note shooting at f/1.2 is usually not wise because of how shallow your depth of field becomes.. but it’s a nice option to have and I have shot at 1.2 before – not professionally – but for my own photos). Low aperture lenses tend to be very costly. There is one cheap lens that every photographer should own which is the 50mm f/1.8 lens. It’s around $100 and is very great for the price. It is made of plastic and you’ll want to upgrade to a very nice lens eventually but if you are a hobbiest and still learning the 1.8 is a great great option for you!!!! (And is WAY better than the kit lens which also may be ruining your photos if you are using it..).
If you do need flash, you can purchase an off-camera (external) flash and learn to bounce the light and/or diffuse it (ideal! And what professionals do).
If you find none of these are good alternatives for you right now, there are two other options. Option 1 is buying a pop-up flash diffuser. I have not tried one so I can’t vouch for it but I imagine it would help. Option 2 is changing your settings in camera and lowering the strength of the flash (not all cameras can do this but it’s worth looking into and trying out!).

Please note that if you compare flash with natural light in a spot where natural light is not good, the photo taken with a flash will usually look better. Part of learning about photography is developing an eye for and understanding of where the natural light is the best. Studio lighting can be amazing however mastering it takes a lot of time and money. Most photos, however, can be taken with natural light and most people prefer the look of it (though not everyone does, photography is entirely subjective!).

All of these photographs were taken on the same camera: Canon Rebel T2i and all were taken within the last month except the very last one which was taken back in December.

Natural light photograph, taken in front of a window. Notice now nice the reflections in their eyes are and how natural and soft everything is.

Natural light photograph.

Natural light photograph.

Natural light photograph.

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Photos taken with on-camera pop-up flash – notice the tiny little pin-light being reflected in the pupil and how the hair is super shiny and the shadows being cast behind them and under the chin as well.
On-camera pop-up flash.

On-camera pop-up flash.

On-camera pop-up flash.

Some people may prefer the flash photos, some prefer the natural light ones, and neither one is wrong, but it is good to be able to know how various things – such as your light source – will affect a photo!

-Christine Ann
www.christineannphotos.com
www.facebook.com/christineannphotos
Duluth Minnesota Photographer