Vanessa Sunset

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Vanessa Sunset


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure: 1/250
Focal Length: 70mm
Flash: Fired Off Camera (E-TTL, HSS)
ISO: 400
Flash Cord
Post processing included conversion from RAW, healing tool, dodge/burn, and unsharp-mask

Daffodil

There are three shots today for the "Photo a Day" project and they are called Daffodil




Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/10.0, 22.0, 22.0
Exposure: 1/200
Focal Length: 50mm
Extension Tubes: 12mm, 68mm, 68mm
Multiple Flashes: Fired off Camera (E-TTL)
ISO: 400
Post processing included conversion from RAW

River Street Bridge

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called River Street Bridge


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/13.0
Exposure: 1/250
Focal Length: 70mm with 2X TC (140mm)
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 320
Post processing included conversion from RAW, rotation correction, levels adjustment, and unsharp-mask

Hibiscus

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Hibiscus


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/5.0
Exposure: 1/60
Focal Length: 105mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 500
Post processing included conversion from RAW and cropped

Bookworm

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Bookworm

Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/2.0
Exposure: 1/80
Focal Length: 85mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 2500
Post processing included conversion from RAW, levels adjustment, noise reduction, and selective sharpening

Plaster Ceiling Fan Medallion

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Plaster Ceiling Fan Medallion


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/1.8
Exposure: 1/25
Focal Length: 85mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 2500
Post processing included conversion from RAW, cropped, converted to black and white, levels adjustment, contrast adjustment, noise reduction, and high-pass filter with overlay layer

Sunset Panorama

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Sunset Panorama


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/6.3
Exposure: 1/2000
Focal Length: 47mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 320
7 Exposures
Post processing included conversion from RAW, photomerge, and cropped

Ottawa River Ice Floe

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Ottawa River Ice Floe


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/18.0
Exposure: 1/160
Focal Length: 70mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 320
Circular Polarizer
Post processing included conversion from RAW, cropped, and levels adjustment

Sun Tanning In March?

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Sun Tanning In March? If someone told you a month ago that there would be people out sun tanning in the grass in March would you have believed them? I know I would have said "I'll believe it when I see it!", well.... there it is. And some people say Global Warming is does not exist......


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/9.0
Exposure: 1/400
Focal Length: 200mm with 2X TC (400mm)
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 320
Post processing included conversion from RAW, cropped, and unsharp-mask

Spring Love

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Spring Love


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/6.3
Exposure: 1/1600
Focal Length: 200mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 320
Post processing included conversion from RAW, and cropped

Hi-ya Muskrat

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Hi-ya Muskrat


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure: 1/1250
Focal Length: 200mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 320
Post processing included conversion from RAW, levels adjustment, and unsharp-mask

Follow The Tubes HDR

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Follow The Tubes


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/16.0
Exposures: 1/160, 1/320, 1/640
Focal Length: 70mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 320
Post processing included conversion from RAW, align images, merge to HDR, tonemapped, contrast adjustment, convert to black and white, and unsharp-mask

Abstract Wall Texture

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Abstract Wall Texture


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/6.3
Exposure: 1/25
Focal Length: 55mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 3200
Post processing included conversion from RAW, and cropped

Backyard Star Trails

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Backyard Star Trails


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/5.0
Exposure: 1504 sec (25mins)
Focal Length: 32mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 50
Post processing included conversion from RAW, cropped, contrast adjustment, and healing tool

St Patty's Day Cupcakes

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called St Patty's Day Cupcakes


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/7.1
Exposure: 1/100
Focal Length: 105mm
Flash: Fired E-TTL
ISO: 400
Post processing included conversion from RAW, cropped, healing tool, and levels adjustment

Wasp Macro

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Wasp Macro


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/14.0
Exposure: 1/160
Focal Length: 85mm
Extension Tubes: 68mm
Multiple Flashes: Fired Off Camera (E-TTL)
ISO: 400
Post processing included conversion from RAW, cropped, levels adjustment, healing tool, and unsharp-mask

Spring Melt

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Spring Melt. It looks like spring it here, at least for this week. Get out and enjoy it!


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/13.0
Exposure: 1/250
Focal Length: 105mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 640
Post processing included conversion from RAW, cropped, levels adjustment, and unsharp-mask

Happy PI Day! 3.14

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Happy PI Day! 3.14
I hope you celebrated with some nice tasty pie!


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/5.6
Exposure: 1/160
Focal Length: 105mm
Flash: Fired Off Camera
ISO: 320
Umbrella
Post processing included conversion from RAW, cropped, and levels adjustment

Lights, Camera, Action! - Update

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Lights, Camera, Action! Long time visitors to this blog will probably remember a very similar shot I had taken last year with the same name, but at the time I did not have the Rotolight so I thought I would update it. I've been meaning to do a product review of the Rotolight for a while now, but I just have not had the time to do it yet. I'll try and get to it soon, but I can quickly tell you that it is a great little device!


Exif Data
Camera: Canon Digital Rebel XTi
Aperture: f/8.0
Exposure: 1/60
Focal Length: 50mm
Multiple Flashes: Fired Off Camera (E-TTL Ratio 4:1)
ISO: 400
Diffuser
Tripods
Post processing included conversion from RAW, cropped, and healing tool

Looking For A Wedding Photographer?

Finding The "Right" Photographer For Your Wedding

Many people often wonder: how do I find a photojournalistic wedding photographer who is professional, friendly, and talented at capturing moments. Sometimes more importantly, how do I find such a wedding photographer who has rates that are reasonable? The great news is that Fernando Matias Photography is a company operated by a professional photographer who specializes in wedding photography within the Ottawa area, and is ready to help you address these questions.

Speaking from experience, most people ultimately find a wedding photographer from a direct referral. In other words, people talk to others who have recently hired a wedding photographer and are provided with information that they then use to figure out who to hire for their needs. This is a great way to go, and in fact most of our business is obtained through direct referrals from previous clients. However, the Internet has now also changed this. You now have the power to find a professional photographer who specializes in Ottawa wedding photography by a simple web search. If you have not been directly referred to us by a previous happy customer already, we at Fernando Matias Photography would be happy to provide you with past testimonials from clients who can vouch for our passion and quality.

Experience Matters

There are several things you will want to keep in mind prior to making a decision. First, you will want to make sure that the photographer you are considering has been proven in the past. Your photographer should have a portfolio that you can browse, both in person and online. In addition, it's also important to find someone who specializes in wedding photography in your area. Capturing moments in the city that look just right is a skill that is acquired over time, and knowing which locations work and which do not will save you valuable time on an already overwhelmingly busy day. You want the very best wedding photographer for that special day in your life. Sure, the bottom line is important and wedding budgets are made for a reason. However, budget accordingly and remember that your wedding day photographs are memories that you want to last a lifetime. You won’t have another opportunity for these photos to be taken and cutting back on your photography funds can end up hurting you in the end.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line should be "Is this the right photographer for us?" and although the cost is important, it should not be your only point of reference when comparing photographers. A quick search will show that there is a huge range in wedding photography rates, from dirt cheap all the way to the insanely expensive. In most cases the photographer's rate is directly related to how much experience they have, and therefore a photographer that gives you a questionably low quote is usually very inexperienced and/or they will not give your wedding the attention it deserves. At Fernando Matias Photography we have limits on how many events we will accept in any given month so that we can be sure to provide 100% of our attention to your event.

Style

It is also important to speak with the photographer to make sure that your vision of the special day matches what the photographer is able to provide. Each photographer has their own style, and essentially this style is what you are hiring them for. If a photographer shoots entirely in black and white, and you want a mix of colour and monotone shots in your images then maybe they are not the right photographer for you. Find a photographer whose style matches your needs and then you’ll be assured that you get the photos you want. At Fernando Matias Photography our style is more photojournalistic with a strong emphasis on all the little details, and also plenty of candids. We know that posed photos are also an important part of your day for group photos and more formal shots of the newlyweds, and we'll not only do our best to show you how to pose so that you look your best but we also make formal photos fun!

Two Photographers Are Better Than One

There are many benefits to hiring two photographers for your wedding day. A single photographer can only be in one place at any given time and if you want photos of both the bride and groom getting ready it is very rare that they will both be in the same place at the same time. With two photographers one can dedicate their time to be with the bride as she is getting ready, while the other can focus on the groom. A single photographer will likely need to drive back and forth and miss once in a lifetime moments in your special day. If a photographer does offer you a second shooter, make sure that this person is also another professional photographer and not just an assistant or student. It is for these reasons and more that at Fernando Matias Photography our full day wedding packages provide two professional photographers to cover all of your wedding moments, the second being from Jeffrey Meyer Photography.

Communication

Communication between you and the photographer is very important for a successful day. You should always be able to contact your photographer and have your questions addressed quickly. The great news about working with a professional photographer from Fernando Matias Photography is that you will have your questions answered in a timely manner. This is important because once you make a decision as to which photographer to use, you don't want to find yourself constantly waiting to get answers to your important questions.

Contracts

The photographer you choose should provide you with a signed contract. This contract not only protects the photographer, but will also give you, the client, the security you need to make sure you obtain everything you were promised and in a timely fashion. The contract should stipulate exactly what you are required to pay in total, as well as exactly what you will receive for this fee. It is for these reasons, and many more, that at Fernando Matias Photography we always provide a full contract for every job we do.

Is Fernando Matias Photography the right photographer for you? Only you can decide, but we will do everything we can to earn your business. Do you have any comments or questions regarding what to look for in a wedding photographer? Feel free to ask us using the comments section below or by emailing us directly using our contact page and we will give you a frank and open answer.

Hippos - Depth of Field Tutorial

Today's shots for the "Photo a Day" project are called Hippos, and I'll be using them to explain a photography term called Depth Of Field.





Whenever people find out that I am a photographer, usually their first question is "What camera should I buy?". I'm not going to answer that question today, but rather I'll try to shed some light on two of the other more popular questions "How do I make my shot's background all blurry?" and "How do I get everything in my shot in focus?".

One simple answer to both questions has to do with Depth of Field (DOF), and we can control the DOF with the camera's aperture setting. The aperture is a diaphragm (think of it as a hole) within the lens that opens and closes to various sizes to let more or less light through to the camera's sensor. Because of some light physics that I am not going to explain here, the aperture also affects the DOF in that a smaller aperture (hole) gives you more DOF (more in focus) and a larger aperture gives you less DOF (more blur).


Lens aperture values are denoted by a "f/" followed by a number (eg. f/2.8). You may have noticed this in my Exif info that I post for each photo of the day. In a slightly strange backwards kind of way, a large aperture (large hole) has a small f/ number, and the number gets bigger as you get a smaller aperture (smaller hole). You can see some examples of this in the figure above. Using the maximum aperture on your lens is called shooting wide open. That is when you have your aperture fully open to let in the most light it can, and it will also produce the least DOF (blurry background). Closing the aperture on the lens is known as stopping down the lens and it will increase the DOF but at a cost of reducing the amount of light.

As you can see in my example Hippo shots above, when you shoot wide open with an aperture of f/1.2 (first shot) you get a very shallow DOF where only the blue hippo's nose is in focus and even his eyes are slightly out of focus. All the other hippos are a complete blur! As you increase the aperture value (f/3.5, second shot) you are decreasing the size of the hole it creates, and you are increasing the DOF to now include the entire blue hippo, but the other hippos are still blurry. Increasing the aperture even more to f/7.1 (third shot) starts to bring the yellow hippo into focus, but it takes a very small hole (f/16.0, fourth shot) to really bring almost all of the hippos into focus.

There are of course other factors that will affect this such as focal length (zoom) and how close you are to the subject. To keep this brief I'll just say this: The longer the focal length (more zoom) the smaller your DOF will be, the wider your focal length (wide angle) the more DOF; The closer you are to the subject the smaller your DOF, and the further from the subject the greater the DOF.

So the next time you want a blurry background just remember to use your maximum aperture (smallest f/ number), and when you want everything in focus use a smaller aperture (largest f/ number).

Do you have any comments or questions about this? Feel free to ask us using the comments section below or by emailing us directly using our contact page.

Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/1.2, 3.5, 7.1, 16.0
Exposure: 1/200
Focal Length: 85mm
Flash: Fired Off Camera E-TTL
ISO: 800
Flash Cord
Tripods
Post processing included conversion from RAW, and cropped
Aperture Diagram borrowed from: http://petphotographytips.wordpress.com/2011/05/24/what-is-an-fstop/

Street Lamp

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Street Lamp


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/7.1
Exposure: 1/15
Focal Length: 165mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 500
Tripod
Post processing included conversion from RAW, cropped, and converted to black and white

Spring Forward

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Spring Forward. Don't forget to put your clocks ahead one hour tonight!


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/2.0
Exposure: 1/160
Focal Length: 85mm
Extension Tube: 20mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 200
Post processing included conversion from RAW, and levels adjustment

Cedar Waxwing

There are three shots for the "Photo a Day" project today and they are called Cedar Waxwing




Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/13.0
Exposure: 1/500
Focal Length: 200mm with 2C TC (400mm)
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 640
Post processing included conversion from RAW, and cropped

Self Portrait

I shot a Self Portrait for the "Photo a Day" project today.


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/13.0
Exposure: 1/200
Focal Length: 85mm
Flash: Fired Off Camera (E-TTL)
ISO: 500
Umbrella
Reflector
Tripods
Wired Remote Timer
Post processing included conversion from RAW, cropped, levels adjustment, healing tool, softening layer, and dodging

Hide Me From The Snow

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Hide Me From The Snow


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/11.0
Exposure: 1/200
Focal Length: 200mm with 2X TC (400mm)
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 800
Post processing included conversion from RAW, levels adjustment, cloning/healing tools, dodge tool, and unsharp-mask

Minimalist

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Minimalist


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/2.2
Exposure: 1/200
Focal Length: 85mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 320
Post processing included conversion from RAW, levels adjustment, perspective adjustment, and healing tool

Please Give Me Something To Eat

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Please Give Me Something To Eat


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/11.0
Exposure: 1/125
Focal Length: 200mm with 2X TC (400mm)
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 800
Post processing included conversion from RAW

Orchids

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Orchids


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/2.2
Exposure: 1/200
Focal Length: 85mm
Extension Tube: 36mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 640
Post processing included conversion from RAW, and levels adjustment

Princess Photoshoot

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Princess Photoshoot


Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/1.6
Exposure: 1/160
Focal Length: 85mm
Flash: Fired ETTL (ratio 1:4)
ISO: 500
Flash Umbrella
Post processing included conversion from RAW, and levels adjustment

More Clip N Climb

Today's shots for the "Photo a Day" project are called More Clip N Climb




Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/2.8
Exposure: 1/50, 1/200, 1/125
Focal Length: 115mm, 120mm, 110mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 1600
Post processing included conversion from RAW

Broken Hydro Pole

Today's shot for the "Photo a Day" project is called Broken Hydro Pole. If you were anywhere near Clyde Avenue this afternoon, you may have wondered why the police had closed off a section of the road. I know it was quite windy today, but wow!



Exif Data
Camera: Canon 5D mkII
Aperture: f/2.8
Exposure: 1/640
Focal Length: 200mm and 115mm
Flash: Not-Fired
ISO: 500
Post processing included conversion from RAW, levels adjustment, contrast adjustment, and unsharp-mask