The 420 Fotographer Collective: Advanced Cannabis Photography

[Van Stank]

Username:

Scrogdawg


Grow method and strains:

RDWC baby. Many indicas and hybrids.


Camera, Lenses and Gear:

Many Canon DSLR bodies and most of they're L glass over the years. I don't shoot a lot any more and have sold most of my gear.
Currently I have Canon 70D and 5D bodies.
For glass I have kept the Canon 24-70mm L and 70-200mm 2.8 L.


Experience level and photography background:

Self taught over many years.
Experience level...


What is your style? (portrait, journal, macro, outdoor, instructional, various)

Sports and wildlife mainly. Anything action or moving.


Favourite lens or type of shot:

70-200m F2.8 IS "L"
300mm F2.8 IS "L"


Other introductory options:

Choose a few of your favourite photos and share them. .

Shot this off my back deck one night years ago with a 100-400mm Canon lens.
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Got lucky here with a 500mm F4.0 "L" lens.
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Big Papi and Manny being Manny.
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He's not with me anymore but best bud I ever had.
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Some awesome photos there brother!!! I love it

 

[Van Stank]

Setting a Custom White Balance in a Canon DSLR using a grey card.

Step 1. Have a Canon DSLR. Also a grey card.

Step 2. Take a photo of the grey card IN the light you will be shooting pictures. Fill most of the frame with the card to make it easy. Here is an example. Also note the photo in the camera display is a different shade of grey than the one in my hand. These are the same card under two different lights.


Step 3. Go into your menu. Find Custom White Balance.


Step 4. Choose the grey card photo to set the white balance.


Step 5. Now go to your White Balance menu, and choose the Custom White Balance you just created. Now the camera knows that yes, its not normal light, but "i will see what I can do".


Here is the in camera result. You can also accomplish this in software. Open the grey card photo in your editing software. Find Custom White Balance. You can create a custom white balance preset or template to apply to every blurple picture with the touch of a button.


Cheers!

Ok, so I need a grey card. Do you all have a recommended source or will anything off the Zon do?

 

[Tony Urban]

Before I get to the comments, responses and educational portion of my post allow me to preface by saying I have a sense of humor, but that can be lost on the inter webs... Also, let me mention I want to help everybody including myself learn and grow therefore I humbly admit although i do have quite a base of knowledge to draw from I don't know everything and know I still have much to learn, not only as a photographer but as citizen of earth as well. I quote Rufus, "Be Excellent to Each Other!"





The literal translation of Photography is, "Drawing with Light." Without subtle shadows and darks photos would just be white squares. Variance in light allows us to perceive tones, shades, & colors. The dominant "effect" in this picture is vignetting. That is what makes the outside of the image dark and the subject light. Also, keep in mind my monitor is not calibrated that same as yours so you may not be seeing the image the same way I do on my computer, phone, tablet, etc.



Ok, I think I just entered into a Latin class. LOL. I am going to skip down to the bottom and the '5 rules'. The only one I am familiar with is the "thirds". Can you please start with a simple explanation of what the other 4 things are in a way a retarded Marine....errr...I mean retired Marine can understand. I don't know what Horizontal or Vertical means as it pertains to the rule. Same for the follow 3 rules.

I am sure that I could probably google the rules and try to learn it...but I generally do better with interpretations of the rule in someone else's breakdown (think of 10k foot view vs 100 foot view.........I like to get an understanding from a higher perspective 'the 10k foot view" and then work my way down into understanding it from a much more technical and detailed version of the 'view' from 100 foot). I hope that made sense

For me, too much technical talk without an explanation just kind of shuts me down, doesn't matter what it is......can be gardening, cooking, photography, or anything else. I just kind of glass over. So I think a basic version of the 5 rules would be a great place for a ignorant newbie to start. And this comment, while in response to Agemon, is open for anyone to share their interpretation of those 5 rules. Thanks in advance!!

I have limited knowledge on all of these rules. So I dont have a ton of examples. I will defer the technical stuff to others. But most of my photos have some form of composition at play. This image is an example of repetition of form. The leaves of a cannabis plant naturally repeat and cause a neat pattern. Visually the eyes are drawn to this. Much like a scrog net full of colas, there is repetition, and is an important part of composition.

Rule of thirds is very common. Here are a few examples of the above rules. Now this isnt an amazing photo but it has some of the elements. The image is broken up into three parts vertically. But less obviously. It also has some balance, there is a main nug as the focus, but the rest of the frame is also occupied with a subject but with less importance. So the main nug isnt carrying the image, it has a supporting cast, on either side.

Hopefully more will chime in on this. But I play around with these “guidelines”. At least the ones I am aware of and remember.

 

[nivek]

Ok, so I need a grey card. Do you all have a recommended source or will anything off the Zon do?

Gray card - Wikipedia

might be in trouble agin,, print this one??

 

[Tony Urban]

That is a challenge. I have a lot of better photos, but they're already floating around the internet. We have to be careful in here. I am still in a country where growing is considered a serious offence and if not cautious, I could end up several years in prison.

A few tips on photography and security. Make sure there are no details in the photos that can be used to identify you. It is very easy to overlook something. It can be a product from a shop revealing which part of the world you're in or worse, a bill with your name and address on it or anything else that's easy to identify. Then you have the matter of reflective surfaces. Check those to see if your face is on the photo. The same applies to eyes. You can be identified from the reflection of your face in someone's eyes. A pet photo could doom you forever if you forget to check for the small details. The following text is from my thread "Growing safety - Tips & Tricks on how to avoid getting caught" - I feel this needs to be included in a thread about the special nature of the kind of photography we do:

I often censor my photos. Especially reflective surfaces are pixeled out from many of my photos I post online. The reasons for this are quite simple - Please read the following article

Reflected hidden faces in photographs revealed in pupil

What do your Instagram and Facebook photos reveal?

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[+]

Zooming in on the pupil of a subject's eye reveals hidden bystanders (credit: Rob Jenkins)


The pupil* of the eye in a photograph of a face can be mined for hidden information, such as reflected faces of the photographer and bystanders, according to research led by Dr. ​

Rob Jenkins

, of the Department of Psychology at the ​

University of York

and published in PLOS ONE (open access).
The researchers say that in crimes in which the victims are photographed, such as hostage taking or child sex abuse, reflections in the eyes of the photographic subject could help to identify perpetrators. Images of people retrieved from cameras seized as evidence during criminal investigations could be used to piece together networks of associates or to link individuals to particular locations.


By zooming in on high-resolution passport-style photographs, Jenkins and co-researcher Christie Kerr of the School of Psychology, University of Glasgow were able to recover bystander images that could be identified accurately by observers, despite their low resolution.
​

[+]

Lineup-style array of reflected images from photographs for spontaneous recognition task in experiment. All participants were familiar with the face of the psychologist and unfamiliar with the faces of the bystanders. Correct naming of the familiar face was frequent (hits 90%), and mistaken identification of the unfamiliar faces was infrequent (false positives 10%)

To establish whether these bystanders could be identified from the reflection images, the researchers presented them as stimuli in a face-matching task. Observers who were unfamiliar with the bystanders' faces performed at 71 per cent accuracy, while participants who were familiar with the faces performed at 84 per cent accuracy. In a test of spontaneous recognition, observers could reliably name a familiar face from an eye reflection image.
"The pupil of the eye is like a black mirror," said Jenkins. "To enhance the image, you have to zoom in and adjust the contrast. A face image that is recovered from a reflection in the subject's eye is about 30,000 times smaller than the subject's face." In the research, the whole-face area for the reflected bystanders was 322 pixels on average.


Forensics implications
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[+]

You probably recognize this well-known person, even though his face in this image measures only 16 pixels wide × 20 pixels high. (look at my personal remarks regarding this photo below this article - DeVille)

High-resolution face photographs may also contain unexpected information about the environment of the photographic subject, including the appearance of the immediate surroundings, Jenkins explained to KurzweilAI.
"In the context of criminal investigations, this could be used to piece together networks of associates, or to link individuals to particular locations. This may be especially important when for categories of crime in which perpetrators photograph their victims. Reflections in the victims eyes could reveal the identity of the photographer.
"Also, around 40 million photographs per day are uploaded to Instagram alone, he pointed out. "Faces are among the most frequently photographed objects. Our study serves as a reminder to be careful what you upload. Eyes in the photographs could reveal where you were and who you were with."
Although Jenkins did the study with a high-resolution (39 megapixels) Hasselblad camera, face images retrieved from eye reflections need not be of high quality in order to be identifiable, he said. "Obtaining optimal viewers – those who are familiar with the faces concerned – may be more important than obtaining optimal images."
In addition, "in accordance with Hendy's Law (a derivative of Moore's Law), pixel count per dollar for digital cameras has been doubling approximately every twelve months. This trajectory implies that mobile phones could soon carry >39 megapixel cameras routinely."
It would be interesting to see what hidden information is buried in law-enforcement (and other) photo archives – some of which could even help exculpate innocent persons.

​

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Abstract of PLOS ONE paper
Criminal investigations often use photographic evidence to identify suspects. Here we combined robust face perception and high-resolution photography to mine face photographs for hidden information. By zooming in on high-resolution face photographs, we were able to recover images of unseen bystanders from reflections in the subjects' eyes. To establish whether these bystanders could be identified from the reflection images, we presented them as stimuli in a face matching task (Experiment 1). Accuracy in the face matching task was well above chance (50%), despite the unpromising source of the stimuli. Participants who were unfamiliar with the bystanders' faces (n = 16) performed at 71% accuracy [t(15) = 7.64, p<.0001, d = 1.91], and participants who were familiar with the faces (n = 16) performed at 84% accuracy [t(15) = 11.15, p<.0001, d = 2.79]. In a test of spontaneous recognition (Experiment 2), observers could reliably name a familiar face from an eye reflection image. For crimes in which the victims are photographed (e.g., hostage taking, child sex abuse), reflections in the eyes of the photographic subject could help to identify perpetrators.
references:



​

• Rob Jenkins, Christie Kerr, Identifiable Images of Bystanders Extracted from Corneal Reflections, PLOS ONE, 2013, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0083325 (open access)

* I have some remarks about the Obama photo. That's a clear weakness of this study. You see - They used a very famous photo of a very famous person. However - If they used a non famous photo of the same person the chances would be considerably smaller for you to be able to identify this person after being pixelated like that. They probably did it to illustrate their point, but it's not very scientific to mislead the reader like this. I just felt I had to say that - DeVille​

Great post and an excellent point of discussion. Folks really need to take their security, and their copyright, very seriously. You never know when you will take the next great photo. You should have an understanding of the dangersof sharing your imageson websites. People are thieves, either unknowing or on purpose, and dont understand that your photo is your property. I know I get irritated when I see a few of my photos curculating around the internet and I am not getting credit for it, posting it to their site as if its their own work. I would snap show if I saw my images on post cards or whatever.

I keep the original RAW files now and only post smaller less detailed versions of my images. Sure you can save it or download it, but you wont get much detail, whereas I can blow my original file up to the size of a living room wall with incredible detail. I will let someone with more knowledge tackle the topic of resizing for quality and security.

 

[Tony Urban]

Gray card - Wikipedia

might be in trouble agin,, print this one??

I got one off Amazon Canada for $9. You could print one off but it might be off colour. Do you have a canon or nikon carrying case or bag? Should have a grey interior. That is a secret or life hack my photographer buddy showed me. You can use that grey interior as a grey card in a pinch.

 

[Van Stank]

There is plenty of expertise in here, so don't be afraid to ask questions. You'll get the hang on your dlsr. There is a huge "class" difference in photo's taken with a real mirrored camera and the others and you'll learn how to use your camera in no time at all.

Can you tell me a little bit about the filters? What are they called?

QUOTE=Van Stank;3851382]Username: (Hey I can get at least one question right!!) Van Stank

Grow Method and strains: I grow in my homemade organic soil and use water and ACT only for feeding. As for strains I only have Nukeheads going now but I just started a perpetual that will include endless strains.

Camera, Lenses, aand Gear: I have a Nikon D7100 and the two lenses that came with it, the smaller one and the 50-300 mm zoom lens. Ms Stank also just picked up a Nikkor Macro 40mm lens. I also have a tripod and she picked up a couple 'filters' (though I don't know what they do). I also use my Samsung Galaxy S7 as well.

Experience level: Complete novice with DSLR cameras, decent experience with scenery pictures with point and shoot type cameras.

What is my style? LOL....hell if I know. I tend to take outdoor pictures more often than anything else besides my plants. I would like to learn a bit of everything and figure out what I actually like. I know it will likely involve either my cannabis plants or out door type shots.

Favorite lens or type shot: On the lenses.....hell if I know. I am playing around a little with my new Macro lens but I don't know enough to know how to use it. I can't seem

1 Tip for a beginner: Take a class LOL!!


As for a favorite picture.......well I have dig through a bunch of pics I have and see what i can find. Also many of pictures are in RAW format (whatever that means) so I have that obstacle to deal with.

[/QUOTE]

Here are the filters she got me.

 

[Van Stank]

The Raw format is a uncompressed format. As long as the images are in that format, you can change them a lot in post processing. The kind of freedom you have to edit the photos and modify all the settings are enormous with the raw format compared to a compressed format like for example jpeg.

Do I need specific software in order to do that? Does anyone have a free photo editor they would recommend for both ease of use and for being a good editor?

 

[Van Stank]

I got one off Amazon Canada for $9. You could print one off but it might be off colour. Do you have a canon or nikon carrying case or bag? Should have a grey interior. That is a secret or life hack my photographer buddy showed me. You can use that grey interior as a grey card in a pinch.

I do have the Nikon carrying case for it....but i would rather buy a grey card and know what i am getting than hope for the it being right. I will hit the Zon later. Thanks brother.

 

[Canada Guy]

The 420 Fotographer Collective - Member Bio

Username:

Canada Guy

Grow method and strains:

Indoors I grow in pro mix hp with extra perlite and earthworm castings and I use bottled Nutes.

Outdoors it's all organic in the garden.

Camera, Lenses and Gear:

Samsung Galaxy S7

Experience level and photography background:

I am fairly experienced in photography, it's more about getting the right shot with good lighting than post processing.

What is your style? (portrait, journal, macro, outdoor, instructional, various)

Various styles. Portrait or landscape based on the scene. Macro for the trich shots of course. I've also done a pic a day for a whole grow but never made a video of it.

Favourite lens or type of shot:

Favourite type of shot would be the 1 in 100 that is actually a good picture lol.

If you could give 1 tip for new photographers:

Take lots of pics and enjoy documenting your grow. Any camera will do, just have some fun.

Other introductory options:

Please share 1 of you favourite photos and explain why it works so well for you. What equipment did you use?

I took many pics to get this shot right. I like this one because it shows how in nature cannabis will grow without chemicals. I used my phone.

Talk about a piece of your equipment you can't live without.

My phone, great for taking pics and checking out 420mag.


Welcome!

Thanks for inviting me to tag along.

 

[Skullman420]

Put on the polarizing filter on the camera, point it towards a reflective surface like a water, wet asphalt/roof or your computer screen. Turn on it and look what happens. You'll get what it do when you do that

UV filter I think of as a cheap lense protector, but it filters out uv rays from the sun. Not much difference with or without, but keep it on. It's much better to break than the lense

 

[nivek]

Do I need specific software in order to do that? Does anyone have a free photo editor they would recommend for both ease of use and for being a good editor?

i use a free program, yes, a program,, not an app, a program called 'raw therapee',,

it is far from simple, tho none are, but as you might expect it processes 'raw' files, which not every editor will do

salude

 

[Skullman420]

I use Photoshop myself, but have heard good things about the free softwares rawtherapee and darktable. Both open source

Do I need specific software in order to do that? Does anyone have a free photo editor they would recommend for both ease of use and for being a good editor?

 

[Tony Urban]

I use Photoshop myself, but have heard good things about the free softwares rawtherapee and darktable. Both open source

I use the software that comes with the canon suite. Downloaded the latest version. I think its called Digital Photo Pro 4, free. But I dont edit much. This is just for viewing, selecting my keepers, resizing, and converting from RAW to jpeg. That said I dont even do the RAW conversion anymore, just use the jpeg from the camera, unless I have to fix a major flaw.

 

[nivek]

Me and another of my pals fishing,, there is marijuana involved here, indeed, no worries

 

[Scrogdawg]

Someone mentioned earlier, the fine line between good, and to much, in post processing and I had to chuckle. I've caught myself hundreds of times getting a little to happy with the unsharp mask.

 

[Agemon]

Someone mentioned earlier, the fine line between good, and to much, in post processing and I had to chuckle. I've caught myself hundreds of times getting a little to happy with the unsharp mask.

When it just has to be sharp and crisp, gotta get those edges a little sharper.

 

[Agemon]

I shot another water droplet on top of the seedling. I wanted to show everybody how ISO can affect your pictures. Especially as you move from inside to outside. Below are the two different pictures side by side. One of them is shot with 1600 ISO and the other is shot with 400 ISO. There is no doubt which is which. There really is only 2 differences in the ISO's as the numbers move from 100 on up. The first is that the higher the number the more sensitive your camera is to light. This means you can shoot in lower light situations.

Do you know the other way that changing the ISO will affect your pictures?

Do you see an example of ISO affecting the image in the sample pictures?

 

[dr.h00k]

So...I'm seeing a lot of photo's with the 420 watermark, which tells me they're in the same gallery as your pot pic's, which is generally frowned upon...is it kewl' now, or they just haven't noticed yet?...lolool...I put up a Maz pic last evening in off topic photos, but couldn't figger' out how to insert into a post other than a link...https://www.420magazine.com/gallery/data/1398/medium/P1050721_1_.JPG ... any insight on posting off topic pics?...Pic is green dot that occurs when the sun drops below the horizon when conditions are right...cheerz...h00k...

 

[ilikemsticky]

So...I'm seeing a lot of photo's with the 420 watermark, which tells me they're in the same gallery as your pot pic's, which is generally frowned upon...is it kewl' now, or they just haven't noticed yet?...lolool...I put up a Maz pic last evening in off topic photos, but couldn't figger' out how to insert into a post other than a link...https://www.420magazine.com/gallery/data/1398/medium/P1050721_1_.JPG ... any insight on posting off topic pics?...Pic is green dot that occurs when the sun drops below the horizon when conditions are right...cheerz...h00k...

thats a cool pic hook i posted an off topic pic today its in my gallery I'm not sure what your problem is i upload pics into the gallery and then they are available for posting?