Filters have two different meanings depending on how long you have had photography as a hobby.  Most of us today think as filters as an option with Photoshop.  This is not the case.  Before the invention of computers and things like Photoshop we had small glass discs to create the filtered affect.  There are many options with filters you can blur a picture, sharpen the picture, and even block out the UV rays.  Filters are often used to correct a problem or make a picture look a little different.

Lets talk about filters that blur a photograph.  When you are taking a picture of a waterfall at the bottom where the water rises in a cloud you can add a filter to create the cloud in the picture.  Cameras don’t always see what the eye sees.  In some cases it can have a high resolution to depict the actual water drops rather than the cloud, so adding a filter to your lens can help create the effect your eye sees.

Other filters such as the UV protector guard against the harsh rays.  Along with the UV filter you should have a polarizer.  The polarizer is used in photography when you are taking a shot into direct sunlight or other light.  It will help balance out the photograph so that you don’t get the washed out look.  Other filters can give you the washed out effect if you feel your photography would speak more.  The filters in Photoshop are not as wide as the filters you can actually buy for your camera, but they can have some of the same effects that you are after.

Have you ever wanted to create a star effect when taking pictures of light filtering through the trees?  You can create a star effect with any photograph by using a star effect filter.  This filter allows light to pass through a series of thin lines etched into the filter letting the light streak outward in a star shape.

Some filters actually help you create a depth of field or focal point.  The fog/ mist filter is one of these.  The fog/ mist filter allows for a glow or flare of light in the photograph.  Photography is filled with much skill and equipment.  Having filters to help create the perfect professional photograph will enhance your fun with your hobby.  Lets look at a few more filters.

There are color correcting lenses.  If the sky is too blue for the photograph you can choose a filter that will tamp down the blue to a less bright state.  If you are into underwater photography you might have filters that allow for the underwater colors.  The color spectrum does not have a great range under water.  A lot of things will look red even though they are not.  It is easy to bring about the original color of underwater life when you use special filters for color correction.

The use of filters in photography not only allows you to have special effects in a photograph to create something new and different, but it can help enhance the shot by adding color or dampening the natural effects of light.  Photography has many types of equipment that require skill and knowledge making it a wonderful hobby or profession. If you need a hobby, photography allows you to be creative.

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Stock photography, groups of photographs that people take, grouped and licensed for selling purposes.  Instead of taking new pictures every time they need pictures, many people use the stock photography method.  People that work for magazines, as graphic artists, and advertising agencies sometimes use public pictures instead of hiring photographers for individual projects.

Alternate names for stock photography is picture libraries, photo archives or image banks.  Typically, in order to use these pictures, although publicly available, there is a small fee or a purchasing of usage rights that comes with a fee in order to use the pictures.  Sometimes a membership purchase allows you to have access to a particular group of stock photography.

Saving time and money, stock photography is a great way to enhance newsletters, blogs, advertisements, company brochures and more.  It is obviously less expensive than putting a full time photographer on staff and takes less time if you need images of something specific.  Many times, it is as easy as using a search engine or checking an email.

Sometimes full rights and usage is available for purchase.  Other times, full rights are limited.  In those cases, photographers might be requiring that they receive a certain percentage of sales and or royalties of usage.  Agencies usually hold the images on files and negotiate fees.  With the technology and easy access that the internet provides, negotiations are quicker and easier.

The cost of using stock photos depends on how long the pictures will be used, what location the images will be used, if the original photographer wants royalties and how many people the photo will be distributed to or seen by.  Prices for stock photography can be anywhere from one dollar to two hundred dollars.

There are several different pricing arrangements.  Royalty free stock photography allows the buyer to use photographs multiple times in multiple ways.  When you buy royalty free pictures, there is only a one-time charge for unlimited usage.  When the images you purchase have a royalty free section, the agency is able to resell the image to others.  If an image is rights managed, there is a negotiated price for each time that it is used.

Sometimes a buyer of stock photography might desire to have exclusive rights to the images.  In that case, no one else will be able to use the pictures once exclusive rights have been purchased.  It may cost thousands of dollars to purchase exclusive rights because agencies who handle the sales have to make sure that they are making a profitable sale.  If a photograph would make more money staying in circulation, they would lose out selling exclusive rights.

Stock photographers sometimes work with agencies producing images for them alone.  Different subjects and categories might need multiple varieties of images.  Sometimes contributors work for multiple agencies selling their photographs for a fee. They work out arrangements for royalties or they sell their shots for full rights. This has proved to be a big business for photographers around the world.

Stock photography started in the early 1920s.  It especially grew as its own specialty by the 1980s.  Galleries hold hundreds, thousands and even millions of pictures available for purchase.  Stock houses sprung up in many different places.  By 2000, online stock photography became microstock photography, which we call photo archives online.  Companies like istock photo and bigstock photo offer you the opportunity to purchase so many pictures and when you use them up you can add more credits for another fee.  Photos that are distributed online are typically less expensive than those that are sold hard copy.

Websites like www.shutterpoint.com and www.fotolibra.com allow stock photographers to upload and sell their images.  It is a great way to market pictures and earn money with photography.  You can also purchase images at those websites as well.  With all the stock photography sites available, one may find pictures you never even heard of before.

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One of the most candid styles of photography is street photography.  It consists of candid pictures taken of people in public situations.  Street photography was done everywhere on the street and now has moved to the mall, at clubs, streets, parks, and practically anywhere.  A street photographer never asks anyone to pose, and he or she does not want anyone to act as if he or she knows what might happen next. This takes away from the natural look needed when using the technique of street photography.

Street photography stems from another type of photograph that called documentary photography.  Documentary photography once said to be the most honest and true to life picture taking.  There are professional and amateur brands of documentary photography, as well as street photography.  Street photography reflects society in its untainted state. This accounts for many pictures we see on the internet and television that reflect what was happening at the time.

 Pictures of this genre use black and white film.  Street photography often shows irony in situations.  Many street photographers use wide view lens cameras to capture a wider area.  The shots usually have the appearance of a screen or a window viewing the human state at a particular moment.  The photographer becomes removed from the scene.  This type of picture taking captures the most honest moments in life.

Some photographers who specialize in street photography take their cameras to public events like conventions, meetings, and tragic sites.  Others simply photograph life around them.  A famous street photographer named Garry Winogrand was well known for capturing New York everyday for years.  He was interested in shedding light on the contemporary social issues of his time.  He became prominent after the 1960’s.  He shot about one hundred photographs a day for about thirty years, and left over three hundred thousand unedited exposures.

One interesting thing about street photography is that sometimes a photographer might capture things on film that they were not even focusing on.  Strange and funny things might be happening in the background or the foreground of a photograph that they do not even notice.  When the film is developed, they often find things within the scope of their shots that are ironic, interesting, or funny.  Many times, things are seemingly unrelated to the rest of the shot, but because of this factor, one can say that street photography is one way that we use to capture the moment.

The genre of street photography started between the end of the 19th century and the mid to late 1970s.  One of the assisting inventions of this type of picture taking was 35-millimeter film.  Thirty-five millimeter film was introduced towards the late 19th century.  Photographers from both Europe and North America spread the popularity of the genre and developed the art behind it.  Including in the early development were photographers Henri Cartier-Bresson of France and Robert Frank of Switzerland. 

You do not have to be a professional to take on street photography.  You do not necessarily have to use black and white film either.  All you need is a way to take pictures.  You can make your own documentary film series.  The pictures you take can comment on society.  Your photographs can record people doing mundane activities like eating or sleeping.  It is important to remember, however, that you should not publish pictures of people without their consent.

Becoming a street photographer can be a great hobby.  You can donate your pictures to museums and websites, or you can start your own website.  There are also photo archives that consist of collections of pictures that are available for public use.  This is also a place that you may have your pictures displayed. Street photography is one way to capture the real moments of life.  Thanks to technology, film editing is easier than ever.  Once you try street photography, you find yourself caught up in the real world. The pictures reflect the everyday life and times. 

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