Mark S. Johnson Photography

Hello Friends,

2012 is shaping up to be an unforgettable workshop year! I’d like to announce two new offerings plus a little something more…

The Grandeur of Autumn in New Hampshire

Charles Needle and I invite you to join us from Oct. 7 – 12, 2012 for one of nature’s most flamboyant displays––autumn in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. You’ll be captivated by blazing fall foliage and inspired by engaging lectures and supportive image evaluations. Our home for the week will be the quaint (and nicely priced) Town and Country Inn in Gorham, New Hampshire.

Download a PDF flyer with all of the colorful details.

Botanical Dreaming

This popular workshop is back for the fifth consecutive year and is likely to fill quickly. Come join Bobbie Turner and me from May 31 – June 1, 2012 for two unforgettable days of flower photography and Photoshop instruction at Bobbie’s Boulder, Colorado home. In the spirit of my book, Botanical Dreaming, you’ll be treated to a variety of creative techniques for capturing expressive flower portraits—including macro, water droplets on glass, camera movement, in-camera multiple-exposure, studio lighting, image montaging, and high dynamic range (HDR).

Download a gorgeous PDF flyer with all of the information.

Listen to an Interview

On an unrelated, yet equally exciting note, I was recently interviewed by Kevin Menzie, founder and CEO of Slice of Lime (a web design and development company) and creator and host of the Boulder:Create podcast. We discussed subjects ranging from the creative process to ways to stay inspired. You can listen to the podcast at Boulder:Create or on iTunes.

Have a beautiful day!

Mark

Photographs depicting lighthouses with beams of sweeping light are so evocative that my imagination carries me away each time I see one. Unfortunately, it’s virtually impossible to capture this type of scene with your camera, yet as you are well aware, Photoshop picks up where the camera leaves off…empowering you to control every detail right down to the color, density, shape, softness, and fade of the beam. Thanks to the remarkable Terry Crowell for providing today’s image of the Peggy’s Cove Lighthouse in Nova Scotia.

Praise for the Photoshop Impressionism Video Tutorial Series

“To the many fans of uber-creative artist/instructor Mark S. Johnson, the way in which he sees the world is one of pure inspiration and creativity that can’t help but be infectious to others. If you’ve ever had the fortune to be taught Adobe Photoshop creative techniques by him, then you know what I’m talking about. Well, he’s at it again with a brand new video tutorial series he is calling Photoshop Impressionism.”

Bob McGowan
Missoula, MT

In this series of 11 video tutorials, I encourage you to dispense with the traditional way of thinking about photography and consider a different approach––one where you embrace the idea of conveying an emotion or idea rather than merely documenting an event or setting. If you are interested in transforming your photographs from literal depictions to unique, evocative works of art using Photoshop techniques that don’t require a background in painting or illustration, then this series is for you. None of the techniques covered is difficult to accomplish, yet each one transcends the concept of merely pressing a button or applying a basic filter. Instead, each is designed to open your mind and unlock your creativity.

Here’s what you’ll learn:

1. Soft-Glow Double-Exposure Montage
2. Painting with Light
3. Multi-Image Montage
4. Mirror Montage
5. Multiple-Exposure Monet
6. Multiple-Exposure Rotate and Zoom Montage
7. Multiple-Exposure Rotate and Zoom Montage with a Mask
8. Creating a Painterly Border
9. The Pixel Bender Oil Paint Plug-in
10. Filter Forge’s Old Drawing Blend Effect with a Watercolor Frame
11. The Lloyd Williams Kaleidoscope

(Read More)

During a recent Nova Scotia workshop, we experienced the good fortune of being granted access to Canada’s second oldest Anglican church, Saint John’s in Lunenburg. The church has a charming “carpenter gothic” character that features spectacular stained glass. One of the wonderful participants, Sherrie Winarski, was determined to capture a scene of Christ using a long-exposure slap-zoom method that would produce the appearance of God beams. Despite her best efforts, the scene presented challenges. Fortunately, Sherrie captured a single, static version of the scene as well, which opened the door for us to explore a method for reproducing the slap-zoom effect with Photoshop.

Before I explain the Photoshop technique, I’d like to talk briefly about the in-camera approach. To capture a long-exposure slap zoom, first mount a zoom lens, such as a 70 – 200 mm, then place the camera on a tripod. After framing the scene, set the camera to Aperture Priority and reduce the size of the aperture until the shutter speed slows to between 1 and 8 seconds. If there is too much light, you may need to mount a polarizer or a neutral density filter to reduce the intensity. Now practice zooming the lens to ensure that both ends of the zoom present a good composition. When you’re ready, begin the zoom, then open the shutter. Zoom throughout the entire exposure duration. In some cases, you may wish to open the shutter before beginning the zoom.

I’ve been examining the work of Joel Grimes and I have to say that his edgy portraits of athletes represent some of the most exciting imagery that I’ve seen lately. I’ve been obsessing over his techniques, and after reading Matt Kloskowski’s remarkable book titled Photo Compositing Secrets, I’ve decided to commit this Workbench and several more in the future to revealing some of the secrets behind Joel’s spectacular look. Even if you don’t have plans to do portrait compositing, I’m certain that you’ll find many of these techniques invaluable. In today’s Workbench, we’ll take a look at an impactful method for increasing the edginess of a subject.