This afternoon, while I sat comfortably on one of my new patio chairs to await the arrival of the hummingbird, my Westminster wind chimes caught my eye. The hummingbird eventually came but my photos of it were mediocre at best so the wind chimes, with their lovely, deep resonance, made the cut. Too bad I can’t post a sound file here. Or can I?
Focal Length 70mm
ISO 200
f/4.5
1/640
SOOC
The most recent lesson in my photography class is about portraits. I wish I’d had the information when I took the “new James Dean” headshots a few weeks ago and when I took the photos of baby Faith and her brother Matt last week. I know the information will help in my future attempts at portraiture. Our assignment for this lesson was to enlist a friend or family member to sit for portraits and take lots of them. I’m thinking, “been there, done that.” It is way too soon for me to jump back into taking portraits. The instructor commented that at times she has taken as many as 50 shots in a session. Well, that doesn’t hold a candle to the 613 I took last week of Faith and Matt. An optional assignment was self portraits. So, I decided to take up that challenge instead. I took a total of 36 photos in my session today; one of the tape I placed on the backdrop to center the lens; 3 of my hand for focusing; 6 of nothing when the camera decided on its own not to set an f/stop; 6 of my cheek, chin, shoulder, or hair when I changed the focal length; and 11 completely out of focus. The remaining 9 were marginal at best, but I did manage to get my eyes in perfect focus in one of them, despite the challenges of focusing the camera on eyes that are absent because the photographer is the subject. One thought occurs to me about that: I could hang a plumb bob from the ceiling positioned exactly where my eyes are going to be. But that’s for another time.
The problem with the only photo with perfectly in focus eyes is that the photo is overexposed. But I liked the color of my eyes and if you look closely, you can see my contact lenses floating on my eyeballs; one tinted slightly blue and one tinted slightly green so I can tell them apart. The problem is I can never remember which is which.
52mm focal length
ISO 500
f/4.8
1/10
Cropped
Why is it that I always find myself wanting (needing?) to take my photo of the day at high noon? It can’t always be the worst time to take a photo. Today I think I proved to myself that it can be a good time if you have the right subject. I staged The Antelope 500 (first and last ever to be held) on my patio at 12:45PM (11:45 sun time) with three entrants, the Hot Wheels cars that have “mysteriously” found their way into my yard over the past few months. The Woody won. The bright colors of the Hot Wheels were not overexposed in the midday sunlight. The background aggregate of the patio appears to be about that 18% gray color the light meter seeks and I actually paid attention to my light meter and adjusted settings accordingly.
Now that I’ve held the race, the cars will NOT be returned to whom I suspect to be the original owner. Rather I have promised them to a child whom I hope will appreciate them enough to refrain from flinging them into neighboring yards.
200mm focal length
ISO 200
f/7.1
1/1000
SOOC
Earlier this morning, the sun was out briefly, shining brightly on my David Austin English Rose, Abraham Darby, an incredibly fragrant and full petaled rose. I thought the light was nice.
Lens at 200mm
ISO 500
f/14
1/200
SOOC
The sky was filled with puffs of cottony clouds this morning. I attached the polarizing filter to my 35mm prime lens and went out to see what I could see. It was about 8:30 and the sun was to my right when I took this photo and the polarizing filter was set to maximum. I don’t really understand the filter. I’ve read that to get the maximum effect, the sun should be at a 45 degree angle which, at 8:30 it was probably close to that, coming from over my right shoulder. I can see in the photo the sky darkening on the opposite side from the sun and the clouds stand out from the sky more than when the filter was not at maximum.
35mm Lens
ISO 200
F/11
1/100
Polarizing filter set to maximum
SOOC
Here are the clouds with the filter at minimum polarization; slight change but not dramatic. The sky is a different color, however. This exercise has taught me that I need to study more about polarizing filters, why to use them, how to use them, and when to use them.
35mm Lens
ISO 200
F/11
1/100
Polarizing filter set to minimum
SOOC
My friend Melinda started a “Book Un-Club” to bring together people interested in reading and sharing their reads but who prefer a non-threatening environment in which to do this. I have discovered that the un-club and I are a perfect fit. I introduced myself to the members today and listed the books I am currently reading. After I posted, I looked in the basket of books and magazines on my nightstand and discovered two more unfinished books about which I had completely forgotten. Clearly I would be drummed out of any ordinary book club. So my photo of the day is my current stack of unfinished books, with their various bookmarks, including a dollar bill! If I look in the bookcase, I’ll probably find more.
35mm Lens
ISO 640
f/5
1/60
SOOC
My friend Royetta called me this afternoon to see if I wanted to go with her to Green Acres Nursery in Roseville. I said, “yes!” because I need to plant something around my fountain. I bought lavender and hydrangea but what captivated me at the nursery was the lighting contrast in amongst the tall racks of flowers. I’m still working on lighting for my class and we’re also now working on exposure and aperture in our latest lesson.
I liked the colors, the light, and the depth of field in this photo.
Lens at 95mm
ISO 200
f/13
1/160
SOOC
I’m experimenting with available light and I love the look of a subject bathed in bright light with the rest of the image dark. While experimenting with using fill flash in the shade, I noticed a stalk of Japanese Privet, buds waiting to open, jutting into the bright sunlight. I turned off my fill flash and took this photo. It’s not a particularly compelling subject, but I like the effect regardless of the subject matter.
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Lens at 200mm
ISO200
f/8
1/320
SOOC
I stopped at Granny May’s strawberry patch this afternoon where they raise and sell delicious strawberries and as it turns out, onions, too. I bought a bunch of spring onions and a flat of strawberries. When I got home I laid the onions on the granite windowsill and when I looked at them there, I thought they would made an interesting photo with the natural side lighting coming from the window and dirt still clinging to the roots.
This also fit into the assignment for my Secrets for Better Photography class. The current lesson is “light.” I did some experimenting today with available light, using incandescent overhead lighting combined with strong side lighting from the window. For white balance, I decided to stay with the Auto setting but adjusted the color to the blue side of the scale (B5M3). I have discovered I don’t have a clue how Auto White Balance works; if it is Auto, why am I allowed to adjust the color? And how does MY color adjustment affect the Auto setting? All of the photos I took of the onions and the flat of strawberries used the same Auto White Balance camera setting with the color adjusted. And yet, the White Balance meta data indicates a different temperature and tint for each of the photos. Obviously this is something I need to discuss in my class when we get to White Balance.
35mm lens
ISO 320
f/3.5
1/13
Tripod
SOOC
Today I went to Loomis Basin Regional Park to take photos of my personal trainer’s children, 9 month old Faith and 6 year old Matt. I took hundreds of photos and faced many challenges in the hour we spent. The bright sun was a problem; the deep shade was a problem; the dappled light was a problem; two squirmy children were a problem. But in the end, those two adorable children made for photographic nirvana. I couldn’t have asked for cuter kids to work with. After a quick review of all of the photos, I kept coming back to this one of the two of them together. It is clear they adore each other.
Lens at 75mm
ISO 100
f/5
1/400
SOOC
I am taking the “Secrets of Better Photography” class on line through Sierra College. Lesson 3 is the first opportunity we have had to post photos that reflect some of the things we’ve learned or are experimenting with in the class. I chose to use the Rule of Thirds, selective focus, and framing to isolate my subject today. This is a small patch of blue star creeper in the lawn; only one of the flowers is in focus and the grass leaves frame that flower which is in the lower third of the photo, three elements that I feel serve to bring the viewer’s eye to the subject flower.
Lens at 200mm
ISO 320
f/5.6
1/80
SOOC