Today, while I waited for my friend Barbara to finish her transactions at a local boutique in The Fountains, the trendy shopping center across from the upscale Galleria Shopping Center, my eye was drawn to the colorful trolley that takes people on rides around the Mall. It was parked and no one was on it nor was anyone waiting for a ride, so I took a few shots of the still train and then remembered that today’s challenge topic is “Dutch Angle” a term that I’d never heard until today. A “Dutch Angle” is a shot made with the camera tilted for effect…or at least that’s what I understood it to be. I decided to tilt the camera to make it look as if the train were moving, coming round a corner. I was also mindful of today’s lesson on composition in the photography workshop in which I’m participating so I was especially challenged in the few minutes I had to take my photographs. I tried to compose the photo by filling the frame to make my subject obvious, getting a nicely balanced shot, and avoiding unsatisfactory mergers, and considering the rule of thirds. When I downloaded the photos I took, I discovered that I failed to tilt the camera enough for the “Dutch Angle” effect I wanted and I didn’t really get my subject composed as nicely as I hoped. But, the shot is colorful and a slight tweak with the “straightening tool” resulted in the photo I desired. I also had to adjust levels to achieve correct exposure so today’s shot is far from technically perfect. But I ended up liking the processed result.
Focal Length 68mm
ISO 200
f/9
1/200