Color, graphic, focus, subject?
When you edit something catches your eye and you give it a rating. One star, two star… It’s not hard. But then you have to choose one among your two stars. Now what? I’m not picky in what rates a star or two. Three, there’s another decision. It has to stand above and be noticeably different. Meanwhile there are a lot of passable shots. I am not to picky about 1, 2, or 3 images. 3,5,7… it gets tricky. Too many pictures not enough space.
It’s Colleen’s favorite color. Spring green. Once a year, the promise of the new year…
I admit I did not stop the car. …to much go, we were on the way somewhere. No time… to smell the roses. Alas! The color is unmistakable. I know what Colleen talks about. But there were things to do and places to go. I wish…
Aside from the distinct defining color there is the contrast of the white fence and the composition which make this a nice shot. I cannot say great. I took it thru the windshield of a speeding car. Everything was purely chance? Skill? Practice? Eh? It conveys the thought. A dream come true.
Taking matters into my own hands. Look ma! … no hands driving… nah! I hold the wheel and the camera … no hands left. Of course, I hold the camera in my right hand. Oh bother!
You have to set the zoom. The rest is on auto-focus and exposure. Shoot. Multiples. No look shots. Then you pick one. It can be dramatic. I am playing off the wide angle view to give more drama to the shot. Eh!?
When you scroll randomly thru your photo catalog it is easy to miss a shot. …then to go back and try to find what you just saw… hell!
Moon shot between the pillars of the inlet bridge. Don’t ask. We were obviously driving over the bridge. Neat! I got a shot! Yawn…!
The moon is over exposed and too centered. Really!? I’m going over the bridge in the middle of the night… I could have cropped and done all sorts of repairs in Photoshop. Lazy. Me. Out of the box or nuthin’ at all. No matter. Since I don’t throw anything away… this is worth thought and comment. It was a neat trick – this night shot.
I had it in mind to get an image of one of the many barns we were passing as we drove across West Virginia. I did not quite get what I wanted. No matter, I got something. Shooting from a moving car is a bit of a challenge because of the speed of the car. The fast shutter speed in midday will compensate and the image is generally sharp. Composition is hard. The scene passes in the blink of an eye. Not quite. Almost. I would have liked to have shot the red barns I saw but we had passed them by a while ago. No backs.
It seems I looked long and hard for a worthy single image today. Stained glass, religion, peace be unto you.
It’s not hard to shoot stained glass. Aim and fire away. It would help if I framed without diagonal lines. Or, maybe that was intentional to give the image tension. Ha ha. I doubt I pondered the issue – at all. Vertical. If you would notice, I shoot way fewer vertical compositions in my posts. I shoot few verticals. It is because my laptop has a horizontal screen and vertical pictures leave too much border. Yeah, simple. Um, no. Verticals are proper shots for portrait work and so forth.
Today I was just looking for something worthy to post and comment. A single. It’s hard. There are so many stories in my head. I find blue to be soothing. I need some peace and serenity right about now. After this I am going to hug my cat and then find Colleen. Nary a day goes by that we don’t hug many times over.
Take a picture. Frame it. That is to say have a frame around your subject. Don’t think picture frame. Use something in nature. Trees and branches. It focuses attention on the main subject. It can be contrite or tasteful. It all depends on your technique. Whatever works.
There is lots to criticize. Too centered. Too messy…. It worked for me. I’m good with it as it is.
They are all around us. Hard to get. But easy is you see it. Ya gotta look! And sometimes it’s work. Special? Yes, when they work.
The last morning of the balloon festival they launched in the morning fog. I chased the balloons along the river. There was no set course they were following, mostly letting the gentle breeze carry them along. I stopped and popped thru the trees along the river to capture the reflection. Symmetrical. Symmetry. About near perfect. Probably too perfect. But this is something you cannot stage. You are just there as the opportunity unfolds. Take care and focus.
Washington Dulles airport. It’s around 1AM in the morning. We are landing. It’s a night shot. It would be near impossible to take this image with film. Digital is a challenge. And I daresay most folks don’t bother or try.
Challenge. It’s dark. You need to fool the camera meter. And it has to focus upon something. Yes, there is some skill. Not much. But some. I would like a sharply focused image. I settle. And composition would be more interesting if I could zoom in on something interesting. And then the shutter speed would be too slow and everything would be blurred. Take what you can get. Not too bad. Not too good.
This picture makes me happy. Hoop dancer. The metadata suggests it was the Indian powwow on Labor Day 2006. It’s a good shot. Good lighting. Nice composition. I’m glad I was there. No complaints.
PhotoCritical 