Making unique pictures

Christmas Lights Copyright 2010 John PuettThe theme for this months contest for the Charlotte Photo Meetup group was motion. I had just about decided to not enter this month when I saw this post on adding randomness to your photographs. I was reminded that I have a tendency to take pictures that are more abstract at times. Photos (like this and this) that involve moving the camera. 

That would be perfect, I thought. But what to shoot?

Then I remembered that my small town still has it's Christmas lights up. So, last night I went out and found some cool lights. For some I spun my camera in the air (side axis) making sure to catch it before it landed. (And I was wearing a damn fine strap, but more on that later.) For some, such as the one on this page, it was more of a gentle toss up into the air. The subject this time was the multi-colored lights that were strung one one of the trees next to the old court house. The end result reminded me of Mardi Gras beads. But if you look on my photo stream on Flickr, you can see some that were taken that look almost like fireworks being set off.

Truly unique I think.

And something to ponder when you are looking for inspiration.

Whitewater Falls

I drove up to Whitewater Falls, expecting to take some awesome pictures of one of the most impressive waterfalls in North America. What I came away with is a lesson in photography.

Taking a few lessions from previous outtings, I wanted to go light. I took just my body, the 24-70 lens (I wanted to focus on more wide angle/landscapes), A spare battery and a spare memory card. If you take too much, sometimes you are bogged down and miss amazing images. I also wanted to take some HDR photos, as the light was low.

What I didn't take was a tripod.

I ended up with a bunch of shaky pictures. Only a few were steady enough to turn out well (but I think they turned out very well). And I didn't end up with good enough photos to compile a HDR. And part of my problem was the apperature. I wanted a deep depth of field, so I set the f stop to 20, but that required me to set the shutter speed way too low. Had I a bit more experience, I would have realized that I could have used a larger apperature at the distance I was at. It wouldn't have made a difference in the depth of field, and the picture would have been even sharper.

I also should have left home earlier in the day, as I had to turn back before it got too dark, and that was before I got closer to the falls.  I will go back and I will take better picutres.

So what this means is that instead of a photo outting Saturday, I had a workshop on what not to do when taking photos.

And I am ok with that.

When you are given lemons

Nuclear JackLast time I wrote about making the best out of a bad situation. I had a broken flash. It was stuck in high power, but I had some things to shoot. One of the things was to take a photo of a pumpkin at the Charlotte Meetup Coffee and Strobes event.  So, I set up, and fired off a  few shots. I took advantage of the problem and ended up with a couple of really amazing shots. Ended up taking second place for the competition. So take my advice, and just shoot. You never know what you may end up with.

Broken ETTL

So, Yesterday I spent the afternoon playing with my flash.  I have a very nice 580 EX II. It is suppose to work automagically and create wonderful pictures. Apply just the right amount of light to the scene. Unfortunately the ETTL system that controls that "magic" is a tad out of wack. This means I have to send it off for service.  And at $120, I may not be able to do it for a while. And while I don't have a shoot scheduled right now, I do have a meetup that focuses on strobes I want to attend.  So it will have to stay broken for a while.

But that doesn't mean I am out of luck for flash photography.  I just have to work a tad harder.  I have to set it on manual. Figure out my exact exposure. Perhaps take one or two more shots that I can use to tell if the pic is over or under exposed.  I will need to take more time, slow things down a bit, double check my settings. But it will work out.

And I will become a better photographer because this bit of adversity.

Flash Photography

I too enjoy a good well lit photo.  This week I went to the Charlotte Photo Meetup group's Coffee and Strobes meetup. There we got to practice with our equipment (ok they did, I mostly helped out, lol). This reminded me I need to practice with my gear more.  I use very expensive equipment, but it doesn't help me take better photos than those that use cheaper equipment.  That is, unless I know how to maximize their use.

The other thing to remember about flash is that it is very important to never use on camera flash if you have any other options. Get it off the camera.  There are some very cheap ways of doing it, whether by cord or radio. Some cameras even have it built in.

So, I will leave you with the following thoughts. Practice with your gear so you know it inside and out.

And get the flash off your hotshoe.

John