Shutter Speed: 1/800, Aperture: F/2.8, ISO: 800
See more of my 365 Project: Untouched photos from my Nikon D5000 with 50mm lens
365 Project – 184: Dripping fat from peking duck feet (July 2, 2012)
Tag Archives: composition
365 Project – 183: Green smoothie and pink flowers…WHAT?? (July 1, 2012)
Shutter Speed: 1/50, Aperture: F/4.0, ISO: 800
See more of my 365 Project: Untouched photos from my Nikon D5000 with 50mm lens
365 Project – 179: Ugly fuschia…playing with negative space (June 27, 2012)
Shutter Speed: 1/1250, Aperture: F/5.6, ISO: 400
I’m running a summer arts camp this week so I’m taking 5 minutes a day to quickly shoot and post what I get. I have a hanging fuchsia basket outside our front door and I aimed my camera underneath. I saw that the majority of this fuchsia was brown and quite frankly…kind’ve ugly. So, I decided to crop it tightly to leave some of the petals against a lot of blue sky. I like the colors and the negative space. What do YOU think? I love feedback so let me have it! 
It seems like this photo could work for a card background or some flowery quote like this:
“Be like the flower, turn your faces to the sun.”
– Kahlil Gibran
See more of my 365 Project: Untouched photos from my Nikon D5000 with 50mm lens
365 Project – 82 : Sunset over the Strait of Juan de Fuca…kind’ve LOL (March 22, 2012)
Shutter Speed: 1/50, Aperture: F/16, ISO: 400
The sunset view looking west from our house is decent but, there are a lot of distractions from telephone poles, streets, and rooflines in the way. Looking north we have an expansive, mostly unobstructed water view, but, never with the sun setting on it or rising above it. From my kitchen window I caught this reflection of the sun setting while I was looking towards the water. We’ve been in this house 9 years and I JUST figured out how to “fake” a sunset over the strait with Victoria, B.C. in the background. Sweet! LOL (And, yes, I know, this photo is “noisy” and begs for some post-processing but, I liked the composition and wanted to share the “before” photo.)
See more of my 365 Project: Untouched photos from my Nikon D5000 with 50mm lens
365 Project – 23: Chimes in motion (January 23, 2012)
Shutter Speed: 1/250, Aperture: F2.8, ISO: 200
I crouched underneath these wind chimes, shot at a diagonal against the cloudy sky, then a breeze kicked in. Slightly overexposed, the camera rendered some color in the chimes’ black strings, while they disappeared altogether at the top of the photo. The bells remind me of UFOs, like they are floating in air. I was trying to achieve a different photo but, am happy with the shot I captured instead!
See more of my 365 Project: Untouched photos from my Nikon D5000 with 50mm lens
Photography exercise 2: aperture mode and position of focus
It’s been awhile since I posted results from one of my photography exercises using Bryan Peterson’s “Understanding Exposure” book. I had two goals in mind when employing two of Bryan Peterson’s suggestions:
1) To get a correct exposure and some bokeh, I used the Aperture Priority (AP) mode with an F/5.6 aperture. In this mode, I let the camera choose the exposure, or shutter speed.
2) To get multiple faces in focus, with a good amount of bokeh, I practiced placing my position of focus (aka focal point) “one-third into the photo.”
Here are some shots using my Nikon D5000 with 50mm lens putting these techniques to work:
1) Aperture Priority (AP) mode, F/5.6, Exposure: 1/1000, ISO: 200
* We wrapped up Erika’s photo shoot and as I was leaving she asked for a photo with her childhood pet, Ellie, whom she would be leaving behind as she ventures off into the big world, freshly graduated from college. Getting Ellie to sit still and look at the camera was a challenge (she kept trying to sniff my lens) so I was pleased to get this sweet photo of these best pals together.
* I positioned my point of focus on Erika’s cheek closest to Ellie which gave me the focus I wanted on both faces. But, I would have liked more bokeh in the background.
* When I took this photo, the bright sun came out making the photo a bit overexposed. But, converted to black and white the photo is a bit more balanced.
* Shooting in AP mode made for a relaxing experience, letting the camera work for me. However, I still prefer the control I have working in manual mode.
2) Manual Mode, Aperture: F/4, Exposure: 1/200, ISO: 400
* After my experience using aperture F/5.6 I tried an F/4 aperture setting to get more bokeh. I wasn’t sure it would also give me the focus I wanted on both of the girls’ faces but, it did!
* I positioned my point of focus at a spot one-third into the photo, which in this case was the skin on Isabella’s arm just above Nora’s head. I chose this spot for focus but, also to get a correct exposure for both Isabella’s darker and Nora’s lighter complexions.
* After several unsuccessful attempts (eg. only one face in focus, or exposure too dark/too light) I finally got both faces focused and adjusting to ISO 400 gave me the exposure I wanted.
Additional notes about both photos:
* Learning where to position my point of focus one-third into the photo was key. When focusing on one person, I simply focus on the eyes. Getting the hang of finding that “one-third into the photo” spot is still a work in progress for me but, executed properly, it works like a charm!
* I did not use a tripod because I was just plain lazy. For sure, a tripod can help achieve sharp, focused photos. I threw caution to the wind and trusted the VR (vibration-reduction) setting on my 50mm lens and my steady hold.
It used to be scary using my camera in manual mode but, now it’s more rewarding and less frustrating. I’m not a professional but, I just like to share what I’ve learned and encourage others to get out there, experiment and enjoy your camera! And, any of you seasoned photographers stumbling upon this blog post, please share your tips, comments, or website links!
Happy Shooting! 
p.s. I found this link on How to Take Group Shots which provides additional tips you might find helpful
Awww shucks…another photo contest win! :)
Earlier this week I blogged about this photo of Nora, which I also entered in this week’s Ready, Set, Snap! “Devin Decides” photo contest (last week’s topic was “Tricky Light”)…and this photo WON!
A photo as abstract art
I took this photo of Nora in Santa Cruz, Chile a few months ago and I just like the mood of it so I thought I’d share and open it up for critique from any of you photographers, or anyone, out there. There’s a story behind the photo but, I thought I’d post it and see what YOU think the photo says to you and how it makes you feel. Kind’ve looking at this as an abstract art exercise. PLEASE comment and critique. Thanks for stopping by!
F-stop: F/4 Exposure: 1/100 ISO: 400 Focal Length: 50mm Camera: Nikon D5000
