I have mentioned in prior posts that I enjoy photography and have always been the one to have a camera in-hand while taking various photos of family events. I’m not much of an art photographer, but I try my best to capture “moments” that express people enjoying themselves. This means that I don’t typically pose people for the standard “smile for the camera” photos, but prefer to capture people doing the thing that they are naturally doing. In general, I think this helps connect the photo to the actual event itself – instead of asking everyone to stop what they are doing and strike a pose.
Here is a recent photo I took of my nephew, Karl, while he was hanging out by Grandpa Wayne’s swing. It illustrates all of the elements that I like to see in a good photo and I am rather proud of it:
Although I’d love to say that it was done on purpose, the reality is that I accidentally captured some “lens flare” in the image by having the sunshine come in at a slight angle from behind Karl. This produces a great effect on the image (note the greenish ellipse in the lower left corner) and gives the photo a style liken to 70s camera technology. Also, this photo is completely uncropped from the camera – so I was really lucky to get the composition in the raw shot, without any post editing within software.
My recent upgrade to the Canon Rebel T2i has now moved me into a position to step-up my photos. Although I am a firm believer that good photos are 95% composition and only 5% camera technology, using a serious camera like the T2i sets the stage to place the whole photo making process under much greater control. If you’ve ever spent time exploring the nuances of photography, you probably realize that there are many factors in a camera that let you control the outcome. For some people who enjoy the “point-n-shoot” approach, these features can be a little overwhelming. But, once you get familiar with aperture, exposure, metering, ISO, and other parameters, it’s hard to work with a camera that doesn’t offer them. Thus, I’m happy to now have the T2i at hand to offer these functions.
But – as I said before – the camera doesn’t really take the pictures. Ultimately, it’s my “eye” that takes the good photo and the camera is only a simple vehicle to get me there with few distractions.
Although I try to minimize the amount of digital manipulation of an image, there are some nice tools in Apple Aperture to adjust exposure to help match the mood of the image.
Prior to the Canon T2i, I have been using an advanced point-n-shoot camera by Panasonic. It is their “Travel Zoom” version called the DMC-TZ5 and is a truly impressive camera for its size. It offers full 10x optical zoom and takes awesome pictures under most circumstances. But it lacks an optical viewfinder and all the “live” display of the camera’s field of view is fed through the CCD and displayed on the large 2.5″ LCD on the back. Even though this gives a nice view of the picture, I find it harder to compose the final frame when viewing it on the back of the camera. I prefer to look through a viewfinder and get fully immersed in the image
The Panasonic DMC-TZ5 has become my camera of choice for all of my photos while riding on my bike. It is convenient enough with its controls to take great shots while pedaling away at 20 mph. I reach into my back pocket, slip my hand through the camera strap for safety, and snap away while maintaining a steady pace down the road. Photography is often best when it captures something in “action” and these cycling photos prove that point well.
As I get more into photography, I’ve found that success usually comes from the simple fact that I have the camera with me and can take a shot as it occurs. As I stated above, I’m very opportunistic when it comes to my photos and take them often when the subject isn’t really thinking about being in a photo. It’s known as a photo-journalist style to photography and I feel it leads to more natural-looking photo. Getting your subject to stop, pose, and smile takes away from the action and usually doesn’t generate the memory-locking quality that a good photo can exhibit.
With my daughter’s dog, the opportunities are endless for good photos. Here, she had just come out of the water in Lake Calhoun – nice and clean – and decided to roll around in the sand to get dirty again. She was dragged back into the water one more time before being led over to the grass to dry off (with no dirt to be found).
Although not a great photo in terms of artistic composition, focus, or exposure – this photo does capture one of my favorite elements: family. An unintentional capture of Melanie looking proudly over her son’s shoulder for his 14th birthday cake produces a complete storyline in one simple image. I keep reminding myself to look beyond the in-focus subject (in this case, the cake) and ensure that the background is as much apart of the image as the focal point.
My next goal in my world of photography is to begin to explore the capturing of video. By purchasing the Canon Rebel T2i, I’ve been given the chance to get some amazing HD shots at a quality level that rivals most professional cinematography equipment. And, not unlike still shots, the ability to capture great video takes a lot of practice and relies heavily on the eye of the videographer. Adding in the elements of time, editing, and sound will really up the creativity and concentration I’ll need while gathering moving images. But, it’s a challenge that I really want to take and look forward to showcasing it on this website.
