Lazy Fotog

I had been waiting and watching for days for this rose bush to come to its first peak bloom.  The first rose bloom of the season always seems to be the best.

But on the day the roses were their best, it wasn’t my best.  I came home from work and saw the roses in their glory.  I dropped off my work-related items, and went outside with the camera.  It was an overcast afternoon and the sun was not being friendly.

I took many photos, and as I did so, I knew they weren’t going to turn out the best.  I knew it and I kept shooting.  The results remained the same.  I knew for a fact that I needed to get the tripod in order to get the photo I really wanted.  But I didn’t do it.

So, I ended up with this photo.  You can see my idea for the photo.  There was potential there that did not get realized.

Why didn’t I get the tripod?  I can’t be positive, but I think it was just plain laziness.  I didn’t feel like going to all that “trouble” to get the better photograph.

I guess it all comes down to how much you want the photo.  How much drive do you have?  On this day, I just didn’t have it.

Fortunately for me, Mother Nature will give me another chance.  I just have to be patient.

Expression

Are there really people who think animals do not experience emotions?  I don’t know how anyone who has spent any measurable time around animals could possibly believe that.

This lucky shot was captured last spring when I went to the barn to ride.  It started raining, so instead of riding I had to put my horse back out in the field.  This was his reaction when I took off his halter.  Sometimes I take the camera with me when I go to the field, and sometimes I don’t.  This day, luck was with me!

I submitted this photo to a little equine photo contest on a website and won a training video for my effort . . . .and luck.

You can see the photo on the contest website here.

Opportunity, Potential, and Luck

Oftentimes, when opportunity, potential and luck all come together for a photographer there are some amazing shots that can be had. But if even one ingredient, especially luck, is missing it can become much more difficult. I enjoy song birds and I have feeders for them on my deck. They are a joy to watch and I have seen many different kinds of birds. I’ve been watching and feeding the birds for about nine years, and there is one bird that I’ve always wanted to see, but never have. Considering the fortune I’ve spent on bird seed and squirrel deterrent, I would have expected to have seen just about all of the birds in my birding book. The beautiful bird I was yearning to see was the indigo bunting. The elusive indigo bunting.

So, on April 22nd, I was completely unprepared when I looked out the bathroom window while I was getting ready for work and saw an indigo bunting at my feeder. I was completely stunned. I was surprised into motionlessness. The bird is even more beautiful in person that it is in photos. I finally ran to get my camera. I don’t have an official location or a bird blind to photograph the birds. I had to take this photo handheld, on an overcast day, through window glass and a screen. It didn’t turn out well.

The photo has got all kinds of problems. I’ve fussed around with it quite a bit in Capture NX2, and it does look better. However, if you don’t get your focus right in the camera, I think it’s a lost cause. But anyway, at least I’ve got proof of the indigo bunting, even if it is grainy, noisy, and blurry. You can’t win ‘em all!

Christmas Elf

I’m not much for taking photos of people.  It’s just not something I do and it’s not something I’m good at.  But, during the holidays I did get this capture and I really liked it.  Her name is Lexi.

Yes, I know how long it’s been since I posted to the blog.  I’m not going to speak about it.

Peace by the Creek

Clearly, I do not have time to keep this blog updated.  I’m really sorry about that.  I have photography topics to share, photos, questions, and the best of intentions.  But I just can’t get it done.  I know it’s a matter of priorities.  Perhaps when things slow down in the winter . . .

Anyway, I wanted to share this photo with anyone who is interested because it has become my favorite.  Yes, my absolute favorite, even more so than the one that was published on the magazine cover.  This photo was taken in West Virginia at Dunloup Creek Falls.  This location has been photographed many, many times, but I had never visited it before so I was excited to try my hand at it.  It is a beautiful location and I could have stayed there all day.  I framed the print and it is one of only two of my own photos displayed in my home.

Click here to see more of West Virginia.

Thunder in the Mountains

It was fireworks and explosions for the fourth of July as Stan and I traveled to the New River Gorge area of West Virginia to enjoy the long weekend.

This was our first journey into West Virginia and I think we chose an excellent area to get started in.  There is plenty to see and do, lots of backroads to wander down, hiking, beautiful drives, tons of state parks, and more.

This was the first year I’ve attempted to shoot fireworks.  I did a little research and decided to just give it a try and see what I ended up with.

I’ll admit that there’s so much to concentrate on when shooting them that it takes a little of the fun out of the fireworks experience.  But on the other hand, looking back on them and enjoying their beauty again along with my memories is more than worth it.

We watched the fireworks in Beckley, WV.  Having never been there before, I had no idea where the fireworks would be in the sky.  I asked some locals and they pointed me in the right direction.  I setup the tripod and took some test shots.  They fired some test fireworks, so that was good for some initial practice.  But once the show got started, I soon realized I was out of my league.  None of the camera settings I was using was producing anything near decent.  My timing was off.  I couldn’t leave the camera pointed at one spot because they were inconsistent in where they were firing them.  It was very frustrating.  I believe I was cursing under my breath.  But I didn’t give up.  I kept shooting and trying different settings until I finally got something I could work with.  I was happy with the handful of decent shots I ended up with.  I will try fireworks again at the next opportunity.

As for the thunder, that was the fireworks as well.  I grew up in the mountains of Tennessee and I was always a big fan of the fireworks on the 4th.  I believe these fireworks in West Virginia were the first ones I’ve experienced in the mountains since leaving Tennessee many years ago.  I enjoyed them more than I can ever remember.  The mountains make ALL the difference.  The thunder of the explosions echoing through the mountains is amazing.  I loved it.  Fireworks in the mountains cannot be beat.

Click here to read the very helpful article by Frederic Hore that got me on the road to shooting fireworks.  Click here to view some of his photos.

Horses: Down Low and Up Close

Every time I go to the barn to ride my horse, my camera tags along too.  I usually take it with me out into the fields when I go to retrieve my horse to ride, and also afterwards when I return him to the fields.  When I first started photographing horses I just took the shots I wanted.  Slowly I learned to wait and let the horse show me the shot.  I learned that on some days certain horses are very affable, curious, and seem to want their picture taken, while on other days the entire herd can be irritable.  You just never know what you’re going to get, but it’s always fun to see what turns up.  In this post photo, the horse was trying to rub a fly off his ear with his leg and I just happened to be there. 

After taking many, many photos of these horses, I’ve pretty much captured all the “standard” poses.  I’m now trying to get more interesting, unique shots from various angles and perspectives.  On my last attempt, I spent some time shooting from the ground.  That becomes especially interesting when the curious horse decides to walk right up to you.  They look very, very big at that point.

I always share the photos with the horse’s owner and it really makes my day when they send me a message of how much they like the photos.  That’s a smile-maker!  I will keep thinking of new ideas for photographing the horses, and as always, waiting for the horse to show me the photo to take!

Click here to view more photos of the horses at the farm.

Overcast Challenge

I do the majority of my photography outdoors, so I was really surprised that I have never encountered the challenge of shooting on an overcast day until a few weeks ago.  We had decided to visit Sherwood Gardens in Baltimore which offers an impressive number and variety of tulips.  The day dawned cold, overcast, and windy.  I didn’t even give it a second thought.

When we arrived at the gardens, I immediately spotted several photographers set up with tripods shooting in the various tulip beds.  I honestly thought that approach was way overkill.  I didn’t even consider taking my tripod out of the vehicle.

And that’s why I came home with many, many blurry photos.  It was an exhausting and frustrating day of shooting.  Perhaps if I hadn’t been trying to shoot tulips waving in the wind it wouldn’t have been so tough.  Even the branches of the dogwood trees (post photo) were waving wildly in the wind.  I did manage to get a few decent shots, but I hate coming home with so many bad ones.  It was more than a little difficult to get the correct camera settings, plus compose the image with the wind blowing the subject around, shooting handheld.  It’s simply not wise or productive.  I should have went back for the tripod but I did not.  I’m stubborn that way.  Stubborn, but not wholeheartedly convinced.

The following two weekends were very similar in weather:  overcast and windy.  I was taking photos of horses in a big field and again I did not feel the necessity of the tripod.  Again, more blurry photos.  I was beginning to think my camera was malfunctioning or something.  I did some online research and found that many outdoor photographers love an overcast day because of enhanced contrast and color depth.  Yeah, but is it worth lugging the tripod around?  I don’t know.  While I’m disappointed with many of my overcast day shots, I’m having trouble seeing myself carrying that tripod out into a field of horses.  I guess I’m just a blue sky kind of gal.  At least until I get some more advanced equipment!

Click here to view more photos of Sherwood Gardens.

Spring Appetizer

Now that the weather is becoming more like decent, I’ve been able to see my horse more.

This photo was taken over Easter weekend.  It was warm enough for his first bath of the season, and before I knew it he was aiming for the pear tree.

There’s nothing technically or compositionally amazing here.  It’s just an example of what I love about photography – capturing those one chance, Kodak moments.

Keystoning

On the last weekend in March, we drove into D.C. before dawn so we could spend the day amongst the cherry blossoms.  It was a cold, crisp day with a sky that eventually became beautiful blue.  We stopped by the Jefferson Memorial and the morning sun was streaming beautifully through the porticos.  It was quiet, tranquil, and reverent at the Jefferson, but it didn’t seem to mind the gentle click of the camera shutter.  We continued with our day and I took many, many photos of the cherry blossoms which are extravagantly beautiful. 

Later, when I shared some of the photos with friends, I was surprised at the reaction to the Jefferson Memorial photo shown in this post.  It seems to be the most popular photo from the outing, and it’s not even a cherry blossom.  Go figure.  A friend printed it on his stunning Epson printer and the photo was even more striking.

So I decided to share it with some photographers at Nikonians and they immediately notified me of keystoning.  Yeah, okay, I’ve heard of keystoning.  I know it is distortion that takes place often when shooting buildings/architecture where the camera is tilted upwards.  I get that.  What I was having trouble seeing was the actual distortion.  So I opened the photo with Capture NX2.  They have a thing for distortion.  I worked with that for awhile.  I could see a difference in the photo based on the settings I chose.  Yes, I could see a difference.  But, in the end, I decided that I liked it best in its original form.  So, here it is, in its technically aberrant form, for your enjoyment.

I’ve always considered myself a purist, but perhaps not a technical purist.  I like it, other folks like it, so I’m leaving it as it came.  If you can see the keystoning and it bothers you, please let me know.

Click here to view the cherry blossom gallery.