March 28, 2010 at 12:05pm
I did a similar exercise on May 3rd of 2009 for a course I was taking, so I’ve pulled these examples from my photo archives. All of the images were taken at various times of the same day, the point being to study the quality and the effects of the light on the landscape throughout the day. I hated getting out of bed so early in order to travel to this fairly remote lake but I will say I learned more by actually doing the exercise than from the reading I had already done. There is no learning method as good as experiencing things for yourself and this is especially true for photography!
Early Morning (8:15 am) Mid-Day (1:05 pm) Evening (6:15 pm)
I was photographing three different parts of the area so I wasn’t early enough getting to this scene to catch the earliest light. However, morning is definitely my favourite time of day for landscapes – the light is softer, the details (especially the water reflections) are crisper, the colours deeper and the shadows open. It also just feels good to be out there in the morning even if it’s cold, which it bloody was!
The sun begins behind and to the left of me - ends in front and to the right of me, in these images.
Note: the mid-day shot would normally be even more bland; I suspect at least part of the sun had slipped behind one of those wispy clouds and helped out with some nicely diffused light.
The biggest thing I remember from this day, is to be aware of the direction of your light and the effect that will have on your image. Get out with your camera and do this!
Metadata: f/22 @ 35mm, using a GND filter for the sky and a tripod.
March 27, 2010 at 10:13am
I haven’t had the time to get out for pictures this month but in desperation I did scout the yard one day. My husband restores old cars so his scrap heap can always be counted on for close-ups of some kind…
Circular
Cold Layers Stacked
Spotting this gorgeous green dress through the window drew me into our local art gallery, where I found much more than I had anticipated. Turns out I was looking at one piece of the Queen Elizabeth District High School’s, Grade 12 - Visual Arts Show. I thoroughly enjoyed the remarkable talent of these young students, not to mention the opportunity to photograph something very different for me.
This collection was my absolute favourite. The young artist is Nicole Maxwell, whose dress designs are based on the Alice in Wonderland character sketches you see behind them. In most cases they are works-in-progress, mounted on unique mannequins which really added to the display. A very talented young lady!
You’ll need to enlarge these first two thumbnails to fully appreciate the texture and design detail.
The “Mad Hatter” “Queen of Hearts”
Exposure and light were the big challenges here – I dispensed with room lighting and experimented with natural daylight and a combination of natural light and fill flash. I found the fill flash most effective for lightening the shadows and for those darker corners.
These are more of my favourites from the QEDHS Grade-12 Visual Arts Show. It was unfortunate that none of the young artists were available while I was there; after experiencing their talents I would have liked to learn more about them, their work and aspirations.
I’m not sure of the medium used for these portraits but I loved them and the arrangement of the collection on the wall. The artist is Alina Pringle, another very talented young lady.
Artist: Rebecca Crane Sections of a tree carving by Kyle Durante
From experience I know that the small art lights blow out in my pictures and I did not want to use flash on any of the wall art; I continued with only the natural daylight, the result being uneven lighting. I did break out a bit of flash for the wood carving images.
