FLOWERS IN MOONLIGHT

Last week, the moon was gloriously full. I arrived home late one evening to find bright moonlight streaming in through the large glass panel in the back door, creating a long, sharply etched pool of light on the tile floor.

Capturing the effect would be a wonderful opportunity for me to practice night photography techniques. I crossed my fingers, hoping the next night would be clear, and began thinking through 'the shoot'. 

Initially, I thought to only shoot the moonlight on the tile. Simple, dramatic.

Dramatic, yes, but maybe too simple. The composition needed something. As sunset approached, I gathered white nicotiana from my garden and placed them in a clear glass vase. 

Backlit by the moonlight, the petals of the nicotiana glowed. The stretched and slightly smudged shadow cast by the flowers provided an interesting contrast to the straight lines on the floor.

SUSAN VERSUS HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE

In the post prior to this one, I wrote about taking photographs of the waterfall where the buildings and sky in the background were too bright...

...or the waterfall was too dark, but the buildings and sky looked better.

I went in search of a solution and learned about high dynamic range. (What did we do before the internet?)

• Read the online article HDR: A Beginner's Guide to High Dynamic Range Photography  http://www.digitaltrends.com/how-to/what-is-hdr-beginners-guide-to-high-dynamic-range-photography/#ixzz4AuCyvzLV
• Watched a video by Canon on HDR photography          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rP8MRjxY86w
• Studied the manual that came with my camera (not much help there, really) 
• Upgraded my copy of Lightroom to Lightroom CC
• Played with the settings on my camera
• Shot a few practice photos
• Played with the settings on my camera
• Shot a few practice photos
• Played with the settings on my camera
• Shot a few practice photos

Finally it was time to load up Enzo and head back to Bellevue Downtown Park. I was ready to tame the high dynamic range beast. 

Golden Hour √

Tripod √

Camera √

Memory Card S**t!

The next evening, I returned, memory card inside my camera. 

Golden Hour √

Tripod √

Camera √

Memory Card √√

Bellevue Skyline √

Waterfall... wasn't operating... Noooo..... followed by S**t!

I tell you all this in explanation as to why the final photograph doesn't include the waterfall. What you see in the foreground is the pool at the top of the waterfall. 

There was no way I was leaving the park without my prize, so I took this photograph. Not what I was hoping for, but not a bad beginning.

PHOTOGRAPHY FUN WITH A PHOTOGRAPHY FRIEND

We've been blessed with temperatures in the 80s in the Seattle area the last few days. Saturday evening, my photography buddy Joy and I headed out to enjoy the early taste of summer and practice our newly acquired knowledge about shutter speed. 

Our destination: Bellevue Downtown Park. The centerpiece of the park is a waterfall feature, the perfect place for a shutter speed exercise. 

Shutter speeds allows the photography to depict motion in her photograph. In the case of a waterfall, a fast shutter speed stops the fall of water in its tracks, so to say. A slow shutter speed, on the other hand, smooths the falling water, giving it an ethereal, hazy quality.

(When doing photography with Joy, you can be certain she will chronicle the endeavor.)

After reviewing my photographs at home, I wasn't thrilled with the results. We took our photographs during the Golden Hour, the magical hour of golden light before sunset. The light was indeed gorgeous, but the waterfall was in the shade, while above and behind the waterfall, the shining glass and metal buildings of downtown Bellevue were in bright sunlight. To make a long story short, I had issues with the exposure of the photographs that showed the waterfall against a backdrop of buildings. The waterfall was too dark; the buildings too bright. The exposure issue called for additional study, followed by a reshoot.

I did, however, get a couple of good shots of a Mallard duck and her drake at ease in the pool below the waterfall. I liked how the slow shutter speed had smoothed out the waves of the pool. The stillness of the ducks, the reflection of light off the softly rippling water gave the photograph an air of cool serenity. I added a filter to fade the color of the photograph, further enhancing the sense of restfulness.

PHOTOGRAPHING A PHLOMIS

I gave myself the following challenge:

1. Photograph the phlomis blooming in my garden
2. Take the photograph in situ
3. Use my Nikon Coolpix point-and-shoot camera, without a tripod
4. Take the photograph in the bright light of midday

Behold the phlomis...

I am a big fan of this plant. I love its unusual form, boldness, quilted leaves and whorls of fuzzy flowers. It's like a cheerful yellow exclamation point in my garden. That said, I found it a difficult subject to photograph. Should I try to capture its statuesque beauty? Or should I zero in on the flowers?

I decided to go close up, taking the photograph at a bit of an angle. I converted the photograph to black and white so the wonderful form and texture of the flower took centerstage.

PHOTOGRAPHY CHALLENGE 40: PIECES

CaptureYour365 
Week 5: Inspiration Week
Day 40: 'Pieces'


It's been a busy week. Today's post is actually a challenge from last week. It is also from my archives.

The photograph is a close-up of a small section of a lantern, usually lit with a candle, but in this case, placed in a sunny window. Small pieces of colored glass arranged in a rough herringbone pattern create a glowing mosaic.

PHOTOGRAPHY CHALLENGE 37: 'DUAL'

CaptureYour365 
Week 5: Inspiration Week
Day 37: 'Dual'

This post sort of harkens back to Day 14: Black & White. If you would like to take a look at that post, here is the link... 

http://susanthroughtheviewfinder.blogspot.com/2016/01/captureyour365-prompt-14-black-and.html

Perhaps not the most imaginative photograph, but a fun still life to do.

In keeping with the prompt 'dual', everything in the photograph is in pairs, even the colors: black & white (OK, more like shades of black and white). Added a filter to give the photograph an aged, scratched appearance.

'Salt & Pepper'

FRIDAY FOTOGRAPHY FUN

Last Friday, I shared the second assignment from the iPhone photography class I took in November. 

Today, I want to present the last assignment for that class.

I was to take photographs for a magazine of my creation. Those photographs were to include: 

• Cover photograph
• Two-page spread photograph
• Inset photograph

*****

Before proceeding, I need to acknowledge the help of the following individuals.

• A big THANK YOU to Tracy who does my nails and allowed me to take photographs in her shop. 
• A big THANK YOU to Tracy's staff for letting me follow them around as they did their work.
• A big THANK YOU to Tracy's clients who allowed me to photograph them and use those photograph in my assignment.

*****

The photographs shown were all taken with my iPhone and edited with iPhone applications.

All Rights Reserved

Original photograph for cover shot

Final photograph for cover shot: All color removed except for reds to focus attention on color of toenails. Text added for the name of my fictitious magazine.

Original photograph for two-page spread

Final photograph for two-page spread: Cropped to two-page spread dimensions and filters used to intensify colors.

Original photograph for inset 

Final photograph for inset: All color removed except for browns to focus attention to face and hands.