• Photography

    Edge of the Pond

    Edge of the Pond

    Here is an observation of my photography I’ve notice over the past few weeks. It seems my photographers eye has evolved over the last three years and my approach to my images has moved in a different direction. Some of this change is due to the equipment I have decided to use. I carry a small prime 35mm lens rather than a large zoom. With the faster prime I can create some interesting images with the shallow depth of field, bringing more focus to my subjects. Also, the faster lens allows me to work better in situations where I have less light. It is less intrusive to subjects and in some conditions is not even noticed.

    And, some is due to the environment I shoot in. My work places me in metropolitan areas without transportation so I walk a lot. Therefore the wide open landscapes, such as my sunrises and sunsets, are almost non-existent. If I look at the sunrises and sunsets taken in the past three years, they are taken from a different perspective than I had back in Colorado. There is also a greater challenge to shoot images that do not have the footprint of man. So what I look for in images has changed. An example is the above image taken in Savannah in back of our hotel. It is a holding pond surrounded by other hotels and businesses. I love the lighting but needed to take a bit more care to eliminate the foot print of man.

  • Photography

    Dysfunctional Photographer

    New Hood
    New Hood

    About two weeks ago I lost the lens hood for my 35mm f1.8 lens. The new hood arrived today so the lens now functions as it did before. 🙂

    Actually, I want to share my reactions when I discovered it missing, it surprised me. I didn’t get too upset as I knew I could easily replace it. I did backtrack to see if I could find it. Nuttin! What surprised me was my attitude towards that lens: I acted like it was dysfunctional with the hood missing. My first response was to put it back in my bag and use another lens which had a hood. I may have but I was on the road and it was the only lens I brought. So, guess what’s really dysfunctional. For two weeks I’ve been using this lens without a hood and it’s taking pretty darn near perfect images, without a hood. Proving again, it’s the imperfect photographer that screws things up. Think therapy would help me?

  • flowers,  insects

    Energized Bee

    Pollination
    Busy Bee

    Did you ever notice how bumble bees are a lot like the Energizer Rabbit, they just keep on going? They have a mission in life to pollinate and then go after it. Wish my body could keep up that pace but alas the age thing is taking its toll. I’m posting this image because it was taken with the new Nikon 35mm f1.8 lens. I got as close as I could get with the lens then I’ve done a major crop in Lightroom 2, tweaked levels and a bit of saturation. That’s it. I think the lens performs well, especially for a $200 price tag. It’s a keeper and the lens stays on the camera most of the time. It’s a lot lighter to carry around, another one of those age things. 🙂