Rainy Autumn Days

I took the photos of the apples a couple of weeks ago. The photos of the pond were from just after the rain stopped, yesterday.

Just if you're interested, the full post with the other appley photos, etc. is over at my other blog, In the Sunny Spot.

I hope that you're all enjoying this lovely autumn day!

Love,

Katy Noelle

shutter20   f18   AV   53mm   partial metering   ISO100

 SO!

Thinking that I needed a little bit better grasp on light and shadow, I thought that I'd twiddle the button to B&W and see what I could figure out with this bouquet and a lamp. I figured out a lot (one important thing being to Keep your background simple - even if that means simple with shadows.) I was thinking cinematic thoughts  and Dutch master type of thoughts and came up with this one above.

THEN,

today, I was thinking that a country bouquet of roses is really about fresh country simplicity. It's raining and the light coming through the window is soft and diffuse (requiring the tripod who is turning out to be a much better friend, nowadays). I did this next one.

shutter1   f6.3   AV   55mm   spot metering   ISO100

Also, on this second one, I used spot metering and it made the background completely disappear in the most lovely way!!! (you can't see the back edge of the table anymore and the subject is illuminated. Spot metering is supposed to be for portraits and situations where the background is brighter than the subject. However, it worked just great, here!) It's brilliant!

What do you think? Which one do you like better?


update with a little more post processing:

 

Well, yesterday, evening, I went out and had fun practicing with my camera. I used the tripod and that was helpful because I could get my composition and, then, just focus on what I was trying to do technically. I had a little more thought and control of my exposure triangle, white balance and picture mode (saturation, tints, etc.) I worked in AV mostly with exposure compensation but was paying a lot of attention to how fast the shutter speed was. For ALL of that work, I should have gotten National Geographic stuff, I mean REALLY....... ! =]

(just in case you haven't picked up on it, yet, I laugh at myself a lot. I really should do it more!!! =])

I'd really like your input on the colors and exposures AND, does anyone know how to take a shot like this - sky AND earth - without washing/shadowing one or the other out? I've gotten closer with these. Maybe I need to be waiting for some blue sky - it's been ages since we've seen anything that wasn't white haze. Is the sky blue elsewhere?

Comments and constructive criticisms are extremely welcome - as are encouragement!!!

Thanks!

Well! I guess you just never know what's going to happen!

A couple of nights ago, I was feeling pretty miserable with this cold. (I feel much better, this evening. Thanks for your encouragement and well wishes!) I was spending time on the CIC photography forum figuring out how to take lovely autumnal photos - receiving some wonderful advice and feeling very, very fuddy headed. I suddenly realized that I had let the sun go down without taking my photo for the day. I grabbed my camera without much hope or expectation. As I was twiddling and fiddling, though, I realized that the moon and this planet (have to go look up which one it is) were quite lovely. I framed the shot and was playing around when - LOOK! An Unidentified Flying Object soared by!!!

Yes, folks! I got it on film!!!

You just never know what's going to happen!

I'm feeling a bit better about photography, too. I had fun with the knobs and buttons on my camera, today. I think that my "autumn picture mode" setting isn't bad. I'll share those photos with you tomorrow. Right now, I'm exhausted from all that fresh air!

Goodnight!

Blech!

 

I mentioned that I joined an online photography group: Cambridge in Color (CIC).

Boy, I am having to be brave.

I've had some really helpful input, though. One reminder was to not only photograph what I love but to try and somehow convey why I do or what it is about it that I feel. Well, or something like that. I've had a cold and feel quite fuddy in my head! Right now, I love my cup of tea. I ALWAYS love my cup of tea. If I could, I would write an "ode to a cup of tea". That's what I took pictures of, today.

Anyway, I'm feeling yucky about everything that I'm doing. This happens when I have a cold but, I hate this first image but am too tired to change it. Sorry! Onward, onward!

{changed it but still don't care for any of them. Why did I post them??? Blah! This too shall pass!}

Ta daaaaa!

Done in creative mode. WB and something else - landscape picture style. I just set my first personal setting for autumn leaves - a touch of red filter and a dash of blue tone. It might taste terrible, though. Have to go try it out! This was hand held (on my way to get puppy food at the vets) - just an experiment.

Happy Autumnal Equinox, everyone!!! (if you're north of the equator, that is. =])

"inch by inch, anything's a cinch!"

Love, Katy

Foliage

Ferns in the Morning

I am anticipating fall. It's coming! I feel like I'm in a scrambly kind of do-it-yourself crash course in landscape photography.

Below is one of my favorite views on the road into town. I'm in a panic because I realized, yesterday, that the trees near my "picturesque" farm were all turning. They're almost done! When Tom got back from taking the kids to school, he let me have the truck. It was 9:00 - really, too late!

I was very good, though, and used my tripod, etc. The following two also have a lovely deep dof.

I had to tweak them quite a bit. The triangle on the barn isn't completely blown out but, without photoshop, I can't do much about it.

My sister and I agree - they look like the photos from the '70s that they're still recycling year after year for the same ol', same ol' postcards.

Then, this evening, I put the macaroni and cheese into the oven and jumped in the truck and "zoomed" back over. It was about 5:30. I had the tripod but knew that I only had 5 minutes to take photos. I was actually trying to get a lovely tree but that was in blazing sun but, look! The light on the barn was lovely and cool. I just set the camera to the magic "landscape" setting and hand held.

Marshmallow Farm

I like these much more BUT I found the info about what the "landscape" setting uses and it uses really low aperture settings - RATS! I WISH that I had used the tripod and just done what I'd practiced in the morning. Well, they're still lovely. The one above is tweaked only a very little. The one below, I've been working on making the flowers in the front a little lighter and stronger since, obviously, they're supposed to be the point of the "story" here - something about yellow, buttery, country, wildflower, freshness! =]

I'm working on it, OK........??? =]

and, here, is an underexposed sooc shot - just in case you don't believe that the trees are really that color!

Stained Glass Lane

I am kicking myself!

1/50  f5.6  55mm  ISO 400  AVpriority  Sept. 20  hand held

1/60  f5.6  55mm  ISO400  AV priority  hand held

Why, oh, why didn't I take my tripod with me? I've been using it! I almost did!! almost....

I would have been rich!  I would have been famous!

heeheehee.

I AM kicking myself, though. I thought that I was going out to just experiment a little with landscapes. The foliage is starting to turn - here it comes. I'm studying and practicing hard. As it turns out, a good landscape is crystal clear with a very small/higher aperture (generally, unless you're trying to make a different statement but, you know what I mean, perhaps), therefore, one should ALWAYS use a tripod when doing landscapes. One should ALWAYS use a tripod!

I took these shakey clover photos on 9/15. It got me really thinking about macro and what makes a good shot. I've learned A LOT in the last few days. However, I just wanted to "journal" one little thing, today.

f5.6  hand held - obviously and so is the other one!

f5.6

shot on 9/17   1/50  f5.6  55mm  AV priority  exposure bias .33  tripod

 

1/15  f13.0  55mm  AV  exposure bias .33  tripod

I like the second one better. It shows more amazing detail in this little clover. It all depends, I guess, on what story I am trying to tell. The second one is at an higher/smaller aperture. Not only was it a better choice for the subject but my camera handled it better, too.



Look at what I learned from wikipedia. (a surprising but helpful source)

Depth of field is extremely small when focusing on close objects; a small aperture (high f-number) is often required to ensure sufficient depth of field. This requires either a slow shutter speed or bright lighting for correct exposure; in all but the brightest natural lighting....

You can see that what they say is true from the two photos above. I just, somehow, thought that I always needed the largest aperture. I guess it depends on what I'm trying to focus on.

I had been figuring this out anyway but it was so nice to know that I wasn't crazy or imagining it!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macro_photography


Just one more little thing. I noticed that when I'm at the lowest fstop, with my camera, the photo gets - well, underexposed? Really dark!

Anyway, I'm campaigning for a new lens - the Canon 60mm macro - and, QUICK!

P.S. I use a Canon Rebel xsi (450D) with the kit lens that it came with - a 15 - 55mm zoom lens.

This silly caterpillar was going so fast that I finally, in exasperation, put my camera on sports mode - just as a joke! Now, I have the most hysterically funny stop motion animation of this guy "bookin' it"!

Timeworn

Goodness! Timeworn - the word for Madeline Bea's The Sunday Creative, really got a hold of me!!!

I did a full blown post on it over on my other blog,

In The Sunny Spot

Also, many thanks to Punktchen, Justine, Tovah Martin and to Mary (who finally pushed me over the edge) for their inspiration for these photos - they've been coming together for some time! Inspiration for my heart! =]

Down Home Goodness!

Even Tom's acorn squash is wearing a halo! It must have been the very golden moment and I didn't realize it . =]

 I liked this one of the barn (it has that pretty, lacy tree on the left), too, and couldn't decide which one to use.

btw, I am in love with this weed! There are clouds of it everywhere along with the wild blue aster. Just lovely!

P.S. Did you see the little "where's Waldo?" in the first photo? =]

I'm a musician.

I've played the piano since I was 5 (I'm 42, now) and I got my Bachelors of Music in vocal performance. Growing in an art is not a new idea for me - even though, photography is.

When I was younger, I didn't mind playing the piano but I hated to practice. Unfortunately, I could get away with a lot - even without practicing - even when I was in college.

There is a difference between practicing and playing.

It was one summer, somewhere between the end of High School and my first couple of years of college that I, suddenly, decided for myself that I, wanted to really gain in this skill. I, for some reason, decided that my teacher could be right and that, if I stopped when I made a mistake and focused on the technicalities of the music and my execution of it, that I could make the mistakes go away. I, somehow, decided that, if I really worked on my weaknesses, I would get better and I would really be able to soar with my instrument. In other words, if I took the time to be really disciplined and practice, I would gain mastery and would be able to do whatever I wanted. In any case, I decided that I was tired of making the old mistakes and wanted to move along and get better.

That summer, I practiced, at least, eight hours a day.

I had made a breakthrough, - after all of those years of lovely playing - I made a breakthrough.

I've been playing my camera but not really practicing. There's nothing wrong with that, necessarily. I will get better just because I've played every day. However, I know that I need to keep gaining in knowledge and technical skill.

Instead of thinking about how far it is to "the top" (not that I know if I'll ever get there), I need to just keep working on the little things in front of me.

What's that saying?

"The journey of a thousand miles starts with but a single step."

So.......

I joined a photography community.

GULP!

I, also, did some more mind bending reading about macro photography.

(Introduction to Macro Photography) 

I am half scared to death and want to run the other way and half glad to see a toe hold of something to start working on. I've definitely had some fresh ideas swirling around in my brain.

Anyway, I've started thinking about some things but have gone on too long, already.

I'll just say that, at first, I've been completely in love with shallow depth of field. I don't think that that is always the best thing for my camera, though. I don't know, I have to think.

These three shots were taken at different apertures.

The first one has a smaller aperture - f16ish. The last is f5.4 or somewhere around there. They're on a tripod with the timer set.

The higher fstop/smaller aperture got a clearer shot.

hmmmmmm,

I really have to think!

Paper flowers

Macro Burlap

Now, here is a reward for making it all the way to the end of this long post!

It is a sneak peek at the gift that I will be giving away on my other blog, In The Sunny Spot, in celebration of over 100 followers and, almost, 100 posts. A lot of you follow both blogs but "shhhhhh!"  - don't tell - and this really, really isn't a ploy to get you over there. (Really, really!) It's just sooooo pretty - don't you think???!

A Macro Giveaway!

(Oh, hahahahaha! I crack myself up! =])

Thank you sooooooo much for listening!

Love,

Katy Noelle

It just so happens that this post is going to coincide with Macro Friday at Blogging from Bolivia; so, I think that I will join in the fun for the first time, today!

P.S. My piano playing is advanced and lovely but, I fear that you will never hear me at Carnegie Hall, alas. The point is, however, I do enjoy freedom - I can "fly" higher than I could before! The practice was worth it!!!

Look at this lovely thing! It's an aster bud - very elegant!

Tomorrow, I am going out with my tripod to see if I can find it again.

When my tripod and I dance, we have 5 left feet. Well, one of its legs is broken. HOWEVER, the weeds are low on the ground. We'll see what happens.

I KNOW that serious (i.e. professional) photographers just use a tripod. That's that!

I am thinking, though, in music, when I am practicing, I break the different parts down and practice them separately until I master each one to the best of my ability at the time. Then, I put it all together. I need to practice without the silly thing AND, I need to just practice using it until I don't think about it anymore. Check back in a year, okay? =]

How are you guys at "dancing" with your tripod? Any tips??

This is a wisp of a transplanted Sedum into my new garden. I cannot wait until next year. Hopefully, it will fill in and cascade over the stones!

On Monday, I had a wonderful chance to photograph Tom's baskets of tomatoes that he had harvested. It was a very dark and cloudy day. Very cozy inside and the light was very tricky.

I was so tired on Monday!

I'm just mentioning this because, being tired, I couldn't figure out how to take a good photo. I didn't think to up the ISO, to move the subject into the light, most of the photos were at an extreme angle (I'm surprised I didn't drop the camera), blurry, blurry, blurry and I just couldn't make the arrangement work! I had fun trying, though.

After a kazillion photos, I just had a few to work with. It was just interesting, that's all.

If you're interested in seeing them, they're in {this post}.

Anyway, I hope that you're all finding inspiration in the changing season!

Love, Katy

I'm still around. Just very busy. I'm still taking a photo every day. A week ago, I forgot once or twice and realized what Maegan meant by getting to it before it's dark and there's nothing left to photograph. Anyway, I have quite a few photos that I absolutely love but I'm saving them for posts on In the Sunny Spot - I don't want to "steal their thunder".

How are you all doing??? Are you sticking to it? Is it no sweat or have you had moments of extreme lack of inspiration, too?