That's a great brush, I bet it makes makes beautiful paintings.Just a bit of photographer humor. ;O) Photographers have people say to them all the time, "I wish I had a camera like that so I could take great pictures." It can't come as a surprise when I say, you don't have to have an expensive camera to take great pictures. Be it smart phone or digital camera, there are always things you can do to get images that come out more like what you envision in your mind. First, let me start off by saying, whether you're a hobbiest or have chosen photography as your profession, the only thing you should be comparing your pictures to are your previous pictures. I don't compare my images (not anymore at least) with those of other photographers or I'll find something wrong with my work every time I turn around. That's just how we're wired. The grass is always greener and all that. I look at other photographer's work as art and inspiration. Second, if you're constantly looking at what's wrong, then that's all you're going to see. You need to concentrate on what's right with the images that you take. (If you haven't already seen the TEDx Talks with National Geographic photographer Dewitt Jones called, Celebrate What's Right With The World, I HIGHLY recommend it. I will link it below.) We all have a unique way of taking pictures depending on what we're using to take them. The way I use a camera is not the same way someone else would use it. Yes, the settings might be similar, but the technique is most likely very different (and subconscious as well). Using a camera is also much different than using a smart phone. I can't get a good picture with my phone ever!!! I try to use it the same way I use my camera and it just doesn't work that way. So, I'm going to give it to you straight... The one thing that will change how your images turn out is practice. And, I mean every day practice. You will be doing certain things subconsciously when you take a picture and you may never figure out what they are. We are creatures of habit, so even with taking pictures (be it with a camera or phone) you will almost always be doing certain things the same way. A perfect example is, the distance that you choose to get from your subject usually starts out the same each time, and that distance is going to be different from the distance that your friend might start out with. If there are 5 people getting ready to take a picture of a group of teenagers going to the prom, they are not all going to try to stand in the same place. They will each automatically go stand where they normally would to take a picture. Then some will zoom in and some won't. Want to make practice fun? Make it a game or challenge! Start with one thing that you'd like to change about your images and work on that. If you're always zooming in on pictures that you took on your phone then you might (subconsciously) be drawn towards a more cropped look. Tell yourself that every time you take a picture today, you will have to take 2 steps forward before you snap the shutter. So, aim, step, step, snap. You can even take a picture before you step and after to compare them. (I would compare them all at the end of the day just to see which position has the most pictures to your liking.) Once you're happy with something that improves your images move on to something else, but keep doing whatever it is that is now working for you. Do you like black and white images? For one whole day, when you take a picture, take two and change the second to black and white so that you can compare them. (This is easiest done on a smart phone, but there is actually a black and white setting on a DSLR, too if you don't use editing software.) Black and white photography is actually an art unto itself. I am a huge fan and spent a couple of years on a personal project of b&w images of downtown Sioux Falls. Some scenes lend themself to b&w and some don't. If you spend some time comparing you'll soon discover which scenes work and which won't before you even take the picture. I really encourage you to explore different types of photography just to see what gets you most excited. Think about making these a one day (or more if you want) projects: Landscape photography: Go for a drive and photograph landscapes without zooming into anything in particular. Examples would be: a farm, a cityscape, the mountains, a field of wind turbines, a lake, etc. Nature photography: Go on a hike and photograph birds, flowers, water falls, trails, anything that looks interesting through the lens. (Usually, these things photograph best when you zoom in on them.) Macro photography: For one day, only take pictures of things "zoomed" all the way in. (Get as close as you can instead of zooming in with your device). This could be a drop of water on a leaf, one word on a page in a book, the strings of a guitar, or a dog's paw. ;O) Street photography: This involves images of people usually outdoors in a particular city or area. (If you're familiar with Humans of New York, this is street photography at its best.) These images might be of workers, shop owners, people walking around downtown, or just everyday happenings in any given place. Vacations are great for street photography. You're able to document where you've been with more interest when including the people who live there. If you want to up your game with photography, don't worry so much about the camera you have. Figure out what types of photography you love and then practice, practice, practice! By the way, I was serious about taking a look at Dewitt Jones' TEDx Talk, too. It's less than 20 minutes long and I think you'll find him very entertaining with a great message, too. :O) Celebrate What's Right With The World - Dewitt Jones Need proof that it's not the camera that "makes great pictures"... Take a look at these 2012 Olympic photos shot by photographer, Dan Chung with a smartphone! Nine years ago!! Dan Chung's Olympic smartphone photoblog It doesn't matter what you use for taking pictures. Use whatever you've got and practice making art. Oh, and print something for yourself!!! Looking towards 2021 I feel like we're going to have to work a little to find our "new normal." Like everything in life, there needs to be a balance. 2020 has tipped things a bit too far to one side and we need to make sure that moving forward the good outweighs the bad. There are so many side effects that could arise from our experiences in 2020 that we've yet to anticipate. In order to keep the scales tipped in our favor we need to do what we can to make sure to include things in our lives that make us happy. When we were kids we would ride our bike, color or draw, or maybe build things out of legos. These things took us to our happy place. As adults hobbies are our happy place. Our hobbies are take us to a small world that we've created for ourselves where we can relax and take a breather from our everyday lives. Here's the definition of hobby. Just look at all those words having to do with relaxation! hobby
I've always had hobbies that I loved like quilting, digital scrapbooking, and photography. They've changed throughout my life, but there always seems to be times where if I hadn't included them in my routine for a while my husband would notice a change in my mood and ask something like, "Do you need to quilt something?" This year more than ever, we need to find things that make us happy and purposefully go to that happy place that they create for us.
We need to balance out the world around us with the one that we create for ourself. And, a hobby doesn't have to be creating something. It can be working on a puzzle (my new favorite past time combined with a good audio book), reading, or playing games with your dog! Anything that isn't a "have to" will work just fine. ;O) I hope that you'll find and visit your happy place on a regular basis this year. I really feel we need this to not only be happy, but to be healthy as well. Wishing you good health, lots of love, and tons and tons of happiness in the new year. When you have a close extended family, and your dog dad is being deployed, the best gift for everyone is photographs. They wanted pictures for him to take on deployment and they wanted pictures for the family for Christmas. So, we got all of that as well as a really fun session!. Together is our favorite place to be.Shannon told me that Odin and Cloud were friends, but I didn't realize just how good of friends until I saw them at their session. When Ray took Cloud with him to change out of his military uniform there was no stopping Odin from running after Cloud. He wasn't panicked, just wanted to be with his best friend. Then, back they came together. If Cloud was on one side of the trial, then that's where Odin wanted to be, too. They really are so adorable! These two get to have lots of fun with their dog parents. Cloud has trained for search and rescue and loves long boarding with his dog dad. Odin is still just a pup really and loves to play frisbee. He even has a special backpack that lets him bike ride with mom. This was such a fun session. I don't think they stopped smiling the entire time! Well, maybe Odin did once when he thought Cloud might be going somewhere that he wasn't. ;O) There's something special about dogs in the same household being best friends. And, I think it says a lot about how much they feel part of the family. It's such a joy to see. I wish you lots more fun adventures together Cloud and Odin. It's obvious that together is your favorite place to be. What can I say about this 8 month old bulldog? Well, his name is Gerald and he has more personality than his wrinkles can handle. He's got so much spunk, and loves to play with his dog mom (sometimes with a sly twinkle in his eye). And, if he isn't getting his point across he won't hesitate to give you his puppy dog pout (which I'm sorry Gerald, but it's absolutely adorable). During his session Gerald played fetch with his ball and tag with his stick (any stick actually), and he showed off his repertoire of tricks which were pretty impressive for an 8 month old. Then after lots of playing, a drink of water, and a little rest Gerald posed like a pro. He's so full of spunk and personality, and obviously thinks the world of his dog mom. Wishing you and Taylor lots of fun adventures, Gerald! Oh, the face of a bulldog... one of life's unexpected joys. ;O) When photographing pets I'm all about getting those shots that show the personal connection between the dog and their human. But, when photographing dogs separately from their two-legged friends, action shots are hands down my favorite. When they're dock diving, playing ball, or just running around in the yard, the joy they feel shows in their every move. I've been a bit scarce on social media lately, but I have a good reason... I became a gramma! It's so much fun for me, but one of the grand-dogs is not sure about it all yet. This is Birdie. She's a one year old Greater Swiss Mountain dog and not only does she have lots of energy, she's also been a little pouty since she's no longer getting 100% of the attention, 100% of the time. (The baby may have toppled her princess crown just a bit.) During my latest visit we took Birdie to the park and she had a ball. Since this week's prompt for the blog circle is action, I thought Birdie's pictures from our little trek would fit perfectly. Here's a series from what she would probably call the best play date ever. When she saw this particular dog, it was like she'd spotted her long lost buddy. They had so much fun! I love seeing such unbridled joy in dogs. And yes, I'm usually grinning from ear to ear watching them, and I may end up saying their thoughts out loud to whoever is near. (Come on, I know you talk for your dogs, too.) ;O) Have a great weekend! This is a blog circle post so if you'd like to see action captured by other pet photographers, just continue around the circle starting with Linda Perdue of VPShoots Photography serving the Tampa Bay Area in Florida. Happy came to Sioux Falls from over two hours away to celebrate her 3rd birthday. She had a rough first 2 years of life before her dog mom found her, but she's now learning that a dogs life can be a beautiful and fun one. Being that this was Happy's first birthday with her mom, it was a special one with a special celebratory day. Happy had all the frills of a princess party, but she also got to have tons of fun doing all the things she loves to do. The list included dressing up (she loves dressing up), playing fetch, destuffing toys (we made do with a new ball), and hanging out with her mom. At the end of the evening, I commented to Happy's mom that this was one of the few times that a dog didn't seem to be tired after a session. Happy walked out of the park with a grin on her face and I swear a little skip in her step. Happy is definitely with the human she is meant to be with. Wishing you many more memorable birthdays, Happy! When I talked to Ted's human on the phone, I knew that this was going to be a fun session. I was told that Ted was an 18 month old Golden Retriever who liked to play ball and go on walks and runs with his humans. (Sounds like most active 18 month olds, but...) ...then she said that Ted likes to be in everyone's business. From her comments I gather that Ted feels that at the dog park, fun is in direct correlation to how dirty you get. He's "the fun dog" and one that Annie describes as gregarious. She says he's the one who would be setting up the keg at a party. ;O) (This picture cracked me up. Never one to miss an opportunity. Just sneak up on them and act like you're the perfect dog when they say "come." HA! I'm on to you, Ted.) Even though he's a social butterfly, Ted loves more than ever when he's got his pack together. Hanging out with his humans is what makes his heart smile. The months of June through August are usually a time when people are hanging out together at summer events. Families gather at the lake and friends hang out downtown. This year is a bit different. We see smaller groups at the local parks in lawn chairs, 6 feet apart doing their best to observe social distancing while still staying connected. During the past few months I've been able to document dogs with their family from a distance while the images never let on that anything has changed in our world. I met Vinnie four years ago at the Cinco de Mayo Fiesta Chihuahua Fashion Show. He was all decked out in his poncho and tiny sombrero and was just so adorable. This time I got to hang out with Vinnie and his big personality (and even bigger heart when he looks at his dog mom) while we all had a nice evening at the park. Vinnie's mom describes him as a "feisty old man." He likes to go after squirrels, rabbits, and bigger dogs! This tiny little guy loves to go for walks, but they need to be long walks... and ok, car rides will work, too. ;O) He loves McDonald's fries, and going for coffee with mom is a favorite for Vinnie as he gets his own cup of cream from the barista. He might be a bit spoiled when he stays at Grand-paw's, too, but then that's what grandparents are for right? It was a different kind of summer this year, but I don't think Vinnie even noticed. He got to hang out with his favorite people, and a picnic at the park is always a fun treat. Ever wonder what the world looks like from the vantage point of a dog? It's no wonder tiny dogs like to be carried around. They get to play king of the mountain without breaking a sweat! Enjoy the rest of your summer Vinnie. And, good luck with your Cinco de Mayo fashion career! This post is part of a circle blog. If you'd like to see the summer fun had by other pet photographers start with Nicole Hrustyk of Pawtraits by Nicole serving the Las Vegas, Nevada area. I went downtown to The Falls with a friend and her golden, Denver. While we were walking around (and I was noticing all the changes since I'd last been there!) I remembered that there was going to be a blog circle with the prompt, "dogs on rocks." Well, I had the perfect model right next to me and LOTS of rocks. Denver was not only gracious with his time, he also put up with me saying, "Last one Denver, I promise" while only a couple of minutes later hearing, "Denver, can we do just one more?" Denver looks soooo very handsome in green, don't you think?! He posed amongst the rocks for me... He posed beside the rocks... Then, he posed on top of the rocks. Isn't he just so handsome?!! (You should see this image big! ...swoon) Thank you for being such a great model, Denver. Take a bow because you rock! ;O) This post is part of a blog circle of pet photographers. To see what others did with the rock theme start with Elaine Tweedy of I Got the Shot Photography, "rockin" pet photos since 2012 in Northeastern PA and surrounding areas. Since Grace was released from commercial breeding she has been getting healthy and enjoying the life every dog should know with a wonderful foster family. She's a beautiful black merle Great Dane and she's in need of a family to call her own. To try and help let people know that Grace is searching for her forever family, we wanted to get some pictures of her that would show not only her gorgeous physical traits, but how beautiful she is on the inside as well. We took some pictures first in her open backyard and then on the deck and I felt pleased with what we got. Then we moved to the front yard where there was more color and those images won out over the others. The flowers helped show Grace's softer side (since she's such a big girl). Just having the flowers in the frame with her helps to show that this XL dog is meant for family more than a lot of other large breeds who's job is more of that of a guard dog. If you want images that have a sense of calm to them, bring in some flowers. Not only will they brighten the scene, the color will brighten the viewers day, too. It always does mine. ;O) Grace is available for adoption through B-Squad Dog Rescue in Brandon, SD. If you'd like to see what others have blooming in their area, start with Pet Love Photography and continue around the blog circle. |
Quoted...I can't really get them to say "cheese," but I can almost always make them smile. -Kelly Categories
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