Let It Snow!

Today Bex and I went out for a walk, but this time with a difference because overnight it had snowed! Our entire local area had been blanketed under around three inches of snow! This made everything look very different and very pretty.

For this photo I thought that if I used the flash then I could capture the reflections from the ice crystals. So I attached my flash-gun onto the top of my camera and used the bounce card to bounce the light onto the branches. I used the camera in aperture priority and took the photo with the aperture wide open to give a minimal depth of field. The camera selected a shutter speed 1/160^th and ISO 400. Using this medium ISO means ensures that the noise is kept to a minimum, while allowing the use of a faster shutter speed.

To edit the photo I didn’t need to change many settings as I was mostly happy with the result from the camera. I adjusted the exposure slightly to compensate for the amount of highlights and I also increased the contrast to give the photo more punch. I also minutely changed the white balance to make sure that the snow stayed pure white.

I’m so glad that we went out in the snow today, it was frightfully cold but well worth it for the photos that we took. Both of us took a large amount of photos that I’m sure we will upload over the next few days.

Mat

Close Focus Weed

As promised I still have many photos from the weekend, while looking through them I found this one. We had stopped for a quick break in the shade of a tree, while sitting down I saw a small group of weeds. I thought I could create an interesting composition so before we carried on I took a few photos, and I think this one was the best of the set.

To be able to capture the effect that I wanted I knew that I had to focus close to the weed. My standard lens wouldn’t focus close enough to the lens so I borrowed one of Bex’s macro filters; this enabled me to focus much closer to the weed. Also by focusing closer to the weed the depth of field becomes much smaller, this aids the effect I was trying to create. I decided to use flash for this photo because I wanted the inside of the leaves to be illuminated, and I wanted the shadows to be more defined than with just normal light.

The only changes I made during the editing stage was to increase the contrast, the colour tone and the saturation. By increasing the contrast the photo looks more three dimensional than before; and by increasing the colour tone and the saturation the yellow on the weed becomes a lot more pronounced and stands out more from the green.

I like the effect I created with this photo, and I think the editing that I did to the image has improved this effect. I couldn’t have captured the photo without the macro filter I borrowed from Bex though. Between both of us we have a good amount of equipment for almost every photographic situation!

Mat

Community Christmas

Among other things, Christmas is a time where a sense of community is most strongly felt in a small town or city. This is normally reinforced by a large variety of events taking place throughout the festive period. I’ve tried to visit quite a few as they always provide great photo opportunities. I took this photo at one of the events I attended.

This particular event attempted to showcase the large diversity of culture that we have in our local area; exhibiting this through traditional cooking on the part of each culture involved. One of the stands that I saw as I walked around was Spanish. I liked how they had a long row of pans at the front, advertising their food. It was intriguing to watch them cooking, as much as it was trying. I decided to try to capture a sense of the rush in my photo. I used an aperture of F11 to encourage a larger depth of field. I had to use a slower shutter speed to accommodate this, so some of the people are blurred through movement, but I think this adds to the effect.

Because light was shining through a coloured gazebo, the photo was hard to edit and a few colours came out looking a little odd. I edited the picture in Photoshop to try to dampen some of the effects. I changed the hue, increased the contrast and sharpened the image to bring up finer details. Considering I was being pushed in a busy crowd and only had one chance to take this picture, I think it turned out well.

Bex

x

New Begining

I’ve finally got my own camera! Yesterday I purchased a brand new Canon 600D with an 18-55m lens and a Tamron 70-300mm lens. I’ve taken a lot of photos already; earlier today I took some more set up shots. I set up my new camera on a tripod then put some mugs onto an old wooden table using a black sheet as a backdrop.

I used manual mode so that I could have complete control of the camera. I selected an aperture of F18 to ensure that everything was in sharp focus. As there wasn’t much light I had to use a shutter speed of 15 seconds to get the correct exposure; I also used the built in flash for extra light and to gain a more creative effect. I used ISO 200 to help keep the shutter speed to a reasonable length. Also, I had to use the tungsten white balance to counteract the lighting of the room I was shooting in.

I tried to edit the photo but my Photoshop skills aren’t as good as Bex’s so I asked her to edit it as I wanted it to be perfect (this being the first photo from my camera). She decided to straighten the photo as I had taken it on an angle by accident. She also increased the contrast to make the shadows more prominent and sharpened the photo a small amount.

I’m really enjoying using my new camera; I’ve been trying different functions and effects that I haven’t used before. I will be playing about with it for a long time yet! Hopefully I’ll get a chance to photograph some wildlife soon as this is one of the main reasons for buying a telephoto lens.

Mat

Mountain View

I’ve been so busy lately that I haven’t had a chance to go out for a wander. So again I looked into my computer’s memory for some photographic inspiration. So I looked through some of my holiday photos from a few years ago.

This was one from a trip to North Wales; I had gone for a walk along a river near mount Snowdon. I didn’t have access to an SLR back then so I used my compact camera. I put the camera into landscape mode which boosts the greens but also selects a narrower aperture to normal.

As this was taken on a compact camera, so I had to make a few adjustments. The main was to change the exposure: I increased both the contrast and the overall brightness. This corrected the camera to make the photo much more balanced. I also increased the colour temperature; this brings some warmth into the photo and makes it look much more vibrant.

I really like some of my old holiday photos; some of them are actually quite good. But most of them have required some sort of editing in one way or another. Bex and I have planned to go out for a short wander tomorrow if we both get some spare time. So hopefully we shall have some photos to share for you.

Mat

Starting Fires

I hope you’ve been enjoying yourself over the past week of fireworks and bonfires!! I love this time of year, as there is so much to take photos of- both inside and outside of events.

I took this photo at one of my town’s local events, which I attended to support my grandmother as she had the honour of lighting this year’s bonfire!! After she had lit it, it was left to burn down completely (which was rather nice, as it was freezing!). It was a really interesting subject for a photograph, as the combination of smoke, flames and ashes made for a unique effect at every press of the shutter. I like this photo in particular.

I experimented with exposure times to get different effects; in this picture I used a shutter speed of 1/4000 with an aperture of F8. I used such an incredibly fast shutter speed because I didn’t want the patterns made by the smoke to blur, and there was a lot of light coming from the fire.

I haven’t edited this image as I was pleased with the original. I love how you can see the ash around the outlines of the fire along with the silhouette of the wood. I hope you’ll join me in saying congratulations to my grandmother – she did well!!!

Bex

x

Round- up

Unfortunately, the weekend didn’t last forever and all too soon I was forced back to reality! This is the first festival that Mat and I have done, and it was amazing!

On Saturday, I spent most of my time walking around the stands and the smaller stages to see what I could find. The atmosphere was incredibly lively, with the animal themed fancy dress well adopted by most! On Sunday, I spent a lot of time on the main stage photographing dance acts. Later in the afternoon, one of my favourite unsigned bands were playing. The lead singer is quite feminine and always has flowers wrapped around her microphone stand. Before the singer came on, smoke filled the stage and the lights shone in anticipation of her arrival, making a mysterious atmosphere.

I used a starburst filter whilst taking this photo, as it cut out some unnecessary light and made some interesting effects. I was really pleased with how well this picture turned out so didn’t do any editing. It was such a good feeling to be on stage for the first time (even if the crowd weren’t cheering for me!)  Please do let me know if anyone invents a time machine...

Bex

x

Moody Dandelions

This is another of my photos from Monday’s photography wander with Bex. This set of dying dandelions caught my eye when we were on our way back. I thought they could make an interesting composition if I took the photo with the right settings.

So to get the composition right, I took the photo with an aperture of around F6 to get an adequate depth of field. I also chose to use the low key gradation setting to make the dark parts of the background look blacker. By doing this it creates a dark and mysterious atmosphere to the photo, which I thought would make the composition more interesting.

When I uploaded the photo onto my computer I decided that it didn’t require any editing. I liked the overall effect of how the photo worked straight from the camera. The background is perfectly blurred with the low key effect creating the moody atmosphere I wanted.

Bex and I are planning to go for a wander into the nature reserve again tomorrow. I hope the weather holds so we can get a varied mix of photos.

Mat

Turning Over a New Leaf

Both Mat and I were free today so we decided to go to for a mini photography wander. We didn’t have much time so couldn’t go very far; we walked through the local nature reserve. As usual I took mostly macro shots, and this is one of them.

I used shutter speed priority mode so I could under expose, making the picture seem more dramatic. Whilst under exposing, I also used flash. This picked out the highlights and shine of the leaf, and made the dark areas more prominent. Afterwards, I edited the picture by decreasing the brightness further and increasing the contrast. This made the colours too bright so I decreased the saturation.

I used the macro lens, which works incredibly well. I used a 45mm focal length, as the lens doesn’t focus at incredibly close distances and I wanted to capture the detail of all the channels and veins on the leaf.

I enjoyed going on a photography wander with Mat. We haven’t had chance to go together for a while, and I find my photos turn out better as we can suggest things to each other. I look forward to the next time.

Bex

x

Calm Before the Storm

I managed to get out for a walk today; so I went down to the lake for some inspiration. The weather wasn’t amazing today so I had to dash out between the rain showers. But when it wasn’t raining the weather was really nice, presenting some great photographic opportunities.

There were a few clouds in the sky to scatter the sun’s rays, so the lighting was perfect. I composed the photo so I had a small bush in the foreground, this created some foreground interest. I focused on the background so the small bush would be out of focus. Also I tried to get equal amounts of the foreground and the sky into the frame, to create a calm and tranquil atmosphere.

When I got to the editing stage, I decided that it didn’t need very much editing. I increased the colour temperature and saturation; this makes the photo look much more vibrant. Also I turned down the highlights; this made the sky darker and the clouds clearer.

This may be the last chance I get to take a sunny photo this week. The weather forecasts are starting to change; the rain is on its way! So I think this is just the calm before the storm. Prepare for the rain, but enjoy the sun while it lasts.

Mat

I do like to be beside the seaside

This is another photo from our tip to Weston. We enjoyed it so much and took so many photos. The beach was packed with people, mainly sun-bathing and soaking up the sun. I wanted to take a photo that emphasises how crowded the beach was.

We decided to go for a walk down the pier to see what it was like after the re-build.  I borrowed Bex’s camera for this photo so that I could use a really short focal length for a true wide-angle photo. I wanted to get as much into the frame as possible, because this would show how busy the beach was. I like how the sea curves round to the edge of the frame; it makes the beach look like it goes on forever. Also having the buildings on the left it frames the photo very well; with the beach being contained between the buildings and the sea. Having the beach in the middle of the frame helps to create the over-crowded effect that I was trying  for.

In the editing stage I increased the colour temperature to create a warm and ‘sunny’ effect to the photo. I also cropped the photo a small amount; I did this to aid the overcrowded effect. I liked the photo straight from the camera so I didn’t change anything else. The camera exposed the photo perfectly; the sky didn’t white out and the shadows still have a lot of depth to them.

Another message from Bex, she says that her holiday is really fun and she's having a great time. She adds that she misses the blog very much and can’t wait to get back and upload some photos from her holiday.

I hope your all enjoying the sun. I think the weather is going to turn very soon; so I would get out and enjoy the sun while it lasts if I was you.

Mat

Country Contrast

This photo was taken a while ago at TruckFest South West. I must confess I have a slight obsession with heavy goods vehicles, so TruckFest was heaven for me. I had taken the trusty Pentax ME Super with me and I managed to use up a whole reel of film while out. I’ve been quite busy recently, which is why I haven’t had a chance to get the film developed until a few days ago.

It was about half way through the day when we saw this pair of Tractor Units from country supplies specialist: Countrywide. The cab art really caught my eye, the bright and vibrant scenes that surrounded the cab were very impressive. I thought that the contrast between the classic country scenes and the very modern cab was very interesting; it shows how much farming and transport have changed and improved together over the years. With each decade more efficient and cheaper processes have been introduced: starting with horses towing everything on the farm and on the road; and culminating in today’s incredibly modern and high precision designs, with computers controlling every process.

I really think that this is more than just a photo, it contains much of our agricultural and transport history, showing the legacy that we have produced over the past 100 years. A legacy that will be left to the future, to increase the efficiency and profitability of agriculture and transport. This could be good or bad depending on your own opinions, making agriculture and transport more efficient could be good because less fossil fuels will be burnt and the world will be a greener place; but on the other hand, with more machinery and even tighter tolerances the work will become more stressful and the green country will become much more mechanised with vehicles working everywhere.

What you take away from this photo is dependent on your own opinions, but maybe take a minute to think about how much progress has been made in the past 100 hundred years; and then think: what do we do now, where does this take us? These are the questions that future generations will be asking themselves.

Mat

Peering through the gaps

Mat and I took a train to the seaside today, as the weather has been nice all week. We spent a whole day there, so both of us are looking rather red!

It was incredibly hot and by midday the energy had been almost completely sapped out of us. We decided to eat lunch, and in true British fashion we had fish and chips on the beach (the only difference being it was sunny!). It seemed that many others had the same idea as us, and the beach was packed! We walked a little further to the other side of the pier where it was quieter. The tide had gone out, and as we were eating lunch I noticed this picture.

I metered off of the background so that the structure of the pier was a silhouette. I think it worked really well, as it acts a bit like windows- drawing attention to the background through the gaps.

I’m absolutely exhausted but had an amazing day! I really do hope the good weather lasts. Evening all!

Bex

x

Out to Sea

I didn’t get a chance to go out today so I thought I should look in my computer for some inspiration. I found this photo from a holiday a few years ago. The photo was taken with a compact camera so the quality isn’t fantastic, but I think its good enough for an upload.

The photo was taken towards the late afternoon, so I could create a more natural photo. Also with the sun behind me I didn’t get any bad reflections from the water. I underexposed the photo to retain detail in the sky; this also darkened the shadows on the rock which gives a pleasing effect to the photo.

As the photo was taken on a compact camera it needed some editing to get it up to a good enough standard for the blog. The photo was quite ‘flat’ straight from the camera, so I increased the saturation and the contrast. I like the effect that this gives the photo, it makes it seem much more realistic.

Now after a fantastic weekend, it’s back to normality. Hopefully the sunny weather will stay around, but otherwise it was very nice while it lasted.

Mat 

Flower Power

Firstly, I must apologise for not making many posts recently but I’ve been rather busy.

On the first day of our holiday we decided to go exploring so took a bus into the city centre. In one of the main squares there was a small market selling fruit, flowers, food and drink. I took this picture at one of the stands selling flowers. The stand looked incredibly vibrant and the bright blue flowers caught my eye straight away.

I wanted a picture of them as they looked so pretty, but I didn’t want to only have snapshots of my holiday. To combat the typical snapshot, I took the picture at a lower angle so you could see more of the side of the flower. I love how it turned out; it’s so different compared to normal shots of flowers.

I actually really like that you can see the price tag; I think it makes it more interesting and gives an extra element to the picture. I could quite easily get used to this kind of street photography!

Bex

Stormy Horizon

I’m missing my holiday already, so I thought that I should upload a photo from it. This image is from one of the long walks that Bex and I went on the Saturday; the weather had been changing rapidly all day. The constantly changing weather presented some great photos, but also caused some problems while taking them; (as the camera isn’t water proof)!

The clouds had just started to break apart after a short spell of rain. I thought the clouds looked very dramatic, so would make an interesting photo. I tried to do something slightly different so I tried to get some of the ground in the photo as well. I really like how well the photo has worked, with the tree in the corner giving some perspective and ‘size’ to the composition.

I thought that the photo could be improved slightly through the use of Photoshop. I adjusted the histogram to crop out the shadows, losing all detail and turning them into silhouettes. I also increased the brightness of the highlights to increase the contrast and make the clouds look more violent.

I think the edited photo looks a lot better now than it did straight from the camera. I really like how the silhouette of the tree stands out against the sky. We both have plenty of material from our holiday to keep the blog running for quite a while now, but it won’t stop us going out for our photography wanders! I hope everyone who is on their summer break is having as good a time as we are!

Mat

Man's Best Friend

Today was the last day of our holiday; I really didn’t want it to end. Tomorrow is back to normal so I shall upload a photo from the holiday to try and keep the memory alive in my imagination as long as possible.

Today’s photo is of my crazy dog! Bex was playing a game of fetch with him in a field. He was waiting for Bex to throw his favourite toy and he was holding his front paw up (which for anybody with a Springer Spaniel will know is they’re stereotypical pose).

Bex had left me with her D-SLR; it already had a telephoto lens on it which is great for taking pictures of my dog (he doesn't stop!). I crouched down so that I could take the photo at his eye level for a better perspective; I also chose a fast shutter speed of 1/800^th of a second so I could freeze him as he ran with the water droplets flying off him.

I like this photo; it really catches the spirit of him waiting. I didn’t edit the photo because I didn't want to change how he looked; the photo captured every detail of him correctly.

I’m really going to miss my holiday away with Bex, but never the less it's back to reality. We took a lot of photos while we were away, so expect many more photos in the next few weeks of what we got up to while on holiday! I hope you really enjoy our holiday photos and seeing what we got up to.

Mat

Setting

It’s mine and Mat’s last evening on holiday together so after we ate we decided to go for a mini photography wander along the local canal. It was about 9pm so the sun was beginning to set.

We didn’t get very far down the canal; the cameras took over and we sat on a bench to take some shots of the sunset. It’s been a cloudy and somewhat miserable day- the clouds hadn’t lifted by the evening.

I love how the trees are just silhouettes; the black really makes the colours in the sky stand out. I increased the saturation in Photoshop when we got back. I know it’s not the most impressive sunset ever, but I loved the colours and wanted to share my last evening on holiday with you.

Bex

x

Endless Arches

Mat and I went for a walk in the town centre today. We hadn’t been into the centre before so we weren’t sure where to go and it looked like all the buildings were new. We walked down a small lane, as it looked rather interesting. As we walked, I spotted a short cut that lead back to the main shopping precinct.

It was really out of place against the modern buildings (perhaps why it grabbed my attention); I loved how it stood out from everywhere else. I really like the rows of arches. After every few archways there were exits on the left and right to different paths.

I think it creates a really interesting effect, as it looks like an endless length of arches and the exits to the left and right create shadows on the ground from the pillars. I love trying to take arty shots on holiday, because you always notice a lot of different things at once.

Bex

x

Another Time

Bex and I are on another holiday together! (Lucky us). We arrived quite early and decided to go for a short wander while there was a gap in the rain.

We walked along a public footpath that went across a field. The clouds where composed perfectly at the time, and the sheep where spread across the foreground, which created some interest without causing a distraction. Overall I really like the composition of the photo, and taking the photo in black and white makes the clouds contrast more against the sky and the foreground.

When I put the photo onto the computer I cropped a small amount of sky from the top and increased the mid-tone contrast. I also lowered the brightness of the highlights. I did this to increase the detail in the sky and to increase the contrast in the foreground.

I think the photo works very well with the foreground interest, the sky and the clouds flowing across. The editing also helped to improve the photo overall, increasing the contrast between the sky and clouds.

I really like this photo, and hopefully I can take some more like it, or maybe some macro photos instead. I’ll wait to see what’s in front of the lens when I’m out on our next wander.

Mat