Go Wide!

The college football season is rapidly approaching the end of the regular season and the beginning of the bowls.   Going wide is something we'll hear when talking about football wideouts and wide receivers. Maybe we'll hear it this Saturday in the Florida - Florida State game, but I'm afraid the passing will favor the Seminoles this year.

We can also go wide in photography.   A wide angle lens is typically in the 24mm - 36mm range with ultra-wide having shorter focal lengths and standard or normal lenses having longer focal lengths.  The are called wide angle because the angle of view through the lens takes in so much more.  A 28mm lens has a 75 degree angle of view, while a 135 mm has only an 18 degree view.

The typical way to use a wide angle is to capture a big wide landscape scene.

Shaker Village

Reel Foot Lake 

Both the Shaker Villiage and Reel Foot Lake photos were taken at 17mm.   They take in a lot of the scene from the far left to the far right.   This is a perfect use for a wide angle lens, but not the only use.

When you place objects close to a wide angle lens their size is magnified relative to objects that are further away, like in this photo of the Cable Mill in Cades Cove.

Cable Mill @ 24mm

What if you turned your camera and took a portrait (taller) orientation shot?   Same effect - things that are close appear much bigger.

22mm

In the photo to the left the white flower is the obvious subject.  It is bright and big, demanding attention.   The purple flowers in the background are hardly noticeable, but they do add some depth to the photo.

I've found this is a fun way to get close up shots but include the environment around the subject in the photo.   Wide angle lenses also tend to have a much deeper depth of field, making it easier to keep the close subject and far background in focus.

21mm

17mm

I've used this technique with flowers to draw people's attention to the flower.  You can use the same technique on other subjects, but beware.  If you use a wide angle lens to photograph a person up close you can get a photo with a large nose or ears.  Not too flattering.

Next time you're out try turning your camera into the portrait orientation and going wide!

Stop, Look and Listen

I may not remember much about growing up, but I do remember - "Stop, Look, Listen!"   We were taught to do this before even thinking about crossing a road.  Look to the left and to the right, and listen for approaching vehicles. It was so ingrained in the minds of our generation that it The Stylistics released a soul song by that title in 1971, followed up by Marvin Gaye and Diana Ross in 1974.

It's a good think to remember in photography as well.   Those of us who are nature or landscape photographers can easily fall into the trap of getting to a place and shooting the first thing that looks good to us, then moving on. I call this the shoot and go approach.  It's easy to do, but we miss the great shots by not stopping and looking around.   The first shot we make is most often not the best one.  There are always other angles, other compositions, and other subjects in an area.  Each one can tell a different story.

Here's two examples.   The first shot shows two  Adirondack Chairs under a tree. What' kind of story does this tell?  The leaves n the gree and the grass are still green, but there are brown leaves on the ground under the tree.  It's early fall.  The chairs are inviting under the shade.   Just imagine yourself with your favorite person you enjoy being with sitting in those chairs on a cool fall day listening to birds and watching horses run in the near by pasture.  Sound like a good place to be?   

A photo is more interesting to the viewer if they can imagine themselves in the photo.  It creates a sense of connection.   Can you imagine yourself there?

This was just outside the room where we were staying at Shaker Village in Kentucky.  It was an obvious photo for me, but not the only shot.   Notice the two leaves on the chair on the right?  There was a photo in there as well.

Taken at the same place and the same time of day, this second photo tells a completely different story.  The subject is no longer the chair, lawn, or trees.  You can't even see those things in this composition.  The subject is the dried leaf stuck in the slats.  The first photo had a lot of green and only a little yellow or brown, this photo is almost entirely brown.  To me it is a story of the end of life for the leaf.   Same place, different story.

I could have stayed in a 20 foot circle for an hour taking different pictures of leaves, grass, chairs, and tree trunks.   What possibilities do you see in these photos?

Here's a suggestion for avoiding the shoot and go approach and slowing down to look for photos beyond the obvious.  When you get to a place just stand or sit for a while and take it all in.  Walk around a little and enjoy what God has made.   Don't even try to make a photo until after you have had time to stop, look and listen.   You'll find many more photographic opportunities right in front of you.

  

Why I like some of my photos more than others

June and I got to spend 3+ days with some great photographers who are even nicer people last weekend at the Shaker Villiage near Harrodsburg, KY.   The reason for this gathering of friends was to spend time together and of course take lots of photos.   Personally I came home with over 900.   Hey that's only about 300 a day, which is not that much considering.

I'll be working through those photos over the next few weeks.  I've already shared a few on facebook.  I want to share four more here today.

The Hallway

Brooms

Spiral Staircase

Lemons

While I'm happy with all four, I like two better than the other two, and it's not because they are better photos.   I used none of my personal creativity on the last two.  They are shots everyone in the group took and are copies of photos taken by dozens if not hundreds of photographers before me.  For the Spiral Staircase photo we took turns going up the two floors and shooting down.  We all pretty much made the same photos.  If placed side by side I don't know if I could tell mine from the next guys.  They are that similar.   The Lemons photo was an attempt to copy a beautiful photo made by Bill Fortney years ago.  We have all made it and added it to our portfolio.   These are not bad photos. Taking these help me to learn what goes into making a good photo.  I'm glad I took them and can share them with others. They are just not my photos.  To me this feels like the photography equivalent of paint by numbers.  There is none of my personal creativity involved.

The first two I made all on my own.  No one said stand here and make this shot.   As far as I know I may be the only one to get these shots this past weekend.   Photographically they are not as good as the Spiral Staircase or Lemons photos, but they are mine and that's why I like them better.   I feel much the same way about iconic landscapes.   Most everyone who goes to Zion National Park stands on the same bridge and takes the same afternoon photo of The Watchman and the Virgin River.  Go ahead and google it and you'll see what I mean.   

There's nothing wrong with taking the iconic shots or attempting to emulate great photographers like Bill Fortney.   In the end I take photos because I enjoy the creative process and that creativity is what makes my photos something I treasure.  My advise is to take those iconic shots, learn from them, enjoy them, but make sure you make your own creative photos.  Those may be your favorites!