Posts
Like a waterfall in slow motion, Part One
3 years ago
February 28, 2009
February 27, 2009
How to take effective photographs - Cropping
It's one thing to read or be told how to photograph well, but it's quite another to actually see samples of why this or that does or doesn't work along with explanations.
One of the secret to stellar photographs isn't just in photography itself alone, but also in knowing when and how to to use post-production tools. Post-production is a fancy schmancy term that means anything you might do after "production" - taking photos. Cropping, dodging, burning, all the classic tools plus a few new ones thanks to the advent of computer digital technology that most of us now have access to.
Take this first photograph for example. It's a pretty good picture. It breaks the "rule of thirds" a little, but that's okay - rules are made to be broken. But how do we make it better? The little details that makes the kid so cute are actually drawing the viewer's attention away. Like the ear, chubby neck and the shirt. The black background isn't too bad, but if we trimmed it down, it would move one's focus squarely where it belong - on this chubbo's face.
Right now, he seems a bit far away and somehow frail. I don't want to convey this...this kid was anything but frail. If anything, he was pretty much in my face, demanding that I give him "the cam'a!" or to open a bag of goldfish so that he could stuff his face. Quite a character.
I cropped this photo along the left and right sides, taking out the ear, minimizing the shirt and the black. I decided to make the photo as perfectly square as I could. Now, because of how this photo was cropped, it more closely follows the rule of the thirds. His eyes pop out more; they effectively command your attention.
I did consider cropping more and making it a vertical picture. But I decided against it - I felt his cheeks were a distinctive feature and to remove them would hurt the photo. Whenever you crop, do it in moderation, little at a time (or be very familiar with the undo tool) and always always save your cropped copy under a different filename, just in case you decide you don't like it later down the road.
Rule of thirds example. Behold my computer drawing skills.
The original photo wasn't strong and distinctive, but cropping improved it. This is why close-ups of people's faces are employed so often in various media. The eyes are a very dramatic and effective way to grab people's attention - windows to a person's soul.
So, to wrap this up...
1. When cropping (or using other tools), keep the feel/mood of the photo in mind
2. Pay attention to the shapes of your subject and consider cropping parallel to the shape. Ie, if your subject is tall and lean, make the photo a vertical one to emphasize that.
3. While cropping, keep the the rule of thirds in mind - but don't follow it strictly.
February 24, 2009
Wang's Gourmet
Out in Colorado, I took a walk one morning to get a bit of a break from my sister's kids - totally adorable and fun, but for someone not used to kids, a bit overwhelming too. Anyway, so I was out walking and saw this.
Of course I had to snap a picture and think of funny, non-PG things people might say about this place. Like...
I want some wangs.
Wangs are tasty
...Juicy
...Hot
Wangs up the wazoo! (ew)
Wangs don't melt in your mouth.
Can you think of more?
What's this newfangled Digg icon?
The addition of the icon is an attempt on my part to try drum up more readers.
"Digg is a social news website made for people to discover and share content from anywhere on the Internet, by submitting links and stories, and voting and commenting on submitted links and stories. Voting stories up and down is the site's cornerstone function, respectively called digging and burying. Many stories get submitted every day, but only the most Dugg stories appear on the front page."
It appears that you have to register (free) in order to participate. I'll probably add del.ico.us and a couple others because they don't require registration, I think, which would make it easier for you.
If you see a photo you really like or a post entry you think is really good, click the Digg button, which will take you to a new webpage. Enter a few words describing the post, and hit submit a couple times. That's all there is to it.
February 21, 2009
More people, more scars upon the land
The bright spring green you see is the fragile plant life that is also at risk of being exterminated. People are strongly discouraged from walking on them, for fear that they are irreparably damaged. I did touch it with my hand and found that it felt like how it looked - as soft as puppy's fur or a newborn's blanket.
February 20, 2009
And he lost a friend but kept his memory
The REAL Pikachu. They are endangered.Pikachu and some other creatures and plants residing at the very tiptops of the mountains - and ONLY there - are threatened or endangered now. Their biology is so sensitive to any temperature changes that any changes in the norms has a devastating effect on them.
February 19, 2009
February 18, 2009
February 17, 2009
I'll bet this thief was happy
he wasn't facing the other way.
News article: Woman uses wedgie to capture suspected thief
Don't understand what I mean? Let me spell it out for you. This brave lady put her hands near (down?) the back of the thief's pants, grabbed his undies, and pulled. IF the thief had been facing her, what would she have grabbed instead?
And a nitpick - if the thief was seen in act of committing a crime and indeed arrested for it...He is most definitely not a suspected thief. Associated Press sucks.
February 15, 2009
I hate it when...
I email someone with a bunch of questions, and they respond with one word.
"Is this house still available? Does it allow dogs? Are you the realtor or the owner? Can we meet Friday so I can see it? What time is good?"
"Yes."
...
*reaches through the interweb to smack that person!*
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