Ross River
Feb, 2015Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken on Ross River, Townsville, Australia just down from the Riverway swimming pool. I am an amateur photographer and just loved the way the river looked that day.Time
It was very early afternoon when I took this photo. I had been to an appointment earlier in the day, and of course had my camera equipment with me, as I have learned to do. The appointment had been a little upsetting, so I decided to go to Riverway and take a walk along the river in order to relax.Lighting
Being early afternoon, there were no long shadows and the light was quite bright. There was a slight breeze, so the light reflects beautifully off the small ripples in the river.Equipment
I have a Canon EOS 1100D and was using a Canon EFS 55-250mm lens, which is not ideal for landscapes, but by stitching two photos together I have ended up with a nice panorama. As I did not have a tripod with me, I was pretty happy with the resulting image.Inspiration
It was a really hot day and while I was walking along the timber walkway, I stopped at a small seating area set out over the river. I had been taking photos of a duck and some fish swimming around close to the edge and looked out over this view and just thought how beautiful it was, and how lucky I was to be living in an area where I could relax and look at something like this. Water is such a calming influence and I just love trees and plants in general. I just had to try to capture what I was feeling.Editing
I shoot in raw which allows me to make adjustments to things like white balance if needed. However with this image, basically the only post-processing I did was to stitch together the two photos I took.In my camera bag
My bag always contains, obviously, my Canon 1100D camera body which normally has my Canon EFS 18-55mm lens attached. I also have a Canon EFS 55-250mm lens and if I am intending to shoot birds, or butterflies or such like, I will also take my Sigma DG 150-500mm lens. However, I often ride my motorbike to shoot locations and if I am planning on shooting landscapes, sunrises or sunsets, I will replace the Sigma with my tripod, which pulls apart and fits nicely in the spot where the Sigma lens usually resides. The other "must-haves" in my bag are a remote shutter release, small torch and most important of all, mosquito spray.Feedback
I am only quite new at capturing landscapes, but I believe that it is all about looking and feeling. The world is beautiful and if you actually look, you can see amazing images everywhere. To capture these amazing images I find that I do better using the viewfinder in preference to the screen. For some reason, I can see the image as it will appear better that way, but every one is different. Perhaps it is because I started with film cameras without LCD screens. The important thing I believe is that you are looking for the emotion you feel, rather than the image you see, if that makes sense. When composing your image, the Rule of Thirds is important to remember, and with landscapes you also need to think about perspective. However don't be too hung up on rules and such ... if you feel the emotion of an image that does not comply to these rules ... just go with it. It is your image and if you love it, that is all that matters. It is nice if other people like your work also, and of course important if you want your work to be commercial, but at the end of the day, if you're not taking photos you love, that emotion will not be there and your image will be flat and lifeless.
