frogs, snails and puppy dog tails
Mar, 2015Views
2906
Likes
Awards
Featured
Contest Finalist in Children and Animals Photo Contest
Peer Award
Absolute Masterpiece
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Outstanding Creativity
All Star
Magnificent Capture
Superior Skill
Love it
Genius
Top Ranks
Top 10 rankTop 10 rank week 2Top 10 rank week 1
Top 10 rankTop 10 rank week 1
PRO+
kariwatkins
February 28, 2016
this is one of the best and most beautiful photos I have come across in a long time - wow!
PRO+
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photo on my property in BC Canada. This area is a favourite play area for my sons so it was great spot to play fish.Time
I took this in the afternoon. The spot has some large trees on the right of the subjects to provide shade. I work when my children want to play pretend so end up doing shoots at all different times of day. They are the boss when it comes to photo shoots.Lighting
Some of the light was added and adjusted in post. Many times my children don't always co-operate when the light is "perfect" so I've learnt to work around it and manipulate it in post.Equipment
NikonInspiration
My kids inspire most of my images. I like to capture their imagination at different ages as they grow. Their father is a commercial fisherman so playing "fish" is something they do often. Many times they continue to play pretend long after i've finished with capturing images.Editing
Yes! This is a composite image. I added in the water with the Flood plug-in by flaming pear. The frogs & snails are stock & the fishing bobber was photographed separately to add in post. I removed some distracting elements from the background as well as manipulated the light & colour of the image.In my camera bag
I don't focus much on equipment & make do with what I have. I don't often even bring a bag with me. I'll grab my nikon and a lens (usually a 50mm), throw it around my neck and off we go. My hands and pockets are usually full of misc items for my "models". Raisins, water bottles and granola bars are essential to my shoots! Before I had kids I used to pack every piece of equipment I could fit into my bag and lug it everywhere. I always wanted the best new thing and was never happy with whatever equipment I was lugging. Now I enjoy just being out with my camera and my kids!Feedback
When I'm working with children I spend most of my time playing and not shooting. I prefer to wait until they are relaxed and really engaged in the game, then I get the shot I want. My son was two when I took this and I shot for about 15 minutes and played for about 45minutes before and after that time. I never ask for a pose but instead steer the game towards the pose I want. Instead of saying "sit here" & "look here" it's "if you sit here the fish won't see you" & "oh look theres a big one over there!". It truly is just a big game of make believe. I want each shoot to be enjoyable play time for them so the next time I want images they are excited about it.
