d853GU7MpX
Nov, 2013Views
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Awards
Staff Winter Selection 2015
Superb Composition
Outstanding Creativity
Superior Skill
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken on the top of the railing of my deck in the backyard. It was around mid October of 2013. The leaves had already begun to change colors and fall.Time
I believe this was taken around 8:30ish in the morning. I had gone out to the back deck to take the trash out & just happend to see quite a few leaves almost like they were placed one by one in a line on the deck railing. It was early & Im pretty sure it had rained the night before (or it was just the morning dew that had collected in tiny puddles on the leaves).Lighting
The lighting at this time in the morning was almost perfect. It was a little chilly & the sun hadn't completely come up yet (at least onto the deck) and there was a slight fog from the rain or mist so it was just such a great natural light to photograph in.Equipment
Well this was actually shot with my IPhone 4S. I wanted to catch the image right away so I had run in the house quickly & just grabbed my phone. I had leaned my elbows on the railing to try & keep as still as I could (course the the lighting helped w/that anyway) then stood back a bit & zoomed in a little. I kept moving myself & the zoom to try & get the best view of it with what I had.Inspiration
It actually just caught my eye. Sometimes you just see something & it stands out so much. When I saw the whole line of leaves with these huge drops on them that magnified the veins & texture of the leaves it was just so beautiful to me & something you just don't see every day. The awesome orange color on the white railing & the drops that bubbled out so much just stood out to me that I could never pass up the opportunity to take the picture. Makes you think sometimes of all the little things in nature we don't see sometimes because we're not paying attention. So when I capture something that other people may not have noticed it feels good to show these things so others can also appreciate the beauty in it.Editing
I believe I may have thrown a filter or 2 on it just to bring out the colors & textures. I know I didnt do much because it came out so well on its own. I have so many little camera apps on my phone because I enjoy turning some of them into art.In my camera bag
I usually just have an old Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTI with the lens that came with it! I have a couple other old zoom lenses that aren't in the best shape anymore because as much as photography is part of my life I could never afford the really good stuff. Until of course a very good friend of mine helped me out w/an awesome Canon 24-70mm zoom lens in return for images. This is now my main go-to lens. I also carry my good old IPhone with me all the time. To me, as nice as it would be to have some great expensive equipment & lenses I feel like its not always about the expensive lenses & cameras (I mean don't get me wrong - they definitely help especially when photographing for others) but when Im just playing around or something catches my eye I think that its all in what you actually see. If you can just look at something & picture it in a way others may not then I think that the actual art lies in the eye of the photographer and they'll usually figure out a way to capture it.Feedback
I would just say to always keep your eyes open. Look for the little things you're always so use to just walking past. Always notice your lighting. Something could look amazing at first glance but then the sun is shining on it so much that it doesn't look as well as it would earlier or later in the day when the sun isn't so bright - that being said... the sun may reflect a ray of light so perfectly it could work in your favor. I know you can find things in any light but for this particular image the morning cloudy haze brought out the best colors in the image. The lighting was just right so you could see the drops really well without the sun shining off of them causing a glare and I wouldn't have gotten the full effect of the way the drops magnified the leaves textures. Really my advice is to just look. Keep your eyes open to any little thing that pops out at you. If you have to pull out your phone because you don't have your camera at the moment then just do it. The worst that could happen is you took a couple seconds of your day & it didn't end up the way you expected but it ALWAYS helps to try. You never know when you'll capture an amazing image! Getting out & doing it hands on has always been my biggest & best advice to myself & to others. See & look for the things others don't notice. The beauty lies w/in your eyes! Happy photographing!
