The life of Riley
Feb, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
A small Provencal village in the South of France close to Cagnes-sur-Mer.Time
Shortly after 13hrs when I should have been having lunch, but I got so carried away with the cats and the village that I kept shooting and ignored the hunger pangs.Lighting
Nothing technical. It was a beautiful winter day with strong sunlight. The house with the cat in the window was in a narrow street with tall walls, and piping, and tv antennae casting shadows everywhere. I didn't intervene on lighting at all, simply took the shot, Mother Earth had set the scene.Equipment
My precious baby, the Canon EOS 5D Mark III which was new at the time. This was before I bought any other lenses for the camera, so I used the standard Canon EF lens 24-105mm with IS and macro capability. A nice piece of all-purpose equipment which I have dropped at least half a dozen times, these lenses are tough!Inspiration
The entire context! I love cats. The beautiful weather, lovely picturesque village, the challenge of trying to get the disdainful cat to look at me (this shot was one of many, and it never did...), finally, the angle of the sun casting the shadows. Provencal villages in the South of France (French Riviera), have an enormous amount of quirky charm and character, they lend themselves perfectly to practicing photographers because there is so much texture, light and shade, shapes, colours, variety.....Editing
Nope! I work full time, photography is a new hobby for me, and I barely have time to learn how to use my fabulous camera and practice, let alone faff around with post-pro. However, I love what others do to their photos with software, and hopefully one day I will get round to post-production. For now, I am still an absolute beginner learning to use manual mode.In my camera bag
Ideally as little as possible because it is all so heavy :-) . I often only have the Canon 5D with a 50mm prime fixed lens because it is quite a versatile little lens and not expensive compared to many of the Canon mammoths. Then, I might add my wide angle lens if I know I will be in situations that require it or the EF 24-105mm I used for this shot. And simple things like, more than one lens cloth, a lens blower to get rid of dust without touching the camera, a spare battery, and a spare memory card. I am not a fan of carrying a tripod, so I usually wing it and hope for a steady base to place the camera. I will probably regret that laziness one day because I like shooting at night.Feedback
Patience! I find standing still, observing, and taking in the whole atmosphere very helpful before starting to shoot because once the camera is at your eye you just don't sense the world in the same fashion and you can miss a good shot. I also imagine the shot from every possible angle before shooting. Cameras and lens might be capable of more than the human eye but they can't capture emotion and ambiance alone, that is where we intervene. Ultimately, our imagination, our mind takes the photo!
