thank you, muse
As I was driving yesterday afternoon, I could see that the sky was announcing that the pre-sunset light would be remarkable. Fortunately, I arrived home in time...
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As I was driving yesterday afternoon, I could see that the sky was announcing that the pre-sunset light would be remarkable. Fortunately, I arrived home in time to grab my camera and head down to the shore. It seemed as if something were calling me. I had seen several potential photographic opportunities as I walked, but I kept moving until I arrived at the lowest part of the path that led down to where the shore had finally been exposed again after a bit of a thaw. I heard and saw many geese around so I was hoping that a few feathers would finally be around, and I was not disappointed. The feather I found was a beauty - and as the sun descended lower and lower toward the horizon, the light became even more stunning. It had that winter glow with a touch of peach. The combination of feather, snow, & peach sunset glow left me speechless, in awe, & giddy. Thank you, Muse.
Beauty...it changes us.
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Beauty...it changes us.
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Feb, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
At the frozen shore of a lake near our home.Time
This was taken just as the sun was setting.Lighting
I had been driving home and noticed that the light of the winter sunset was turning that gorgeous color of vibrant peach/pink. I knew it would probably be casting some beautiful light off the frozen, snowy lake, so I got home, grabbed my camera, and headed for the shore. I was not disappointed.Equipment
Canon Rebel T3i, 55-250 mm lens, no tripod, no flash. I was squatting down, and the camera was held in my left hand with the back of my hand resting on the ground. I used the live view, rotated, to compose and focus the image.Inspiration
As I walked along the shore, I found one of my favorite subjects, a downy feather, and, as I have an ongoing series called "small things standing," I did what I often do - I stuck the feather in the ground and posed it. I believe in honoring small bits of nature that are often overlooked or passed by. I love using natural light and experimenting to discover the best way to bring out the most beauty in whatever happens to be my subject of choice. With the beautiful light, and the contrast between the cool winter blues and the vibrant peach, the feather, in its fragility and delicacy, seemed to complement the light perfectly.Editing
I am very fond of a clean, soft, peaceful look to the imagery I create. For this image, I decreased the clarity in Lightroom, slightly increased the vibrancy, and then cleaned up a few random spots in the image with the spot healing brush in Photoshop to leave the negative space pristine.In my camera bag
Now, I use a Canon Rebel T7i, but I still stick with my all-time favorite lens for macro photography, the 55-250 mm lens. I consider myself a minimalist in photography and prefer less gear to more.Feedback
Notice what small bits of beauty are right in front of you. Once you find the subject, look more closely at it. Spend time with it. Move it, if needed, and pose it as if you are making a portrait of it - which you are. Find small cracks in the ground or in old fallen trees in which to place it. Poke it into sand, dirt, or mud, or wedge your subject between two small rocks. Hold your camera low to the ground. Use the live view and rotate it (if you can) to create perspectives that are different from what people normally see. Using a telephoto lens to do macro, you'll need to step a few feet back from your subject. With the 55-250mm lens, my camera is approximately 3-4 feet away from the subject, and I use the widest aperture I can (which is f/4.0 or f/5.6 on that camera with that lens). Pay attention to what surrounds your subject and notice how the light affects it. Notice how items in front of or behind your subject may turn into lovely blurry smears outside of your narrow area of focus. Experiment - create multiple exposures from different perspectives and with different compositions. See. Linger. Breathe. Wonder.
