Old Mansion Entry Door
Aperture 8/1 ISO 100 Shutter 1/83 Focal Length 17/1 
Mar, 2021Views
366
Likes
Awards
Staff Favorite
Peer Award
Magnificent Capture
Outstanding Creativity
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Top Choice
All Star
Genius
Emotions
Impressed
Top Ranks
Top 30 rankTop 30 rank week 1Categories
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Discover more photos See all
Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photograph at a farm in central Ohio. A camera club where I am a member was invited to the farm for a photo shoot. There was a large three story mansion/farmhouse on the property that was very unique. It was in the process of being restored by the owners.Time
We were at the farm for most of the day which included a cook out by the owners who owned a local farm fresh food restaurant. It was in the evening and the sun was starting to go down.Lighting
The sun was starting to go down and there was a little bit of a chill in the air. I was in front of the mansion at that time and noticed that the angle of the sun was bringing out the texture in the entry way. It was not a harsh light due to some high clouds that softened it up just enough to still show off the texture.Equipment
It was shot with a Canon D50 with a canon 17-50mm IS lens. The iso was set at 100 and the lens was set at F8 at 1/80 sec. The image stabilized lens allowed me to hand hold and still get a sharp photo.Inspiration
I liked the way that the light was playing off of the entry way which brought out a lot of different types of texture. There was texture in the walls, in the old bubbled glass, in the old concrete porch. There was also a pool of dried paint that had streaked down the front of the steps and had pooled near the cat. The cat was the icing on the cake. When I looked at the scene it just gave me a good feeling that I wanted to capture in the photograph.Editing
I shot in color and later converted to black and white. The color was good but I thought that the black and white helped bring out all the texture that I wanted to show. I love the play of the texture in this photo.In my camera bag
I now shoot mostly with a Sony A6000 and carry a Sony 85 /1.8, a Sony "G" series F4/18-105 telephoto, and a Sony 50mm kit lens. I also usually carry an old Canon FD 50 mm 1.4 with an adapter to use on my Sony so I can get an "old school" look when needed.Feedback
When going for a shot like this where your subject is static I would usually put my camera on a tripod in order to get a sharp image. I lucked out on this photo probably because of the image stabilized lens but there were other times in my life when I was too lazy to set up the tripod only to be disappointed when I returned home to discover that my "possible prize winning image " was not sharp enough! One exercise that I do when I am taking a photograph is to ask myself, "What am I seeing, what am I feeling and how can I incorporate what I am seeing and feeling into my photo. In this case I saw a grand old entry way to a grand old house that had been around for many years and was now about to receive new life. There was character and texture and all of that combined with the cat on the steps gave me a feeling of maturity and strength and of being "home".
