Messing with Manual ~~ The Necklace

F/3.5 (aperture/f-stops) 1/60s (shutter speed)

For this second Messing with Manual installment, I would like to share with you some photos of a necklace that I captured several weeks ago. There is no special story behind the necklace. Except that it made a good photo op. I've been trying to take objects outside and put them in places where they wouldn't normally be. The above picture was posed on a backyard pinwheel.

F/5 (aperture) 1/200s (shutter speed)

I started simple; I lay it first in the grass.

I thought this picture was a touch dark, but I'm not sure. What do you think?

F/5  1/60s

Maybe I want a little too far the other direction on this one's lighting. I don't know if you've noticed but I seem to play more with the shutter speed than the aperture. I feel as though I have more range that way. Maybe more experienced photographers could tell me whether or not it would be better to try to change the aperture more.

F/4.7 1/125s

The focus is almost there. :)

F/4.7 1/125s

F/4.7 1/50s

F/4.7 1/50s

F/4.7 1/30s

F/6.3 1/80s

F/6.3 1/50s

F/6.3 1/50s

I loved how the chain ended up forming a heart shape.

F/5 1/25s

Now we've moved to the bush.

F/3.5 1/60s

Back to the pinwheel. :) Although it was kind of an odd place, it ended up being a pretty combination.

F/3.5 1/60s

F/3.5 1/60s

Messing with Manual ~~~ The Sunset

The past few weeks I have been really excited to be able to explore the manual settings on my Nikon. I have played with the aperture (f/stops), shutter speed, and focus. In these photos that I took of a sunset at a nearby park, I mainly changed the aperture and the shutter speed.

Left Photo: 1/800s (shutter speed) f/5 (aperture) Right Photo 200s (shutter speed) f/5 (aperture)

These two photos were taken when I was still trying to figure out the correct balance of aperture and shutter speed. By the way, I don't know about you, but I have mainly been adjusting the shutter speed to change the lighting. Is it better to use the aperture? I seem to have more flexibility using it.

1/1500s  f/5

I finally figured it out. :)

1/400s  f/5

Left Photo: 1/320s f/5.6  Right Photo: 1/320s  f/4.5 

1/800s   f/4

1/800s  f/5.6

1/1500s  f/3.5

1/500s  f/8

I hope you enjoy this first installment of Messing with Manual. I am having a ton of fun learning about all this and I hope it encourages any other photographers to give it a try if you haven't before. If you are a reader who has been doing this for a while, I would definitely appreciate any tips. Have a great week all of you!



Common Museum Pieces

I have a bunch of different pictures that I want to post right now, but I can't post them all at the moment. I have been trying to mess with the manual settings on my camera, so I can't wait to share what has come from my experimenting. I thought that I would just take a few moments to share some more recent pictures. This weekend, I was surprised by a visit from a very close friend, Jaynie. We were able to spend some time together, and once, during the time, we went to a museum. I didn't really take any pictures of the exhibits, but found some of the more "common" items around the museum to be very good photo opportunities.

               These wall panels had such wonderful texture.

This bench probably wouldn't be too fun to sit on, but for pictures? Ahhh..

I tried my hand at some stairwells.

I loved this part. I didn't love trying to take a picture of it without people in the way. Oh, the price we photographers have to pay....

Snow

This past week we had our second good snow of this winter. I say good snow rather loosely; neither one covered the tops of the grass. I know, it is pathetic. This year has been a sad winter. I personally love the snow, so I am hoping for more soon.

 The snow arrived very unexpectedly. First rain was drizzling, then the next moment I glanced out the window to behold large, swirling, beautiful, snowflakes.

Sometimes the flakes came in soft clouds. At other times, there were huge gusts of blinding white.

I tried playing around with the manual settings on the camera. I was hoping to catch the snowflakes better, but it made everything dark. I'm still trying to learn.

I took all of these from inside my house though the open back door. Too much cold air was coming in through the door, however, so I had to switch to the garage.

The wet snow stuck to just about everything it touched. That provided plenty of opportunities for fun photos.

The snow seemed to make the neighborhood birds hungrier than usual. When they weren't gorging themselves, they perched in a nearby tree. This little guy was pretty shy.

This cardinal was much more obliging. He made a great model with his bright colors.

I began to move out into the elements. It was still snowing, but I really wanted some pictures of the backyard. I must have looked ridiculous. Over my coat I had a poncho that I was housing my camera under in an effort to keep the camera dry. For a little while, I even tried to use an umbrella to block the snow. Eventually, I gave up and just hoped that a few snowflakes wouldn't hurt. I am still trying to be very careful with it since it is so new.

Now the snow is almost gone, but I had fun snapping pictures while it was here. Meanwhile, I'm going to hope for more snow. Have a great week!

A Few Christmas Pics and a Song

I'm sorry I haven't posted in so long. Christmastime is so busy. This will just be a short post with a few pics. My grandma, who lives with us, has many pretty Christmas decorations. A few days ago, I was helping her decorate and I grabbed out my camera while I helped. The above picture is of a beautiful clay church that my grandmother has. A friend made several buildings for her. They are just beautiful, especially with lights inside of them.

These tiny snowmen ornaments were perfect for a photo-shoot. :)

When we went to cut our Christmas tree this year, I took my camera with me for the first time. At one point I was left by myself to "save" a tree. That can become slightly boring, so I had some fun with my purity rings while I waited for my parents to come back. I like to think of it as practice for if I ever photograph a wedding.

Before I leave you, don't forget to check out this week's Christmas song, Glorious Impossible. I do believe that it is my favorite Christmas song. Merry Christmas!

Roses are Red, or Maybe Pink?

Hi all! A few days ago, my mom said to me, "We need to throw those flowers out. They are starting to become old."

Well, the photographer in me jumped at that. "Can I use them for a photoshoot first, PLEASE?" I was given permission. I promptly removed three of the best blossoms from the vase and headed outside.

This is my personal favorite. I love "in the grass" shots.

I placed this one inside a pinwheel in our backyard. If you look closely, you can tell why my mom was ready to throw the roses away.

While I was snapping, this little guy came bounding over. Sadly, when I tried to close in on him for a better shot, he was gone.

More grass photos. Ahhhhh!

After trying all possible shots and poses, I set up my last scene. I had been itching to float the flowers in the birdbath, but I knew that I had to do that last. I wasn't going to be touching the flowers again after they were in that gross water. I know, I'm part germaphobe. :)

All three floating serenely.

I had a ton of fun with this photoshoot, and I hope you enjoyed this peek at the pictures that came from it!

~~~~Amber