Photography 101 – Week Three

Yep – once again, it’s time to get that homework done! I know, I know, the course is designed to help you take pictures, not just find pictures, but I figure it must be at least good practice to try to apply the tips and techniques to my previous photos. You agree, right? So here we go –

Day Eleven: A Pop of ColorToday, pay attention to how color affects your images. Experiment with one color, and think about how to feature it prominently.

I couldn’t resist snagging one of those tulip shots from last week’s Monday Memories.
Renegade Yellow
I think there is some fine color in that shot!

Day Twelve: Architecture & MonochromeWhen we talk about monochrome in photography, we’re referring to images developed or executed in black and white or in varying tones of only one color.

I spotted this one when I did that post at the end of February about bridges we have crossed and thought it was a really cool picture of the structure of the bridge. I think it fits perfectly with this assignment.
Deception Pass Bridge
Architectural and monochromatic. Check.

Day Thirteen: Moment & Motion Our lives are made up of big events and tiny moments. Ultimately, life is fleeting, and oftentimes it’s these small moments, this motion, that we love to document.

Most of my “motion” shots are accidental shots at best. Like these neon birds in flight captured while we were driving through Chicago in the rain at night (July 2010)
Chicago Birds
But I when I think of a motion shot, I usually think of waterfalls and my feeble attempts to capture their beauty.
Deep Creek Hiking-5
(Deep Creek Trail, North Carolina, April 2011)

Day Fourteen: Scale & Observation Today, play with scale: you can use anything and everything to help convey size in your image, from your Chihuahua to your Mini Cooper, to an aerial view or perspective from a penthouse floor.

Do you think that this is what they had in mind? (Florida Panhandle, Feb 2006)
spring
Or maybe one of my sneakers taken from the top (dare I say, observation deck) of the Hancock Building in Chicago (September 2005).
chicago2

Day Fifteen: Landscape & CroppingToday, snap a picture of a landscape. Focus on the gestalt — the entire setting as a whole, like the shot above of the English countryside in Kent — rather than a specific subject or focal point within the scene. The setting itself is the star.

Oy! Now if you have been stopping by here for any length of time, you probably know that landscape shots are very near to my heart. Whether I’m setting up the shot with great forethought, or just snapping through our RV (or truck) window – I’m all about landscapes. So it’s hard to pick just one (or two). But I did remember one from Montana (2009) that really stuck in my mind.
Salmon Lake
But while I was looking for that one, I found this one too. Quite different, but quite lovely also.
Bison National Refuge-1
(I gave a little thought about cropping out the fringe of grass in the foreground, but it ruined the proportion when I gave it a try. So the fringe stayed in.)

Week Three – Done! And just so you know that I have taken a non-working photo at least once in the last three weeks, here is one of my favorites taken just yesterday –
Untitled
He is Risen!

(Confession – Gary actually took the picture since it was raining and he’s a pretty nice guy. But I was the one the cows were looking at because I kept telling him where to stand!)

3 thoughts on “Photography 101 – Week Three”

  1. Thanks for your kind words! I really would like to actually TAKE some pictures, but for now, the stash will have to do!

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