Splash your troubles away...

             

                  How LOW can YOU go?? This is a question that should always be in the back of your head as a photographer, as well as some other unusual questions. In photography, angles mean almost everything! It changes the mood and perception of a picture; it can either make the image more captivating or turn the other direction and leave the viewer lost. Be careful when doing this, because the wrong angle can confuse its audience; sometimes the image might be lost in trying to capture it, because the viewer can no longer tell what the object really is. 

                 In landscape photography, there are three elements pertaining to distance: the foreground, mid-ground and background. A lovely technique to use, and one of my personal favourites is to take a picture from the fore-ground; that is, taking an object closest to you, going down to that level and snapping the picture. It makes the picture interesting and gives it a little more mystery to it.

                 One of the reasons for having an element present in the foreground of your photo is to make the viewer of the photograph feel like they're there, because they can see the depth of what's close and what's far away. It basically 'sucks' them into the scene, and that is what you want as a photographer. 

                  Weekend past, I visited the lovely Maracas Bay, where I took several shots that all led to this one being my most favourite. Sadly I did not get sufficient time to experiment with this angle because I only saw the potential of this as I was on the road and about to leave. I jumped out the car, ran through a crowd of intoxicated Indian men who were stirring up some curry and went slippers first, into the crashing waves. Clothes on, camera ready in hand, and gleaming eyes, I took the risk of snapping this picture right before the wave soaked me entirely.
 Please Note: My camera IS NOT... WATER PROOF. 

            I was ecstatic to see my result.. and I was indeed happy with it.

                      
                                                            Sometimes the angle makes all the difference...


                         http://digital-photography-school.com/20-examples-of-low-angle-photography



                                                                                       and

               




                The above sites, gave me some ideas for my picture. Low photography is almost all the time...wonderful. They also give some wonderful examples of low angled photography, that also gave me the inspiration I needed for this. 
             

Enigmatic Demise...

         In capturing an image, the important parts of a scene need to have the focus centered on them, and dramatic light always helps make for dramatic photos.


         No beginner ever picked up a camera and knew what all the controls did; For the serious photographer, f-stops and shutter speeds were definitely not instinctive either.



        "Digital cameras come in a variety of forms, from point-and-shoot pocket cameras to advanced digital SLRs. There is no right or wrong type, though a specific one may be best for you and your photography.
Simple point-and-shoot digital cameras can give surprising quality when they have the right lenses and sensors. Because they are totally automatic in focus and exposure, they just have to be pointed at a subject and clicked. They have limited capabilities for controlling the image, although even very inexpensive cameras often have white balance controls. Some are exceptionally compact, able to fit easily into a shirt pocket, making them ideal cameras to keep at hand so you won't miss a great photo opportunity." - -Photography Field Guide: Digital Media and Ultimate Field Guide to Photography

 

http://blog.sigmaphoto.com/2012/top-macro-photography-tips-by-robert-otoole/

 

From this link, there are tips on macro photography from a photographer on Twitter. It is a blog that was linked from his Twitter page. (seen below)

 

 

 

 

 

         "The way to get the best photos from a digital camera is to do it right from the start. Yet there is an idea that one doesn't need to devote much effort when you have the computer to "help." This idea has sometimes reached almost surreal proportions. A couple of years ago, a digital photography article in a major news magazine said software was available that would automatically transform amateurs' photos into images that would rival the best of pros. That software never existed, nor will it, because good photography has always been about art and craft; about understanding the tools of the craft and using them well; and about perception and the ability to capture an image that catches an audience's attention and communicates well."
 -Photography Field Guide: Digital Media and Ultimate Field Guide to Photography

 

                        JUST REMEMBER THAT DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY
                                                                                           IS STILL PHOTOGRAPHY!!!"

 

Below, is a video from youtube that gives a little insight in the field of depth in photography.

 

 

               A common mistake that people make is that they let the camera shake. Obviously, when your hands shake when you press the shutter, you ris the chance of blurring that image or reducing the sharpness and quality of it. You must keep your hand steady...

 

 

"A basic rule of compostion is known as the rule of thirds, or the tic-tac-toe rule. Imagine your viewfinder or LCD monitor divided into nine equal-size squares, like a tic-tac-toe grid. Compose your picture with your subject center-positioned at one of the four intersecting points. This should help you compose more aesthetic portraits."

 - -Photography Field Guide: Digital Media and Ultimate Field Guide to Photography

 

 

 AS A PHOTOGRAPHER, YOU WILL KNOW YOUR PHOTOS AND WHAT YOU WANT THEM TO DO.

 

 

In this picture, I wanted to bring out the feeling of seeing beauty in a sad spectacle;

 this plant's last moments.

 

Coming back from school last week, I had to wait by an apartment building for a car. Outside this building, were some plants and flowers and some bougainvilleas. The sun was scorching, so I moved closer inwards to the building where these plants lay. After waiting a while, I turned my head, and there in front my eyes was this tiny plant with a minature flower. It was dying, and about to fall off it's root. I was very surprised to see that this flower was see-through! I never witnessed a plant like this before and was mesmerized by it. I was lucky enough to have my camera on me that day, though everyone knows the number one rule that a photographer abides by is to

NEVER LEAVE YOUR CAMERA HOME!

 

 

 

 

I set the camera to "supermacro" and then placed the edge of the camera on the ledge of a step for steadiness. I was looking to obtain a shallow D.O.F. Aperature. This is when the focus is on the subject closest to the screen and the background is blurred and barely gives away distraction to the photo, other than the desired subject.

It took a while for the camera to focus correctly on the flower. I had to refocus it a good couple of times until I got the flower in the center of the picture and fully in focus.

 The result, is as seen above.

 

 

 

 

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder....

      Icacos Point is the southwesternmost point in our country (Trinidad and Tobago), situated at the tip of the long peninsula that forms St. Patrick County and is only 11 kilometers away from neighbouring Venezuela.

       Icacos has largely abandoned its agricultural roots and villagers engage mainly in fishing for their sustenance.

       On this particular weekend, roads just led to this part of Trinidad with some friends. When it was time to leave, I attempted to walk on the beach, but I was stopped short as the beach was filled with fallen coconut trees and some even in the water. They were some huge obstacles and were as a matter of fact, pretty dangerous as some of the trees were totally underwater, you can hit them when you enter the water; which was my mistake.

       To avoid any more further physical pain, of hitting my legs on coconut trees underwater, I kept more to the shoreline. I sat n contemplated on the rare exquisite beauty of the spectacle I was witnessing. Though most people would see the area as deserted, poluted and an eyesore, I saw some beauty through it all.

      I hit up the camera and as some clouds were passing above, slightly hindering the sun. Rain clouds were coming in, and right before some of the rain arrived, I got a sweet still. Not much thought was put into the settings that I used this time. I just let autofocus and the autosettings take over. They did the job pretty well, as that is their purpose.

So, never underestimate the power of a smart auto setting. It can be just what you need at the right time and right environment.

Don't come near my wrapping paper!

This is my pet cat, 'Taffy'.

Cats have many emotions and you can detect them from the positioning of their ears, dilation of eyes and eyelids, their fur, and their tail movement. They are very complexed moodswinging creatures.

This particular night, the cat was sitting being her bossy self and I was observing her playing with some wrapping paper happily.

I grabbed my camera and slowly lay on the floor along side her trying to be as non-conspiquous as I could.

The lights were dimmed with a red lighted bulb above her.

I chose not to use flash as I wanted the softness of the capture. She looked so calm, concentrating and filled with curiousity.

  (Probably wondering what I was doing on the ground).

I also wanted to avoid the flash reflection in her eye, even though there is the red-eye reducing setting for flash images, there is always some sort of reflection when the receptor is looking directly at the lens; and she was looking directly at me.

I wanted the red tint of it of the light also...

I avoided zooming in. I crawled on the ground, went close to her and used the portrait option without flash.  I tried to keep her in the center of the picture, seeing as her chubby cheeks filled up empty spaces very lovely. Without the flash option, in order for the image not to be blurry you have to keep the camera VERY still or use a tripod; but as I don't have one I just held the camera as still as I could and this is what I produced.

Slouch down into your beach chair and RELAAXXXXX..

Another beautiful destination of Trinidad and Tobago, is the oh so famous and very popular beach in North Trinidad, called Maracas Bay.


I recently visted this beach and spent the entire day gaping at the breathtaking scenery as the sun soaked up in my skin, leaving me very tanned and burnt.


As I took a stroll on the what seemed to be a long beach, I grew thirsty and was heading to buy a drink from one of the famous bake and shark vendors in the car park. I passed some chairs and found this view was marvelous in its own way and snapped it.


The setting I used was 'beach'. Only because I am limited to a point and shoot camera I cannot make my own personal settings with the lighting and ISO etc. (all the other technical camera settings in detail)


Photography is built on the three pillars of exposure: shutter speed, aperture and sensitivity. Shutter and aperture are controls for adjusting how much light comes into the camera.
How much light is needed is determined by the sensitivity of the medium used.


Over the years that sensitivity has been expressed in various ways, most recently as ASA and now ISO.


The "normal" range of ISO is about 200 to 1600. With today's digital cameras you can sometimes go as low as 50 or as high as 204,800. The number chosen has two important qualities associated with it. First, it sets the amount of light needed for a good exposure. The lower the number, the more light required. The more light that's required, the more likely a slow shutter speed will have to be used. That means low ISOs, like 100 or 200, are most often used in bright situations (like sunlight)


This setting would be used on a professional camera, but as it is a simple point and shoot camera that is being used, a simple choice of 'beach' filled the requirement easily. Everything came out brighter and more beautiful, almost flourisent at some points. The camera that I am using a Kodak EasyShare C195.

Well, yesterday I created a fan page that has links to this blog.

You can check it out here: https://www.facebook.com/?ref=tn_tnmn#!/PhotographyInItsEssence

Like the page and enjoy. Thank you.

INTRODUCTION

           Good day to all. I am Victoria Persad. I'm a student, adventure- seeker, taking risks sort of person, a student, a daughter, a friend, and aspiring photographer. (Just to name a few). Mostly though... I am usually shy.
         I attend COSTAATT, College of Science, Technology, and Applied Arts of Trinidad and Tobago. My major is Mass Communications and this particular semester, one of my courses landed me here... Blogging. 
            
            The assignment :

  Implement a personal development plan based around the use of social media. Use a variety of social media services to assist in achieving your academic, professional or personal goals. Execute your development plan using at least one social media service from four of the categories outlined in class.
  Social media can be an avenue of expression or source of information, opportunity and community support. You have a significant level of freedom to decide how each service will contribute to the overall achievement of your objectives.


         That being said, I decided that my goal for this project would be to take as many pictures as I can within the time frame of this semester by utilizing research tips and advice from professional photographers, and henceforth apply it to my own captures. Also to the end of the semester, I shall then create a portfolio. 

         I plan to post when I can, at least twice or three times a week. Updates will be given within that time period and photos that were taken that week, along with any challenges I encountered or lack thereof. I will also post links to other sites in which I used and MAYBE, once or twice record a video.

         If u wish to contact me for any reason whatsoever, my email address is as follows:

vicky_m.e_p@hotmail.com

          All are free to leave comments. All types of comments are welcomed, even critizising ones. I believe that they would allow me to view the faults that I have not seen before and therefore cause me to become better.
You can also catch me on my different profiles:

           Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/#!/victoria.persad.3
           
           Tumblr: http://open-flowerstar.tumblr.com/

           Google+ : https://plus.google.com/u/0/109702641239775849158/posts

           Facebook Fan Page : https://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=hp#!/PhotographyInItsEssence?fref=ts

Enjoy :) 

Gloomy Beauty of a Ruin..

"Each place we visit has its own particular look, character, and ambiance. If we want photographs of our travels to be good and lasting, they should capture all of these qualities, and say as much about a place as give the literal look of it." -  Robert Caputo - Photography Field Guide: Travel

According to Robert Caputo, as soon as you arrive to your destination, the first thing you shoud do is to try and take notes of the first impressions. 

          How you feel?
          Where do your eyes go first?
          What do you notice about the place right away?
          Smell?
          Heat or Cold?
          Blistering sunlight?
          Mysterious fog?
          A particular building or vista?

Whatever it may be, he says to remember it. Now that you have acquired these, your senses can partake and all that is left is to try to capture that image onto a still. 

THE ONLY WAY TO DISCOVER THE RHYTHM OF LIFE IN A PLACE, IS TO GET OUT THERE AND FIGURE OUT WHAT TO SHOOT, AND EXPERIENCE IT. 

With that being said, this weekend, I decided to take my camera to the north western side of Trinidad in search of a captivating image. The journey was set in vain as I found nothing that I thought was worthy enough to ease my restlessness. Somehow my camera and I ended up past Chaguaramas and heading into Macqueripe. Along this trip I immediately stopped when I saw this beautiful ruin of a church at the side of the road. The atmosphere was gloomy, misty and wet as rain had not too long fallen. Some sun was peering through some leaves and I took this opportunity to snap it and was pleased with the result. 

So... here it is.