We were learning about shutter speed and capturing motion, either to freeze motion or to blur it. I practised on all sorts, including the chickens. Only I forgot to change back the white balance so this odd coloured picture is set on Tungsten! Hens, like cats, are not really ideal subjects as their movements are far too erratic but it was a bit of a laugh.
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| Andrea running away from strange woman with camera. |
When the sun came out last weekend I had the bright idea to use my OH as my subject and wanted him to sit in a chair and wave his arms about, so I could try to capture him on both fast and slow speeds to see what effects I could achieve. However after setting up the tripod along came two nosy parkers who wanted to know what the chair was doing in the middle of the lawn. Of course they became unwitting subjects for me to practise on.
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| "Oooh a new toy!" |
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| "No idea what mum is doing over there with that strange contraption, but let's play anyway!" |
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| See? I can capture motion blur! |
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| At this point I realised I didn't actually need my OH at all, but could set it on the timer and use myself as my subject, thus officially creating my first selfie. Here I'm waving at you and that blur IS intentional! |
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| Capturing water - fail. First time I've used a hose pipe in February though! Now what are those blurry green things top left? |
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| Who else would use watering cans to do a depth of field exercise? :-) Actually decided this was a total fail as well so did a much better one inside! Arty though, non? OK, no. I agree. |
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| Nothing to do with my exercises but I've noticed the boys have discovered the cat mint - the poor plant is only about 1cm tall, but Bertie doesn't care! |
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| Harry, just because he sat still for a moment. Can you see the reproachful look in his eyes? "Mummy, you took my you-know-whats away!" |
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| Hallie wanted to get into a picture too. This sort of thing happens often when I'm taking photos! |
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| Finally a picture I did submit as part of an assignment, one of my PSB plants with a nice bokeh of purple curly kale. |
I have taken loads of photos of flowers and just things around the garden today because it was sunny after 2 days of non stop rain, although of course it's started raining again and we're due for more storms this weekend! My gardening jobs are piling up and it's getting rather frustrating. But let's be positive here, all those photos I took today were in full manual mode! :-)
The force is strong in this one...
ReplyDeleteGood work :)
Cheers Carl! I'm sure I'll have plenty more daft outtakes to share, but hopefully some decent ones too!
DeleteFull Manual Jacket - the Photoshoot.
ReplyDeleteWell done Mmm, it's a hard transition (well I thought it was) especially when you (well me) totally mess up a shot and don't find out till you download it. There ought to be some software somewhere in your CD collection to let you turn tungsten back to daylight.
Don't need to worry about daft shots of chooks on wrong WB. :-)
DeleteAnd I have read quite a bit of my manual now. Like you (think it was you) I discovered a button I didn't even know was on my camera. I just thought it was a plastic covered screw holding the camera together..... yes I'm blonde. :-)
When you get the hang of the camera, you will be better off shooting RAW rather than jpeg as it will mean all your WB settings are preserved in the raw file
DeleteAh so here is your comment Ian. I could see it in an email but couldn't find it down the bottom of the comments! Yup RAW has already been mentioned and I will learn about it in due course. I wanted to learn how to use my camera properly first! I can't learn two complicated things at the same time....... :-)
DeleteDelightful images and post, Mandy! So happy to see that you're having so much fun, as was expected!:-)))
ReplyDeleteThank you my friend and yes having loads of fun - hard work too of course but will be soooooo worth it in the end. And you know all about that! :-)
DeleteSo good to read that you're enjoying the course and having fun with DOF. Isn't it so much better to decide yourself rather than let the camera do the thinking for you!
ReplyDeleteIt's quite a lot for the poor old brain to take in Rosie, but the more I practice the easier it will become! Right now I'm a bit confused with fully manual, although I think some of the issues I am getting in a pickle with are being covered next week. I'm loving learning though and with others on the course I learn from their photos too. Thanks!
DeleteHi Mandy! What puzzles me is why there's no more shots from the course, is there a ban imposed by the mentors? Nevertheless these are great fun! I think there's something artistic in the Dof excercise and I'm curious about the inside shot. It's nice exploring the shutter speeds, isn't it? Love the cat blur and the boy's intererence, and don't worry , Harry will get over his loss eventually (I hope!)
ReplyDeleteAnd you should have said the flower shot was an assignment for composing an image with inner framing! ;-) Thanks for taking some time off from the course for us, lost and lonely souls of G+, dear Mandy! See you soon!
Oh Jan, the photos I'm submitting for my assignments are just pure exercises and often of nothing more interesting than a running tap at different shutter speeds or a group of ornaments on a table for dof! We're also submitting totally SOOC because obviously our mentors need to see them like that with no post processing to cover mistakes. Most of these pictures are SOOC too. That's refreshing I must say!
DeleteThe course is private and I don't think we are supposed to share our images, although I would imagine when it is over it will be OK. But they are not interesting! I'm loving using the tripod and learning about using slow shutter speeds and the effects you can make. I've yet to make effects with fast speeds - need sunshine and more time to experiment. Also I don't have passing traffic to practice on here where maybe one car or tractor goes by a day.... :-)
I think the boys have got over their loss and all is well with them now. Thanks for visiting Jan and I needed a break from my course to have a bit of fun with friends!
A fun post, and so much food for thought as far as I'm concerned :-)
ReplyDeleteI usually use my camera in P mode, only very occasionally in A mode, and this is as much adventurous as I get :-)))
I fear learning to use it in manual mode would put me off photography forever! Yet I'm aware it would be rewarding eventually :-)
Time and patience are also of the essence!
This being said, I enjoyed watching the results of your various experiments with manual settings.
Your cats seem quite a team of adventurers :-)
Nice selfie, waving back to you, mon amie :-)))
Marie-Helene you amaze me! I'm astounded that your fantastic images are made using P mode. Now get adventurous my dear and turn that camera onto Aperture Priority and have a little play with depth of field - likewise Shutter Priority is very good when you want to capture birds which move very fast. That's about the level I was at before starting this course. All you do is set one thing and let the camera take care of the rest.
DeleteI always knew learning about manual was going to confuse me a lot but doing it the way I am doing it in a structured environment with other people all at the same level is really helpful. We are all having lightbulb moments which is making it so worthwhile. I would urge you to experiment a little and think about going on a course..... when the time is right. You so clearly have a passion for photography.
I'm sure (no, I know!) I'll have more to share, hopefully good as well as bad/silly/daft. Thanks very much mon amie! :-)
Once more I forgot to check the Notify me box, a good thing I'm always eager to read your replies, Mandy :-)))
DeleteWell, I promise you I will from now on endeavour to experiment a bit more, in subtle touches :-)
I will really be very happy the day I can capture a bird in flight, but I almost gave up on this. Supposing I get the right settings (which is already a baffling matter to me), how do I manage to follow the bird's flight? I have tried before.... :(((
Many thanks for your encouragement, mon amie, I really appreciate it :-)
I wish Notify Me could be set as default! Now birds in flight is a bit beyond me.... the only ones I've captured were flocks of storks and flamingos! Bird birds flying slowly. :-)
DeleteMy kind of bird photography is mostly trying to capture them around the bird feeders! They are so flitty, even on the peanuts they are constantly moving and pecking, so a fast shutter speed is needed, otherwise they will just be blurs.
The other setting to try is sports mode which should give you as fast a speed as the lighting conditions will allow, and on that setting you don't have to think about shutter speeds. I don't know about your camera but on several of mine there is a kind of continous tracking focus on that mode which follows the moving subject. I find that a bit odd to use but have used it sometimes for bees. Never thought about it for birds, I should try it! It's worth giving it a go, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Good luck! :-)
I do remember your mentioning the Sports mode before, and I did try it, unsuccessfully :(((
DeleteBut I will try again, and again, and again.... :)))
Thanks for your motivational reply, mon amie!
OK well the other thing to try is to put your camera on setting S (I had a quick look at your camera specs). That is Shutter (speed) Priority. I see your camera goes up to speed 1/4000 which is very fast, but you will need really good light for that - usually summer sunshine. Try as high a speed as you can set according to light conditions and just have a go with that.
DeleteAlso (and I'm reading and learning all this stuff from my own manual right now (never read it before!) look to see if you have a setting for continuous shooting (where you can just keep the shutter depressed and it'll take multiple shots). I do this with birds too - many are blurs or the bird is hidden behind the feeder but some are OK. :-) The main thing when learning is take as many shots as possible and hopefully one or two will be OK. When I have more knowledge on the subject I'll pass it on! :-)
Thanks for the additional tips, Mandy :-)
DeleteI do have this multiple shots settings and tried it with ducks, but only swimming ones :-)))
The S mode is still a bit scary, I must read more about shutter speeds, it'all cryptic to me! (lol)
Basically the faster the speed, the easier to capture motion without any blurring. However it does need good light. And there's a lot more to it than that as I have discovered on this course...... :-) But the S mode will help you as it is semi-auto - you have only to set one thing (speed) and the camera will set the aperture and ISO for you. Well worth reading up a bit about it! Good luck M-H. :-)
DeleteFun, fun, fun! Your photography world has already expanded by leaps and bounds :-)
ReplyDeleteIf you have time after this, I feel you would benefit greatly by taking a short course on capturing and editing in RAW mode. White balance will never be an issue again. You can correct it after the fact! Also...if you happen to under or over expose by as much as two stops, you have the ability to recover in most cases. RAW is a life saver. Most dslrs shoot raw but so does our SX50!
Hi Marianne! Yes I feel that it has expanded enormously after just two weeks. And I know what you are talking about regarding stops now. A week ago I didn't have a clue. :-)
DeleteShooting in RAW is next on the agenda. I didn't feel it was worth learning about until I learned how to use my camera properly! Thanks for stopping by and I'm always pleased to receive your advice. :-)
Hi Mandy! Looks like you are enjoying the course! I am also no longer in "auto" mode and have since ventured out into using the AP mode yea! :) So much more fun. Can't wait to see all your fab photos!
ReplyDeleteWoohoo go Miss Lady Bug! I already noticed a vast improvement in your shots and I bet soon you'll be wanting to go on a course to learn to get the most out of your camera! Thanks very much! :-)
DeleteThanks for the compliment Mandy and yes I am trying to learn all I can. You are an inspiration!
DeleteThank you for the compliment too! Hope I can pass on some knowledge once I have acquired it and it starts actually sticking in my brain..... :-)
DeleteI cannot go in the garden even when it is not raining, my lawn is a wet sponge...
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear that Cergie. :-( My soil is very free draining so I am able to weed and tidy up my flower beds and walk on the lawn, although I'm leaving digging my weedy potager until it dries out a bit as that is too wet to dig right now.
DeleteJust watched an inspiring film I thought you would really enjoy. Note it was shot in 1948 and the process, tips and techniques have not varied since then! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sF8K1NfHnM#t=276
ReplyDeleteBookmarked for when I get a chance to watch! Still haven't even finished reading Week 3 assgnment yet.....need to check stuff out in my manual and often I find it's easier to google how to do something with Canon cameras or my specific Canon (dslr) and read those links. Cheers Marianne!
DeleteTotally, agree. Thank God for Google :-)
ReplyDelete:-) Still haven't looked at your video yet, Marianne. I've been given a link to 3 videos explaining Canon's auto focussing and each is about 30 mins long! I've been getting confused by AIServo and AIFocus, which I never ever use but I need to try them. Frankly I'd rather set a high shutter speed and use One Shot and maybe continuous shooting. I've also used the Sports Mode on my Canon dlsr and it's a lot easier than the silly AI Servo which I find very offputting!
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