The Bee Gees
Not much reaction to yesterday's photo. Strange, as it was my favorite of the series. Those who did comment seemed to indicate that their opinion of the image improved over the course of a few minutes. Everything is subjective I guess...
I wish I had my tripod for this shot. The top of the plant is sharp enough, but the stem is a bit on the blurry side. I took this photo for two reasons. One, I loved the way the light was peeking through all that foliage to highlight this little plant. Secondly, I had finally found a background that would work. Of course, I had found hundreds of plants similar to this one that were lit in the same way, but this one was far enough from the trees behind it that I could get a good bokeh.
One of the first things any rookie photographer needs to learn is that the background is often more important than the subject. If I don't take the background into consideration, I end up with a very low impact photo and sometimes wonder why. Obviously, when photographing a landscape this does not necessarily apply, but when taking photos of a plant, animal, or person, the background definitely needs serious consideration.
If the background is busy, with various different colours or shapes, it calls attention to itself and draws the eye away from the subject. It didn't take me long to learn this, but it is taking me a really long time to master the techniques I need to acquire the appropriate background.
Other than cropping there was no post processing done to this image. I'm trying to take photos that don't require any Photoshopping, but it's a real challenge (hey, film guys had darkrooms right). The challenge is good for me though so I'll keep trying.
Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 54mm, f/3.5, 1/60 sec, ISO 50
posted by Bethany at 8:37 AM
19 Comments:
Ooo, i like this shot quite a bit timmy..it really has got something to it,i cant quite put my finger on it..As for trying not to photoshop, i reckon that's a good challenge to take up..I'm not familiar with PP at all..None of the shots i've posted so far have been photoshopped...So im sure ull be able to pull through..:)
Cheers
Simple and nice. I like it.
I too enjoy landscape shots, but I've also come to realise that for people who were not there with you, they need something more to grab their attention initially before the beauty of the landscape :( Who said taking pictures was easy!
Nice and serene shot by the way. Liking the lighting and the background is spot on! Seriously we all should soon start a campaign to get you to drop the "rookie" in your name. Its a marketting gimmick :p
Real nice...the black background is an excellent contrast to the bright green leave...really enhances how alive the subject is.
Nice background, and wonderful placement within the frame. Very good image!
Good lighting. You can feel the sunshine.
I took a whole series of shots of the tree in my front yard as it flowered and then leafed out. It was a challenge and I had to be a contortionist to get a handful of images with an 'unbusy' background. But the results are worth it. In addition to what others mentioned, I like the symetry.
Very calm and still taken. I like the hanging leaves, reflection of light and the shadows you've captured. good shot.
Try fixing exposure to a nearby shadow or darker spot region, gives better result. Also works against bright background, but washes it out..
This is a very nice shot, and has a good composition as well.
I like this, and yes you are right, many good photos are ruined by folk forgetting what is in the background
:o)
T
I really like this shot. The background really makes the leaf stand out more.
You are absolutely spot on about the importance of the background in images.
Suby
I like the lighting. Photoshop is such a big part of my photos sometimes I applaud you for trying so hard to go without it. That deffinately makes it all much harder.
As you know, tripod is KEY for sharp focus though this is yet a beautiful shot. I love the lighting you choose on this shot. Very nice. Almost lookes like it was painted with lighting. nice work!
Dark background works great, the green pops up. Nice framing too, well done!
real nice shot .. like the fact the plant is nicely highlighted by the sun, with everything else deep in the shadows
I like this shot lots in fact as I scrolled down the page it really stood out to me. The lighting is just great and the colour levels make it a good image.
It really stood out to me too. Great capture of some beautiful light! The soft stem isn't noticable or detracting at all. Very nice work!
The simplicity of this shot is great, quite striking.
...forgot to say ... interesting your words on background..have been reading a book on underwater photography where "negative space" is discussed as highly important (but often difficult to achieve). The negative space in this photo turn it inro a real work of art.
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