Rookie Photographer Gone Wild

Sorry to Leaf You Hanging...

2007-05-31T22:02:00.001-07:00

Moving. Packing. Cleaning. No time for blogging. No time for photography.

Found this old picture on my hard drive today. You like it? Yes, or no?

Father and Son

2007-05-10T17:27:00.000-07:00

My Dad and I are trying to be very intentional about spending quality time together at least one day a week. We're making the most of the few months we have remaining. In fact, Bethany and I are moving in less than two months, so time is running out. On Monday Dad took me to explore West Vancouver, which is situated on the north side of the bay, opposite the city of Vancouver.

We had a great time hiking along the Capilano River, which cuts through the rain forest that is only a few yards from the home he lived in as a teenager. Later, he took me for a drive through his old neighbourhood, "The British Properties", a collection of fancy-pants houses planted on the side of a mountain. After peering between million dollar homes to enjoy the billion dollar view of the Pacific Ocean, downtown Vancouver and the infinite smoggy sprawl that is suburbia, we headed back down the mountain to sea level.

I was astonished to learn of this hidden beach which is situated a couple blocks from where he lived as a young adult. This photo was taken from that beach, looking east, towards downtown. It's not a great photograph, but I thought it appropriate, as it depicts another father and son duo enjoying this otherwise empty beach. I don't know if they caught any fish, but with a view like that I suppose it doesn't matter.

Dad and I had a great day together. I've been living in Vancouver for twelve years, and yet he was introducing some of these places to me for the first time. Soon I will be discovering another ocean side city. It will be hard to leave this beautiful city, but it will be harder still to be so far away from my Dad.

Gorge Distortions

2007-05-03T15:45:00.000-07:00

This is the Columbia River, as seen from a lookout near Bethany's parent's home in Gresham, Oregon. I spent a few minutes enjoying the view one evening last week. In fact, I enjoyed it so much, I went back a couple of mornings later to catch a bit of the sunrise. I think the gorge is fabulous. Perhaps I will share the sunrise with you later this month...

I got my new computer this week, and it's super. I was disappointed to discover, however, that PTLens only works on Windows, not OS X. I usually use PTLens to correct lens distortions that tend to be a bit of a problem with my 18-135mm. Without the plugin, this photo looks a bit funny, particularly up in the top right corner. Oh well, I like it anyway. Does anybody know of a good lens distortion plug-in that works on Macs?

Peace out,

Timmy.

Tulip in the Mist

2007-04-25T09:31:00.000-07:00

I'm down in the States, so I don't have any photos to choose from. That will all change soon. My new Macbook is coming, so I will no longer be chained to my desktop computer.

My friends liked this one, and I happened to have a copy in my email, so I thought I'd share it with you. I took it while Bethany was watering the garden.

Peace out.

Timmy.

Some friends of mine...

2007-04-20T13:35:00.000-07:00

(This picture looks sucky small, so make sure you click on it to see the larger version.)

I've told you lots about the Famous Uncle Robert. He has been a huge help and influence in my photography. He loans me all sorts of different gear; including lenses, tripods, and books. In fact, last week's picture was taken with his macro lens. You should check out some of his photos (click here). He's a Canon man, but I love him anyway.

Somebody I haven't told you about is my friend Greg. When I got my new camera, he gave me an old lens of his. It's an 80-200mm f/2.8, and I've really enjoyed using it. I was using it last night from the balcony of a Catholic church. The combination of 200mm and f/2.8 made it possible to capture tight, crisp images of the activities near the alter.

Another great use I have discovered for this lens is portraiture (is that a word?). I had a great time doing some portraits of my friend Heidi last week at Queen Elizabeth Park here in Vancouver. I still have lots to learn about composition and lighting when it comes to portraits, but at least I feel confident with the equipment I'm using. Thank you Greg! (Check out his video production company by clicking here.)

The Tulip Wars

2007-04-09T11:48:00.000-07:00

Bethany and I often have disagreements about my photography. She often likes photos that I think are junk. Ironically, she sometimes dislikes some of my favourite photographs. Sadly, because she has access to our entire hard drive, many of my "nice try" pictures make it to her blog. Today's post is no exception. I thought I would counteract the lame tulips that appear on her blog with a much better tulip pic. To be fair, Bethany does like this photo, but had already posted it a few weeks ago.

I took this a couple months ago while trying out a lens that the Famous Uncle Robert is loaning to me. It's an old Tamron 70-210mm macro and I like it a lot. For this image I used it with a 2x teleconverter. I like the lens a lot, but the mount is too old for my camera, so I'm going to find out if I can get an adapter for it that will make it work better. As of right now, the camera seems to get confused and doesn't get enough light from the lens even though I have manually set the lens to f/2.8 (this problem exists with and without the teleconverter). Hopefully I can get a more modern adapter, because this lens is pretty sweet. As of right now, I have to use such slow shutter speeds (this one was a 10 second exposure) that hand-held shots are out of the question, and a stiff breeze will leave me completely powerless.

Next week I will tell you about the wicked lens that my friend Greg gave me. It works beautifully as a portrait lens.

Peace out.

Timmy.

See You On The Flip Side

2007-04-04T11:23:00.000-07:00

Okay, this is kinda lame, but I'm short on time these days. I'll try to put up something better this weekend, but no promises. I took this while Bethany and I were walking with the Famous Uncle Robert and Aunt Sylvia. This empty lot will one day be condos. In fact, there are numerous signs up, urging people to buy in early. In the meantime, the lot is filled up with rain water and refuse from the neighbouring construction sites. The Famous Uncle Robert has pointed out that people should probably think twice about buying a property built on a plot of land that currently looks like this.

I thought it was neat to see the building from across the street being reflected in the watery foundation of its future neighbour. I know this sounds artsy-fartsy and lame, but I think the junk at the bottom of this photo symbolizes the questionable foundation of the building that will be built here. Therefore, I took the picture in such a way that the reflection was growing out of the junk. I didn't have time to adjust the RAW file, so I simply rotated the JPEG and cropped it in Picasa.

Peace out.

Timmy.

ps. Thanks for the encouraging words Anna. Yes, I can ship to Ontario.

Baker Boats

2007-03-28T19:04:00.000-07:00

I have no idea if anyone will look at this, but I think I don't care. I took this while walking along the Fraser River near my parents house. This week Mount Baker made its first appearance in weeks. I took a picture of it.

Peace Out.

Timmy.

I'm Back...

2007-03-22T13:17:00.000-07:00

I'm back...

Well, not really, but sort of. I've been away from the blogging scene for a long time. To be honest, it has been a good break. I was beginning to get cynical about the whole thing, and photography was becoming a source of stress, rather than a stress release. I was getting way too wrapped up in trying to please other people, forgetting that I got into photography because it pleased me.

Recently, a number of my friends and family have told me that they miss my blog and are interested to see some of the photos that I have taken with my new camera. Frankly, I don't want the pressures of having to keep up a daily blog, but I do miss sharing some of my creativity with you all. I'm not too fond of the blog format, and at some point this year I hope to start my own website gallery sort of thing. In the meantime, I will be randomly posting some photos here. There will be no fixed dates for new photos, so you'll just have to check in from time to time. At this point, I would guess that I will be putting up about one picture a week.

Last year I became too concerned with attracting traffic to my site, worrying that nobody was going to see my work. I've gotten over that, and now I don't care. As it turns out, nobody can see my photos if they just sit on my hard drive. Whatever the case, I won't be working very hard to attract visitors, so I guess I'll be counting on word of mouth. If you like what you see, tell your friends.

There have been lots of changes since I last wrote you. Bethany and I are moving to the Philippines in July. We are being sent as missionaries by a local organization called Impact Nations. Bethany will be serving at Mercy Maternity Center as a midwife in training , while I will be learning all sorts of things, including the installation of water filtration systems (6000 children will die today from bad drinking water). Our plan is to acquire a number of skills while in the Philippines, so that we can then go as experienced missionaries to many parts of the developing world.

I will be bringing my new camera with me. Yes, that's right, a new camera! I recently purchased a Nikon D80, and I like it very much. To be truthful, much of the camera was a gift from my wife and the rest of my family (thanks again to all of you!). They got me started with a primed SLR piggy bank back in August. The remainder of the photos here at Rookie Photographer will be from the Nikon. So come back soon and you just might see some new stuff, but I'm not promising it will be any good (yes, I'm still dealing with low self-esteem when it comes to my craft, but I don't care).

One last thing; I used two exclamation marks in the previous paragraph. I promise never to do that again. Peace out.

Timmy

Autumn Floor

2006-10-30T10:33:00.000-08:00

Another abstract fall photo, processed in Picasa. I drove all the way across town to the West Side. Why is it that the west side of every city is always the more classy part of town? In Vancouver, the folks on the west get bigger houses on bigger lots, with bigger trees and less power lines and telephone wires (I think they're all underground). On the east side of town, our streets are lined with lame little trees, and we get properties that are so small, that if the windows are open, I may as well be in my neighbour's kitchen. Sadly, they cook some pretty smelly Vietnamese food next door, so being in their kitchen can be a rather unpleasant experience (don't tell them I said that).

Oh, sorry for the rant. Anyways, I went to the west side to photograph their superior fall foliage. The famous Uncle Robert suggested I give myself an assignment, and I accepted the challenge. I decided to spend an hour in a parking lot. I could shoot anything in or outside of the parking lot, but I was not to step outside of the boundary of the lot. I had a lot of fun shooting a whole bunch of really bad photographs. An hour wasn't enough time either. I never made more than one parking space away from my car.

Some of my time in the parking lot was spent with my camera mounted on my tripod pointed straight down. I wandered the lot, exploring the shapes and colours that passed through the viewfinder. When I found an arrangement that was interesting I would stop and fine tune the composition. It was fun, though perhaps not as successful as I had hoped. I also have a square version of this, but I think I like this one better because the green lines seem to be pointing towards the red in the top corner. I'm mildly perturbed by the exposure because I trusted the auto exposure (aperture priority). My Canon tends to over expose on a regular basis, so I normally manually adjust it by one f-stop. I forgot to this time.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/5.0, 1/2 sec, ISO 50

Leafy Layers

2006-10-28T10:37:00.000-07:00

Sorry I missed yesterday's post. Blogger has been acting up again. This is another photo edited with Picasa. In fact, most of this weeks work was done on Picasa.

I have tried to approach the fall season in an abstract way. I live in the middle of the city, so it's pretty hard to compose a peaceful landscape of colourful trees without also including a tangled mess of ugly telephone wires. Perhaps it's laziness, but I just find it easier to point the camera down at the ground, and explore the shapes and lines.

This is another photo from the garden at the local community center. I liked the way the layers provided varying shapes and lines. I think the side lighting made the lines stand out a bit more. I wish that I could have had more depth of field, but there wasn't enough light, and my tripod wouldn't balance on the hill, so I had to open it up a few f-stops.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72 mm, f/4, 1/100 sec, ISO 50

Vivid Blue

2006-10-26T10:02:00.000-07:00

Another attempt at the fall colours, and another Picasa editing job. I spent a half hour at the community center, crawling through the garden, seeking a composition that would be at least mildly interesting and original. This was one of the photos I came up with. I'm a little disappointed that the closest leaf on the right is out of focus, but the position from which I took the picture was an awkward one, so it was hard to get everything exactly right.

I tried a camera setting I've never used before. I set it to "Vivid Blue", in order to get the sky looking very blue. When operating in this mode, there are no manual controls for the exposure. Since I was using the "Vivid Blue" setting, I decided I would try to avoid over exposing the sky, so I metered the sky using the AE lock, then composed the photo. It was the middle of the day, and the sun was still bright, so I figured I could get away with it. Looks like the exposure ended up pretty even. I'm not sure how I like the sky though. I think blue might be a little too vivid.

It's kind of a weird composition. The tree trunk on the left and the leaves at the bottom form a bit of a frame. Normally they would be framing a subject, but there doesn't seem to be a point of interest back there (vivid blue notwithstanding), so the frame itself seems to be the subject. I don't know if I like it, but I thought I would put it out for discussion.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8, 1/200 sec, ISO 50

Keep On Trucking

2006-10-25T09:59:00.000-07:00

Today's photo was taken while at the pumpkin patch a few weeks ago. I love that place. There are so many great photo opportunities. I wish I could have stayed to explore for hours, but I was with the kids, and they didn't find the compositional possibilities nearly as interesting as I did.

This is another Picasa grayscale conversion. I put it in black and white for a few reasons. I didn't like the picture very much, so I tried two things I always try when faced with an image that is "close but no cigar": I cropped it and I took the colour out of it. Both techniques were effective. When in colour, I found the buildings on the horizon to be a mild distraction. Also, I had trouble seeing Mount Baker in the distance until I changed it to b&w.

The horizon was tricky to get straight. I think that the curve of the tall grass in the foreground plays tricks on the eyes, causing me to think that the horizon isn't straight. I checked it with Picasa's awesome straightening tool, and it is indeed straight. While we are on the topic of lines, I like the layers of lines throughout the depth of the field. The parallel shapes of the mountain, the building below it, and the angle on the back of the truck also add an interesting element to the image.

I left a lot of negative space in the sky for a reason. I hope it gives the viewer the same feeling of freedom that I felt while standing in that field. Thanks for the encouraging comments on yesterday's post. It was indeed a reflection of a tree, in all its green and golden glory.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 22mm, f/8, 1/250 sec, ISO 50

Barf

2006-10-23T22:06:00.000-07:00

I have been observing with fondness the beautiful autumn colours as they appear first on the trees, then on the ground. This is my favourite season and the colours stir up a great deal of emotions in me. It is almost as though my heart is caused to sing (poetry, isn't it?). The photos that I have taken of these colours stir up emotions of another type. Namely: anger, disappointment, confusion, nausea, dandruff...

Why can't I take a photo that accurately represents my feelings on this particular subject? I see red leaves that cause my heart to dance. My camera sees some dead, two dimensional foliage in the gutter. I gaze up at a huge maple tree as it dares the wind to blow harder. My camera shrugs, as it captures just another piece of wood against a grey sky. Can I blame it on my camera, the way a golfer stares at his putter after he has missed yet another two footer?

No, I'm just on a very steep learning curve, and I don't have the ponies to get up the hill. It seems to me that each new season presents a whole new set of challenges, leaving me perplexed as to how to compose a pleasing photograph. I'll figure it out, but it's going to take a lot of work. With that in mind, I leave you with this: the mass of gross colours that led to the nausea.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 38mm, f/3.5, 1/160, ISO 100

Beach Boy

2006-10-23T08:00:00.000-07:00

This marks a first here at Rookie Photographer. This photo was edited using Picasa. I normally use PhotoShop CS2 for any editing I may do (I don't do much), but I recently downloaded this program from Google's ever expanding empire, so I thought I'd give it a try. Since this blog is all about stretching the limits of a point and shoot, perhaps it makes sense to use the software that most point and shoot owners would tend to use. Besides, it would seem that Google is going to take over the world anyway, so we may as well just give in. There are a few things that I really like about Picasa, especially the straightening tool. The black and white conversion is pretty good too.

This photo was taken at Stanley Park a couple of weeks ago. A few people have asked me about my unsettling habit of posting photos of strangers on my website. When suffering from the boredom that rests upon those who are unwilling to activate their bodies, I often resort to taking pictures of other people's kids while at the park. I realized that some parents probably wouldn't appreciate their offspring being featured on my blog, so I haven't been posting those photos recently. I figure this one is okay because there is no way to estimate the identity of this silhouette. In fact, I am so confident in this that I am willing to give my scientific calculator to anyone who guesses correctly.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 68mm, f/8, 1/400 sec, ISO 50

More of the Same...

2006-10-22T11:48:00.000-07:00

Normally I like to provide at least a bit of variety here, but today I'm ignoring that guideline. Obviously this is a very similar photo to the previous version. I think I like this one a lot better. As with the other, I like the shapes. I haven't had time to Photoshop this, so the annoying horizontal white line behind the thinga-ma-bob in the water is still there. I'll clone it out later. The lighting is a bit of a problem, but the shadows don't bug me too much. Is this better than the other one?

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 18mm, f/8, 1/200 sec, ISO 50

Rocky Outcrap

2006-10-20T13:18:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling a little discouraged in the photography department these days. It feels like it has been a long time since I took a picture I was really happy with. I have some older ones that are pretty good, but I'm not going to put them up here for a while. I kind of feel like I've got to get some of the crappy ones out of my system (and off of my hard drive).

In that spirit, I present this. I like the basic shapes in this photo, but the colour of the ocean really bugs me. I tried altering it in Photoshop, but it looked stupid every time, so I just left it. I tried it in black and white too (always a maneuver of desperation for me), but it remained a lame image. Thus I give it over to you. You can have it, I don't want it.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 60mm, f/8, 1/250 sec, ISO 50

Crumby Cranberries

2006-10-18T11:01:00.000-07:00

This is a cranberry field. There are a whole bunch of these fields in Richmond, about fifteen minutes from my house. I stopped by these fields late in the day a couple of weeks ago. I regret that I didn't spend at least an hour there, exploring all the composition possibilities. Forget regret, I'm really ticked at myself. A cranberry field is a really cool subject, and if I had put in the effort, I'm sure I could have come up with some really interesting photographs. Instead I got this lame one. I must learn to slow down and take my time. Maybe this crop is better, but I don't think so.

For those who have never witnessed a cranberry harvest, I will briefly explain. The berries grow on short bushes near the ground (not unlike wild blueberries). Rather than pay people minimum wage to bend over and pick the berries all day, the workers are given machines. The field is flooded so that the berries will float to the surface. In order to keep the cranberries from clinging to the vine, the workers use machines that look like a giant snowblower. The 'blades' beat the berries off of the bush, and they rise to the surface of the water. Then another machine scoops them up.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 39mm, f/8, 1/125 sec, ISO 50

Bethany's Canoe

2006-10-17T10:52:00.000-07:00

I'm back. Sorry, a busy week. I'm finally back, and I'm post a photo that I didn't take. Bethany took this while we were boating on Timothy Lake a couple months ago. Part of me feels rather jealous, because this is the exact kind of photo I wanted to take. Unfortunately, I was at the back of the canoe.

The entire scene was rather comical. The canoe was a rather tippy one, and I was extremely nervous that we were going to flip the boat. In fact, every time either of us shifted our weight, it felt as if the boat would do a barrel roll. I nearly wet my pants (in more ways than one). I didn't fear being immersed into the cold lake. After all, I'm waterproof. My camera bag, however, is somewhat porous. For that reason, there was no way I was going to contort my body in such a way that I could take cool photos.

I let Bethany have all the fun, and she did a great job. She placed both edges of the canoe perfectly in the bottom corners of the frame. The horizon is straight. She even had the presence of mind to take the photo is such a way that the bow of the canoe did not penetrate the upper half of the picture space, where the clouds had formed an interesting pattern on the water's surface. I believe this is a very good photograph. Way to go Babe.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8, 1/250 sec, ISO 50

This is a Mountain.

2006-10-13T10:06:00.000-07:00

This is another photo taken atop the tundra in MacKenzie. I had taken a few photos similar to this one, which included a large rock with a funky plant growing on it in the foreground, and the rolling mountains in the distance. At the time, I thought the composition might be stronger with a smaller, more specific subject. However, I like this one better. I didn't include much sky because it was grey and hazy in the morning light.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 17mm, f/6.3, 1/160 sec, ISO 50

What Are You Looking At?

2006-10-11T09:53:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Bethany and I went out for a brief hike at one of the local parks with the famous Uncle Robert and Aunt Sylvia. We were walking along the shore when we happened upon this sleepy seal taking a nap in the sunshine.

After taking some photos from a distance (making full use of my 12x zoom), I decided to be a bit bolder, taking a step or two towards the seal. He didn't seem to mind that at all, so I continued to inch towards him until I was only about five feet away. I was taking lots of pictures, but I was a having a difficult time of it because their was very harsh backlighting, resulting in severe shadows.

I took care of that by climbing up onto the same rock as him and walking around to the other side so that the sun was now behind me. I was certain he would become frightened and swim away, but he stayed exactly where he was. He quietly barked at me once, as if to say, "Hey buddy, get your own rock." He never left, even when I got so close I could have pet him.

Because of the harsh mid-day lighting, I found that this photo works better in black and white. As always, I recommend that you view the large version of the photo by clicking on it. This one looks much better against the white background too. What do you think? You can see the original by clicking here.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 42mm, f/6.3, 1/125 sec, ISO 50

I Feel...

2006-10-10T13:17:00.000-07:00

This is not a pretty picture, but this is how I feel today: tired, deflated, and yet still puffy from last night's meal.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 18mm, f/8, 1/125, ISO 50

Thank You Gourdo

2006-10-08T11:45:00.001-07:00

It is Thanksgiving weekend here in the great white north. Those of you wondering why we do it earlier here in Canada won't get a satisfactory answer from me. I think it has something to do with the fact that our harvest comes a bit earlier in the year, due to the frigid climate (you know: igloos, dog sleds...).

Today I would like to post this photo to say thank you to my employer, Gordon Campbell, the Premier (Canadian version of a Governor) of British Columbia. Bethany and I work for the provincial government, and would like to thank Gordo for providing our employment.

We took the kids to the pumpkin patch yesterday where a table sporting a variety of ugly vegetables caught my eye. I need your help though. I can't decide which version of this image is better. The top (square) one is a bit sharper, but it includes a few distractions, such as the brown 'squigly' thing in the bottom right corner. The second (rectangular) photo places much more emphasis on the crossing stems, which is my favourite part of the image. What do you think; square, rectangle, or "doesn't matter, this photo is just plain stupid"?

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 8mm, f/3.2, 1/100 sec, ISO 50

Abstract Orange

2006-10-06T12:03:00.000-07:00

The other day Bethany sent me out to rent a movie for the kids. As per usual, I brought my camera along, because you never know when a photo opportunity might present itself. When I hadn't returned after 45 minutes, she called me to see what was taking so long. I'm afraid I got a little side tracked.

On the way back from the movie store, I made a quick stop at the Knight St bridge to take a few shots of the river as the sun set. Unfortunately the sun was already a bit too low, so there wasn't much light reaching the river. I did, however, find these strange looking trees growing beside the bridge. I liked the branches, so I used the setting sun to accent their strange shape. I underexposed by several f/stops in order to get a silhouette against a nice orange background.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/8, 1/80 sec, ISO 50

Bridges

2006-10-05T09:47:00.000-07:00

Not much to say here. These bridges caught my eye while on a recent field trip with the kids. I was standing on the deck of the HMCS Winnipeg, a Canadian Patrol Frigate that recently returned from the middle east.

These bridges span the Fraser River. The suspension bridge is for the SkyTrain (our version of a subway), the orange monstrosity is a traffic bridge/death trap, and the in the background there is a rail swing bridge. I liked the look of them because I thought the layers were neat. So I took a picture of them.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 28mm, f/8, 1/250 sec, ISO 50

Is This Boring?

2006-10-04T09:55:00.000-07:00

Oh brother...Tim's posted another stupid sunset picture. Well everyone else was taking pictures of it, so why couldn't I? Sure, it's just another sunset, but each on is unique and I like that.

I'm sure everyone has there own preference when it comes to exposure. I like to underexpose by at least on f/stop usually. My camera starts in aperture priority, where I take a few photos, just to get a feel for the lighting at different angles. After I've got a feel for it, I switch to manual and close the aperture by a step or two. If I'm already at f/8 (the smallest available on my camera) I adjust the shutter speed.

I took a lot of photos of this sunset. This was the first one, when the camera was in aperture priority. I like this image the best of the entire set that I took that evening. Go figure. I should have it in auto mode. Actually, there are a couple of other cool ones, but this is definitely the winner.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 9mm, f/8, 1/100 sec, ISO 50

This is a Fountain

2006-10-03T11:26:00.000-07:00

That's the end of the road trip series. I have more photos that made the cut, but they are similar to the ones that I have already posted here. I will probably share a few more with you throughout the next month.

This is a fountain that I found while on a recent photo hunt in Burnaby. I spent several minutes exploring it from a few different vantage points. I also enjoyed exploring the garden that you can see in the background. In fact, my favourite part of this image is the blurred garden in the background. I wish that I had taken a photo of just the garden completely out of focus, just as it appears in this photograph. I like the blend of purple and green.

It seems as though I regularly look at my work and regret the fact that I did not approach a subject in a different way. I should make note of my afterthoughts so that I can go back and take the picture again in the way that I wish I had in the first place. Perhaps I will start a little note book, with a list of photos I would like to take. Good idea, but let's face it, I'll never get around to writing that sort of thing down.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 61mm, f/8, 1/80 sec, ISO 50

Hey Tractor, Look At ME

2006-10-02T09:46:00.000-07:00

Throughout our road trip, I became increasingly aware of what my next photography purchase must be. No, not an SLR, not a better tripod, not even a set of filters. I am in desperate need of a step ladder. I came across so many fantastic fields, with interesting barns and farm equipment, but a barbed wire fence was always standing between me and a much better composition.

You can imagine the look on my wife's face every time I attempted to climb over such a fence. Her dismay was probably two-fold; she was afraid I might tear my pants on the wire, and she was possibly thinking there was a chance I would get shot at by some cranky property owner. Fair enough, but I've learned that if you want a great photo, sometimes you've got to go to great efforts to get it. If I had a step ladder I would be able to get over the fence without the need to mend my jeans, leaving Bethany with only one thing to worry about. And let's get real, this is Canada, not a Harrison Ford movie; I won't get shot at.

I really want to like this photo, but I can't. I love the lines of cut grass, especially the way they frame the tractor. However, there is one major flaw in the composition. The tractor is facing the wrong direction. It leads the eye directly out of the frame. I believe that the same photo, with the tractor facing towards the lens, would be really cool. I would have been able to take such a picture if I was wandering freely through the field. As it stands, it stinks. Why am I posting it? I guess I just wanted to talk about step ladders.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 47mm, f/7.1, 1/125 sec, ISO 50

The Sharper Image

2006-09-30T18:40:00.000-07:00

I originally cropped this photo out of another. I was only using about half of the original image, so the quality was poor. I worked on it for quite some time, trying to sharpen it and take out the noise. I was getting quite annoyed with my lack of progress; despite my best efforts, the photo still looked bad.

I like the composition. And the colours make me feel good. I liked it enough to post it, regardless of its digital flaws. When looking through the file folder, in order to check the EXIF data (the camera settings I include at the end of each post), I once again came face to face with the knowledge that I am a dope.

Right there, next to the file I had been working on, was a very similar photo. It seems that I did, in fact, take a photograph with this exact composition. After taking the photo, I had zoomed out and taken one at a wider angle. Somehow, I didn't see the tighter composition when I started working today. I wasted all that time trying to improve the quality of an image, when I had a relatively clear and sharp original sitting right beside it in the file folder. I'm glad I had the presence of mind to approach this subject with a variety of compositions.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 34mm, f/8, 1/60 sec, ISO 50

Snarly Tree

2006-09-29T11:24:00.000-07:00

I'm not feeling very well, so perhaps that is effecting my judgment. Regardless, I'm pretty sure the rest of the photos from our vacation suck. I might show one or two more, but we're scraping the bottom of the barrel here folks.

These trees were everywhere. I tried taking several pictures of them, but I couldn't get one that I was satisfied with. The lighting was part of the trouble. It was the middle of the day and the sun was very bright. I used my polarizer, but I didn't have much luck with it.

I decided to display one of the tree pictures here anyway, because I think the tree itself is rather interesting. I'm content with this composition, I'm just not happy with the exposure. Eight hours earlier this might have been a decent photo.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 12mm, f/8, 1/80 sec, ISO 50

Abstract Rusty Stuff

2006-09-27T09:14:00.000-07:00

It would seem that my comfort zone lies in landscape photography. As Suby and I have discussed, I don't even dare approach portraits. Abstracts, however, interest me a great deal. I think I will do some reading about how to create better compositions when photographing subjects that are a bit more abstract. Correction; I wish to learn how to approach subjects in a more abstract manner.

This is a piece of very old farm equipment I found on a farm property just off the highway up north. I found the tool (I believe it was some sort of till) to be somewhat of an oddity. I tried photographing it at a wide angle, but couldn't seem to find an interesting way to present it. That's when I decided to change my approach from a documentary style to that of an abstract style.

I got down on the ground, opened the aperture as wide as I could, and started exploring the spokes and bolts. I'm not terribly satisfied with the results, but I figured it was worth sharing the experiment with you. One thing that bugs me is the bolt in the bottom right. Why didn't I shift the lens slightly so that the bolt had a bit more "breathing room"? I think that type of minutiae is the sort of thing one has to consider every time they compose a shot. This is often the difference between a good shot and a sucky shot. Perhaps this picture never had a hope of being a good shot, but I wish I had at least given it a fighting chance.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 58mm, f/3.5, 1/200 sec, ISO 50

This is a truck.

2006-09-26T10:36:00.000-07:00

This is the truck that took us to the top of the mountain. It's a thing of beauty. I cropped it so that there is an even amount of blue (sky and mountains) and brown (forground) with the truck intersecting both. I think this provides a sense of balance. I don't have much else to say about this photo. Anything I could have done better?

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 7mm, f/8, 1/125 sec, ISO 50

f/8 and Be There

2006-09-25T09:18:00.000-07:00

As Suby eluded to yesterday, being there is the only major requirement of taking photographs like these. The thing is, it takes a lot of effort to arrive at such a vantage point, especially if you want to get there before the sun comes up. I would say it was well worth the effort, but the only work I put in was getting out of bed. Joshua was the one who had to drive the truck up the mountain (next time I'm wearing a helmet), while Keith drove up the really crazy stuff.

At the time, I felt I was having a great deal of difficulty with composition. It didn't occur to me that the scene itself was magnificent, and all I had to do was point and shoot. For some reason I felt I had a huge responsibility to capture the moment for those who were not on the mountain top with us that day. That's crap. My only concern was to make sure I had enough space on my memory cards and some backup batteries. The rest took care of itself.

Sure, some of the photos are better than others. But come on, there's sky and there's mountains; how many different arrangements of those two shapes could there be? When faced with a simple scene like that, I think the one thing that lingers in my mind is the rule of thirds, and even that can be ignored from time to time. While the basic shapes of the scene don't change much, the colours do. For that reason, I took a heck of a lot of photos.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 10mm, f/8, 1/200 sec, ISO 50

The Glory of God

2006-09-24T10:27:00.000-07:00

My brother Joshua is very good to me. Very good. He took me up a mountain in a massive diesel truck at five in the morning. He really wanted to bless me, and that was a perfect way to do it. Keith had heard us discussing our plans and decided to come too. The three of us had an amazing morning on the Canadian Tundra. If you use Google Earth, I believe you will find the mountain upon which we were perched at 55° 25.5' N 123° 02.00' W.

The wind was howling at the top of the mountain. Tripods were utterly useless. Poor Keith set up his tripod, only to see his camera make a crash landing on the rocks; amazingly his lens was unharmed. It was hard to see through the tears streaming down my face as the wind strived to dry out my eyes. I'm sure we were a funny site as we huddled in the truck waiting for the sun to appear in all its glory.

I mention the word glory. I am certain I gained a much greater understanding of the glory of God that morning. As we looked out over the barren tundra, it felt as though this scene of unending beauty had been created just for us. As for the photography, it was simply a matter of pressing the shutter...

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 21mm, f/4.5, 1/200 sec, ISO 50

Pretty in Pink

2006-09-22T10:17:00.000-07:00

While in MacKenzie, we had a great visit with my brother Joshua, his wife Esther, and their newborn baby girl Justice. Joshua's friend Keith was kind enough to take Bethany and I out for an evening of fishing in his small aluminum boat. It was a beautiful calm evening, but the fish weren't biting. It did give me some time to snap a few pictures.

Taking photos from a boat in low light provides some challenges. Obviously I couldn't use slow shutter speeds, so my only option was to underexpose. This can work great when your scene is backlit. As you know, I love reflections, so the chance to capture the reflection of this silhouette of the forest (created by an exaggerated underexposure) was warmly welcomed.

Okay, I've abstained from Photoshop for quite some time now, but the potential for this photo was too much to pass up. In actual fact I didn't do too much to it, I basically removed the yellow.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 21mm, f/7.1, 1/100 sec, ISO 100

Timothy Lake Exposed

2006-09-21T09:03:00.000-07:00

As I said, the lake was right beside the garden, so I didn't have to go far for this photo. I had made the same composition the night before, but I wasn't happy with the lighting. I like this one a lot better.

I'm glad the clouds were there. For one, they reflected the soft pink glow of the early morning light, making the photo more interesting. Secondly, they made the sky darker, meaning I could get a more even exposure. If the sky had been brighter, I would have had to underexpose in order to ensure that the sky wouldn't be washed out. That would have left the boats in almost complete darkeness. As it stands, I underexposed by one f-stop and I think it worked out pretty well.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 7mm, f/8, 1/100 sec, ISO 50

Is There Anybody Out There?

2006-09-19T13:18:00.000-07:00

I haven't been here in a few days. Sorry about that. My schedule was a little funky for a while and I've had some connectivity problems, but I'm back now. I believe we are part way through the BC Interior series. We were speaking of the bed & breakfast...

I know it was my vacation, but I did get up early on two occasions to take some photographs when the light was good. My first early morning photohunt was at the b&b. Our hostess had a beautiful garden and I was excited to go out and explore it with my camera. Okay, I wasn't too excited when my alarm went off at 6:00 am, but I was excited about it when I set my alarm for 6:00am. To be honest, it was with a healthy dose of grumpiness that I dragged myself out of bed, but I knew I had a unique opportunity. How often do you wake up with a beautiful flower garden and a lake right outside your bedroom?

This was one of the photos taken from the garden. I had been looking for a very simple composition, but found it difficult with such colourful surroundings. Eventually I found this flower (I don't know what it is) growing in front of a pine tree. I used my zoom and the widest aperture in order to blur the crap out of the pine tree. I like the simplicity of this composition, and I think the delicate flower looks good too.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/3.5, 1/20 sec, ISO 50

Tungsten Sky

2006-09-14T12:10:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's sky seemed to interest people, so I figured I would give you another sky of interest. Bethany and I stayed at a fantastic B&B located on the shore of Timothy Lake. We got to spend some quality time together on the dock, roasting marshmallows over a campfire, drinking tea, and watching the sunset.

Truth be told, we didn't quite make it to the sunset. As you can see here, some storm clouds moved in and it started to rain on us. Before we retreated to the warm comfort of our basement suite, I was able to take a few photos of the magnificent clouds. In order to enhance the drama, I opted for a significant underexposure. This led to more definition in the clouds and left the landscape as a silhouette, meaning that it can't compete with the sky for attention.

I achieved the blue hue by adjusting the white balance. I have a blue filter on my camera, but I've never liked the results it delivers. Instead, I switched my white balance to Tungsten. This setting is supposed to be used indoors, toning down the yellow cast given off by lightbulbs. My indoor photos look terrible when I use this setting, but I think outdoor, low light situations are an interesting opportunity to make use of the Tungsten setting. I know I could have done the same thing in Photoshop, but I thought this might satisfy the purists.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 13mm, f/8, 1/500 sec, ISO 50

Blue Skies

2006-09-13T10:30:00.000-07:00

Bethany and I stopped at a forest ranger station while driving through the Caribou Forest Region. The station is a tower at the top of a mountain, where the ranger spends weeks observing the surrounding forest, looking for possible forest fires.

I took a huge panorama shot that was made up of five photos but I'm not going to show it to you. The pano has a flaw that this one lacks. It taught me a lesson though. I am learning to pay attention to portions of nature that fluctuate throughout a period of seconds or minutes. In this case, I did not pay enough attention to the shadows that were cast on the forest by the clouds. The bottom half of my panorama is almost completely covered in shadows, causing a major distraction.

The photo you see here lacks those shadows, not because I intentionally waited for them to pass, but because I got lucky. I did, however, learn my lesson. Last night, while shooting a sunset from the beach, I was very intentional about when I pressed the shutter, paying close attention to the timing of the crashing waves, which formed distinct lines at the bottom of the frame.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8, 1/250, ISO 50

Sheddy Photo

2006-09-12T11:23:00.000-07:00

This old crappy shed was in a field just down the street from the yacht club (see yesterdays photo). As you can see, I was shooting in the middle of the day. Yes, I know the lighting sucks at that time of day, but I was on vacation. As we were driving through towns we would stop at any point of interest. We happened to be passing this old log structure in the middle of the day, so I was stuck with the conditions that existed at that moment.

I used my polarizer, but not very effectively. Truth be told, I learned a lot about my polarizer on this trip, but this photo was taken during that learning process. I find it difficult to see through my view finder when it is very bright, so I didn't do a very good job of exposure on this photo. I like the blown out clouds and the lens flare, but the exposure on the shed was much too dark.

I'm posting this picture regardless of it's flaws because I think the composition is strong. Besides, those beams of sunlight are pretty cool.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8, 1/320 sec, ISO 50

Lone Butte Yacht Club

2006-09-11T10:25:00.000-07:00

While driving through a town called Lone Butte (a butte is small isolated hill, it is not the large piece of flesh on your posterior; you're so immature) when I noticed about five of old crappy boats lying around in a dried up marsh. It looked pretty strange, but it became downright comical when we noticed the sign.

I have several compositions of this scene. I found it really difficult to create a composition that would present the scene in an interesting way. Why is it that I can see something that I find intensely interesting and yet fail to capture it in a way that will convey the emotions I am feeling?

My difficulty with this scene was communicating the information to the viewer. I think a broader view of the scene would make it more clear that their was no water anywhere near the group of boats. However, when I used a wider angle, the frame was too cluttered with unnecessary items and lacked a sense of balance and order. In the end I decided that it was best to decide on one point of interest, rather than encompassing the entire scene. This photo doesn't make me feel the same way I did when we drove past the boats, but I believe it adequately conveys some of the humour of the scene.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 34mm, f/8, 1/60 sec, ISO 50

Foot Bridge

2006-09-08T09:52:00.000-07:00

Many of the photos you will see in the coming days are of the Fraser Canyon. The Fraser River is the longest river in British Columbia and we basically followed it from where it empties into the Pacific Ocean in Vancouver, all the way up to the interior of BC.

This photo was taken from the highway on a bridge. It was a bit of a tricky picture to take because I ended up holding the camera down by my feet, poking the lens between two bars of the railing. I don't really know anything about the old suspension bridge that is featured here, except that it is now used as a foot bridge to enter one of BC's provincial parks.

There was significant cloud cover at the time of taking this photograph. It resulted in an even distribution of light, without a whole bunch of highlights and shadows to worry about. Unfortunately, it also leaves the photo looking a bit dull. I toyed with some yellow filters, but decided to leave it au naturale.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 37mm, f/5, 1/80 sec, ISO 50

Road Trip Reflections

2006-09-07T12:37:00.000-07:00

We're back. Last week, Bethany and I journeyed to Mackenzie, a town in the northern interior of British Columbia. On the way, I took over 500 photographs. Some of them are pretty decent, some of them suck. To be perfectly honest, I'm not looking forward to combing through the rubble that is my memory card, searching for survivors. I won't let all of the images die, but I suspect many will be crushed under the weight of the delete key.

My beautiful wife was very supportive as we made the trek through this fine province. Not once did she become annoyed with me as I stopped at every point of interest, determined to capture at least a fraction of the wonder that each scene presented.

She was even a good enough sport to take this photo when I told her to. We were in a slow moving traffic jam at the beginning of our trip when I noticed our reflection in the wheel of a truck. It's not perfectly centered, but it's still pretty good considering we were moving at 20 km/hr. Perhaps it's a bit of a gimmicky shot, but I figure it's a good way to begin a series of road trip photographs.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 45mm, f/4, 1/250 sec, ISO 50

I'm Out Of Here

2006-08-29T11:40:00.000-07:00

Hey folks, Bethany and I are headed out on a much needed vacation. We'll be gone for a week, as we explore some of the beauty that the province of British Columbia has to offer. I'll have my camera with me, so hopefully I'll return with some great photos.

This photo hasn't been sharpened or anything. I was in a hurry, so this is all you get. I figured an empty chair would be an appropriate image to place here during my absence. I'll be back in a week. Cheerio...

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 9mm, f/6.3, 1/60 sec, ISO 100

Neon Dahlia

2006-08-28T10:15:00.000-07:00

As you may be aware, I have made a mild effort to stay away from Photoshop over the past few months. I have mainly used it as a tool to clone out unwanted objects and apply some sharpening. The main reason for this is because I want to demonstrate what can be done with the average person's equipment, such as a basic point and shoot camera and limited editing software.

With this in mind, I am posting this silly shot of a dahlia that I found in Bethany's garden earlier this month. I took this photo very late in the evening when she was watering the plants. This dahlia was a somewhat new flower, so it was just opening. I think it looks a lot cooler at this stage than when it is fully open.

There wasn't nearly enough light for photography by this point in the evening so I tried using my flash. I liked the way it reflected off the beads of water that were clinging to the flower. I thought I would demonstrate a very basic effect that can turn out kind of cool every once in a while and can be done on any cheap or free editing software. All I did was boost the contrast to about +60. Normally I would consider this on par with a lame parlor trick, but in this case I thought it worked pretty well. That hot pink gets me thinking about 1990...

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 69mm, f/8, 0.5 sec, ISO 50, flash

If you're curious, this is the original photo...

My Birthday Rocks

2006-08-26T19:57:00.000-07:00

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my family and friends, who contributed to a most wonderful birthday gift. Bethany made me an SLR jar. What is an SLR jar, you ask. It is like a piggy bank for grown ups who have their eye on a fancy pants camera, but don't yet have the budget required to obtain such a toy. The beautiful part about it is that my friends and family all helped to prime the pot. Thanks to their generous gifts, I am about halfway to a new camera (probably the Canon 30D). It blesses me so much that my loved ones have been so supportive as I explore this strange new hobby of photography.

I look forward to obtaining an SLR some time next year, but in the meantime, I will continue to test the limits of my beloved point and shoot. I know that there is still so much to learn about composition, and that can be done with any camera. I am very grateful to the famous Uncle Robert, who continually challenges me to improve and reminds me that it's not the camera, but the man behind the camera that makes a great photograph.

I normally opt for variety, but your comments regarding "photos wherein the sun is close to the horizon" interest me a great deal. I would like your feedback on this photo, particularly in comparison to the similar sunrise I posted the other day. I suspect people will like the other one better. People seem to respond more emotionally to bolder colours. However, I think I might like this one better. I think it's refreshing to see an image that has been overexposed on purpose. I'm interested in your opinion regarding the composition and the exposure. Are you still reading this? Wow, you're a trooper.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8, 1/6 sec, ISO 50

Spanish Sunrise

2006-08-24T10:59:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago we discussed whether or not sunset photos are lame. Today I'd like to pursue a similar discussion about sunrises. It feels like they are less lame because it takes much more effort to photograph a sunrise. A certain level of commitment is required in order to get out of bed and drag your sorry carcass to a predetermined location. Sunsets happen at a much more convenient time of day, thus lowering their intrinsic value.

This photo was taken from Spanish Banks East, a beach in Vancouver only a half a kilometer west of where I took the aforementioned sunset. I was at the beach with Bethany and my parents earlier this week, when I noticed that this section of the beach juts out a bit, providing an unobstructed view of downtown. I immediately decided that this would be my next location for a dawn photohunt.

This photo was underexposed for effect, in order to capture the deep golden and blue colours. I included the foreground in order to give a sense of depth and perspective. The back lighting and underexposure leaves everything but the sky and sea as a silhouette.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8, 1/500 sec, ISO 50

Koerner 2

2006-08-23T16:34:00.000-07:00

This is an update of today's photo. The famous Uncle Robert recommended a little Photoshop TLC, so I did a bit of work on it. I gave the lamp a growth spurt and adjusted the lighting a bit, reducing the shadows and highlights. I forgot to give this version the web sharpening treatment I usually do, but I'm too lazy to change it now. See the previous post for the original.

Scouting Mission

2006-08-23T11:46:00.000-07:00

Last week I went on a scouting mission to the University of British Columbia. No, I'm not going back to school, I was scouting for a future photohunt. I have been looking for new places to take early morning photographs. It has been well documented on these pages that it is best to have a very specific location in mind when working during early morning hours. There is no point in wandering the city aimlessly at 5:00 am, looking for a decent composition.

With that in mind, I wandered over to the UBC campus, hoping to find some inspiration. The light was bad because it was noon, but I attempted some photos anyway, hoping that I would come across a few good ideas that I could explore in better light at a later date. As it turns out, there is a lot of construction going on, mainly on the older stone buildings. I tried making some compositions that included the cranes and trucks and fences and such, but I'm not very happy with what I came up with.

For some reason, however, I like the way this photo turned out. This is the Keorner Library. It interested me because of all the glass and straight lines. I took several photos of it, but I like this one best. When I give it a critical analysis, it seems to lack any point of interest, but I like it anyway. I would have liked to have placed the lamp a little higher up so that it occupied the top corner, but I couldn't arrange it that way without covering up the library with the tree.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 21mm, f/8, 1/200 sec, ISO 50

Sunsets: Just Another Tourist Trap

2006-08-22T09:25:00.000-07:00

It's just another sunset. Are sunset photos lame? Are there just too many of them? A sunset happens every day. Who needs a photo when you can simply look out your window in the evening? Does anybody actually buy this sort of thing? I suspect not. Except perhaps tourists who want to remember the beauty they saw while on vacation. Tourists are suckers, perhaps I could make a buck or two.

Okay, admittedly some sunsets are more equal than others. Bethany and I went to the beach last week to play Scrabble and watch the sunset. It was a lovely evening, so I naturally brought my camera. The sunset was the sort that changes appearance regularly, leaving me with a variety of images that are rather pleasing to the eye.

Poor Bethany has to put up with me bringing the camera along on each of our outdoor dates. We live in such a beautiful city, so inspiration tends to hit me with some regularity. It must look funny though; me, my girl, and my tripod, all cuddling together on a blanket at the beach. She beat me at Scrabble, so I'd say we're even.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/7.1, 1/125, ISO 50

Worth the Effort

2006-08-21T10:06:00.000-07:00

Sorry I missed my post this weekend. This will sound strange, but I kept on forgetting to do it. A busy weekend I guess. Thanks for your feedback on Friday's photo. I must admit, I was surprised so many people liked it. I tend to agree with the Famous Uncle Robert, it just seems "heavy" to me.

This will be the last photo of the Flora Lake series. There is no way I'm climbing that mountain again, so I won't be taking any more pictures of this beautiful lake. I did however learn that in order to capture much of the pristine beauty that every photographer longs for, one has to burn a few calories. I look forward to more opportunities to explore the incredible back country that Canada has to offer. Next time, however, I will pick a location I can get to without blowing out my knees.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 10mm, f/3.5, 1/60 ISO 50

Flora Lake at Dawn

2006-08-18T10:02:00.000-07:00

Stop. Make note of your first impression... okay, now you can read. I planned to post this photo today, so I will. However, I must admit that my enthusiasm for the image has waned significantly. I think I liked it at first because it had certain connotations that made me feel good. When I take a step back and look at it with a critical eye the shapes and the symmetry kind of bother me.

I have stated that it was cloudy and rainy throughout the entirety of our trip to Flora Lake. The morning of our departure was the one brief exception. We awoke to a beautiful sky reflecting off of the misty lake. We were in a hurry to break camp, but I took a few minutes to study the scene and attempt a couple of different compositions. As you have no doubt discovered, the reflections on the surface of the lake were always begging to be included in the composition.

While the light is always beautiful early in the morning, most brains are not yet functioning at full capacity. I wish I had spent a few more minutes exploring the possibilities that morning. This particular photograph will have to suffice, but it does not do the scene justice. I did have the presence of mind to take three different exposures, accounting for the sky, the trees, and the reflected sky. This image is a combination of all three exposures and is the only heavily processed photo in this series.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8.0, ISO 50
Sky: 1/50 sec, Trees: 0.6 sec, Reflected Sky: 1/13 sec.

"I Caught You a Delicious Bass"

2006-08-17T11:04:00.000-07:00

When we were at the lake, I had a good deal going. Allen and Paso would catch all the fish, and I would eat them. Oh, I tried fishing, but it turns out I suck at it. The other guys, however, were fortunate enough to catch me a meal. The fish were trout, not bass, but Mr. Dynamite's immortal quote was too good to pass up.

This is the first image of this series that has undergone any significant processing, and it wasn't that significant. I was looking at Paso's photos of our trip when I saw a really cool silhouette of Allen by the water. I was instantly annoyed at myself for not having taken a similar photo. I looked through my archives to find an image that I could make into a silhouette.

Admittedly, this is not the way I would have taken this photo if I had the idea in mind from the start, but I'm determined to learn from my mistakes. I modified this picture by adding a blue filter and playing with the levels. It wasn't exactly a highly technical procedure, but I think it worked.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 52mm, f/4.5, 1/100 sec, ISO 50

Flora Lake Done Right

2006-08-16T11:04:00.000-07:00

On Monday I posted a photo of the south end of Flora Lake, where I was camping with friends after hiking over a mountain. I received some very helpful feedback, particularly from Laurie, who was able to voice my own dissatisfaction with the image and many similar photos. Namely, it lacked any particular point of interest.

I took today's photo because the scene interested me a great deal. Specifically, I was drawn to the various triangles that were arranged in such a way that begged to be photographed. The bushes in the foreground also serve the purpose of creating a sense of perspective and depth. I tried to position the camera so that the foreground triangle was parallel with the grey triangle that surrounds it. Is this an improvement over Monday's "nice but boring" photo?

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 11mm, f/8.0, 1/100 sec, ISO 50

Paso's Bod

2006-08-15T10:19:00.000-07:00

Since Suby is positively salivating at the opportunity to see a portrait a la Timmybomb, I give you this. This is my friend Paso. He helped drag me up the mountain to Flora Lake, where we enjoyed fishing and drinking fine beer such as Boddingtons. I like taking pictures of Paso because he has a take charge attitude and it comes across when he faces the lens.

I think this lake provided an excellent backdrop for portraits. I love the way the forest reflects off the lake, resulting in a beautiful green background that isn't too distracting. I was concerned that the rocks behind him might compete for attention, but I think the depth of field solves that problem and his facial expression commands enough attention anyway.

I decided against any special effects for the photo. Since he is in a naturally beautiful environment, I didn't want to alter it in any way. The one bit of processing I did was to tone down his sweater, because it was very bright and mildly distracting. Later this week I will post a photo of Paso fishing. I will also introduce you to Allen and his mighty 'fro.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/3.5, 1/80 sec, ISO 50

Flora Lake

2006-08-14T09:51:00.000-07:00

After hiking for seven hours on Tuesday, we arrived at Flora Lake. It is a small, but beautiful lake tucked between two mountains. I will be showing several photos of the lake to give you an idea of our incredible surroundings. I'm even going to include some photos of people, something I rarely do here.

One thing that really bugs me about some photos I see on the net is oversharpening. I presume it's simply a matter of preference, but I think oversharpening can really wreck a photo. It seems to occur regularly on photos similar to this one, where there is a significant amount of green bushes.

I suspect that when they come out of the box, many cameras are set to maximum sharpening by default. If you find that your bushes are looking particularly abrasive, check you camera settings. Sharpening is a tricky thing with photos like this. It's difficult to strike a balance. I still don't know if this image has been sharpened sufficiently or if I over did it. What do you think?

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 14mm, f/4.0, 1/80 sec, ISO 50

I Climbed a Mountain

2006-08-11T14:50:00.000-07:00

Hey folks. Thank you for your concern during my brief absence. I'm sorry I left without any warning. I was having a bit of internet trouble last weekend, and then I left town for a couple of days. I'm back now. I may not post again this weekend because I've got some catching up to do around here. We'll see.

This week I climbed a mountain. I don't know the name of the mountain, but I do know it was pretty big. I'm an out of shape slob, so I nearly died a few times this week. Thanks to my very supportive friends, Paso and Allen, I made it up a combined vertical of 1500 meters. I'll be posting a few photos of our trip over the coming days.

The weather was cloudy and rainy all three days of our trip, but it was still beautiful. I didn't take very many photos while hiking up or down the mountain because I needed to focus all my energy on not dying. This photo was taken from the southwest face of the mountain, looking west.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 18mm, f/8.0, 1/250 sec, ISO 50

I'm Lovin It

2006-08-04T11:24:00.000-07:00

This was an experiment.

Georgia Straight Sunset

2006-08-03T10:19:00.000-07:00

Bethany and I joined the Famous Uncle Robert and Aunt Sylvia on their boat last night. It was a beautiful calm evening. Not much wind, but it was a very peaceful time as we relaxed on the Georgia Straight.

With the exception of some mist on the horizon, the sky was clear. It made for a beautiful sunset. The sun was a massive glowing orb casting its long reflection over the calm water. It looked incredible as it lowered itself toward the horizon, settling just behind a distant pier. I hadn't had an opportunity to photograph a clear sunset like this from the middle of the water, so I was very excited to get my camera and capture the beauty.

I didn't bother with any processing because I'm too anxious to show you last night's sunset. I don't think it needs it anyway. This is the beautiful sunset, just as my camera recorded it. Isn't it stunning?

Enough With The Flowers

2006-08-02T12:10:00.000-07:00

Another flower photo today. I bought some gerbera daises for Bethany last week and I like the way they look wet. I took several photos of this one, but it didn't want to cooperate. I guess it was a bit camera shy, because I couldn't straighten out that left side. Oh well, I kind of like the way the water drops look at that angle anyway.

I found that I needed quite a bit of sharpening to get this looking the way I wanted it to. I really love the way the water beads on the petals. I'm going to try a few different crops of this one, and I'll probably go back and study this flower some more later this week.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/3.5, 1/60 sec, ISO 50

Nothing Glorious About It

2006-08-01T10:34:00.000-07:00

Well, yesterday I posted a happy plant. Today I bring you an evil plant. This is the morning glory. It is a vile weed, a vine that swallows everything in its path. Fear the morning glory.

This plant is all over the place in Vancouver. I presume its evil plan to take over the world has commenced in many other cities too. We used to have it in our garden, but Bethany did battle with it a few years ago, and for the most part it has retreated.

I took this photo near the port of Vancouver. I liked the way the green looked against the orange container. I had to strike a balance when it came to lighting. I wanted direct side lighting to accent the vertical lines on the container, but I didn't want too many shadows on the plant itself. On looking at it now, I might have taken this just a touch too late in the morning. The flower is bright white, so I'm actually satisfied with the exposure in that regard. This will be added to my long list of compositions that I will attempt again, in hopes of making improvements.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 30mm, f/6.3, 1/100 sec, ISO 50

One Sunflower, Hold the Sun

2006-07-31T10:14:00.000-07:00

My internet is being rather flaky this morning, so I hope I can complete this task. Bethany has some sunflowers growing in the front yard. When I first approached it I was immediately struck by the interesting patterns at the back of the flower. In fact, it took me about twenty minutes before I ever brought my camera around to the front side of this flower.

This is a red sunflower, so the strange coloured petals are naturally that colour. This photo was taken at the end of a somewhat cloudy day. The light was already quite dim. I didn't bother with a tripod because it was pretty windy. I'm looking forward to exploring this plant more this week when there is a bit more light.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/3.5, 1/80 sec, ISO 50

Bowen Island Sunset

2006-07-29T11:01:00.000-07:00

Bethany took me to a great little lookout point at Lighthouse Park this week. We enjoyed a picnic as we watched the boats entering English Bay. As the sun began to set behind Bowen Island, we both sat in awe as we saw the last rays of sunshine pouring through the mist over the mountains to the north.

I'm not sure of the best technique to capture this sort of lighting. I tried overexposing in order to accurately represent the misty quality, but the colours looked washed out. This probably would have been a good candidate for layering several different exposures, but the expansive scene required a panorama, so that just seemed like too much work.

I settled on a slight underexposure. It means I lost the details of the island, but I'm okay with that.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 28mm, f/3.5, 1/800 sec, ISO 50

Bethany's Dock

2006-07-28T10:59:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I mentioned that Bethany had taken the best picture of the day. I don't usually bring her along on my early morning photo hunts, but I was happy that she joined me yesterday. She suggested that I post her picture on this blog, instead of hers, so here it is. If Suby & Sinem can share a blog, I guess I can give up a bit of my web space too.

This dock was right next to the pier I showed you yesterday. I love the quality of the morning light on the dock and piling. You have probably figured out that I have a thing for reflections, so that is just one more reason for me to like this photo. Not to mention the quality of blue at the bottom of the image.

As I have said in the past, don't be afraid to bring your significant other along with you every once in a while. It's always great to have them around, and the extra set of eyes can prove very useful.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 14mm, f/4.5, 1/100 sec, ISO 50

Crappy Pier

2006-07-27T14:23:00.000-07:00

I'm rather sleepy, so I'm going to keep this short; I want a nap. Bethany and I joined the famous Uncle Robert for a photo hunt early this morning. It was really just an excuse to hang out, and I didn't get many images that were worth keeping, but I look for every opportunity to practice with my camera. In fact, the best picture that my camera took this morning was taken by Bethany. Perhaps she will share it on her blog some time.

We stopped at a pier that overlooked a very peaceful portion of the Fraser River. The subject that interested me the most was the angles and lines of the wooden beams and railing. Unfortunately the railing was covered in pigeon crap, so I photographed the reflection instead.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 15mm, f/3.5, 1/60 sec, ISO 50

Grass Practice

2006-07-26T11:09:00.000-07:00

This was an experiment. I had noticed a city garden a couple blocks from my home that had some extraordinary long grass in amongst the flowers. After driving past it several times, I became determined to go and explore it. I say it was a garden, but in reality it was a space of only about 20 square feet beside the curb at the corner of a street.

Long grass fascinates me, so any time I see it I want to grab my camera and dive in. I like the way it flows in front of the lens and becomes almost transparent when I focus on a subject a few feet away. These dead flowers interested me, so I decided to focus on one of them while peeking through the grass. I'm sure the neighbours were mildly bemused to see a grown man crawling through the public garden.

As I said, this was an experiment. I was simply practicing the technique so that when a great opportunity presents itself, I will know how to get the results I want. Well, I think the experiment turned out well enough that I'm willing to show it to you. Besides, since the point is to get better at this particular type of photography, I could use any tips you may have for me.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 54mm, f/4.0, 1/40 sec, ISO 50

Shadowy Slough

2006-07-25T10:45:00.000-07:00

This is another image taken at Finn's Slough. As mentioned, the sun was pretty low in the sky, so the shadows created a bit of a challenge, particularly on the bottom half of most of the structures on the southern bank. I took this photo in an effort to get around that problem.

I liked the quality of the light that was on the top of this house, but because of the shadows I couldn't get shot that I was happy with. Then I noticed the reflection in the water. Of course, there were plenty of shadows to deal with in this composition too, but I believe the eye is much more willing to accept the shadows when the photo is more impressionistic.

I composed this shot so that the frame was divided into three distinct shapes. I also like the fact that the slope of the roof runs parallel with the lower bank. I added a mild watercolor effect with Photoshop. I felt that it aided the impressionism.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 34mm, f/8.0, 1/25 sec, ISO 50

Safeway, Sky, Subster

2006-07-24T11:32:00.000-07:00

Last week the famous Uncle Robert remarked to me that people are too nice to me when it comes to commenting on my photos. Although I appreciate everyone's feedback on this site, I tend to agree with him. I would like to take my photography skills to the next level and Azhar has come up with a brilliant plan to help me do just that. It is called the Policy of Subster (see icon in right sidebar).

By abiding by this policy, I am inviting the most cruel critics to speak their minds. If you hate my photo, I want you to say so in no uncertain terms. The only thing I ask is that your comments are helpful. If you state that you don't like an image, please be so kind as to tell me why, and give me an idea as to how I could have made it stronger. You are allowed to like a photo, but I welcome your nitpicking too.

This photo was taken from the parking lot of Safeway, one of our local grocery stores. As I approached the store I began to appreciate the evening sky, but became annoyed that I didn't have a decent landscape or foreground to place in front of it. I grabbed my camera anyway, and challenged myself to come up with an interesting composition. I have been studying shapes a lot recently so I figured I would use this as an exercise.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 7mm, f/5.0, 1/125 sec, ISO 50

Bike by the Dyke

2006-07-22T11:09:00.000-07:00

The famous Uncle Robert took me on a photo hunt on Thursday evening. He took me to a very strange place called Finn's Slough, which is a very old fishing village beside the Fraser River Dyke in Richmond. It is a community of old (very junky) houses and boats that are inhabited by squatters.

Unfortunately, we arrived a bit too late in the evening and the sun was already a bit too low, creating severe shadows. We will have to go back later this year when the sun is setting further to the south, so that the shadows are not stretching across the width of the slough.

Because of the lighting conditions, I didn't have very many successful photos. In fact, I can't even claim much credit for this image. I was simply copying the famous Uncle Robert when I took this picture, it was his idea to photograph the bike in the first place. Imitation is the highest form of flattery though. Admittedly, it is a rather compelling subject. How often do you see a bicycle on a roof?

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 13mm, f/3.2, 1/400 sec, ISO 50

Looking up

2006-07-21T11:13:00.000-07:00

Recently I got out of the habit of taking my camera everywhere I go. I passed up several photo opportunities because I didn't have my equipment with me. Today I was determined to get back into the routine of taking time out of my day to take a few pictures.

I brought my camera with me when I dropped the kids off at daycare. On the way to their school, I made a mental note of several locations that peaked my interest. I was sure to stop at these places on the way home. I didn't spend too much time, but even 30 minutes was sufficient for a very pleasant and peaceful photo hunt.

This was one of the photos I took this morning. Because I live in the city, it can be a challenge to find a composition that has an uncluttered skyline. This large chimney provided a composition with a unique perspective and lots of negative space. I used my new polarizer to achieve the deep blue sky.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8.0, 1/100 sec, ISO 50

Inside the Azalea

2006-07-20T09:35:00.000-07:00

I love wet flowers. There is something magical about water pooling up on the petal of a flower. That is what attracted me to this azalea. I liked the way the sunshine was dancing on the surface of the water.

This is another photo from my archives. I like the composition, but I have always felt that the quality of the image was not quite good enough. This is another example of the colour red giving me a hard time. Whatever the case, I still love the way the water is collecting at the edge of the bottom right petal.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/6.3, 1/100 sec, ISO 50

Pacific Drift

2006-07-19T11:10:00.000-07:00

This is one of those images that I like better when I see the thumbnail. When I view the large version of it, I become less interested. I don't know why that is.

I took this picture beside the ferry terminal the other day. I had a difficult time finding the correct exposure, as it was the middle of a very sunny day. It was a fun exercise in depth of field and perspective. It didn't turn out the way I had hoped, but I will probably try it again in the evening some time, when I can get a more even exposure.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 11mm, f/8.0, 1/80 sec, ISO 50

Pink Tulip, Corner Pocket

2006-07-18T12:03:00.000-07:00

Hey, this will be very brief. My brother Joshua and his wife Esther had a baby girl yesterday, so it is a busy time right now. We are all very excited.

Ya, I know it's another flower image. Tough. I have had this photo in my archives for almost three months. No Photoshop. I like it. Do you?

I told you this would be brief.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/8.0, 1/60 sec, ISO 50

Dandy

2006-07-17T11:58:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure what people are going to think of this photo. I like it and hate it all at once. I was just fooling around when I took it, so I didn't put in much of an effort. I think it could have been a lot better if I had been paying attention.

That said, I still think it's kind of cool. I had to boost the contrast quite a bit in order to get the white dandelion to stand out against the white cloud. I really like the perspective though, because it makes these look like giant flowers. They were actually quite tall, which made it much easier to obtain this angle.

I was going to yap about balance and tension (I've been reading about that lately), but I'm going to save that for another day. Just let me know what you think, and feel free to rip in to me.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8.0, 1/320, ISO 50

Daylily

2006-07-15T11:18:00.000-07:00

Sorry to post two flower photos in a row, but I really like this one and I wanted to share it with you. Actually, for the sake of variety, let's consider yesterday's image an insect photo.

This is another daylily from Bethany's garden. I have shown you a few abstract images of these flowers, but this was the first time I captured the whole flower in a manner that was pleasing to me. Again, I used the telephoto technique instead of the macro technique and I think it turned out very well.

This photo has not been processed in any way except for sharpening (and cloning out one tiny flaw). The overcast sky provided the perfect level of diffused lighting and allowed for a well balanced exposure with vibrant colours.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/4.0, 1/160 sec, ISO 50

Zzzzoom

2006-07-14T09:25:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I got to spend some time in Bethany's garden taking photos. I'm not sure why, but I felt like I was getting better results than I normally do. My usual approach to her garden is with my macro setting. Yesterday I decided to change it up and use my zoom to get up close and personal.

I discovered that when using the zoom it is much easier to acquire the depth of field I require. The macro setting on my camera makes it very difficult to get a nice bokeh, no matter what the aperture is set at. As you can see in this photo, with the zoom I could throw the background completely out of focus.

The other benefit of using the telephoto was that I could observe the bees without bothering them. I had a great time snapping photos of this critter enjoying Bethany's passion flowers.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/4.5, 1/400 sec, ISO 50

Fundamental Forgetfulness

2006-07-13T09:35:00.000-07:00

I was actually able to get to one marina in Deas Slough. This reflection of boats on a rack interested me, so I tried a few different compositions. At the time, I didn't think I was going to like this particular photo. I wasn't sure about the ripples, so I waited a while for the water to calm down so I could take one without the disturbance. As it turns out, this one was my favourite. The ripples seem to add one more point of interest to a fairly simple composition.

Being new to the visual arts, I am still having a hard time remembering many of the fundamentals. Things like lines and shapes often escape my memory when I am composing a shot. Later, when I review my work, I find that the photos that I enjoy the most are the ones that make use of those fundamental design elements. I'm not sure how they got there, because I wasn't thinking about them at the time.

For example, this particular image interests me because of the way the circle (ripples) interrupts the horizontal lines of colour (boats). I would sound very pretentious if I told you I meant to do that. Instead, as I admitted earlier, I made a point of making another version that excluded this feature. Oh well, I guess that's why we take so many photos; that way we have options when we get home.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 29mm, f/8.0, 1/15 sec, ISO 50

Deas Through Trees

2006-07-12T11:05:00.000-07:00

Believe it or not, I actually took this photo while standing at the side of one of Vancouver's major highways. This is looking northeast at a small piece of the Fraser River, called Deas Slough. My original intent was to photograph the eight man rowing teams that practice in this area. I had imagined this ideal photograph of people rowing at dawn. I should have done my research though. It turns out, they can't row at dawn because the gated park that they launch from doesn't open until 8:00am.

That's why this photo is taken through the trees. Instead of being at water's edge, I was locked out and had to find a different vantage point. As it turns out, I didn't take many photos of this body of water. Instead I drove around aimlessly, stopping to take a photo any time something caught my eye. I had a nice time, but it wasn't very productive. Next time, I will do my research. Well, probably not.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 13mm, f/8.0, 1/320 sec, ISO 50

Wide Load

2006-07-11T12:41:00.000-07:00

There was some very good response to my daylily photo last week. I was feeling encouraged, so I tried a few more compositions with these awesome flowers. I had trouble being minimalistic when framing the subject with my camera, so I relied on cropping to create the right feel.

The beauty of displaying photos online is that just about any cropping ratio is acceptable. I presume it is better to stick with standard aspect ratios when dealing with prints. Having said that, I'm quite convinced that this photo would not have enough impact if presented in a traditional size. I guess this rookie is interested to find out if photographers ever print and frame photos that are cropped extremely wide like this image.

Oh, I also tried converting this photo to black and white. I was very pleased with the results, so I may post that version at a later date.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/5.0, 1/50 sec, ISO 50

One Hundred

2006-07-09T22:39:00.000-07:00

Today is post number 100 at Rookie Photographer Gone Wild. I got my first camera in March and fell in love with it. I've been sharing photos on this site ever since. I've had a great time and I think I have learned a lot. There are times when keeping up with a daily deadline has been difficult, but for the most part I have tried to stick to my schedule of six posts a week. The deadline is good for me anyway, it keeps me sharp.

Thank you all for your continued visits and helpful feedback. I have learned a lot about photography by reading your helpful hints and criticisms. I would most like to thank the famous Uncle Robert for getting me hooked on photography and giving me such a head start with some excellent advice and top notch literature. I should also thank my lovely wife Bethany, who has patiently accompanied me on many photo hunts, tolerated the alarm clock going off long before dawn, and put up with me hogging the computer for hours.

Feel free to look through some of my archives (see right side menu) and have a look at some of my previous images. I'd be curious to hear if you have noticed any improvement in my skills, or if there is a common weakness I could be working on. Also, I'd love to hear what your favourite image has been so far. I can only hope that my next 100 photos will be a vast improvement over these first 100.

For those wondering, today's image was taken this last week, in the same park as the dragonfly. This "sculpture" was erected in honor of Canada's 100th birthday in 1967. Sucks that there is crappy graffiti on it, but I guess there are dumb teenagers with spray paint in every city.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/7.1, 1/125 sec, ISO 50

What Big Eyes You Have...

2006-07-08T10:49:00.000-07:00

I went on a very brief photo hunt yesterday with Bethany. The only time we had was right in the middle of the day, so the conditions weren't great. That didn't stop me though because it had been a while since my last photo session. I had one specific subject in mind (which I will show you on Monday), but while I was studying various options for that subject Bethany was looking for other opportunities.

There were a couple of lovely gardens nearby. She called my attention to several interesting plants and then found three dragon flies basking in the sunshine. This one in particular caught my eye. I like his blue and brown camouflage.

I was very careful not to bump him with my lens, but as you know, I have to get very close with my lens in order to get one of the desired compositions. As it turns out, this guy was so intent on getting his afternoon nap, he didn't mind getting bumped once or twice.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/6.3, 1/200 sec, ISO 50

One Sunset, Hold the Sun

2006-07-07T11:36:00.000-07:00

I have stayed away from sunsets for a while, so I figured I could probably get away with posting one today. I took this from Richmond in two months ago. I have a similar picture that includes the sun, but for some reason I like this one better.

Not much else to say about this one. I'll be out taking photos this weekend, so I hope to have a bunch of new stuff for you next week. Thanks for the comments on yesterday's image, I have one or two similar ones that I might share with you soon.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/7.1, 1/2500, ISO 50

Macrobatics

2006-07-06T14:39:00.000-07:00

Hey, I'm back. Sorry about yesterdays absence, Blogger was acting up again. Bethany has day lilies growing in her garden. I saw them last week and was looking forward to photographing them. I was busy at the time, so I waited a couple of days before heading out to the garden, camera in hand. Much to my dismay, the lilies were gone.

Apparently, these flowers only bloom for a day or two and then they shrivel up. I was shocked and dismayed. Luckily, there were lots more growing so I only had to wait a couple more days before I got another chance.

I'm still trying to learn to photograph subjects in creative ways. In that spirit I entered Bethany's garden, tripod in hand, prepared to see the flowers in a new way. I tried a variety of compositions, giving my tripod quite the workout. I even had to take time out to clean my lens after I accidentally got pollen all over it. Most of the results were lame, but it was certainly a worth while exercise. The photo you see here was the best of the batch. It's still not quite right, but I'm getting there.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8.0, 1/6 sec, ISO 50

2006-07-04T12:59:00.000-07:00

I am posting this very late today because I have been trying to find a decent image to share with you. It is becoming clear to me that I am developing a better eye for photography, at least as a critic, though perhaps not as a photographer. Due to my effort to always deliver a high quality image, photos that I would have shared with you two months ago no longer make the cut.

Now you are probably thinking this is a good thing. I, however, am thinking this is a bad thing. The problem lies in the fact that I can't seem to take very many photos that meet my new higher standard. Today I spent an hour looking through my archives looking at possible candidates for today's blog. I would open a folder and say "next"; open the next folder, sigh and say "next".

Based on a conversation I had with my Dad, I am led to believe this is just a part of the natural development of an artist. Hopefully soon I will come out of this horrendously limiting "self editing" stage, with the ability to take pictures that satisfy my new desire for excellence.

Oh yeah, the photo is of some girl I saw at the park a few weeks ago. I though she was cute, so I was trying to find an interesting way of framing her, using the playground. Do you think this works? I'm new to photographing people, so any hints you can give are more than appreciated.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 69mm, f/3.5, 1/100 sec, ISO 50

The Bolt and the Beautiful

2006-07-03T09:38:00.000-07:00

I like the idea of this photograph, but I'm not satisfied with the execution. I've had this sitting on my hard drive for a couple of months. I wasn't going to share it, but your constructive criticism has been so helpful of late that I thought you could help me with it.

I looked at several different cropping options, but never found one that had the correct impact. If I were to take the picture again, I would try a couple different compositions, including one in which the bolt is centered, though I'm not sure that would work either. Another composition that could be stronger is a wider angle, setting the bolt even further to the left. What are your thoughts?

This photo was taken in Coal Harbor, North Vancouver. I was there admiring yet another location where mountains meet the sea. While looking up at the majestic scenery, I remembered to look down as well. I'm trying to learn to find the little things around me that we rarely take the time to examine.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 44mm, f/7.1, 1/250 sec, ISO 50

Happy B-Day Canada

2006-07-01T11:26:00.000-07:00

Today is Canada day. As a nation we are celebrating our 139th birthday (I think). In honour of our nation I am posting a photo that was taken in the United States. I guess I'm not very patriotic. I did look for a decent photo that was particularly Canadian, but I couldn't find one.

This is another image from my trip to Bridal Veil Falls in Oregon. There is a large waterfall to the left of these stairs, but I'm not satisfied with the way I photographed it. I didn't like this photo when I first saw it last month, but, after cropping it, I have changed my mind.

The depth of field isn't quite what I would have wanted. I climbed up a steep hill to take this photo, so I couldn't use my tripod on the hill. In order to get a fast enough shutter speed I had to open up my aperture quite a bit. Oh well, it doesn't bother me too much in this image.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/4.5, 1/50 sec, ISO 50

Abstract Masts

2006-06-30T07:49:00.000-07:00

We had a fantastic day of sailing on Wednesday. I took my camera in hopes of capturing some images of a beautiful day. Unfortunately, there was enough haze in the air, that the photos I took of the mountains did not turn out very well. Would a polarizing filter help with that?

This is one of the pictures I took when we got back to the marina. There were several different compositions, but this was my favourite. I feel like I'm really having trouble coming up with interesting compositions these days, but I'll keep shooting in hopes that my creativity will return.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 25mm, f/8.0, 1/80 sec, ISO 50

Lemonade

2006-06-29T10:47:00.000-07:00

I couldn't get the composition I wanted. This fun looking daisy was growing in Bethany's garden and I desperately wanted to take its picture, but my equipment wouldn't cooperate. It's a long list of complaints, but basically my tripod is too tall and my macro setting has too wide of an angle.

I took a few photos of the daisy anyway, searching for a creative way of presenting this flower. None of the results were very appealing, but I kept them anyway, hoping CS2 would come to the rescue. I've been trying to avoid major Photoshopping, but for some reason this seems forgivable because it could be done in any of the free software that is available these days.

The blur was added because I couldn't get close enough to the flower with my tripod, resulting in a rather low-res crop. The blur covers up the low quality a bit, and hey, it looks nice too. I guess the point of this and yesterday's post is that although conditions may not always be great, you can use the flaws to your advantage. When life gives you lemons...

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/6.3, 1/25 sec, ISO 50

Electric Orange

2006-06-28T10:17:00.000-07:00

This picture is a bit of a cop out. I'm in a bit of a hurry this morning (going sailing with the famous Uncle Robert and Aunt Sylvia), and I didn't plan what I was going to share with you today. I have some decent pictures to show you, but I'm being indecisive, so instead you get another sunrise image (sorry Suby, better than a flower though, eh?).

I actually kind of like this photo. All that black appeals to me for some reason. I'm toying with the idea of cropping a bit more off the top, so that the amount of black at both the top and the bottom is exactly equal. I was really excited a couple of months ago when I discovered while photographing a sunset, that you can completely change the colours and mood of a sunset/rise by severely underexposing. Perhaps it is a bit gimmicky, but I think if the composition is strong enough, it can work really well.

When experiencing this sunrise last week, I became annoyed because there were so many power lines in the way. How can you have a nice nature photograph with all that electricity on the horizon? I once complained to the famous Uncle Robert about power lines. He told me I should use them, not try to avoid them. With that in mind, I created this composition.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 44mm, f/8.0, 1/500 sec, ISO 50

Tulip in the Nude

2006-06-27T07:30:00.000-07:00

I chose this photo based on a continued effort to bring you photos that are without major processing. I have another version of this photo that was processed using the channel mixer and other such delights. I'm not going to let you see it. Well, maybe next week, if you're nice to me.

This photo was taken several months ago. To me, it symbolizes the progress I have made as a photographer. When I look at it now, I ask my self why there is such a large space of unappealing dirt in the background, just underneath the subject. Why didn't I lower my tripod a bit so that the green foliage was behind the flower?

I'll tell you why. Because at the time, I didn't know any better. I'm posting the picture anyways, because I still like it. If you don't like it, feel free to tell me. Just don't tell me you dislike it as a result of the patch of dirt behind the flower; that would really bug me. Any other constructive criticism is fair game.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 20mm, f/3.5, 1/30 sec, ISO 50

Grass, Barn, Mountains, Sun, etc.

2006-06-26T10:51:00.000-07:00

Another photo from my most recent dawn outing. I was doing my best to find various compositions while staying in the same location. I didn't want to move because I was afraid I would miss that glorious moment when the sun finally makes its appearance, rising majestically over the mountains.

I'd be curious to hear your strategies for sunrise photography. Do most people stay within several yards of one location, or do they tend to take a few shots and move on? During my two dawn excursions, I have felt pinned down with fear and trepidation, knowing that there is only a finite amount of time in which the lighting is so magnificent. I don't want to waste all that great lighting and fantastic sky by driving or walking to another location, only to find that it isn't as good as my first position.

Given these fears, I did stay in one location for the majority of my time in Ladner. Attempting to find variety in my compositions, I tried ducking down into the grass. Without coffee, I didn't have my wits about me enough to try a variety of shutter speeds and focus options. Next time I try this, I will putting everything out of focus and use a long shutter speed and see what kind of effect I get.

In the meantime, this was the best composition I got while in the grass. I have the same photo without the grass, but I was curious to gauge your opinion on this one. Be sure to view the larger version, as the small picture seems a bit too dark.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 13mm, f/4.5, 1/125 sec, ISO 50

Up the Creek

2006-06-23T21:18:00.000-07:00

Beside my desk there is a fly stuck in a bag filled with tissue paper. It makes a funny sound when it tries to get out. It kinda sounds like a cell phone on steroids. That was a weird thing to say.

When we were in Oregon earlier this month, Bethany took me to a beautiful park called Bridal Veil Falls. I brought my camera and eagerly took photos of a large waterfall and lovely river. I was feeling very intimidated because there were a few guys there with some really sweet cameras. Regardless of my dorky little camera and my feeble tripod, I endeavored to take some quality photos.

I had never taken photos of a river like this, but had seen some pictures of small rivers and creeks that I really liked. I'm having trouble figuring out what makes those images great. What can I do to better capture this kind of scene? Other than cropping a bit of the bottom off, this image has not been processed at all. I am particularly looking for photography tips, rather than processing help.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 9mm, f/8.0, 1/10 sec, ISO 50

Bike Butt

2006-06-23T08:24:00.000-07:00

The response to yesterday's experiment was good enough that I'm posting another "risky shot" today. In reality, I was tired of posting photos of dawn and flowers.

This photo doesn't require much explanation. It has been sitting on my hard drive for quite some time. I liked the way the sun was reflecting off of the chrome. I know it kind of breaks my Photoshop fast, but I did the processing a long time ago. Besides, the only post processing involved was cropping and the vignetting.

I've included a second version of the photo without the vignette. I like the vignette version better, but it doesn't look very good on the web, I don't know why

Feel free to tell me this photo sucks; just make sure you tell me why. This is definitely an experiment, but I really do want to be able to create interesting compositions of a wide variety of subjects.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 67mm, f/3.5, 1/400 sec, ISO 50

A Stupid Lily Photo

2006-06-22T09:05:00.000-07:00

See, I told you it would be stupid. On the weekend I mentioned to you that the more ridiculous of a position I am in when taking a photo, the more I feel like a pro. In the opening chapter of his book Photographing The World Around You, Freeman Patterson seems to imply the same, suggesting we begin to explore plants from underneath or (if it's a bush) from the inside looking out. It was with that in mind that I took this photo while lying in my wife's garden.

To be truthful, I chickened out yesterday. I was going to post this photo, but when I asked Bethany her opinion, the image did not get a favourable review. But today I have realized that it's okay to share my experiment with you. After all, this blog is to help me learn. I want to know how I could better compose a similar photo in the future.

Some will request a greater depth of field, specifically to accommodate that leaf in the bottom left corner. The lowest aperture I can achieve with my camera is f/8.0, so this is as much depth of field as you get. I actually kind of like it the way it is. I tried cropping out everything but the bulk of the flower, but I liked this best. As it stands, there was no post processing done to this image (except to clone out a stray twig in the sky).

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8.0, 1/125 sec, ISO 50

Not a Stupid Lily Photo

2006-06-21T09:43:00.000-07:00

I normally like to change things up around here, but today I'm posting a second dawn photo. It was taken thirty minutes earlier than yesterday and I was facing southeast, instead of northeast. If that isn't enough variety for you, than you'll just have to trust that this is a lot better than the stupid lily photo I was going to share with you today.

The famous Uncle Robert has told me that the excellent light that sunrises provide does not last as long as the lighting conditions found in the evening. I have certainly found this to be true. I actually find dawn photography to be less peaceful - though perhaps more exciting - for this reason.

Knowing that sunrise photography is all about timing, I was rushing to my predetermined location when I saw this creek. I was anxious to get to my field, but I didn't want to ignore the opportunity to create this composition; so I slammed on the brakes (okay, maybe not "slammed", but everything seems more dramatic at that time of day), threw the car into reverse and hopped out with my tripod to capture this. Was it worth the minor delay?

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/8.0, 2.5 sec, ISO 50

Panning for Gold

2006-06-20T09:25:00.000-07:00

My wife has just noted that I was able to get up at 4:00 a.m. this morning "with zeal", while she normally has trouble getting me out of bed at 7:30 or 8:00. I would argue that there was no zeal. I woke up with what could be classified as reluctant anticipation. However, she is right; I no longer have an excuse for sleeping in regularly now that I have demonstrated that I can wake up at any hour I choose.

I attempted my second dawn photo shoot today, again combining it with a barn hunt. Today's location was Ladner, a small community with some farm land about 35 minutes from Vancouver. I arrived at 4:30 and walked through a farmer's field seeking a decent vantage point.

I found a suitable barn and lined it up between me and the sun and camped out for a half hour taking photos every few minutes. The photo you see here is actually four photos stitched together to create the panorama. Later this week I'll share a couple of the other shots I took from this field.

This pano may come across a bit blurry because it underwent some major resizing in order to upload it (it was originally 40 inches wide), but my copy of it is sharp enough. You may notice that the pole just to the right of center looks disjointed. That is a result of the resizing too (I think) because when viewed at a higher resolution it looks normal. Whatever the case, it is not a problem with the stitching.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 11mm, f/8.0, 1/20 sec, ISO 50

Rookie Dawn Treader Strikes Again

2006-06-19T10:33:00.000-07:00

This is another image from a couple of weeks ago of my ill-fated dawn adventure. This has undergone some mild Photoshopping, but it only took me about twenty seconds to do' so maybe that doesn't count.

I found it extremely difficult to expose for both the sky and the ground, so I made two exposures, one overexposed (for the foggy ground) and one underexposed (for the sky). I didn't move my camera's position, so the processing was very simple. I just placed the underexposed image over the other and placed a gradient mask over the ground.

How do the film people take this kind of photo? This seems to be the only way I could get the correct exposure throughout the image. If you know how I can achieve this effect without the use of CS2, please be so kind as to share the technique with yours truly.

(I know the first sentence of this post sucked, [which is very disappointing because I really wanted it to be great] but that's what happens when you write this stuff first thing in the morning. Paragraphs within brackets cannot be blamed on the early hour [it's only 10:00 am after all], but are simply the result of this author having long since given up any pretense of being a spiffy writer. Why are you still reading this?)

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 10mm, f/8.0 (sky) & f/3.5 (ground), 15 sec, ISO 50

Fuzzy White

2006-06-17T09:51:00.000-07:00

Another macro today (still no Photoshop). I'd seen a few great photos of dandelions and I wanted to try one too. Plenty of opportunity, if you know what I mean. One of the things I enjoyed about making this photo was that I got to crawl around on the ground for a while. That always makes me feel like a real photographer. In fact, I need to learn to place myself in strange positions more often. I figure if people are looking at me strange, then I must be doing something right.

I am learning that an image sometimes has a greater impact if you don't include the entire subject. Placing the subject off center is usually wise, but if some of it is outside of the frame it seems to make it feel closer and creates a feeling of wonder. Or maybe I'm just blowing smoke, I don't know...

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/2.7, 1/500 sec, ISO 50

Fuzzy Pink

2006-06-16T10:01:00.000-07:00

For quite some time, I have been trying to make photographs with selective focus. I have seen some excellent images that were taken through a veil of foliage, where the subject is the only thing in focus and everything else is severely blurred.

This was one of my earlier attempts, one of about twelve that I tried that day. It's not very good, but it's the best I've got. I think the technique itself worked pretty well here, but the composition is somewhat flawed. This would have worked better if the surrounding tulips were a different colour than the subject.

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 72mm, f/3.5, 1/80 sec, ISO 50

Still Photoshop Free

2006-06-15T11:46:00.000-07:00

Hi, I'm Tim, and I'm a Photoshopaholic. I've been Adobe free for seven days.

I have to confess that I was pretty cranky about some of the responses to yesterdays photo. I was upset because I am trying to go without Photoshop right now, yet many of you encouraged me to cave in and use the cloning tool. I nearly gave up. I nearly posted an image that had been processed to high heaven. But instead I will remain strong; for one more day at least.

Having said that, I realize that if I'm going to abstain from the fancy software, I need to do a better job with my compositions. The bird growing out of Pigeon Boy's ear was probably unavoidable, but in the future I will be attempting to only include that which is necessary in the image. The battle with mediocrity continues...

This photo doesn't really need explaining. The thing that fascinates me about this image is the perfect sphere that is the droplet on the right. Unfortunately, I couldn't seem to get it in focus . I learned that I could have used a slightly smaller aperture and still had a good bokeh. This is one of those weeks that reminds you, the viewer, of my status as "rookie". Sigh...

Canon PowerShot S2 IS, 6mm, f/2.7, 1/80 sec, ISO 50