D. C. Photographic Images

Another Photo From Garden City, SC

2011-11-14T12:32:00.003-05:00

This photograph was taken shortly after the sun cleared the horizon. I waited until I had exactly the wave formation I liked and took the photograph.

A Few of New Photographs

2011-09-18T10:21:00.002-04:00

Recently I have done some traveling. I spent some time in the Garden City Beach, SC area and the Amelia Island, FL area. I took several photographs which I will be sharing on my website over the next several weeks. Here are some that I have already added:

The two photographs above of the setting sun on sea oats and clouds just after sunrise were both taken at Garden City Beach in South Carolina. They have both been added to the Sunrise/Sunset Gallery.

The picture below of the wild horses was taken at Cumberland Island National Seashore in Georgia. It has been added to the Landscape Gallery

As time permits I will be adding more to the website over the next several weeks so please check back.

Picture of the Week – 6/27/2011

2011-06-27T08:41:00.001-04:00

I took this picture of an amaryllis flower in bright shade on my front porch. The day was very bright and sunny, and while the front porch of my house was shaded, the lighting was bright and even. I hung a piece of black felt cloth over the porch railing to act as a backdrop and set the flower pot on the porch in front of it. With the camera on a tripod, I moved in close enough to have only the flower, a bud, some green leaves and the black background in the picture.

Photograph of a Cardinal

2011-06-03T20:46:00.003-04:00

When we lived in central North Carolina, there were always Cardinals around our back yard, particularly in the winter time. We had a deck in back which could be accessed through a sliding glass door. There was a branch that just off the deck and up a little from the railing.

I knew I could attract the cardinals with some wild bird seed. I also knew that being very skittish, the cardinals would perch and look around before they landed to take some of the seed. So, I put out the seed and watched. I saw where they usually landed on the branch just off the deck.

I set my camera on a tripod and stuck the lens between the blinds on the now open sliding glass door and focused on the branch were I had noticed they most often landed. Then I put out the seed and waited.

This weeks picture is the result of that effort.

Photograph of Statuary Vista in the Norfolk Botanical Gardens

2011-05-26T08:18:00.002-04:00

For a while I was posting a photograph of the day. Once my show season started, I simply did not have the time to post a new photograph every day so I stopped. In the future, I will be posting a new photograph at weekly. Here is the first in the weekly series.
A favorite place of mine for picture taking is the Norfolk Virginia Botanical Gardens. This photograph was taken at one end of what they call Statuary Vista – a long greenway with statues of artists and sculptors.

Picture for the Day and Some Photographs From Southeast Georgia

2011-03-09T20:12:00.001-05:00

Today’s photograph is of a Wind Swept Tree. It was taken at the north end of Jekyll Island, GA, facing across the St Simons Sound to St Simons Island, GA. This photograph has been added to my Landscape Gallery.

Here are just a couple of additional shots from that part of Southeast Georgia. The first photograph is of the St. Simons Island Lighthouse.

This final photograph is the US 17 Bridge over the Brunswick River looking North from the entrance to Jekyll Island.

Photo for Today, March 8, 2011

2011-03-08T12:11:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I didn’t add a photograph. So, today I will put up two new photographs which I recently added to my Landscape Gallery. Both of these photographs were taken at Jacksonville Beach, FL on a very foggy morning. I really liked the pier disappearing into the fog in the first photograph. The stairs to cross over the dune caught my eye as I was heading toward them to leave the beach.

Comments on my photographs are always welcome.

Photo for today, March 6, 2011

2011-03-06T10:00:00.002-05:00

The photo I have chosen for today is one that I call “Anticipation”. I named it “Anticipation” because it reminded me of our vacations at the beach when I was a child. When we finally arrived, the last hurdle to get over before we got to the ocean was the dune. This photo can be found in my Landscape Gallery.

Photo for today, March 4, 2011

2011-03-04T11:42:00.002-05:00

This is another photograph taken when it was very foggy. The sun had just risen above the trees across the lake. I found this to be a very peaceful moment. This photograph is also in my Landscape Gallery.

Photo For Today – March 3, 2011

2011-03-03T07:33:00.002-05:00

This photograph was taken on a foggy morning in Northeast Florida. The sun was just coming up and shining through the fog. I was driving by, saw the scene, stopped and took the photograph. It is in my Sunrise gallery.

St. Marys, GA Mardi Gras Festival

2011-02-23T13:05:00.001-05:00

On March 5, 2011 I will be showing my photography at the Mardi Gras Festival on the waterfront of St. Marys, GA from 9 AM to 5 PM. Hope the great weather we have been having here in Northeast Florida/Southeast Georgia continues for the festival. Here are some of the photographs I recently took at the Crooked River State Park near St. Marys:

Using Backlighting to Make a Silhouette of Your Subject

2011-02-06T14:59:00.001-05:00

I know it has been a while since I last posted one of my “How To” articles but I am now getting back to it. The last 2 articles were about basic concepts. With this article, I will begin to talk about some of the techniques that I use when I’m taking photographs. Again, I will mention that these articles are intended for the novice photographer who wants to learn some techniques for taking better and more interesting photographs.I hope you find the articles interesting and useful.

One way to draw attention to a subject is to back light the subject or to show it as a silhouette. Notice the couple standing on the the top of Jockey Ridge Dune in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina are silhouetted against the light of the setting sun. Showing them as a silhouette makes them stand out in the photograph. Also of note is that the couple is located in the bottom left intersection of the "Rule of Thirds" diagram.

In the photograph below, back lighting the dock and the tree with the setting sun highlights the shape of the tree and the dock and makes them stand out as the first thing your eye is attracted to in the picture.

When you use a silhouette to make your subject stand out, you lose detail in the subject itself. So, your subject has to be something that tells its story with a shape. It has to be recognizable as a shape (like the tree and the dock) without being able to see the details.

There are many subjects that lend themselves to using a silhouette. Notice in this photograph that the fence and the beach are silhouetted against the dawn sky.

Here are a couple more examples of using a silhouette in a photo composition:

In summary, silhouettes are an especially good way to take advantage of strong lighting or background lighting. It is particularly useful in shooting sunrise and sunset photographs and gives an entirely different feel to a photograph.

Exercise: Try taking some photographs using a silhouette of your subject. You can shoot at sunrise or sunset or in strong lighting circumstances such as, the photograph of the shrimp boat above. Remember to to think about the rule of thirds in placing your subject and and keep the photograph simple.

Composition – Basic Concepts #2 – The Rule of Thirds

2010-11-09T13:02:00.001-05:00

The basic concept of two dimensional art composition is called the “rule of thirds”. This says, that if you divide your picture into three equal rows and three equal columns, the primary subject of the picture should be located at one of the intersections.

This applies to pictures painted, drawn, photographed and digitally corrected or created. This applies whether the picture is horizontal or vertical.

The same concept can be used for placement of the horizon. If the sky or the top portion of the photograph is the more important part of the photograph, locate the horizon approximately at the lower line. If, on the other hand the ground or the bottom of the photograph is more important, locate the horizon on the higher line.

Here are some examples:

Notice that the shrimp boat in this photograph is located approximately at the bottom right intersection of the lines in the diagram.

Here, the subject of the photograph, the woman who is watching the waves from under the pier, is also located in the bottom right intersection of the lines.

In this photograph of a swing at the beach, the subject is located in the lower left intersection.

Here are a couple of additional examples. Notice in the photograph below that the first thing your eye catches is the flower at the lower right intersection. Then your eye travels diagonally across to just outside the upper right intersection.

This is also true of the photograph of the rhododendron flowers below. Notice that your eye first goes to the center flower which is approximately located at the upper right intersection.

These last two flower photographs, I believe, really demonstrate the effect of the rule of thirds. In both of the pictures, there are other flowers that may also be of interest. However, the eye is naturally drawn first to the one located at one of the row/column intersections.

Most cameras that have auto focus, tend to focus in the middle. So think about the final photograph and where to place the subject for maximum impact within the limits of the camera. Many cameras will focus by pushing the shutter release half way down and hold the focus while the photograph is composed.

Also remember, the rule of thirds is a guide, not an absolute rule. The photographer has to decide where to place the subject in the photograph to achieve the desired effect.

Summary:

- Once a subject has been determined, it has to be located in the composition of the photograph.

- The rule of thirds takes the plane of the photograph and divides it into 3 equal columns and 3 equal rows. The intersections of the vertical and horizontal lines are the most interesting locations for placing the subject in the photograph.

- Placing the subject right in the middle of the photograph is the least interesting placement of the subject but many auto-focus cameras focus in the middle.

- The rule of thirds is not a fixed and absolute rule but a guide to basic composition.

Composition – Basic Concepts #1- Simplicity

2010-10-15T13:15:00.001-04:00

(As mentioned in an earlier post, this series of articles is intended for novice photographers who know how to used their camera but want to learn some techniques to improve their photographs.)

Once you have decided on the subject or theme of a photograph you are about to take, it is important to consider how you will compose the photograph to make it appealing to the viewer. The composition of the photograph is how you tell the picture’s story. An interesting photograph is one where the subject or theme is made obvious to the viewer by the composition of the photograph. A very important element of composition is simplicity. A well composed photograph is simple and uncluttered.

Let's look at some of the aspects of a simple and uncluttered photograph. Take a look at the photograph of the dog. Notice that there is nothing except the dog that is in focus. You can see that she is outside in a yard with grass all around, but the grass is out of focus so that while you see it and know what it is and it gives a sense of place, it does not distract your eye from the dog. Also, you get the impression that there is something or someone just out of the photograph that has caught her attention, but the photograph only includes the dog. Simple, yet it captures everything necessary for the viewer to know what the photograph is about and to capture some of the dog's personality.

Now, take a look at the second photograph of the dog below. The white spot could be a soda bottle, a fly away grocery bag or a piece of paper .

Notice, when you look at the picture, even though your eye goes first to the dog, you are aware, perhaps unconsciously, of a white spot in the background and your eye is drawn to it. It is a distraction, and makes it more difficult to only concentrate on the dog. It is a weaker composition than the first picture of the dog without the spot.

Keep your photographs simple. Get rid of any unnecessary clutter. Before you look through the viewfinder or the screen on your digital camera, look around for things that may be a distraction in your final photograph. Look for signs, cars, soda cans or other trash. Then, look through the viewfinder or at the screen checking for distractions. Often, you can move a little to the side or pick a different angle and eliminate many distractions.

The photograph above was taken at a park on the beach (out of season). There were signs and trash cans scattered about the grounds. By moving around I was able to eliminate almost all of the signs, and you can't find a trash can. If you look closely, you can see part of a sign on the far right at the rock wall line behind the angled tree. Notice that it is hard to find on a quick look and the impact on the composition has been minimized by getting most of the sign behind the tree. Again, look at the scene and try to eliminate anything that does not add to the composition. It will probably be a distraction if you leave it in the picture.

There are several ways to eliminate distractions. In the example above, I tried various locations in the area until I found what I wanted - a composition that captured the interplay of shadows and light and did not show trash cans and signs. So, look for a different angle and see if you can get better results before taking the photograph.

Another thing you can do to simplify your composition is to use selective focus, like in the photograph of the dog or this photograph of the bee on the flower below.

While the subject of selective focus and depth of field are whole discussions on their own, it is a great way to simplify a photograph under certain circumstances. Simply stated, selective focus highlights the subject by keeping it in sharp focus while the foreground and background of the photograph are out of focus. This technique takes advantage of a very small depth of field. In fact, only the subject itself is in clear focus in most cases. Whenever it is possible for you to use selective focus, without losing all sense of place, it is a great way to simplify your photograph.

Sometimes, there will be things surrounding your subject that you cannot eliminate such as fences, walls, etc., which can not be overcome by moving around or using selective focus. In that case, figure out how to incorporate the object to strengthen your overall composition without giving up the simplicity.

A perfect example of something like this is a fence depicted in the picture below. I often have found that no matter where I moved, I could not get a fence out of the photograph.

The picture above is an example of using the fence in a photograph of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. The fence was there and there was no way to take the photograph without including the fence. So, I used the fence to lead the viewer's eye into the photograph and up to my subject, the lighthouse. However, even with the fence in the photograph, the composition is simple and uncluttered. You don't see any distracting items, such as trash or trash cans on the beach, signs on the fence or people in the background. Everything in the photograph adds something to the overall composition.

I know most people shoot digital today. There is photo editing software available from the very simple to use to the very complex. A lot of the things I mentioned above can be fixed using this software. I’ve done it myself. But, I know from experience that it is much easier and a lot less time consuming to reach down and pick up a piece of trash or move a couple of feet right or left than it is to digitally remove or fix something using photo editing software. Learn to simplify your photograph before you take it. Then use the photo editing software to create rather than fix.

In Summary:

- The composition of a photograph is how the story of the photograph is told.

- A good composition has enough information to tell the story and no more.

- Clutter in a photograph is distracting.

- There are things you can do to remove clutter such as pick-up trash, move around to get the best angle, and use selective focus.

- If you cannot get something out of a photograph, think of how it can be used to strengthen the composition.

Next in series: Composition Basics # 2 – The Rule of Thirds.

Taking better pictures - What makes a good picture?

2010-09-22T12:15:00.001-04:00

If you want to take better photographs or even create pictures digitally, it is good to know the characteristics of a “good” photograph.

First and foremost, a good picture is about something. You don’t just take a picture. You take a picture of something. You are capturing a thing, or person or animal or scene or expressing an emotion. So, if you want anyone to be interested in your photograph you have to decide what the picture is about. A good photograph tells a story.

Unless you are deliberately making part of a photograph out of focus or using soft focus or making an abstract of blurred lights, the subject of a photograph should be in sharp focus. (When possible, use a tripod for the sharpest images.) The photograph should not be too dark or too light. It should be exposed correctly. In other words, a good photograph is technically correct.

Finally,a good photograph is composed in such a way that the subject or theme of the photograph is made clear to the viewer. The composition of a photograph is how the story of the picture is told.

Future articles in this series will all be about some of the things that I consider and some of the techniques that I use when I compose my photographs. In the next article I will be talking basic principles of composition.

A quick summary:

- A good photograph is about something

- A good photograph is focused and exposed correctly.

- A good photograph is composed to make the the picture’s point.

The next article in this series will be: Composition – Basic Concepts

The Washington Oaks Gardens State Park

2010-09-09T14:34:00.002-04:00

Mid-August is probably not the best time to visit a state park and garden in Florida, but I found my recent visit to the Washington Oaks Gardens State Park very enjoyable. There were not a lot of flowers blooming, but a lot of the park was in the shade of large old trees and was a pleasurable walk.

   Entry path to the Gardens © 2010 Dave Collins
The Washington Oaks Gardens State Park is located in Palm Cove on the eastern shore of Florida and is bounded on the east by the Atlantic Ocean and on the west by the Mantanzas River, with State Route A1A running through it. The actual gardens themselves make up a very small portion of the total park but are plenty big for a stroll on a hot day.
Below are some of the images from the gardens.

                                                  Gazebo in the Garden © 2010 Dave Collins

Rose Garden © 2010 Dave Collins

                                    Chair on the porch of the welcome center © 2010 Dave Collins
             © 2010 Dave Collins
There are many large trees and many palm trees throughout the gardens. These two photographs are of a beautiful Live Oak tree in the garden. It was the largest individual tree that I saw while I was there.
© 2010 Dave Collins
                                                    © 2010 Dave Collins
There were many interesting and beautiful things to see in the gardens, even in mid-August. I didn’t get to the rest of the park, but I’m planning a trip for next spring when all of the azaleas and many other flowers will be in bloom. Hopefully, it will not be a very humid 100 degrees like it was on this visit.

Taking Better Pictures

2010-09-01T06:49:00.000-04:00

"Beach at Dawn" Copyright (c) Dave Collins

"Sunset with Dock" Copyright (c) Dave Collins

Anyone can take a snapshot and the snapshot will document what was going on at that instant. But, will it be an interesting picture? Will it be a picture that others will find interesting to look at? With a little bit of thought before you snap the shutter every picture you take can be better and more interesting.

Over the next couple of months, I will be providing articles about compositional techniques and tools that I use when taking photographs. I hope that you find the articles interesting and useful in your own photography. I will talk about the techniques in simple to understand terms with lots of photo examples and some simple and fun exercises.

Many people today shoot with a digital camera. I shoot film and digital. The concepts in these articles apply to digital photography as well as traditional film photography. I often hear people talk about fixing a photograph in the computer. Maybe they can. But it will take a lot longer and be a lot more work than taking a well composed photograph to start with.

These articles are primarily intended for anyone who knows how to use their camera and wants to learn more of the artistic aspects of photography. Knowing what makes a good photograph, simple composition and exposure techniques will help you take better and more interesting pictures whether they are of family and friends or scenic landscapes.

Day Lily Copyright (c) Dave Collins

You will not find much about the technical aspects of photography such as exposure, focusing, camera use or other technical aspects of photography. You can find that information in your camera operating manual, in any photographer's handbook or in many on line articles.

If you are really interested in improving your photographs, I also suggest that you look at a lot of photographs by many photographers. You can go on-line and look at photographs; in libraries and book stores, look through picture books and magazines. See how the photographers utilize various techniques to compose their photographs. You are looking at the photos to stimulate your creativity and to get ideas about how techniques can be applied when you take a photograph.

"Bridge in the Fog" Copyright (c) Dave Collins

Then, practice, practice, practice. "Practice makes perfect" is more than just a saying. Like any skill, you sharpen your picture taking skills with practice. First, you will become proficient with the mechanical aspects of using your camera. In addition, with practice, you will become more comfortable with the thought process of composing your photos.

In summary:
- I will be sharing some techniques I use in taking photographs.
- The information is aimed primarily at novice photographers
- The techniques apply to digital photography as well as traditional film.
- Studying other photographer's work will help to stimulate your creativity.
- Practice will improve your photography skills.

Next article in the series: What makes a "good" photograph?

A few more fog photographs

2010-08-19T14:23:00.000-04:00

Here are some additional photographs I took in the fog recently. I really do enjoy driving around when I can on foggy mornings and finding subjects like these:


Trees in a pasture

Below are a couple I took of power lines and a power line right of way with the sun starting to shine through the surrounding trees:


These two were taken of the same right of way from different angles.

Taking photographs on foggy days

2010-08-16T07:04:00.000-04:00

The heavy fog bank over the Cape Fear River formed an excellent backdrop for this photograph of an old shed

I enjoy taking photographs on foggy days. Particularly early in the morning. I find that the fog tends to mute sounds and it is very peaceful. The fog makes a great backdrop for may different types of photographs and lends a little mystery to a scene. Also, a photograph taken in heavy fog can be a really good black and white subject since the colors in a heavy fog are sometimes muted.

Other times, color works well on foggy mornings. In this springtime photograph, the green grass contrasted by the daffodils and the winter tree are all set off by the solid gray background.

In this photograph taken in the fog, the color works well. There is a lot of contrasts including the green grass, the daffodils, the blue sky above the fog bank and the sunlit superstructure of the bridge.

Color is also interesting in this photograph of a crepe myrtle tree that has been cut back for winter with the morning sun coming through the fog in the background.

I really liked the look of the tree against the early morning sun through the fog.

Since I am still a film shooter, I had my second camera filled with black and white film and took a similar shot.

To me, the black and white photograph has a different feel and mood than the color photograph of the same subject taken only a couple of minutes apart.

Welcome!

2010-08-10T16:59:00.002-04:00

Thanks for stopping by to visit my new photography blog. I hope to have interesting material for you on a fairly regular basis, so stop back by often.