Photo Walk; an event in which the participants are on a predetermined route and photographing anything that strikes their fancy. The purpose of this walk is two fold. First to offer an event that will hopefully challenges the individual to think about the photographic process in a new way. The second is to get a lot of photographers together to share ideas, photos, food, drink and a good time in one place. If this sounds like a great way to spend a fall afternoon then I have an event for you.
On October 13th I have created a Photo Walk that I believe will not only be fun but challenging to the average photographer. We will start at Green Square Park and move west towards the river and south ending up at Parlor City Pub. All that is on that route is what we are photographing.
I created this event to challenge you and offer an opportunity to explore new ways of photographing all that is around you. On the whole the route may not look like it offers much to photograph, but that is the challenge. There is a lot to shoot, you just have to be creative in the way you shoot it. If you have see my Google Plus and Facebook page you will have seen some of what I had done recently along that route. These are only just a few of the many things to shoot and how you shoot it may be and will be different in the way I did.
Once we are done or 6 pm arrives we will gather at Parlor City for food, drink and conversation about the days event. At this time you can share the photographs taken or wait to finish them up and upload them to a flicker account for others to see.
This event is open to all levels of photographers in all stages of their photographic experience. I will be open to help along the way as well as your fellow photographers. This event is not a formal class so there is not a specific course agenda to follow, just the hope that you will expand your photographic mind. However I am planning to hold classes that cover subjects that anyone from a beginner to the advance photographer will enjoy. Class information will be forth coming soon stay in touch.
So, up for the challenge? Want to try something different? Want to just get out and hang out with people with the same interests? Then join us on Saturday Oct 13 at 2pm in Green Square Park and be ready to try something new.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Monday, September 3, 2012
This Weekends Labor
Because it was Labor Day Weekend did not mean that I sat idle. Well Sunday was very idle but other than that day I have been busy creating photographs. Starting Saturday I when out to find things that struck a note with me. I have lived here all my life but this town is changing all the time and the way I see it in my minds eye is not always the reality of the situation.
Like I said I started out Saturday afternoon by the Great American Building just to look. Of course I took my camera. I figured that if I saw something I wanted to look not only to work out how I was going to photograph it in my minds eye, but I wanted to see it in the viewfinder. I have found with a few subjects the way I see it in my head doesn’t always translate in the same way in the viewfinder.
After the flood of 08 Cedar Rapids had been building a new Federal Courthouse Building down by the Great American Building (GAB). A design that is curved in the front with metal pillars and lots of glass. The middle has an open space that from either side you can see through. From one side it depending where you are standing it frames the Allient Building. As I walked around the building the side facing west caught my eye, so I sat and stared at it.
I started to work out how I wanted to capture this building. I was caught by the strong lines that push my eye to follow up and then left to right. The over hang in combination of the overhang balances nicely with the solid walls where the courts are housed. So I set up the camera on the tripod, placed the graduated ND filter on the lens and began to frame it. I knew I wanted a long exposure because I wanted the clouds drag through the sky to add a complementary motion against the lines of the building. Once I had it framed I thought I would snap a few photos just to be able to workout what I wanted to do with it later.
I then went to the a bridge that caught my eye when I biked to worked each day. Specifically the underside of the bridge. It had arches and shapes the repeated and moving water. Again I sat and worked out the angles looking through the viewfinder and checking exposures. After taking a few photos I was not happy with the results. Although the repeating shapes were pleasing it was the what was on the side or background of the photo that was distracting. So I walked across the bridge to check out the other side. In a nut shell it was not as good as I hoped. I think what makes the long bridge and peer shots is either an interesting background or the lack of on and this bridge had neither.
By this time I was ready to head home. As the GAB came in to view I started to work on how I wanted to photograph this building. The glass and angles is what made me want to photograph this building. After walking around it I found the spot I wanted to shoot. Going through the same process as the Fed Building I worked out the angels and exposures I thought would achieve my vision to print. I took a few photos and when home. With both buildings I took notes to use later to help move what is in my head to the paper.
I got home and with sufficient amount time passing I started to work the images. Again I am still in my process of working the image out to paper. Because I shot in RAW format I have some latitudes in the exposures. I begin with the Federal Building . I know that I want the strong lines of the building to stand out. The sky is key for that. The other element was the light on the glass. I did not want strong reflections off the glass that caused blinding highlights but it should accent the glass. Then the overall detail should not be lost to shadow except for a few spots.
I started out tweaking the exposure in RAW and bringing it over to PhotoShop. I started to use layer masking tool in combination with the curves tool. When I do exposure corrections I have started to think in zones. It’s new in a way. I have always done it but I never had a name for it or tied it with the Zone System. I don’t know why but I have always kept that thought process separate even though they are the same. So I move the windows down to a Zone 7ish from the 9 it was. After I established that I moved around the photograph and adjusted, burned, dodged the areas to make the overall grayscale pleasing while keeping it wide. The clouds started to fall into place during this process. I wanted them in motion but as they stands now I could not have planned it any better.
The upper right hand corner is hovering around a Zone 9 then moves down towards the building to a 8 and 7 with the edges a 3. That light really accents the west side glass so well. In the shadow areas I brought up enough detail so the metal pillars just don’t go up to a black abyss but not enough to be distracting.
At this point the photograph was still black and white. I like black and white but it can be a little cold so I like to warm things up and move it to a sepia tone. Once I did that I was starting to see the textures and grittiness of the glass and how rough the building looked for being almost finished . This is were I was not sure if I had been true to my vision or if I strayed off to something else. So I slept on it.
The next day I looked at it again. I came to the conclusion that it was both. A version of what I had in mind and a creation that built and expanded on it. I have to say I kind of surprised myself with the end product. For the final print I am toying with putting it on a metallic finish and of course make it BIG! If all comes out the way I think it will I am going to print it, frame it, and put it in the gallery. Keep you posted.
Like I said I started out Saturday afternoon by the Great American Building just to look. Of course I took my camera. I figured that if I saw something I wanted to look not only to work out how I was going to photograph it in my minds eye, but I wanted to see it in the viewfinder. I have found with a few subjects the way I see it in my head doesn’t always translate in the same way in the viewfinder.
After the flood of 08 Cedar Rapids had been building a new Federal Courthouse Building down by the Great American Building (GAB). A design that is curved in the front with metal pillars and lots of glass. The middle has an open space that from either side you can see through. From one side it depending where you are standing it frames the Allient Building. As I walked around the building the side facing west caught my eye, so I sat and stared at it.
I started to work out how I wanted to capture this building. I was caught by the strong lines that push my eye to follow up and then left to right. The over hang in combination of the overhang balances nicely with the solid walls where the courts are housed. So I set up the camera on the tripod, placed the graduated ND filter on the lens and began to frame it. I knew I wanted a long exposure because I wanted the clouds drag through the sky to add a complementary motion against the lines of the building. Once I had it framed I thought I would snap a few photos just to be able to workout what I wanted to do with it later.
I then went to the a bridge that caught my eye when I biked to worked each day. Specifically the underside of the bridge. It had arches and shapes the repeated and moving water. Again I sat and worked out the angles looking through the viewfinder and checking exposures. After taking a few photos I was not happy with the results. Although the repeating shapes were pleasing it was the what was on the side or background of the photo that was distracting. So I walked across the bridge to check out the other side. In a nut shell it was not as good as I hoped. I think what makes the long bridge and peer shots is either an interesting background or the lack of on and this bridge had neither.
By this time I was ready to head home. As the GAB came in to view I started to work on how I wanted to photograph this building. The glass and angles is what made me want to photograph this building. After walking around it I found the spot I wanted to shoot. Going through the same process as the Fed Building I worked out the angels and exposures I thought would achieve my vision to print. I took a few photos and when home. With both buildings I took notes to use later to help move what is in my head to the paper.
I got home and with sufficient amount time passing I started to work the images. Again I am still in my process of working the image out to paper. Because I shot in RAW format I have some latitudes in the exposures. I begin with the Federal Building . I know that I want the strong lines of the building to stand out. The sky is key for that. The other element was the light on the glass. I did not want strong reflections off the glass that caused blinding highlights but it should accent the glass. Then the overall detail should not be lost to shadow except for a few spots.
I started out tweaking the exposure in RAW and bringing it over to PhotoShop. I started to use layer masking tool in combination with the curves tool. When I do exposure corrections I have started to think in zones. It’s new in a way. I have always done it but I never had a name for it or tied it with the Zone System. I don’t know why but I have always kept that thought process separate even though they are the same. So I move the windows down to a Zone 7ish from the 9 it was. After I established that I moved around the photograph and adjusted, burned, dodged the areas to make the overall grayscale pleasing while keeping it wide. The clouds started to fall into place during this process. I wanted them in motion but as they stands now I could not have planned it any better.
The upper right hand corner is hovering around a Zone 9 then moves down towards the building to a 8 and 7 with the edges a 3. That light really accents the west side glass so well. In the shadow areas I brought up enough detail so the metal pillars just don’t go up to a black abyss but not enough to be distracting.
At this point the photograph was still black and white. I like black and white but it can be a little cold so I like to warm things up and move it to a sepia tone. Once I did that I was starting to see the textures and grittiness of the glass and how rough the building looked for being almost finished . This is were I was not sure if I had been true to my vision or if I strayed off to something else. So I slept on it.
The next day I looked at it again. I came to the conclusion that it was both. A version of what I had in mind and a creation that built and expanded on it. I have to say I kind of surprised myself with the end product. For the final print I am toying with putting it on a metallic finish and of course make it BIG! If all comes out the way I think it will I am going to print it, frame it, and put it in the gallery. Keep you posted.
Thursday, August 23, 2012
What is Photography and a Photographer
Merriam Webster defines photography as; The art or process of producing an image(s) by the action of radiant energy and especially light on a sensitive surface such as film or optical sensor. Take a moment and think about that definition. Would you have or do you define photography in that manner? When you go out and take a photograph is that what your are setting out to do? Are you thinking that photograph in terms of capturing light? For me I know that light the most important part of the art but I guess I did not think of it as capturing light.
If your like most people, myself included, I would think of photography as the capturing of a scene that evokes an emotion or response by the viewer. But the logic is in front of you. It is all about the light. The light that is defused, direct, in the shadows and high lights. It is the way we control it on the film or sensor to the final print that makes or breaks the photograph. Light is to the photographer like paint is to the painter. It is our tool our medium that we must master in order to create the photograph we want.
Light is malleable. There are ways to shape the light by using diffusers, gobos, reflectors, and fill light. This is done a lot in portraits in order to create a pleasing final portrait. But this was not done only in photography. In fact the really good photographers understood this and looked to the master portrait painters to learn how to create a great portrait.
If you study the portrait painters of the baroque aria, like Rembrandt, you notice the use of lights and darks. The careful use of light that shows detail in the shadows and highlights. How light is manipulated to give depth to the subject(s) and the surrounds. That is what a good portrait photographer tries to do. Although the subjects and surroundings have changed, the strategies are still the same. Create a lighting situations by manipulating the light around them to create a pleasing portraits.
Light can be also natural or not manipulated. Landscape, nature or any photographer that photographs large areas. But instead of manipulating the light they wait for it. The circumstance of being at the right place at the right time is not played out with this type of photographer. Instead they study the area, waiting patiently for the right light that they can use. Once they understand their subject this photographer breaks down the light in to an exposure that would best fit what they are creating. Through this exposure the photographer either develops the film accordingly or manipulates it in a program like Lightroom, PhotoShop, or the many others to create the print that expresses their interpretation of the subject.
In either case the photographer is taking in all the light and manipulating it through exposure or tools of the trade to arrive to an end product that pleases them. They are painting with light much like the masters of old used their paints. But unlike the Masters the photographer of today we have many mediums in which to place that image on or with.
For the most part I see, and participated, the placement of images on the internet. The internet for its part is a medium that can be viral but not the best way to reproduce your image. There are many factors that can make your image look very poor. One would be the monitor. Not every ones monitor is color correct or of the higher quality to adequately reproduce your image. Image size also comes to mind. For most monitors all you see at best is a fifteen inch high image of your work. Because of lower resolutions the reproduction of the work can look pixilated, soft, dark or light but never at its best.
Prints are the best way to truly experience photograph and this is where you can get lost in how you want it printed. You have choices of photographic paper, inkjet prints on different types of paper, metal, metal like paper, cardstock, mugs and many others. For me large prints are the best and that is again where good photographer comes into play. See the larger the print, the more the flaws come out. If the image resolution is too low, image too soft, not clean or over processed all that comes out in a big print. As a photographer you must know and understand this. You must be able to create a photo, manipulate it to be able to print it in any size you want. Blow any of the steps to create a good photograph and the end produce will disappoint
Being a photographer is to paint with light. To understand light and use the tools at your hand to create the image you want. Being a photographer takes patients and vision to see your subject in a final product. To be a photographer you must shoot a lot of photographs in order to grow, you must be willing to fail at an image in order to succeed in the end. Being a photographer isn’t about the equipment you collect or the price you pay, its about understanding your tools and using them to the fullest in order to get the image you want. Being a photographer is always being fascinated by the light and ways to paint with it. Because that is what we do. Some very well and others not so.
If your like most people, myself included, I would think of photography as the capturing of a scene that evokes an emotion or response by the viewer. But the logic is in front of you. It is all about the light. The light that is defused, direct, in the shadows and high lights. It is the way we control it on the film or sensor to the final print that makes or breaks the photograph. Light is to the photographer like paint is to the painter. It is our tool our medium that we must master in order to create the photograph we want.
Light is malleable. There are ways to shape the light by using diffusers, gobos, reflectors, and fill light. This is done a lot in portraits in order to create a pleasing final portrait. But this was not done only in photography. In fact the really good photographers understood this and looked to the master portrait painters to learn how to create a great portrait.
If you study the portrait painters of the baroque aria, like Rembrandt, you notice the use of lights and darks. The careful use of light that shows detail in the shadows and highlights. How light is manipulated to give depth to the subject(s) and the surrounds. That is what a good portrait photographer tries to do. Although the subjects and surroundings have changed, the strategies are still the same. Create a lighting situations by manipulating the light around them to create a pleasing portraits.
Light can be also natural or not manipulated. Landscape, nature or any photographer that photographs large areas. But instead of manipulating the light they wait for it. The circumstance of being at the right place at the right time is not played out with this type of photographer. Instead they study the area, waiting patiently for the right light that they can use. Once they understand their subject this photographer breaks down the light in to an exposure that would best fit what they are creating. Through this exposure the photographer either develops the film accordingly or manipulates it in a program like Lightroom, PhotoShop, or the many others to create the print that expresses their interpretation of the subject.
In either case the photographer is taking in all the light and manipulating it through exposure or tools of the trade to arrive to an end product that pleases them. They are painting with light much like the masters of old used their paints. But unlike the Masters the photographer of today we have many mediums in which to place that image on or with.
For the most part I see, and participated, the placement of images on the internet. The internet for its part is a medium that can be viral but not the best way to reproduce your image. There are many factors that can make your image look very poor. One would be the monitor. Not every ones monitor is color correct or of the higher quality to adequately reproduce your image. Image size also comes to mind. For most monitors all you see at best is a fifteen inch high image of your work. Because of lower resolutions the reproduction of the work can look pixilated, soft, dark or light but never at its best.
Prints are the best way to truly experience photograph and this is where you can get lost in how you want it printed. You have choices of photographic paper, inkjet prints on different types of paper, metal, metal like paper, cardstock, mugs and many others. For me large prints are the best and that is again where good photographer comes into play. See the larger the print, the more the flaws come out. If the image resolution is too low, image too soft, not clean or over processed all that comes out in a big print. As a photographer you must know and understand this. You must be able to create a photo, manipulate it to be able to print it in any size you want. Blow any of the steps to create a good photograph and the end produce will disappoint
Being a photographer is to paint with light. To understand light and use the tools at your hand to create the image you want. Being a photographer takes patients and vision to see your subject in a final product. To be a photographer you must shoot a lot of photographs in order to grow, you must be willing to fail at an image in order to succeed in the end. Being a photographer isn’t about the equipment you collect or the price you pay, its about understanding your tools and using them to the fullest in order to get the image you want. Being a photographer is always being fascinated by the light and ways to paint with it. Because that is what we do. Some very well and others not so.
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Focus Focus Focus
I think the hardest thing about trying to get my foot hold in getting my work out there is the fact that I get easily distracted…..(Sorry shiny object) I mean I have so many ideas that I would like to try, just when I think of one to try something else pops up. That reminds me I need to get more soda and dog food. Crap. Or the other thing that happens is that I hear a really good pod cast with great ideas that totally puts my ideas to the back burner. Did I turn off the stove?
So here is what I did. I got a note pad and I am prioritizing the ideas I have and when I am going to act on them The note pad is just plain and I can draw and color..Speaking of color my fish looks like an odd color. So are oods. Oods are a strange looking creature…Anyway I am currently working out the priority of the ideas and hopefully I can get them started.
Here are just a few things I am mulling over. First I would like to figurer a way to stand out from the rest. There is a lot in a name and not that I am thinking of changing my name..Although when I was a kid I wanted to be called Magnum and grow the porn star mustache. But back to the naming thing. I could say I am a photographer and I would not be lying. But the title photographer is not carrying the weight I wanted it to. So I am working on a title that fits me. Crazy has been suggested.
The other thing I am thinking over is teaching a class or two. I believe that if I can, and you too, teach people that it is more than aiming the camera and pushing a button to photography then the title and our prices will make more since to joe public.
So focusing has been my problem this week but I think with this notebook I can keep my mind on the right path. Oh and as of today I have not heard back from the gallery I submitted work to.
So here is what I did. I got a note pad and I am prioritizing the ideas I have and when I am going to act on them The note pad is just plain and I can draw and color..Speaking of color my fish looks like an odd color. So are oods. Oods are a strange looking creature…Anyway I am currently working out the priority of the ideas and hopefully I can get them started.
Here are just a few things I am mulling over. First I would like to figurer a way to stand out from the rest. There is a lot in a name and not that I am thinking of changing my name..Although when I was a kid I wanted to be called Magnum and grow the porn star mustache. But back to the naming thing. I could say I am a photographer and I would not be lying. But the title photographer is not carrying the weight I wanted it to. So I am working on a title that fits me. Crazy has been suggested.
The other thing I am thinking over is teaching a class or two. I believe that if I can, and you too, teach people that it is more than aiming the camera and pushing a button to photography then the title and our prices will make more since to joe public.
So focusing has been my problem this week but I think with this notebook I can keep my mind on the right path. Oh and as of today I have not heard back from the gallery I submitted work to.
Monday, August 6, 2012
Update on Photographic Journey
No I have not reached the end of my photographic journey just a refueling point I guess. So here is my update of what I have been doing.
As you can see by the other post of today I am working towards putting a website together. The only way of getting my stuff out there is to get a website gallery to show the work. And if people want to buy my work my website will have a way of doing so.
I have submitted work to a local gallery to have it juried in. The owners are going to look and judge whether or not I fit their gallery. I printed and matted 4 photographs that I felt represented my work. I just printed them as 8x12 and matted them so they looked complete. I thought about framing them but I have only so much to spend and providing a way to mail them back to the house would get pricy. If I am selected to sell there I have to come up with items to sell. I would like to sell big gallery wraps but I do understand that I should have some small items to sell. I am not a big fan of small prints. Too me small prints should have a function like a post card, book marker but not something you hang on a wall. Just my opinion.
In the between time I had spent a lot of time behind the camera shooting stuff around the house. I tried to photograph quality not quantity if that makes sense. I sat and observed before I shot, taking the time to look at the whole picture and not just react and shoot only to be disappointed in the end results. I also worked on my in camera editing. What I mean by that is concentrate on composition as well as exposure. I am limited in how I shoot now which I believe makes me a better shooter. I only have PhotoShop Elements 3 to use which doesn’t support RAW format. So by taking the time to get what I want I don’t find myself saying “I’ll shoot it and fix it later in PhotoShop.” I recommend this exercise to everyone. By pushing yourself up front you do less in post production which yields a better work of art.
So the goals I have is to get the website up by the end of September, come up with products to sell in the gallery that is unique. I have a book project I am in the process of doing that once it goes into production I will document it’s creation. Oh and photograph more. Ultimately I would like to be making a living at my photography and not what I am doing now. Not that what I do now is bad but I believe you should be happy doing what you do. It’s a long road before I can quit my job but
As you can see by the other post of today I am working towards putting a website together. The only way of getting my stuff out there is to get a website gallery to show the work. And if people want to buy my work my website will have a way of doing so.
I have submitted work to a local gallery to have it juried in. The owners are going to look and judge whether or not I fit their gallery. I printed and matted 4 photographs that I felt represented my work. I just printed them as 8x12 and matted them so they looked complete. I thought about framing them but I have only so much to spend and providing a way to mail them back to the house would get pricy. If I am selected to sell there I have to come up with items to sell. I would like to sell big gallery wraps but I do understand that I should have some small items to sell. I am not a big fan of small prints. Too me small prints should have a function like a post card, book marker but not something you hang on a wall. Just my opinion.
In the between time I had spent a lot of time behind the camera shooting stuff around the house. I tried to photograph quality not quantity if that makes sense. I sat and observed before I shot, taking the time to look at the whole picture and not just react and shoot only to be disappointed in the end results. I also worked on my in camera editing. What I mean by that is concentrate on composition as well as exposure. I am limited in how I shoot now which I believe makes me a better shooter. I only have PhotoShop Elements 3 to use which doesn’t support RAW format. So by taking the time to get what I want I don’t find myself saying “I’ll shoot it and fix it later in PhotoShop.” I recommend this exercise to everyone. By pushing yourself up front you do less in post production which yields a better work of art.
So the goals I have is to get the website up by the end of September, come up with products to sell in the gallery that is unique. I have a book project I am in the process of doing that once it goes into production I will document it’s creation. Oh and photograph more. Ultimately I would like to be making a living at my photography and not what I am doing now. Not that what I do now is bad but I believe you should be happy doing what you do. It’s a long road before I can quit my job but
Building a better website.
Well maybe it would be more correctly stated, finding a web hosting site that fits my needs. There are many criteria’s that I need form a website; it must look good, easy to operate, able to sell work, and above all I must be able to afford it.
Websites are important in order to attract customers who are either wanting to buy your work or your services. In checking out many photographer’s websites I saw what I liked and disliked. What was easy to run and what was not so easy. I am drawn to the sites that is easy to load on my machine as well as easy to navigate. Believe me I found a lot of sites were that was not the case. In my world, and can’t believe that I am alone, I don’t want to have to think too hard to find what I want.
When I found a site that I thought was constructed well, easy to navigate and looked very sharp I scanned for a name to Google. Funny a lot of the good sites did not have a hosting site that I could get information from. Too bad so I did the next best thing, Google photography host sites. Now that I have done some research on what I liked in a site I could apply that knowledge to the array of host sites that popped up on my search.
First I needed to know what my needs were and what I wanted the site do for me. I thought I just wanted to have a gallery type of site that would not only have my photos but a blog for me to communicate with. But the more I though about it the more I did not want to loose possible impulse sales from visitors. So I started to look at websites that offered marketing and sales options.
When you talk about sales, marketing, placement of your site on search engines you can either find sites that have a great price but not so great templates, or high prices and great looking templates. Lets face it at this junction in my life I can not justify paying $500 a month for a site that I may not even get that in sales for the year. For the ones that I could afford more often I found they had cheesy templates which did not give off the look I was going for.
After some hours spent researching I found a site that was in my price range, had professional templates, marketing tools, easy to navigate for user and author, the ability to have a blog and link into social networks. I will leave the name out of it at this time until I am live and out there. During this process I will report back on the whole process of build and launching the site. Once it is up and going then I will let you know who I went with. I am hoping to get things rolling by the end of this month. I have $150 budgeted for the project and should have that by the end of the month. Keep you posted.
Websites are important in order to attract customers who are either wanting to buy your work or your services. In checking out many photographer’s websites I saw what I liked and disliked. What was easy to run and what was not so easy. I am drawn to the sites that is easy to load on my machine as well as easy to navigate. Believe me I found a lot of sites were that was not the case. In my world, and can’t believe that I am alone, I don’t want to have to think too hard to find what I want.
When I found a site that I thought was constructed well, easy to navigate and looked very sharp I scanned for a name to Google. Funny a lot of the good sites did not have a hosting site that I could get information from. Too bad so I did the next best thing, Google photography host sites. Now that I have done some research on what I liked in a site I could apply that knowledge to the array of host sites that popped up on my search.
First I needed to know what my needs were and what I wanted the site do for me. I thought I just wanted to have a gallery type of site that would not only have my photos but a blog for me to communicate with. But the more I though about it the more I did not want to loose possible impulse sales from visitors. So I started to look at websites that offered marketing and sales options.
When you talk about sales, marketing, placement of your site on search engines you can either find sites that have a great price but not so great templates, or high prices and great looking templates. Lets face it at this junction in my life I can not justify paying $500 a month for a site that I may not even get that in sales for the year. For the ones that I could afford more often I found they had cheesy templates which did not give off the look I was going for.
After some hours spent researching I found a site that was in my price range, had professional templates, marketing tools, easy to navigate for user and author, the ability to have a blog and link into social networks. I will leave the name out of it at this time until I am live and out there. During this process I will report back on the whole process of build and launching the site. Once it is up and going then I will let you know who I went with. I am hoping to get things rolling by the end of this month. I have $150 budgeted for the project and should have that by the end of the month. Keep you posted.
Monday, June 4, 2012
Bird Feeder
Well today I created my flat bed bird feeder that has a perch just above it. To complete the feeder it only took about an hour and I think it will last a few seasons. I made it out of partial board and a tree branch for the perch. Simple and hopefully effective in attracting birds for the better shot of them on a branch.
Sound great on paper it will be another in practice right? I am anticipating the camera potentially spooking them or the shutter sound, exposures either too dark or light, So I will be experimenting with camouflage and using the P setting (I hate the P setting). I am also considering creating a blind in front of the feeder to take full control of the camera but will see.
My next step is to fill the bird feeder and see how they like it. If that goes well then add the tripod to the scene then everything. This could take a few weeks to get to the first photo or it could take a couple of days who knows.
Keep you posted on what is working and what is not along with photos.
The other thing I have been working on is my second round of photos to get in to the unnamed micro stock company. The first round was kind of a kick in the gut and took my time to reflect on what they said. I also had to clean out the basement and create a studio spot. You would think getting photos in a stock place wouldn’t be that hard, but it is. Not impossible but it is hard. And that is probably a good thing because there is a lot of crap out there and to be honest some people do not know the difference.
Most of my problem was focus or placement so in the past few months I have read book about design, taken photos, and really worked on my issues. I am by no means cured of all my ills but I think I am recovering each day. I have a few photos I am enamored with and even printed one as a 5x7 of one, the lily, but still striving for more. So far I have 4 out 10 photographs shot. The bird photos are one photograph on the list of stock photos I want to send along with the bike, lab stuff and so on.
If you want to see what I have done just jump on this link and check out the photos. There is a few photos but not all of them.
Here is the set up; I have filled the bird feeder with whatever I am trying to attract, black seed, meal worms, fruit and so on. I then set up the camera on a tripod with the focus and exposure locked. I then bow out of the scene and let the birds come to the feeder. As they feed some are bound to use the perch to eat and wait for the next round and when they do, I trip the camera with the remote and take the photo..
My next step is to fill the bird feeder and see how they like it. If that goes well then add the tripod to the scene then everything. This could take a few weeks to get to the first photo or it could take a couple of days who knows.
Keep you posted on what is working and what is not along with photos.
The other thing I have been working on is my second round of photos to get in to the unnamed micro stock company. The first round was kind of a kick in the gut and took my time to reflect on what they said. I also had to clean out the basement and create a studio spot. You would think getting photos in a stock place wouldn’t be that hard, but it is. Not impossible but it is hard. And that is probably a good thing because there is a lot of crap out there and to be honest some people do not know the difference.
Most of my problem was focus or placement so in the past few months I have read book about design, taken photos, and really worked on my issues. I am by no means cured of all my ills but I think I am recovering each day. I have a few photos I am enamored with and even printed one as a 5x7 of one, the lily, but still striving for more. So far I have 4 out 10 photographs shot. The bird photos are one photograph on the list of stock photos I want to send along with the bike, lab stuff and so on.
If you want to see what I have done just jump on this link and check out the photos. There is a few photos but not all of them.
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