Falling off...

I know it's a little early in the game to all ready be losing...but I was just awakened to the fact that I am in SERIOUS need of updating my website. Sooooo...until I am updated, I will have to tide you over without my words and just my pictures. But hey, that's all you came to see anyway is it not? ;-)
As the saying goes, "A picture says a thousand words".

0.4 sec at f/ 4.5, ISO 200. 28mm of 18-55mm lens.

Never Afraid

You will never get a great shot if you are afraid! And, when I say never, I mean never unless you are one of those lucky scum that get the kind of shot on accident that we dedicated photographers are only beginning to get on purpose after years of hard work! Of course, no hard feelings because that’s how I started out…with a couple of extremely lucky shots that is.

Back to the point.. Be adventurous, lay on the ground, ask people to pose in silly positions, get out in the rain! Like in this shot…edited exposure, contrast, and saturation. 1/1250 sec at f/ 3.2, ISO 640. 60 mm lens.

Awkward Positions

Often times when posing people for a portrait I explain what I want them to do and the explanation leads to some comical facial expressions, “You want me to do what?”. I must be quick to reassure them that they will look great, and more often than not that “awkward position” ends up being one of their favorite shots.

However,do be careful not to make the awkward position an uncomfortable one or it will be written all over their face in the photograph.

First here is a shot I took as a quick light check and it happens to work great for a position example. It’s not the kind of body arrangement you would find most guys just sitting around in, but it’s also not too far out there.

The second shot is the actual product of how I arranged him. He looks comfortable, manly, and even slimmer.

1/80 sec at f/ 2.5, ISO 200. 35mm Lens.

The Direction of Light

Two days ago I told you, “You should always keep light in the subject’s eyes”. Well now I’m going to tell you, you can break that rule!

Light is the essence of photography, its very core and being. Hence the name PHOTO (light) GRAPHY (study), the study of light! So, obviously the first thing you need to think of is your light and where you want it. Your light sets the tone of your photograph.

Here we have all the light focused on her baby belly and her face looking down at her baby, giving an endearing photo with a clear focus point.
1/250 sec at f/ 2.8, ISO 400. 35mm Lens. One 24 inch speedlight softbox to the right of photo.

Depth of Field

Play with your Depth of field for a more interesting photograph.

How do you change depth of field? Adjust your f-stop (or Aperture) number, you may have to read your camera manual to learn how to reach this setting. The lower the number the more shallow your depth of field will be, the higher the number the more scene you will get in clear focus.

This is an example of a very shallow depth of field. 1/100 Sec at f/ 2.0, ISO 200. 35 mm.

The Light In His Eyes

One of the most important rules of shooting...always keep light in your subjects eyes. This is easiest done by have your subject tilt their hear slightly up towards the sky.

1/160 sec at f/1.8, ISO 200. 35mm lens.

Who, what, where, when, why?

Who? I am Bethany, wife to the smartest, most supportive guy on earth, daughter to the most encouraging parents, sister to eighteen very loved little siblings (in-laws included), and most importantly (in this case) newly full-time, passionate PHOTOGRAPHER!
What? An informative photography blog.
Where? Wherever my camera (and husband) takes me!
When: Daily!
Why: I have decided to do this blog to encourage me to be out shooting daily and continuing to learn! I hope I can teach you what I know and we can learn even more together.

For today I will just throw up a a picture I took on Independence Day.
Fireworks after dark. 1/500 sec at f/1.8, ISO 2500, 35mm