"How NOT to photograph the Oregon Coast."
"The worst pictures I've taken since I bought my camera."
"Clean your sensor lady!"
So remember when I told you I would be sharing photos of my trip to Oregon? The post where I said that I just had to do some minor adjustments before posting them? Well, that's only true if:
Minor Adjustment = Totally New Pictures
The only reason I'm still going to post these is so you all can see how NOT to take a photograph. My settings were so out of whack (apparently seawater affects my brain) that most of these are barely suitable for viewing on the interwebs.
But since I'm all about honesty, we'll see a few of them anyway. Just don't say I didn't warn you...
Now. Let's go exploring.
What is that? Can anyone tell? Is that a rat?
I think... I think...
This lovely seagull was probably sleeping until I started bothering it. But once I explained that I was taking its picture to illustrate our first lesson, it was more than happy to pose all pretty-like.
Lesson #1 - Fill your frame with your subject. We weren't even sure what it was in those first couple of photos. I would have liked to have gotten even closer but was afraid for my eyes.
Moving on...
At first glance that photo isn't awful right? Not great but passable. Look again. (Don't be afraid to click on them and make them bigger...makes it that much easier to see the flaws)
Lesson #2 - Keep your sensor clean. Ok ok, so you don't have to really worry about this with a handy dandy point-and-shoot. But for those of us that change lenses on a frequent basis...obviously this is a necessity.
Here. Another example.
It's kinda like a seek and find game!
Except the answers are glaringly obvious.
Woah! What is that thing! Is that a giant squid!?
No no...relax dear readers. It's just a large clump of bull kelp. I LOVE this stuff. The kelp have little "floaters" or air pockets. Once it's washed up on shore, you can step on those air pockets and they snap very satisfyingly. Kinda like giant bubble wrap.
You think I'm joking? Ask anyone that's been to the coast with me. They'll affirm the amount of child-like joy I get from the simple activity of jumping on the kelp air pockets.
Alright. Here is one where my subject is less than thrilled.
Just a side note. I love those sunglasses. (I don't care WHAT you say Larry)
What I DON'T love is this. See? That seagull shaped blur in the sky? Well, sometimes it looks like a bird. Maybe I'll just claim it's a plane.
Oh NO! Look out Preston! That giant squid is going to get you!
Heh. Sorry. I couldn't resist.
How about this picture? It's great right?
Gah.
Lesson #3 - Don't be afraid to edit your images. This one would actually be pretty simple. I could easily crop that stupid smudge out of the photo and it would probably be better for it even in all around composition. Though I kinda like the expanse of sky in this one...
The following simply suffer from a lack of proper exposure. Sure, you can edit things later...but these were barely usable.
Seriously? I HATE that thing!
Lesson #4 - Learn how to use your camera!
This next one is a perfect example of our fifth and final lesson.
Lesson #5 - Mid-day = bad lighting on a beautiful sunny day. Trust me. See their faces?
Exactly.
Ok and this next one...
Wait a sec. How did a decent one make it through? I'm sorry, apparently we have 6 lessons today.
Lesson #6 - Even the blind squirrel finds a nut now and then. In other words, a little luck is necessary when you disregard all of the rules of photography like I did.
If you take one thing from this post I hope it's an understanding of the fact that I did no justice to the Oregon Coast in these photographs. If you take two things from this post I hope the other is that I'm in no way a professional photographer and you probably shouldn't follow my advice.
I mean, I certainly don't.
Stay tuned for Oregon - Part two!
(or "How NOT to photograph in low lighting")
4 comments:
Does Preston's cup say "Burt Bacharach"?
If you would've said they were seagulls in the sky, I'd have been totally fooled.
I want to know what are the green slimy-lookin' things in the last photo! Moss-covered rocks, maybe? They looked like giant slugs oozing out of the rocks... hehe.
Green slimy things? That could describe several things in that picture. Most of the rocks in the foreground are covered in a form of seaweed. Then there are the yellowish greenish rocks that are just...well, rocks.
I guess there are a couple of other slimyish looking things in that photo too but it's probably just some sort of algae or seaweed.
And I realized that when you click that photo you STILL see how bad it is. And here I was claiming it was a better picture than the others. LOL. I really sucked this trip.
I love the sunglasses too.
Post a Comment