What to photograph (other than your children)

So many children, including my own, get tired of participating in pictures.  I always want to practice on my own kids, but I know they get tired of having a camera in their face.  I’ll admit this has been a struggle for me.  My kids are great sports!  Not to mention they will not object to a chocolate bribe now and then! But lately I have been wondering what I can photograph besides portraits.  I love portraiture. It is so fun, but sometimes I just want some creative alone time.  So, here are some ideas that I go to for pictures other than children.

Flowers:

Setting up a still life is an excellent idea.  Perhaps just walking around your yard will give you some inspiration.  I love flowers, and I have a decent flower garden in my own back yard.  So sometimes, I just like to walk around there and see if I can find bugs or butterflies, or interesting flowers.  Then I try to compose a shot in the best way I can imagine.  Sometimes still life is so much easier than a fast-moving child.  It is also a great way to learn how to free lens!  

Cars:

I have an automotive background, so I love to photograph cars! I know, it’s kind of a weird background for an artsy girl.  But combining my love of cars and art is so fun for me. Once again, it is so much easier than trying to get a genuine reaction from a child! There are so many possibilities with cars from light painting to panning! Cars are a great way to experiment.  If you have a fisheye lens this might be a good time to use it!

Landscapes:

Landscapes aren’t something that I am used to doing.  Maybe that’s because I’m in Indiana and it’s pretty flat around here! Ha! However, I think that no matter where you live you can make a beautiful landscape picture.  Sometimes it’s just a matter of beautiful light! I find what helps me with landscapes are layering and making sure that you have a subject.  Whether it’s beautiful light through a tree, or a mountain or a barn. 

Details:

Sometimes it’s best to just give your children something to do or play and then capture all those little details.  Think of your composition and light. Hands and feet tell part of the story! Dirty bare feet, hands full of frogs or mud.  There are many possibilities!

Hope you enjoy these ideas! Thanks for reading!

My Very First Blog Post!

Wikipedia says that “Macro photography (or photomicrography, or macrography, and sometimes macrophotography), is extreme close- up photography usually of very small subjects and living organisms like insects, in which the size of the subject in the photograph is greater than life size (though macrophotography technically refers to the art of making very large photographs) By the original definition, a macro photograph is one in which the size of the subject on the negative or image sensor is life size or greater. However, in some uses it refers to a finished photograph of a subject at greater than life size.”

The best way to accomplish Macro photography is to use a macro lens, or extension tubes. I do not have either! Macro is a very new genre that I don’t have much experience at doing. Perhaps a macro lens would be a good future investment for me. I know it would’ve made this experiment a whole lot easier. So how did I accomplish it?! I did a reverse free lens with these pictures included in this blog post. For those of you who have no idea what reverse free lensing is (I know a time when I would count myself among you) it is where you take the lens off of the camera body and shoot through the wide side (not the mount side). This allows the lens to magnify what it sees and it gives you just a tiny slice of focus. Kind of scary, right?! Taking your lens off the body does mean you have to be really careful not to let dirt or dust inside. Let me tell you, it is not as easy as it sounds. You have to hold your lens and have very steady hands. I do not have very steady hands.

Here’s a few tips:

• Have steady hands! (Prop your elbows on the table and keep the camera close to your body).

• Use live view mode! (this will help you see more clearly where your focus is falling).

• Make good use of light! (just like any other photo.)

• Water droplets add visual interest!

• Try your hand with different textures!

  I think if you try this technique you just might like it. I am certainly hoping to improve. Here’s to learning along with you!