Midterm

 

Over the course of the last several assignments, I began experimenting with different point-of-views with ordinary objects and things I see all the time. I realized that it is possible to take completely different pictures of the same thing or place by simply shooting at differents times or from different directions. I also grew interested in the notion that ideas, feelings, and interesting visual elements can be created by using lines, shapes, and colors; which can then be combined with this forced perspective to send a message/feeling. The following photos are taken from previous assignments and are examples of me experimenting with this idea.

Assignment 7: Abstract

Abstraction is something I always try to incorporate in my photos and is a little more in my league compared to portraits, something I don't do often or particularly like doing. So when I set out to take some abstract today, I had in mind that I wanted to use a lot of lines, shapes, and continuity. It actually turned out to be a nice day with a clear blue sky, no clouds, and the sun slicing right through the city. As a result,  harsh lighting and shadows became another element in my final pictures. They also share a kind of contrast between plant life and building life.

 Sunrise Through Pine: 1/250 sec, f/5.7, ISO 400

 Gateway: 1/1250 sec, f/4, ISO 100

 Lit Columns: 1/500, f/5, ISO 100

 Empty Lot: 1/500 sec, f/4, ISO 100

 Downtown Park Tree: 1/320 sec, f/4, ISO 100

Blossom: 1/250 sec, f/14, ISO 400

Assignment 6: Portraits

For some reason "staged-looking" portraits are a big pet peeve of mine. So my photos are all natural people doing what they do without the notion that they have to perform for the camera. I went to photo hotspots like Market Square and PPG Place so the sight of an slr with a really long zoom lens wouldn't freak anybody out. None of them noticed me except probably the last one. I know I was supposed to get their name, and their age, and their job, and everything else; but I feel that's only truly important when related to news/storytelling. I think portraits hold more interesting when you see who the people are, but don't know who they are.

 1/250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 1600

 1/500 sec, f/5.6, ISO 400

 1/500 sec, f/5.7, ISO 400

 1/400 sec, f/5.7, ISO 400

 1/400 sec, f/5.6, ISO 400

1/320 sec, f/5.6, ISO 400

Assignment 5: Motion

There are tons of ways to capture motion if you use your imagination. With that thought in mind, I set out on a quest to find all exotic forms of motion (along with light, color, and bokeh of course). Sports yielded a constant back-and-forth fast-paced motion. Nature gave me a slower fluid motion. And finally, I created a kind of abstract motion with objects found in my house.

Firing Away: 1/200 sec, f/4.5, ISO 3200

Turnover: 1/125 sec, f/4.5, ISO 3200

Heinz Cemetery Creek: 1 sec, f/22, ISO 100

 Spinning Globe: 1/5 sec, f/7.1, ISO 200

 Wallpaper, 1/5 sec, f/22, ISO 400

 Warped Clock: 4 sec, f/22, ISO 400

Assignment 4: Isolation/Bokeh

Having a shallow depth of field is always something to keep in mind when trying to draw focus (literally) on the main subject and to separate it from the background. The images that follow have absolutely nothing in common, except for this. As you can see, they're from a number of different outings. But, I am almost always taking pictures like these since I got my amazing macro lens from Santa so, you could say shallow images are a good part of my work these days. Having a wide aperture lens is important to me for more reasons than just, "Its dark in here."

 Budding Flowers: 1/160 sec, f/4, ISO 400

Perched Pigeon: 1/250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 1600

 Native Americans in Africa: 1/100 sec, f/2.8, ISO 1600

 Log Fungi: 1/160 sec, f/6.3, ISO 800

 Posing Pigs: 1/100 sec, f/2.8, ISO 800

Tunnel: 1/500, f/2.8, ISO 200

Assignment 3: Color

Color is a very basic concept to be used in photography, although only popularized in the last 50 years. There are so many different hues and shades everywhere that I thought I should just randomly turn my camera on anything vivid. Incidentally when I had chosen my final images, I saw a strange reoccurring color in a greater half of them. So, I kicked the odd men out and tweaked the lighting on two. Here is a grouping of pictures where the prevailing color is the ugliest yellow/gold on Earth.

 The Refs: 1/100 sec, f/4, ISO 3200

 Marble Reflection: 1/160 sec, f/5.6, ISO 1600

 City Pigeon: 1/200 sec, f/5.7, ISO 1600

 Car Park Wall: 1/1600 sec, f/5.6, ISO 800

 Moss on Stone: 1/125 sec, f/6.3, ISO 1600

Wind Chime's Shadow: 1/100 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200

Assignment 2: Light

My second assignment is full of images dealing with different forms of light. Whether it be a sharp beam slicing over the side of a man's face, a soft warm ray curving around stone, or the final long gaze through gaps of trees in the woods. Natural light is forever changing, yet always on schedule.

 Gymnasium Team Seats: 1/160 sec, f/5, ISO 3200

 Up: 1/1600 sec, f/4, ISO 400

 Coach: 1/160 sec, f/5, ISO 3200

 Skyscrapers: 1/250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 1600

 City Grave: 1/320 sec, f/5.6, ISO 400

Forest Stripes: 1/80 sec, f/11, ISO 800

Assignment 1: Exposure

With the first assignment, I decided to keep the subjects and lighting styles varied (natural light, fluorescent light, the inanimate, the living, outdoors, indoors). However, I placed my viewfinder on scenes with substantial shapes and lines in hopes of adding more visual interest.

Foggy Morning, East Street: 1/125 sec, f/4, ISO 3200

 Ornate Lamp: 1/100 sec, f/2.8, ISO 3200

 Upside-down T: 1/60 sec, f/2.8, ISO 3200

 Doorbell Frame: 1/40 sec, f/2.8, ISO 3200

 Left Eye: 1/80 sec, f/2.8, ISO 3200

Family Portrait: 1/60 sec, f/2.8, ISO 800