A Few Asked

And here I go.

Over the month of February, actually it was only four Wednesday's, I took a photography class at our local University.  Now as the instructor told us, we went over one semester of information in 6.0 hours, and I have to agree with him that it was a lot of information to absorb.  Thank you Milford High School teachers for teaching me how to take notes, and take them fast.  I admit that I still have a hard time feeling completely comfortable with Aperture's and when to change them, it depends on what I want to show but I guess I am still trying to figure that out, although I do understand Shutter Speed and what you can get with either a fast or a slow speed.  I think I have grown in my abilities to take photo's and to understand what makes a good photo, now I just need to find the time to practice, practice, practice, and practice some more.

Our first class we went over the different types of camera's, SLR (single lens reflex) and digital.  We also covered Aperture's, Shutters, Depth of Field, ISO, Types of Lens, Lens Effects, Focal Length, and Composition.  WHEW!!!  I need to take a breath.  We also talked about SEEING.

Seeing? You ask.  Well seeing like a photographer, thinking like a photographer, seeing colors, seeing shapes, seeing light and it's effects, seeing texture and detail, seeing motion, seeing people and their differences, and seeing places.  When it comes to seeing, that big fancy camera does not matter, the knowledge of technology will come with time, what does matter is how and what you see.  On a side note, us a tripod or monopod, you will get much sharper and clearer images.  As Mr. Smith, our instructor told us, we want to be able to have a good or great picture going in to editing, good in means good out, bad in means no amount of editing is going to make it a great photo.  Look for the photo opportunities and don't be afraid of taking lots and lots of pictures.  Also you have to be willing to delete the bad and not so good photos.  I personally find that a little challenging.  It feels like I am deleting something important, I am working on getting over that.

We went on to discuss that even if we take amazing photos, if we are not willing to share, display, publish, or show our work no one will see all of the amazing things that we have captured.  Do you have a box of photos under your bed that no one ever gets to see?  Well, bring them out for the world to see.  Be proud of what you have done and share, even if it is only with the family.  I promise, I have more than my fair share of photos that I would love for no one to ever see, but we need to show it all, that way when we have something beyond amazing our family, friends, or the world will notice and tell us.  Then we can do it again.

We then moved on to discussing Elements.  Elements are what make a great photo.  It's what drew you to the photo, the visual structure and what pops.  Look at a photo and ask yourself what is pulling you in to that photo, what is keeping your attention, what keeps bringing you back.  

In my next post I will give you a list, short explanation, and my photo on what each Element is.  I have to say that with this assignment I took everything he said literally, I have since learned that not everything has to be literal.  You will understand as you look at my photos, I could and have done much better work by accident.  It's a little challenging when you are OCD and hate to do anything wrong.  Literal should become a bad word in my vocabulary.

Love to All,

midRae
The Accidental Photographer