Oh Charlie

We had a great sunny morning so I decided to take off with Charlie and go to the creek to take advantage of the low winter morning light. Most of the day parts of the creek stay in the shadow so some parts of the creek freeze up quickly with cold temperatures.

I have a list of to do's before I can take off to go visit my son for a couple of days, so I thought I'd take an early morning walk to clear up my thinking.

Charlie was on a mission, he charged down the trail as if he knew exactly where I was going. He only stopped when I turned to step over the fence to the neighbor's side. He followed and then found the deer trail down into the creek and up the other side.

I followed so I could take a shot from the higher bank on the opposite side of where I normally shoot this little spot.

I set things up quickly.

I took a shot of the upper pond. It is hard to explain but over the years the boulders have tumbled in such a way that there are two little ponds with tiny falls in them.

Charlie sat next to me on the bank and just waited.

When I said let's go, he led the way.

I made a few quick stops to take some shots to make a comparison to earlier in the year.

 Somewhat the same spot right after our

November 6th snowfall.

One of these times I'm going to have to take some spray paint and mark 3 dots in one spot and use those painted spots to take the same shot in all 4 seasons.
I always think I can eyeball it and recall how I shot it previously, but obviously I can't...not very well, at least.

I went to take a shot of these mini falls and noticed that Mr. Charlie was sitting on a rock watching. He'd been doing this off and on the last couple of times we hiked together.
I stop, he stops.
He waits.

We go on.

I did get a nice shot and then turned to look at the place that normally has some rather exotic ice formations on the grass.

Charlie.

Someone who saw this photo said "Oh look at Charlie! He wears hearts on his chest!"
Oh Charlie.


I'd like to think he is filling Mr. Morris's paw prints of becoming the Photography Assistant.

I know it isn't real. But hey. Charlie watches me just like Morris did and when I gather my camera case, he is ready to rock and roll.
And now he is willing to sit and wait while I fiddle around.

Still Life week 8

I am working with this self 'instructed' class to better some of my photography skills.  I was not an avid fan of Still Life before but I am finding that I enjoy it now.

I am constantly trying to come up with something interesting without getting too heavily invested in things like a light box [although I may build one myself] and other fancy studio things.

Most of the images I try to 'make' or shoot are simply done on the living room floor and with things I find around the house.

Last week I used a rug for a backround and draped it over a board. I wanted a soft white textured backround for the shot.  

This wasn't what I considered a keeper.  It was however interesting to work with the light since it was heavily overcast that day and I didn't have to deal with harsh sunlight coming through the window behind me.

I took out pages from my grandmother's old diaries and set them up with some beads, coffee and my old glasses. 

Somehow, this shot looked much nicer in black and white.  The pretty colors on the cup seemed to clash with the different colored inks in the pages.

Eventually I tossed everything on two wooden boards I'd gotten at a flea market along with my father's wedding ring.  After several hits and misses, I ended up deciding that this was the photo of the week.
I was very satisfied with it. I simply edited it with a white vignette around the edges and left it be.

I took this shot below while I was at it and loved all the patterns, but needed to mute the bright red carnations and ... well, it was almost too busy with textures.

This one in color:

This one in muted black and white:

Better but still too busy. And my assignment was for backlighting anyway so I had to go back to the drawing board.

I had to wait for some sunlight and finally we had some.  This shot was an accident.
I edited it and added a textured backround to it.

It didn't have all of the elements in it that the assignment suggested so I tried some other things.

This ended up being colorful and soft, more like what the assignment had been.


In the 8th week we are to review what we have done so far. 
Apparently I should be able to decide what sort of items work best for me and decide what I need more work on.

However I am still seeking that perfect way to take photos in the living room using available light.

I also need to mention here that I have an assistant who seems to have to inspect everything I do.

Next, I'm going to do some 'dark' work. I really like black and trying to figure out how to use simple black matte cardboard, some glass and figurines to make something interesting.

Sometimes it is more the challenge than anything else.
Thus ends week 8.  And no, I haven't found my 'niche' nor have I figured out what works best for me.

I am still experimenting because light and dark fascinate me to no end.