Bit o' Bokeh

These aren't great photos, I'll be the first to admit it.  But, they are from my first attempt at trying to do bokeh.  I definitely need to find my old tripod and make a better setup, but out of the several photos I shot in this session, these are probably the better two. 

I have three coloured bottles - blue, red, and yellow - and I tried shots using the different ones.  I was only satisfied with these two of the red bottle.  Mind you, I'm not completely satisfied with these shots, but like I said before, they are the better ones from what I took.  I also used some Christmas lights to try to get the bokeh effect.  In some shots, the lights had the effect a little bit, but the rest of the light was too visible.  I might try this when it's dark instead of having some light shining through the blinds. 

I've done some reading on this topic (bokeh), and it said it was pretty easy to do this type of photography, but at the same time, it takes a lot of practice to "perfect" it.  I'll keep trying though, because some of the photos of bokeh I've seen are amazing.

Off Shoot

This is a grove (?) of tree trunks on the hill beside my house.  I took the shot a couple of days ago around supper time.  The light was coming from the back right hand side.  I adjusted the white balance (I believe it was on cloudy because that's the kind of day it was) and snapped the shot. 

Using PSE, I converted the photo to black and white and adjusted the red, green, and blue colours.  This was just more or less a test shot because I was trying to figure out how to change the white balance on my camera.  I had learned awhile back but forgot; so when I found out how to do it again, I tried adjusting it.

I had hoped the photo would have had the trunks in the front more in focus, as well as the shoot of the other tree growing among them, but I guess I didn't have the camera set for that.  It's a learning curve - to make sure you adjust your camera settings, apertures, etc. and take several pictures (using the different settings).  I'm not overly disappointed with the photo though.

Seeing Red

On one of the photography forums I belong to, there was a challenge of taking photos of the colour red.  It didn't matter what the subject was - flowers, cars, books - you capture the image whatever was red.


I've heard it before that red and yellow (and I'm finding now darker purples) are difficult to photograph.  That's the issue I have here.  The photos I've posted here haven't been edited at all, but I did try.  All of these flowers are dahlias, from my mom's garden, and a two of them have a second colour in them.

In the first image, aside from getting a good shade/hue of red, the top of the flower seems blurry.  I don't know if it's because I wasn't focused on the area, or not, but it seems to all blend together.  This is also something I don't know how to fix.  I wonder if the problem could be fixed by adjusting the angle of the camera...

The next photo doesn't seem too bad, though I realize it's not entirely in focus.  I think what happened was that I got a little too close to the flower.  The camera did indicate it was in focus, but I wasn't using a tripod, so that could also contribute to the image not being totally in focus.

The third image looks too bright.  I played around with it in Photoshop Elements but still couldn't get the red to look the way it does in real life.  I know the photo's not the best composition either, but I was just mainly focusing on the red and trying to capture that and see how it would turn out.  I believe the type of dahlia in this photo is a semi-cactus variety, but I'm not 100% sure on that.

The last image is of another semi-cactus, or even a cactus dahlia (again, I'm not sure of the variety.  I'll have to ask my mom).  As you can see, there is yellow at the center that gradually turns to red.  I took this photo mainly for the red, but also because it has yellow in it, and as I've said above, yellow is another colour that is difficult to photograph.  On the actual flower, the red wasn't too bright or dark, but I wanted to see how it would turn out.  I think the image would have potential if I had maybe taken the photo horizontally instead of vertically so that I capture the entire image rather than having some of the petals cut out of the picture.

So, overall, today's photoshoot was just experimental and I didn't pay too much attention to compostion this time.  I did take some photos of some of the other dahlias that weren't red, but those will be used another time. 

I have so much to learn in photography; I want to become a fantastic photographer and need lots of practice.  One thing I learned from this shoot is that even when you are experimenting with trying to capture different colours (or colours difficult to photograph), taking pictures of only certain items, things that start with a particular letter - whatever experiment or assignment you are working on, you should still aim to take a good photograph.  You should still try to capture the best image you can, because you never know when you'll get the photograph!

Obviously I have a long way to go before I can be deemed an excellent photographer, but I am enjoying the process - even if I don't get very good shots.  Every time I take a photograph, it's a learning experience and a chance to practice (or try to remember) what I've learned already.

If you know how to take great shots (or fix them in PSE) of the colours red and yellow, or can direct me to an article, please leave me a comment.

My question for you:  What do you have the most difficulty photographing?

Learning Curve

Today's image is definitely not my best.  I took this enroute to the Black Desert in Egypt, February 2008.  I had a point and shoot digital camera with me, and I was attempting to fill the frame with the image, which I thought was nice.  However, what I failed to notice was the horizon was not even.  It looks as though I was on a hill instead of flat ground.

I adjusted the contrast and colour on this shot, but I am unsure if I like the sky or if I would rather it be a little lighter.  I've had some say the sky is great the way it is, and others suggest I change it (I had thought it looked fake, those who thought I should change it agreed).  I will say the clouds are not touched at all and appear the same way (looking a teeny bit blurry to me) in the original photo.  Also, I did no cropping of this image at all.

So, this is one of those shots (for me) that I will have to use as a learning tool - remember to check the background, the horizon, etc. to make sure it is not slanting one way or the other (unless of course you are on the side of a hill or mountain and that's the way it is supposed to be).  Also, I will learn that a blue sky does not necessarily mean that you should darken the shade so that it looks nearly fake (or really fake)...unless that is, of course, what you are after.  In this picture, I definitely wasn't after a fake look.

I had debated on whether or not to post this image on my blog.  I decided that since this is a learning place for me (to look back on over time and see improvements I've made), and maybe a place where I can post links and advice from others to help other photographers as well as  myself, then maybe I should post it - a what not to do piece of advice or what have you.

So, learn from my mistake - check your backgrounds when you are taking photos! 

Also, if you know how I can adjust this image (if it's possible) so the horizon is straight, please let me know in the comment section!