Grassroots Photographers, post YOUR favorite photos (one per day)

A pic this morning taken on The High Line in NYC:

And yes, there were people up there on that balcony:

Shadeux said:

In reply to pkingham (Forum Supporter) :

I can teach you how!

All you need is a phone (or more, if you have.)

The first thing is figuring out where to point it. 

Is this an open invitation?? I wanna learn too! I'm struggling w/ my exposure, composition and iso now.

Hopefully I'm not stepping on Shadeux's toes here, but for those looking to learn the basics, here are a few things to start on. Note that this is for people wanting to use a camera (film or digital) on manual mode, not a phone in auto exposure. For now I'll assume you're relying on a meter for correct exposure.

First, you need to wrap your head around the triad of exposure: aperture, shutter speed, and sensitivity (commonly ISO). To expose a photo properly, you need a certain amount of light; this is of course dependent on how much light is available. The numbers represent steps of double (or half) the adjacent value, so f/2 lets in double the light of f/2.8, and 1/125 lets in half the light of 1/60. Think of the lens as a straw and light as a fluid you need to draw through it to fill a vessel. Aperture is the diameter of the straw. Shutter speed is the amount of time spent drawing fluid through the straw. Sensitivity is the amount of fluid required to fill the vessel. By playing with these values you will find that there are multiple ways to achieve the goal of a properly-exposed photo.

But each leg of the triad also produces secondary and unique effects. Aperture has an inverse relationship with depth of field, which is the area in which objects will be in focus. The larger the aperture, the smaller the depth of field. A wide aperture will give a shallow area of focus, and a narrow aperture will give a deep area of focus. Shutter speed will impact the amount of blur created by objects in motion; the faster the shutter, the less blur will appear in objects in motion in the photo. Sensitivity is a bit trickier, as each film stock or sensor will react differently here, but as a general rule, the lower the sensitivity, the greater the detail of the image.

My recommendation for starting out with exposure is to first set a fixed ISO (for digital) or choose a single film stock to work with. Personally, I suggest 400. This removes a variable, allowing you to focus on learning aperture and shutter speed. Try shooting the same scene with different settings, say f/2 and 1/500 and the f/8 and 1/60. You should start to see the differences quickly, and soon choosing preferred settings will become instinctive.

Let me know if this is the sort of thing you're looking for and what else you are interested in learning, and I'm sure Shadeux, other experienced photographers here, and I can point you in the right direction.

took this this weekend. Then touched up by our own Buffalo:

In reply to mrwillie :

Absolutely. My wife and I give about 15 hours a month of free photo instruction at our local state park. I'm used to fielding questions and giving simple answers to get quick results for people. This makes them happy and want to take more pictures, which is the whole point. Having fun with it!

Anyone is welcome to PM me with questions or photo critiques. 

In reply to Shadeux :

Thank you for the offer. I really appreciate it.  PM on the way.

In reply to 02Pilot :

This is right up my alley. This is one of the settings that I struggle with. I was even thinking about buying a decent 50mm to take some of the guess work out of my shots. All I currently have is a kit lens and an old film lens. I will try iso400 and see where it takes me.

Thanks again! 

In reply to mrwillie :

Yes, by all means, stick with one fixed focal length lens while you're learning. Zooms just complicate matters. What sort of camera are you using?

In reply to 02Pilot :

I have a Canon 20d, and right now a 18-55mm and 35-80mm lens. Im considering getting something newer with a better sensor but I want to get a better handle on this one first.

In reply to mrwillie :

No need to upgrade. IIRC, a 35mm prime lens should give you a ~50mm-equivalent field of view on that sensor. I'm a natural 50 shooter, so that's what I tend to recommend, but if you prefer wider, a 24mm lens will give you ~35mm equivalent. Either one will be fine for general use, and a much easier learning tool than a zoom.

In reply to Shadeux :

Stay away from the light, Carol Anne!!!

In reply to mrwillie :

You rang? 

In reply to Shadeux :

"The Art of Racing In the Rain"

The TA2 race today at Lime Rock. 

The "Celebrated Levitating Wine Glasses of Millbrook Vineyards & Winery":

I took this pic today and discovered that the more wine one imbibes the higher the glasses get!