Starting some storyboards

I’ve been really bossy lately with all the technical talk. Taking a break from buttons and dials, let’s do something visual.

I’m a late bloomer, but I’m starting to play around with story boards. I can never pick just one photo when it comes time to print and frame, and I love how symmetrical storyboards can be. If you’re familiar with a photo editing software that allows you to work with layers, boards can be built that way and printed at whatever final size you like. Or you can get crafty with scissors and a matte board and go custom. My favourite is saving photos in groups for future photo books to detail milestones or events succinctly.

Options abound. You can have as many images in a board as you like, but I tend to run in multiples of three or four. Don’t know why, just seems to happen over here at Chez Isla. 

Here’s a set I did earlier this month when Isla first really discovered Baby Mum Mums…

And here’s one I did tonight after Isla took so much interest in our dinner (homemade veggie lasagna, can’t blame her) and pulled herself up on the coffee table for the first time. 

As you can see in the first frame, it was like something out of Jaws. Eep! You can see the full story of baby goodness here. 

There was a lot of cropping going on with these sets. The one from today alone had me cropping 90% of the photo out so that she would fill the square frame. It’s all personal preference, but I… well, I prefer the subject not just be front and center, but INYOFACE. 

Here’s one of the pics straight out of the camera (SOOC):

1/320 at f/2.8, ISO 800

As you can see, I cropped tight for the board and eliminated much of the visual clutter to bring the focus onto Isla and her creeping on our dinner. Cropping does wonders for pictures, even if it’s only slight. Just remember (here I’m getting technical again) to shoot high resolution shots or else you won’t be able to print the photo, much less blow it up, after it’s been cropped and adjusted. 

25 May 7 Permalink

Aperture priority. In a word: HANDY.

Ahhh. Aperture. Friend. Occasional frenemy. It’s the backwards, confusing mechanism of technical photography that usually has people reverting back to auto. It works like your eyes in terms of letting light into the camera: when it’s dark, your pupils are wide open and when it’s bright and sunny, they’re snapped tight.

Some notes on aperture:

• bigger f/stop (number) = the more your aperture is closed
• smaller f/stop (number) = the more your aperture is open

Aperture has a very intimate relationship with depth of field (DOF) which gives those dreamy, blurry shots with lots of bokeh or makes sure everything is in focus. 

Some notes on depth of field:

• what the heck is ‘bokeh’? it’s the (deliberate) blur in a photograph
• keep everything sharp/in focus = small aperture / large f/number
• make things blurry/bokeh = large aperture / small f/number

The easiest way to control exposure but take control of aperture is to put your DSLR into aperture priority mode (Av for Canon and A for Nikon). You set the aperture based on your lens and the camera will do the math on the rest. Good deal. 

For landscapes, group shots or times when you want everything in focus, etc. I tend to start at f/11 and adjust from there. Here, everything is in focus from the baby to the table to her highchair. 

1/250 at f/11, ISO 400

For up close shots or to get more creative, I drop to the lowest f/number available (f/1.8 on my 50mm, for example) and adjust from there. Here, you’ll see the foreground and background are blurred with only the elephant sharp. 

1/125 at f/1.8, ISO 800

For lil’ faces, I stick to a sweet spot around f/5.6 or close enough to give their face and full body focus but add some bokeh to the background. Here, you’ll see her main facial features are sharp but it starts to blur out as it hits the ears and bedspread. 

1/125 at f/5.6, ISO 100

Keep in mind that bokeh — however much or little of it — is a personal choice and artistically subjective. Have fun with it and experiment! Take a picture of a toy propped up on a table using a few different f/stops and compare the results for yourself!

25 May 4 Permalink

Week One Rounder: Auto

A retrospective on auto. There were tears on the inside this week. Tears on the inside. 

I knew it was a given that auto would not be my bessie mate, but I had forgotten about how frustrating its most natural features are. There are times, yes, when auto works wonders. And times when it absolutely deserves to be on the business end of a noogie. Let’s explore. 

Auto is good for impromptu snaps in a well-lit area. (Canon PowerShot SD750)

Auto is bad for impromptu selfies in a badly lit area. See the red eye and mishmashed exposure? Mind, that mishmash of light is due to my thumb encroaching on the flash area. Either way, it’s a hot mess up there. (Canon PowerShot SD750)

Auto is good for quick snaps while out and about. When someone just looks so sweet you think there’s gotta be a magic potion somewhere to freeze this ti… Sorry. I digress. Ahem, good example of auto. Note that the composition helps make this picture, not just the technical make-up. (Canon PowerShot SD750)

I brought the point-and-click out of the diaper bag long enough to play inside the house. With the flash on, you get dark, centralized exposure with a certain guarantee of red-eye. The camera is three years+ old now and I forgot a few features… I read the manual to remind myself how to disengage the flash and voila! No red eye, but now we’ve got blur. (Canon PowerShot SD750)

But, if I steady myself and wait for just the right moment, not to mention make sure the battery is completely charged and at its fastest… it can work. Technically, the one above this frantic shot is just a bit fuzzy on the eyes, and not unrecognizable. (Canon PowerShot SD750)

Switching to the big camera, Canon 7D, clicking over to automatic was a first since I’ve upgraded from the 20D. The flash instantly engaged in my living room and gave me this. (EXIF: 1/60 at f/5, ISO 400, 17mm focal length)

I needed to get back to basics, and I needed to make dinner. The next day, I opened every curtain, turned on all four (don’t worry, energy efficient) lights and even the range lamp above the stove. The flash didn’t engage once with all its newly found light and I was able to get Isla like this, above. (Canon 7D. EXIF: 1/80 at f/2.8, ISO 320, 42 mm focal length)

And like this. Still a bit blurry from movement but getting there. Can we tell she’s teething? (Canon 7D. EXIF: 1/40 at f/2.8, ISO 160, 23 mm focal length)

Similar. Notice the lamp is turned on and the natural light from the windows is adding to the scope of bright. (Canon 7D. EXIF: 1/40 at f/2.8, ISO 160, 17 mm focal length)

And one more. My favourite shot, the aerial. She looks little still. And so relaxed, all chillin’ with her arm on her toy. She was very still at this point as the PVR switched on, and she was watching all the red lights on the screen. That’s how I managed to get (Canon 7D. EXIF: 1/30 at f/2.8, ISO 100, 17 mm focal length) with little to no blur. 

In the end? Auto bites the big one but can be manipulated successfully if you’re willing to experiment. It does wonders for quick shots in an area flooded with light and lots of activity. It’s also great for learning EXIF data (the technical data each camera records to an image), seeing what you like, what you don’t and applying it into your manual practice for a DSLR. 

17 May 2 Permalink