Brillig threw down the gaunlet
Brillig sent me a nice e-note about Jenn and my new site, Looking In. She actually wrote "exquisite and fantastic" in the same sentence as the site. Giggle. I have her so fooled.
But this line struck me: I'd love to hire you for a month to come out and show me how to take shots like these--though, I suppose you'd insist that I get something better than my disgustingly cheap digital camera from Walmart.
I replied:Actually you can take good pictures with a cardboard box with a pin hole. It is all whether you have the eye to see. And you do. So maybe we'll have that lesson some day afterall.
She scoffed, scoffed at my comment about using a pinhole camera.A cardboard box with a pin hole? HAHAHA. All righty, then. I challenge you both.... to take an awesome picture with a crappy camera--and not some pic from your collection, but something new that you take THIS WEEK.
The most important thing is always have your camera on you. Crappy is better because then you won't care if it gets banged up, has juice on it, or little people decide to "help" you with your photography.
Start snapping with that crappy camera. Anything and everything that catches your eye. Take pictures from weird angles - lay down on the ground or climb onto something - and don't put everything in the middle of the frame.
Look around, over, under and into what you are seeing. You clearly do with your writing, Brillig. You can do it with photography too.
"A photograph is usually looked at -- seldom looked into."
~Ansel Adams
7 comments:
Excellent advise!
I keep my camera with me at all times. Although my camera is not great, nor are my shots ... I always try!
but these are crappy cameras as opposed to pinhole, right? Or are they pinhole cameras?
Actually, I don't care what they are - I thought the photos were fantastic!
Jen, I can't speak for SMID, but mine is a Fuji Finepix camera that is years old and technology lame as compared to what is available now in that price range. However, SMID is dead on with the explanation here, any camera can register a decent shot, it's all about LOOKING for the things that are worth recording, and then recording them from a new angle or in a fresh way.
Great post SMID. Well, well said.
That was fun, wasn't it?
Your tips are fantastic--thanks so much. I took the kiddos up the canyon (I do live in the Rockies, after all) and did all those things--climbed benches, climbed trees, lay down under things. It was a lot of fun. My camera has now found a happy home in my diaper bag--meaning, it will be with me wherever I go. Thanks so much for playing. I've really enjoyed this little game!
My camera, while impressive to me when it was new, I have quickly found is nothing to brag about. I've managed to take a few photos I'm especially proud of. Every one of them is of Julia. I get the feeling that she is what makes them special and not my camera.
LOL.. great pics and you go girl!
It's true, I've seen some pretty boring and pointless photos taken with amazing cameras. And some really great ones taken with pinhole cameras. Pinholes are lots of fun and super easy to make.
And I also took photos with a 35mm bought from Walmart until about 2000, then disposables until about 2005, then a Canon Powershot that is now very bottom of the line. So, yaknow. It doesn't have to be a $5000 piece of equipment. Not that my photos are anything special, but I've seen a lot of good things come from relatively cheapo cameras.
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