Look at those colors. Just look at them. That's straight out of the camera, no editing. The only thing I did was knock Exposure Compensation down about 2/3 of a step. -2/3 EV, that's it. Yoicks!
The greatest secret of photography is learning to stage. Stage one is researching cameras to find the one that fits your shooting style. Stage two is learning the foibles of the camera, thus I know to go -2/3 EV in bright sunlight. Stage three is actually taking pictures. That stage should take several hundred times as much of your time as both the prior stages combined.
Of course, if all the equipment fetishists in the world were to stop buying new cameras every spring and fall, sales would drop such that the Fuji S6000fd would cost about $5,000 US. That's real money, by the way, not that silly play money they use in Canada and New Zealand.
Breaking the equipment fetish habit is the hardest thing I've ever tried to do. Camera companies continuing with the ridiculous megapixel race, which results in lower image quality overall, makes it easier. 5-6 megapixels is all you really need for gorgeous prints up to 20x30. Anything more restricts the amount of light available at each pixel site on the sensor, thus limiting the amount of signal in the images' ultimate signal to noise ratio.
This picture was taken with a 6MP camera, and I would absolutely feel comfortable making a 20x30 print, even after cropping out that beer can.
Here's some more shots with the Minolta. You can see some vignetting, the lens is part of the two lens kit, and even back then kit lenses were rather cheesy.
And the star of the show, no less.
These are all from an old Minolta APS film SLR I picked up recently for chump change. Good stuff, if you like film, which I don't, particularly. But shooting with a film SLR forces a change in the photographer's perspective. For me, that manifests as more thoughtful shots, with more attention paid to composition. After all, I've only got 25 shots to the roll to get it right.
I suppose it could be defined as the art of revealing the magic contained in the mundane. Or perhaps of capturing the essence of a thing in a manner that can be easily displayed in a domicile.
Even though it wasn't anywhere near to sunset yet, the light was still darned near perfect.
But never discount the effect of a good zoom lens. I know, I know, composition on the last two kinda sucks. But I like em, and it's my blog, so you're going to take what you get and like it!
I have a deep appreciation for the accomplishments of humanity, even if they are a visible reminder of industrialization in the middle of a park. Perhaps especially so.
Color color color. I loves me some color. 1/240, f4.9, ISO 100, Chrome color mode. I don't normally shoot in Chrome, but late day shots benefit from it. Aperture priority mode, with the lens as wide open as I could get. It might have been sharper at f5.6, but it's certainly livable as is.
Look at those colors. Just look at them. That's straight out of the camera, no editing. The only thing I did was knock Exposure Compensation down about 2/3 of a step. -2/3 EV, that's it. Yoicks!
I recently picked up the buy of the century, a 50mm Canon prime lens with a maximum aperture of 1.8 for a whopping $80. No, really. Then I stuck a ProMaster Digital MultiCoated UV filter on it for another $40. Minus 2/3 EV on a cloudy day, a little effort getting my fat ass up on the dog house, and some patience whilst my two pups ran around the yard looking cute, and the picture you see is the result. I love that dark moody look. It reminds me of some of the old film work I've seen from the 30's - 50's.
