Complimentary

Have you ever noticed how many red shirts or jackets appear in photographs of people out enjoying nature? No accident. Red, being a pretty dominant and powerful color, also happens to be the complimentary (opposite) color of green. Aesthetically, there are few things more pleasing then seeing a vivid splash of red in a verdant forest.

In fact, in the '50s and '60s National Geographic photographers often carried with them red scarves or shirts for use when the color didn't happen to be around "naturally." (That practice, today, is frowned upon but likely not strictly enforced... if you know what I mean!)

Every now and then you do get lucky, though. I was making my rounds down at the canal yesterday when in the distance I saw this fellow on a bike headed my way. I quickly got myself into position, composed the shot, then waited for him to enter the scene.

Looking at it now, I think I should have laid flat on the ground. This would have eliminated the light brown path he's riding on. It's a bit of a distraction I think. Ah well, next time!

Cheers.

*Brrrr*

Tonight's forecast: 19 degrees F. Possibly some snow. The high temp for the next few days won't make it out of the twenties. Snow expected over the weekend. Upper Midwest is getting hammered with tons of the white stuff and temps 20 below! Northeast, not looking much better.

Yep... thinkin' about the summer.

Ridin' the Trails.

Shooting an assignment for Maryland Life this summer, I attempted a different point of view. Borrowed a friends bike (thanks Blair!) and hit the trail. I strapped the camera tight to my chest, zoomed out to 12mm and set the timer to 2 seconds. I'd depress the shutter and quickly place my right hand back on the handlebar and wait for the "click." I did this repeatedly up and down the trail just to make sure I got the shot. Out of about 20 images this was the only real keeper. Thankfully it did run in the article, but it ran rather small on the page. Not too easy to see the motion/blur. So here it is full size.

Peace.

Panning.

One of our earlier posts talked about being a little more selective about which photos to keep through more and better self-editing. We've also have talked about spicing up the collection of images you show others by using silhouettes. Both were about keeping your audience interested. In that same vein let's talk about panning. Capturing someone or something in motion. On the surface panning looks easy. Just follow along with your subject and click away. True to some extent but, as with everything, it does require some amount of practice. Matching the pace of your subject isn't always easy. (Direction changes, speed changes, unsteady hands.) Also, adding flash to the equation helps add a little dynamism. Here are two panned images. One with flash and one without. This first photo I captured down on the C&O Canal towpath. I noticed a rider coming along and set my camera to a slow shutter speed. As he approached I fixed a focus point on him and followed along all the while making sure that focus point never left his body. I clicked off about three or four shots before he passed. The trees make for a good background and are well blurred to convey actual motion.

This second shot is with the flash. In this case I asked John to walk past me a couple times while I photographed him. After a couple beers he is a most willing subject! Anyway, the background is underexposed by about one full stop. This helps make the subject (John) really stand out when the flash hits him. The flash also stops the action, which keeps John sharp yet the background remains blurred. Cool effect, I think!

Next time you have your camera out remember motion. Follow along as someone walks by. See a really nifty looking car coming up the road? Pan it! Watching a child's baseball game? No better opportunity to practice than when they are running down to first base. Try it out...and above all have fun!

Cheers.