01: PASSION PROJECT

MASTERCLASS & CHALLENGE

DOWNLOAD PDF MASTERCLASS
Add your challenge images below in the comments field

This challenge NEVER ends – it’s your long term personal/passion project. I’ll review your images from time to time and give you personal feedback.
Click here to learn how to add your image below, commenting & resizing.
Remember to be nice, be positive, be encouraging & have fun! 🙂

BACK TO BOOTCAMP

2,463 Comments

    • Hazel
      Hazel on February 26 at 9:38 pm

      this one using Microsoft Edge

    • Hazel
      Hazel on February 26 at 9:47 pm

      good it’s working on your end Liz

    • Christin McLeod
      Christin McLeod on February 27 at 2:11 am

      I’m able to comment from Disqus on Chrome, however.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on February 27 at 2:17 pm

      Great image Christin and I love that you have made it B/W. Tell me more about why you chose this image and what it means to you? Something to consider is the crop in this image – what I think would make it stronger is if you took off the left 3rd. That would get rid of most of the refection in the window and your subject would then be looking into the image instead of looking out. Also, a little more space below his feet would be great. Keep up with your passion project and post a few more. Cheers, Brent

      • Christin McLeod
        Christin McLeod on February 27 at 2:47 pm

        Thank you, Brent. It is definitely a bit unconventional in crop and I knew that when I did it. Here’s the story: I took it about 5 years ago and as I was going through my catalog, it really jumped out at me. It actually brought a tear to my eye when I saw it because I remember so clearly my emotions when I took it: I felt such heartache and compassion for this man when I saw him.

        I cropped it this way because I was in the minivan when I took the picture and the reflection of it represented me in my convenient life moving forward without a seeming care (in reality, I care deeply). And while I’m moving forward in my life, he is stuck where he is, digging in a bag to get a cigarette. I used the dark wood frame on the far right as a “stop” to keep the viewer in the image rather than continuing off to the right and feeling lost as to where to go next.

        I get that this crop is extremely personal to me and loses meaning with others. I can appreciate that. I will re-crop the image based on your input for comparison and see how that looks. I’ll upload it here once I do that.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on February 27 at 3:53 pm

          I see now what story you are telling with this image – no need to crop the left, however a little space below his feet will help in my opinion. Love your story behind this image – and that it brought a tear to your eye. That’s the whole reason why we do this photography thing, to remind us of times like these. Keep it up. Brent

        • Robert Richardson
          Robert Richardson on February 28 at 1:54 pm

          I love this shot. I think that the van in the reflection adds to the feel of the shot and the atmosphere for what is going.

          I do agree with Brent about the spacing at the bottom of the picture by his feet, as they feel cut off.

          • Christin McLeod
            Christin McLeod on February 28 at 2:07 pm

            Thank you so much for the input Robert. I appreciate it. I will add some space under his feet and see how that changes it. Thank you!!!

    • Juan
      Juan on February 28 at 2:44 pm

      Cristin,
      I enjoy street photography as well. black and white gives it a very nice appeal. I would be careful in leaving too much room at the top an cutting part of his sneakers below. How to yo manage not getting yourself on the reflection?

      • Christin McLeod
        Christin McLeod on February 28 at 9:46 pm

        Hi Juan. Thank you. I am going to crop it differently this week and post it again. How I didn’t get myself, I honestly don’t know. We were driving by and I was in a rush to get my camera ready just to take the picture. There was not any time to think about the setup since we were in a moving vehicle so I guess it’s just lucky happenstance.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on February 28 at 6:46 pm

      Love street photography…especially black and white. I did find the reflection of the car in the window and the drain pipe on the let hand side a distraction though, but great image!

      • Christin McLeod
        Christin McLeod on February 28 at 9:42 pm

        Thank you. I also found the pipe distracting, truth be told. I may play with it more this week and load it again. As for the reflection, this image is very personal to me and the reflection is integral to the story. I was in the vehicle that’s reflected in the window and it represents me and my convenient life zipping by while others struggle, possibly stuck in their life.

        • Rerro Rocher
          Rerro Rocher on February 28 at 10:03 pm

          Aaaahhhh….that makes the reflection very important to the whole story…..and our photo’s are telling a story. Thanks for the explanation. A great story, and it becomes a great photo now….every picture tells a story!

    • Jill
      Jill on February 28 at 10:09 pm

      Great photo Christin – love street photography – especially as it is black and white. Great subject.

    • Jeanette Rusbatch
      Jeanette Rusbatch on March 2 at 9:29 am

      Great capture – especially a hurried one – I love street photography and people-watching – this image makes me feel like I want to know more of his story 🙂

    • Alex
      Alex on March 2 at 5:50 pm

      An evocative photo, when you know the story behind it. Our various first world problems pale when forced to confront this sort of thing. But photography is all about telling a story, good and bad.

      • Romy Villanueva
        Romy Villanueva on June 26 at 8:42 am

        Much better Christin and I love that you did it in BW. The van’s reflection, indeed, was another element to the story.

    • Hazel
      Hazel on February 27 at 3:31 pm

      amazing photo Brent..breathtaking 🙂

    • Sarah Rodríguez
      Sarah Rodríguez on February 28 at 3:08 am

      Beautiful photo!! I like your passion project because it really changes the way to see our surroundings!

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on February 28 at 6:48 pm

      I am totally in awe of the new perspectives that drone photography brings….I am assuming this is a drone…or you are very high up!
      Amazing to see

      • Brent Mail
        Brent Mail on February 28 at 7:34 pm

        Thanks Christine. Yes drone shot and I’m loving this new birds eye view too. Brent

  19. Christin McLeod
    Christin McLeod on February 28 at 2:39 am

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/3ea5228bd43f493f447de51e689091ed65bf30d0798dc8f0aff93629c8b8c96c.jpg

    Here’s Baxter the Boxer. A goofy looking gent, if I do say so myself. But a sweetheart. He’s one of the dock dogs when we go to the lake each summer.

    This is another older photo from 2 years ago. I was using my new to me at the time 5D Mark III (I’m almost certain that’s what I used), practicing focusing. I have found this camera to be so much more of a challenge to focus than my T3i for some reason. I still struggle with it to this day. But this particular pic was a win in that department!

  20. Sarah Rodríguez
    Sarah Rodríguez on February 28 at 3:17 am

    Choosing a passion project was not an easy thing…I guess I have too many passions! hahahaha I finally decided to go out of my comfort zone and try some still photography (I am usually shooting nature and portrait). I want to make a mini collection of coffee minimalist photos, because let’s face it… coffee is one of my passions too! I started with this little traditional Turkish coffee cezve that a dear friend gave me as a present. I used some white canvas as background to keep it simple. Hope you like it! 🙂

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/58661f663e842354746760ed2b66aa0b3a4b5aa1a899aba1fa5dac682e427590.jpg

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on February 28 at 1:58 pm

      Hey Sarah, great to see you in here. I’ll comment in a little while – just sorting out a few teething issues with BootCamp as more people enroll. Cheers, Brent

      • Sarah Rodríguez
        Sarah Rodríguez on March 3 at 9:38 am

        Sure!! Thanks Brent!!

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 4 at 6:27 pm

          Just love the lead-in line from the handle and the super shallow depth of field here @sarah_rodr_guez:disqus and yes the white canvas at the back does make this cezve pop. Couple of things I noticed, the canvas at the bottom and top is not totally white – wonder if you can burn/dodge that area. Also what part of this cezve do you want the viewer’s eye to settle on? Tell me more about this item – I’m interested. Brent

          • Sarah Rodríguez
            Sarah Rodríguez on March 9 at 7:02 am

            True..the canvas is not really white. Might it be because of the lighting in the room? I will check the white balance. I am always having problems with poor light because when I get home from work it is already dark (luckily spring is almost here and days will get longer! hahahaha). For now, I got a ring flash to improve my light situation. I used in the second passion project photo. 🙂 The cezve is a type of pot where you mix the turkish coffee with water and bring it to boil. My Turkish friends told me that you need to bring it 3 times to boil before serving it into coffee cups. As you don’t filter the coffee, before drinking it you then need to wait that the coffee powder goes down… if not it can be a really dusty coffee! hahahah

          • Sarah Rodríguez
            Sarah Rodríguez on March 9 at 7:05 am

            I wanted the viewer’s eye to settle in the upper ring of the cezve. I needed to use a super shallow depth of field because of poor lighting, so I needed to choose between the ring or the handle….the handle is sooooolong that it was giving me a lot of composition problems! I think I will try again and take a new photo focusing in the handle

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 10 at 12:14 pm

            Yeah difficult to find a good single point of interest here

    • Christin McLeod
      Christin McLeod on February 28 at 2:16 pm

      Hi Sarah! What a neat image!! I’ve heard much of Turkish coffee but don’t know much about it. I honestly think of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe when I see or hear the term. And that’s a good thing. I like the leading line of the handle down into the cup. I’m finding that I wish the handle was turned counter clockwise a smidge and that the spout were a little more toward me. It’s a very neat image and I’m more curious about Turkish coffee now!! (I love coffee, too!!).

      • Sarah Rodríguez
        Sarah Rodríguez on March 3 at 9:37 am

        Hi Christin!! Thanks for your tips!! If you are a coffee lover you should try the Turkish one. It is quite intense! Is there a place you can get it where you live?

        • Christin McLeod
          Christin McLeod on March 6 at 9:26 am

          I’m not sure Sarah. I will have to do some research. It’s hard enough to find not Starbucks to be honest! LOL. We don’t have nearly enough indy coffee shops around. But I’ll look for a place that has Turkish coffee for sure!

        • Christin McLeod
          Christin McLeod on March 6 at 9:29 am

          Looks like there is one place in town that gets good reviews not too terribly far from me. I’ll check it out next time I’m in that area. 🙂

          • Sarah Rodríguez
            Sarah Rodríguez on March 9 at 6:54 am

            Awesome!! If you go…tell me about your experience!! 🙂

    • Juan
      Juan on February 28 at 2:40 pm

      Sarah, I like that you blurred the coffee beans. it gives it a nice antique look. I would try putting the whole cezve in focus and the beans out of focus to see how the picture looks.

      • Sarah Rodríguez
        Sarah Rodríguez on March 3 at 9:35 am

        Thank you Juan!! I think it is a good idea. I wiil try it!

      • Sarah Rodríguez
        Sarah Rodríguez on March 9 at 7:07 am

        HI Juan!! Thank you for your comment!! I was working with really bad light (it was already night) and I needed to use this shallow depth of field that didn’t allow me to have all the cezve in focus. However… I just got a ring flash and I think I will try to take a new photo with at least the handle in focus! Let’s see how it goes!! 🙂

  21. Robert Richardson
    Robert Richardson on February 28 at 1:50 pm

    Choosing my passion project has created a vast thought process in my mind, as i have several passions including landscapes and wildlife. I have selected to go with wildlife as this tends to be not only my passion, but my families focus. This image was shot a few weeks ago on a trip to a local conservation area where my wife got experience feeding the birds first hand. Not only was it a privilege to shoot the shot, but also to get the smile on her face while she had the birds landing on her hand and feeding right from her hand.

    Hope you all enjoy! https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/320e1bd593baab74cb6fef2bcedf1fc3326896d474b02ede0f08053c5fcae5ff.jpg

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on February 28 at 2:01 pm

      Hi Robert and welcome to BootCamp. I’m also a lover of birds and wildlife. Lovely shot – like the dark background and your wife’s hand and arm coming in from the bottom left, it draws my eye up to the bird. What kind of bird is it? One suggestion is to brighten it’s eye a little – maybe in LR with a brush? Keep posting and commenting on other images too. Cheers, Brent

      • Robert Richardson
        Robert Richardson on February 28 at 2:18 pm

        Thank you Brent. I am somewhat new to using Lightroom and will try to see how to use a brush to lighten the eyes.

    • Christin McLeod
      Christin McLeod on February 28 at 2:12 pm

      Hi Robert. I had to chuckle at the term “first hand” as I couldn’t help but think “Is THIS the first hand?” I’m a bit corny like that… anyway, I love this photo. The soft background is perfect for the bird and “first hand” to stand out against. I also appreciate that the color of her shirt is subtly echoed in the bird’s tail feathers while the background matches his body and the glove his head. It just all works great together!!! I agree with Brent on the eye of the bird. That would be the icing on the cake! Beautiful image!!

      • Robert Richardson
        Robert Richardson on February 28 at 2:23 pm

        Thanks so much for you kind words. I am currently looking at how to lighten the area around the eyes. I will try to repost later this week with a new image. The background was actually created using depth of field only. I will have to look back to see what settings I was using, but I think i was using my new Sigma 150-600 lens as this was my first trip using it after receiving it for Christmas.

    • Juan
      Juan on February 28 at 2:47 pm

      Hi Robert is that a Black-capped Chickadee Poecile atricapillus? I could not see the eye to see where the focus point was. What lense where you using? Very nice picture. It must have been so much fun to watch

      • Robert Richardson
        Robert Richardson on March 1 at 11:50 am

        Juan, I was using a Sigma 150-600 zoom. I have a number of shots from this day. It was so much fun!

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on February 28 at 6:58 pm

      Nice image…good composition…would have liked to have seen the bird’s eye. seems that the tail feathers are sharper than the head…so maybe focus was slightly off….but great effort. birds are difficult!

      • Robert Richardson
        Robert Richardson on March 1 at 11:51 am

        Thanks for the comments. I am currently working on lightening the area about the eyes and head. Stay tuned……

    • Jill
      Jill on February 28 at 10:08 pm

      Great photo Robert you obviously managed to get quite close – I love photographing birds but it is so difficult – love the background.

      • Robert Richardson
        Robert Richardson on March 1 at 12:21 pm

        Jill, thanks for your kind words. The background is natural, but with a very shallow depth of field.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on February 28 at 3:34 pm

      Hi Kevin, welcome to BootCamp. Great first image, and yes it is an abstract for sure. Is that water droplet frozen? I like that the branch leads my eye in from the right up to the droplet, and that the droplet is much lighter than the background. Suggestion: Crop your image so that the droplet (your point of interest) is not in the middle – off to one side would be better. Also I’m wanting to zoom in a little to make that droplet even more prominent. Keep shooting and posting your images here. Cheers, Brent

      • Kevin Hart
        Kevin Hart on February 28 at 3:41 pm

        Thank you for the advice and yes we had a freeze so the water was dripping off the branch.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on February 28 at 6:41 pm

      Interesting image….it got me looking and trying to figure out what I was looking at! I can see a droplet of water….I would be making that the focal point…maybe try and see what is being reflected. Also…use the leading lines. I would crop down the bottom of the picture and have the stick/wire coming out the corner of the picture. good image though

    • Robert Richardson
      Robert Richardson on March 1 at 12:25 pm

      Great shot. I like the depth of field shot, but i wonder about cropping the shot and making the frozen drop larger and more the focus point fo the photo. Please also share, if you do not mind, the settings and lens used.

  23. Jill
    Jill on February 28 at 4:25 pm

    My passion at the moment is close up and I would like to get into some macro. I have chosen here a picture in our garden as we have some gorgeous plants at this time of year. I feel that a lot of my photos are not sharp enough – looking forward to your comments.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on February 28 at 6:38 pm

      This is brilliant…..I have been trying my hand at macro photography….with bees….and boy it is difficult to get them focused sharply.
      Yours is great….not sure what lens you used, and what f-stop…but most of the picture is in focus. I would be trying to get the bee pin point sharp and the blurring out the background more

      • Jill
        Jill on March 1 at 3:18 pm

        Hi Rerro, I used a Tamron 90mm F2.8 Macro lens on my Cannon EOS 60D – yes they are hard to capture – I am also trying to capture a butterfly as we have gorgeous black ones here but they are even harder to get.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on February 28 at 7:43 pm

      Great image Jill. What did you use to capture this bee and what settings? I’ve tried to shoot insects before and it’s very difficult with them moving around so much. Brent

      • Jill
        Jill on February 28 at 10:04 pm

        Hi Brent, I used my Canon EOS 60D on TV priority at 1/250th sec, ISO400 with my Tamron 90mm f2.8 Macro lens. I have since got a Canon EOS 80D but am still learning how to use the 45 focusing points!

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 1 at 8:02 am

          Thanks Jill. I normally use the centre focus point only, and then use the focus-and-recompose technique. I’ve found this to be the most accurate with a moving subject. I see you’re using a faster shutter speed of 1/250th that’s a good idea too. Brent

    • Christin McLeod
      Christin McLeod on February 28 at 10:20 pm

      Hi Jill! I adore your bee photo. Was he your intended subject? I assume so but wondered since you referred to this as a garden and plants picture instead of a bee picture.

      In any case, it looks perfectly sharp to me on my phone! I love love love bees and have spent some time taking photos of them and know they are so nearly impossible to get a good picture of. This one shows the story of his gathering lifestyle wonderfully. Maybe consider cropping in a little more to really emphasize that story. It’s such a great shot of that cute bee!

      • Jill
        Jill on March 1 at 3:17 pm

        Hi Christin, originally no – we moved to this house just over a year ago and we have some lovely plants including some that I have not seen before so I like to go out and take close ups of the plants – this one however, (and I don’t know what it is) was just covered in bees when I went out so I thought I would try and get a bee shot while I was there. I am still trying my best to get a butterfly shot but they don’t like you getting too close.

    • Fleur Mead
      Fleur Mead on March 1 at 12:51 am

      Well done! I too have been known to chase bees around the flower garden!! It’s not easy and it’s great that you have been able to get the focus on the bee and great detail in his wings and fur.

    • Kevin Hart
      Kevin Hart on March 1 at 10:49 am

      love the picture the lavender flowers help train your eyes to the focal point. Great shot!!

    • Robert Richardson
      Robert Richardson on March 1 at 12:30 pm

      Beautiful shot!!!!!!!! Love on contrasting colours and the the focal point.

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on March 1 at 2:16 pm

      Great contrast between the the lavender of the flowers and the black and orange of the bee.

    • Gary Edwards
      Gary Edwards on March 1 at 2:52 pm

      Great shot. Love the colors and your focus looks sharp. Maybe try to move your camera to a point where you get more of the bee’s head and move the subject up and to the right a little so it appears the bee is moving into the picture instead of centered. Overall, a great job in capturing the bee.

    • Wanda Lach
      Wanda Lach on March 1 at 8:46 pm

      such a sharp image – love the colour contrast and the soft blur of the flowers in the background.

    • Nick Burton
      Nick Burton on March 1 at 10:41 pm

      Great colours, depth of field and tack sharp image. Would it be better to offset a bit so that the bee isn’t dead centre?

  25. Rerro Rocher
    Rerro Rocher on February 28 at 6:35 pm

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/f813e29de685c96d3d671eec00d1b4358d9b7024245bf10f40c5343547c5cdd8.jpg My passion is Fine Art Photography….have been focusing on flowers at the moment, but I am wanting to develop a portfolio of Fine Art ‘Nature’….landscapes, seascapes, flowers…macro…but with a fine art flair. I like to use this technique with portraiture too. Anyway, I took this with the nifty fifty on a tripod quite early in the morning…7-7:30ish. I have called it ‘Enchantment’ because the colours captured and the way I have edited take me into an enchanted forest. I absolutely love the tones and the hue. This is literally in my back yard. It is a young nectarine tree. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on February 28 at 7:37 pm

      Wow Christine love it too. Yes I’m also a fine art fan. The tones in this image are gorgeous and I like that it’s on the darker side too. I’m on my phone right now and would love to see this on a bigger screen. Would love to see more of your art. Also can you share how you post processed this image – that would be awesome! Brent

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on February 28 at 8:24 pm

        Sure Brent. I will upload my Fine Art Preset that I developed…..and use on most of my flower photography….a few tweaks…here and there, depending on the colours and light. The secret is the tone curve!
        I will email it…as I have it on a word doc.

        • Rerro Rocher
          Rerro Rocher on February 28 at 8:32 pm

          Not sure how to attach a word doc….let me know the best way to get my preset setting to you.

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on February 28 at 8:52 pm

            Email to me – that would be great. B

    • Wanda Lach
      Wanda Lach on March 1 at 8:48 pm

      I just adore fine art and love the very soft feel of this image. The blossom is lovely against the dark floiage. Beautiful composition.

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 1 at 8:53 pm

        Thank you for the feedback. I love this image so much too 🙂

  26. Fleur Mead
    Fleur Mead on March 1 at 1:54 am

    Hi Everyone! My passion is landscapes and sunsets, among other things! We live on a farm in South West WA and I love taking images of the changing seasons and different times of day. This tree is in the paddock just out my kitchen window… so I have lots of photos of it! This night I was out with my daughter shutting up the chooks with our cameras as the light was gorgeous and we timed it right to get the sun setting in just the right spot. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/4096991098effb03f903067b66d82c825d4b0f188626f1573a4a2fe2799c149c.jpg

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 1 at 8:04 am

      Great image Fleur and I like that your passion project is the same subject – but in different seasons. That’s a great idea and I’m sure that when we create the coffee table book (in 12 months time) it will look amazing. Can you give me the settings you shot this sunset at? Brent

      • Fleur Mead
        Fleur Mead on March 1 at 9:53 am

        Thanks – it was shot at 1/125 sec; f/29; ISO 400.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 1 at 4:55 pm

          f/29 should have given you more star-burst effect, I’m surprised it didn’t? Wonder if you take that image into Lightroom and reduce highlights over the sun, I think you might get a nice star-burst effect. B

          • Fleur Mead
            Fleur Mead on March 2 at 1:43 am

            Hi Brent thanks for that I have tried to have a bit more of a play around – I have Photoshop – but no luck so far. Maybe my camera wasn’t up to the job?! I had trouble with permission to that Google Drive folder but have sent you the raw photo link from my own drive.

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 2 at 4:02 pm

            @fleurmead:disqus Had a look at it too and I can’t get the star burst effect because the sun is just too bright – next time take a few shots while moving left or right and you’ll see one will have it – or underexpose by an extra stop when shooting sunset or sunrise. Hope this helps. Brent

          • Fleur Mead
            Fleur Mead on March 2 at 5:34 pm

            Thank you will give it a go!

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 1 at 8:23 am

      Great sunset…..I love the richness of the different shades of yellow. I like the sun rays peeping through the tree. My personal preference would be to get a sun star using a higher f-stop….more defined rays. Also, this scene would be great with the sun already set, with the tree as a silhouette against the hue, and if you take your perspective from a lower angle…so less of the fields.

      • Kevin Hart
        Kevin Hart on March 1 at 10:45 am

        love your composition and placement of sunset.very tranquil

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on March 1 at 2:19 pm

      Nice use of the tree for a silhouette against the sun setting.

    • Jill
      Jill on March 1 at 3:21 pm

      Gorgeous sunset Fleur and I love the composition and colours.

    • Wanda Lach
      Wanda Lach on March 1 at 8:50 pm

      I love the idea of taking images over a period of time to show the progression of the seasons. Love the rays of light peeping out from behind the tree.

    • Kathy Potter
      Kathy Potter on March 2 at 3:47 am

      Sunsets are my passion as well. I love how the sun is setting right through the break in the tree. Beautiful shot.

    • Jeanette Rusbatch
      Jeanette Rusbatch on March 2 at 9:19 am

      What a gorgeous view near your kitchen window – love the colours and that tree – cant wait to see the different seasons 🙂

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 1 at 9:36 am

      Wow….love this Juan…..was this taken on your phone or did you have a camera with you on the flight?

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 1 at 3:20 pm

      Magic sunset (I think) – reminds me of one that I watched when flying back from Fiji last year, it went on forever. Love those puffy clouds below and the warm light catching those high clouds. Also the aeroplane wind adds another dimension to this image. Have you tried to edit this in lightroom yet? You can balance the light a little more (lighten the bottom more – bring up the shadows), I think it will make the image POP even more. Brent

      • Juan
        Juan on March 2 at 1:31 am

        Thanks Brent
        I was not shooting in RAW but got new APP that I will be able to shoot in RAW called ProCamera

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 2 at 8:21 am

          Excellent, yes shoot RAW if you can – then you can edit in lightroom and have more options later on. B

      • Juan
        Juan on March 2 at 1:31 am

        I will work on it in Lightroom and re post it. thank you

    • Jeanette Rusbatch
      Jeanette Rusbatch on March 2 at 9:43 am

      I love clouds too, Juan, – sometimes dramatic, sometimes calming -always changing 🙂 , Lovely image – the colours are pretty and as Brent said just lighten the bottom and it will be even better 🙂

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 1 at 3:23 pm

      Excellent capture Peter, love the reflection of the sun off the water leading my eye up the image to the boat and the person in the boat pointing to where they are going. Something I’d like to see in this shot is a little more space in front of the boat – for it to go into. Anything that’s moving, or has the potential to move, leave space for it to move into if you can, unless you shot it with a longer lens. What settings did you use? Brent

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on March 2 at 1:04 pm

        I used my Canon 7D with my Tamron wide angle lens. The settings were ISO100, 30mm, f/6.3, and 1/320 sec. We were on a boat taking pictures of boats that were moving. I just happened to catch this shot as the boat was passing the sun. I see now that taking it in landscape view would have been better to show the boat moving forward. Thanks. Peter

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 4 at 6:37 pm

          Sometimes you don’t have time to think, and just need to shoot when you see something like this @peterbrody:disqus – so well done. The thing to take away here is that afterwards you see things that you could have done better if you had the time, and then next time you capture them. B

          • Peter Brody
            Peter Brody on March 6 at 12:52 pm

            Thank you, Brent. The video helped with getting back to my thread.

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 6 at 2:59 pm

            Awesome – yes I’m still learning how it all works too. Cheers, Brent

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 1 at 4:00 pm

      Beautiful colour and image. I think the reflection really helps to highlight the silhouette of the boat. One thing I would check is the horizon line. It looks just a bit off, not quite straight, and that is something I personally find a bit distracting.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 1 at 4:31 pm

      Stunning image…..I personally would have this in landscape and have more room on the right…or taken a 3 shot panorama perhaps in portrait so as not to lose to much of the reflection. By doing this you are telling more of a story with your image….the boat having a destination. Also, I am not sure if you are also on a boat but I perhaps would have tried to lower my perspective to have the boat above the horizon….not sure if that would have been possible. a very good image!

    • Wanda Lach
      Wanda Lach on March 1 at 8:53 pm

      I adore reflections – the water looks like silk here – the patterns are wonderful. I agree that the horizon is just a little off and maybe just a little more space around the boat too.

  29. Gary Edwards
    Gary Edwards on March 1 at 3:04 pm

    My passion is landscape, nature and wildlife. I chose this picture while snowshoeing up Berthoud Pass near Winter Park, CO just this last January. The winds were blowing the snow around and the clouds made it more of a shady day. Both of these events made it more difficult to bring out the contrast in the mountains and clouds in the background. I wanted to give this a send of standing at the edge of the mountainside with the large rock formations as the foreground. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/40fbe4c5b4b2c972971ae5645617279ea56a4e3d785575c41af6e4e97d213288.jpg

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 1 at 3:25 pm

      Love it – I’ve been over that pass before, gets a little scary in winter. Yes I like that the foreground rocks are clear and sharp and then the middle-ground mountain is a little misty and the background is almost a white-out. Can you give us more info on what you took this on, and which setting you chose and why? Brent

      • Gary Edwards
        Gary Edwards on March 1 at 4:57 pm

        This was actually taken at the top of the pass at Broome Hut. I used a hand-held Nikon D7200 with an 18-140mm lens at 48mm, F5.6 at 1/160 and ISO 200. I was trying to get the best light and sharpness of the rocks with some depth to capture the background yet trying not to overexpose the snow. Since it was hand-held I had to use a fast enough shutter speed to maintain sharpness.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 1 at 4:23 pm

      Very nice image….I like the leading lines of the rocks in the foreground taking me into the middle of the frame and then my eyes are pulled around a kind of s-bend. great depth of field, would like to know the settings and what was the idea behind the composition. And were you using a tripod.

    • Wanda Lach
      Wanda Lach on March 1 at 8:54 pm

      very three dimensional with the foreground rocks leading into the slightly misty midground with the very foggy background – great composition.

  30. Craig
    Craig on March 1 at 7:30 pm

    Hi all, I have a few different types of photos that I enjoy. I love Landscapes that capture the wide open spaces. I love portraits of my family and some macro.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 1 at 9:45 pm

      Thanks for sharing @disqus_xQQMdbpif2:disqus I suggest you post one image and then comment on 2 other peoples images. That way everyone gets a turn – also have you decided what your passion project is. Choose one thing at a time. I like all your images, which one do you want me to comment on? Brent

      • Craig
        Craig on March 1 at 10:14 pm

        The portrait please.
        Thank you

        Craig Mostert
        Village Vet Hospital

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 2 at 8:19 am

      Lovely portrait @disqus_xQQMdbpif2:disqus what settings did you shoot this with, and what is the feeling you are after? Brent

  32. Craig
    Craig on March 1 at 7:33 pm

    Sorry the first time the image didn’t load.

    • Wanda Lach
      Wanda Lach on March 1 at 8:55 pm

      a really well balanced image. The dark trees casting a dark shadow and the dark clouds all create a vignette that focuses the eye on the golden sunset on the grass.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 1 at 9:46 pm

      @disqus_xQQMdbpif2:disqus can you tell us more about what you were trying to achieve with this image, your settings etc. Brent

      • Craig
        Craig on March 1 at 10:29 pm

        I really liked the smooth softness, innocence of my daughter vs the texture of the bark
        Craig Mostert
        Village Vet Hospital

      • Craig
        Craig on March 1 at 10:44 pm

        Sorry. I used a Nikon 24-120. Aperture priority No flash. At about F4
        Craig Mostert
        Village Vet Hospital

    • Nick Burton
      Nick Burton on March 1 at 10:44 pm

      Super colours and composition. Really nice how the l/h tree has almost hidden the sun. And the sum lighting up the foreground grasses is amazing.

    • Kathy Potter
      Kathy Potter on March 2 at 3:55 am

      I love the colors in this photo. It reminds me of my hometown in northern North Dakota where they actually have hills. It actually brings back memories for me. I love how the trees on each side frame the shot!

      • Craig
        Craig on March 2 at 4:06 am

        Thank you all.
        This is on the edge of the Kalahari in South Africa. A wonderful place with forever vistas. I took a number of pics over a 30 min time span. It’s difficult to believe how dramatically the colors changed.
        Craig Mostert
        Village Vet Hospital

    • Juan
      Juan on March 2 at 11:18 am

      Craig
      this is a picture I would buy to put in my study, very nice. Did you add the vignetting /filter or was it like that from the original shot?

      • Craig
        Craig on March 2 at 3:59 pm

        This is pretty much the original shot. I did very very little in LR

    • Richard Hutson
      Richard Hutson on March 2 at 12:13 pm

      I truly love this picture. You have captured my favorite time of day.

    • Alex
      Alex on March 2 at 5:19 pm

      Nice shot Craig. I especially like how the soft golden light highlights the long grass in the foreground. It might benefit from a little cropping from the bottom to bring it more in line with the Rule of Thirds

    • vjmudd
      vjmudd on March 3 at 10:32 am

      I really like this image. The softness of the clouds and the warm feeling of the golds, yellows and browns make me want to sit down in the grass and watch the sun change the colors of the landscape. Great job!

    • Chris
      Chris on March 4 at 6:31 pm

      What a beautiful, calming photo. I feel a sense of serenity just looking at it.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 1 at 11:06 pm

      Great shot for handheld….It looks like you had your aperture opened up with a low f-stop, which has let in lots of light, and caused the image not to be in focus throughout the image. I would try and bring the exposure down slightly, and darken the tones of the space around the spider in LR….so that he pops. At the moment the brightness of the image is overpowering

  35. Wanda Lach
    Wanda Lach on March 1 at 8:56 pm

    It’s hard to choose a passion – I love most genres. I love close-ups, reflections, water, landscape, birds and art. This image is of a very orange beetle in the alpine national park, Kosciuszko National Park, in NSW, Australia (it’s summer still here folks!). I loved the contrast between the shiny orange bug and the very green foliage. I didn’t bring my macro ring flash so there was quite a bit of reflection from the on camera flash even though I set it to a very low setting. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/3573ec15e2f2eb1217b5adc87eff9dc39035ce8e4bdb51becdc9e3498573f69c.jpg

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 1 at 9:50 pm

      Great first image @wandalach:disqus love the way your bug really pops out of that green foliage. Love the shallow depth of field you used. Couple of suggestions: Have you thought about cropping your image so that the beetle is off centre – maybe taking part of the left off. Also in Lightroom you can reduce the highlights on the beetle that your flash made. Lovely image, well done. Brent

          • Fleur Mead
            Fleur Mead on March 2 at 12:13 pm

            Love your beetle he is very funky! I think in this one I’d like to see the whole beetle in focus. If it was your intention to have the antennae blurred that’s cool but if the rest of him was focussed I think it would give greater impact.

          • Wanda Lach
            Wanda Lach on March 2 at 7:23 pm

            Macro is always hard – it’s usually a very wide aperture which gives the shallow depth of field – this then makes it hard to get the whole beetle in focus. My lens would have been only a few centimetres away from him and almost impossible to get the face on angle here – I was already grovelling on the ground as it was! lol! – the joys of macro photograhy!

          • Chris
            Chris on March 4 at 6:30 pm

            What a striking beetle! I love photographing insects.

          • Wanda Lach
            Wanda Lach on March 2 at 7:24 pm

            thanks Brent. It definitely has better impact with the beetle off centre!

        • Erez Shilat
          Erez Shilat on March 2 at 11:51 pm

          Love the contrasting colors and the composition – beautiful image

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 1 at 10:58 pm

      Love the contrast of the colours….did you have the macro lens on for this one….would like to know how small the beetle was, and what your focal distance was

        • Karen Padilla
          Karen Padilla on March 2 at 9:38 am

          Love this photo. Surprisingly I don’t like bugs but love to take photos of them when I can. Just got a macro lens so will probably be watching for them when the snow melts.

          • Wanda Lach
            Wanda Lach on March 2 at 7:26 pm

            it’s lots of fun but lots of hard work and lots of grovelling on the ground and getting grubby! My shirt was wet at the elbows and my pants wet on the rear and on the knees from trying to get a better angle…

  36. Nick Burton
    Nick Burton on March 1 at 11:02 pm

    I enjoy taking landscape photos and particularly where I can use the light to create atmosphere. I’m fortunate where I live in the UK as there are many beautiful areas to go walking in. So for my project I’ll try over the next 12 months to not only take better and more landscape photos, but take some of the same shots in different seasons and at different times to record the effect of the changing light.

    The attached photo was last week (we have blizzards and -10 here at present!) in our Lake District. It was hand held using my D7200 1/120th at f16 ISO 1600 Aperture priority.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/c8803bef60131679e8c45b1d78f1b12f49a8e685d6a3ffb8b838793658a9d539.jpg

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 2 at 8:18 am

      Great first share @disqus_bkIvia7t8q:disqus and yes it looks cold there right now. Also I like you passion project – same scenes in different seasons, you’re lucky where you live that you have suck diverse seasons. What I like about this image is the framing you’ve chosen, the branches frame the scene and direct my eye to the smaller tree sticking out of the water. How can you make this better? I’d like to have that foreground object much more prominent in this scene – so maybe go a little closer, or get lower when you take the image. Also that snow capped mountain in the background is interesting and would like to see more of that too. Suggestion: walk around, bend down, get on your toes and really look at all the elements in your scene before taking your first image. Good setting at f16 for large depth of field – everything in focus. Brent

    • Chris
      Chris on March 4 at 5:17 pm

      I’m slightly obsessed with bare trees in winter. They just look ominous yet graceful to me. I take these pics whenever I can.

  37. Kathy Potter
    Kathy Potter on March 2 at 3:53 am

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/83428780526a80b200018d617360b83bb93f38b643923059b8aed50cb28b3613.jpg
    My passion is anything outside but mostly sunsets and bird photography. As I live in North Dakota, its tough to find birds in this frigid weather, but I spend alot of time in FL so I will continue my bird photography there. This photo was taken in FL and was a sunrise shot. I will choose sunrise and sunset shots as my passion project because there is one of each every day. This photograph is a year old when I had a Panasonic Lumix f300. (1/1600 ss, f/4, ISO 100) Now I am using a Nikon D500 so I am excited to learn more about the camera and the different lenses I can use!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 2 at 8:09 am

      Great passion project @disqus_za88PSDRvr:disqus I’m a lover of sunrise and sunsets too. Lovely image you have shared with us here, those colours are amazing and as you know sometimes it’s difficult to focus when shooting right into the sun. My eye goes to the birds after looking at the sun, which is great. Couple of things to make this image better in my opinion. Horizon might be slight off – not straight? I’d also crop the right 3rd off the image so that the sunrise is more on the right hand side – rule of 3rds. Also maybe a crop a little off the bottom too. Hope this helps, and post your new (edited) image below. Brent

    • Richard Hutson
      Richard Hutson on March 2 at 12:06 pm

      I like the way you captured the rising sun reflection on the water and the trees in silhouette . I also think the cropped version that Brent suggested improves the picture.

    • Kathy Potter
      Kathy Potter on March 2 at 8:40 am

      Beautiful. We so often focus on the flowers when they are at their full bloom. This is a great perspective.

    • Jeanette Rusbatch
      Jeanette Rusbatch on March 2 at 10:47 am

      So lovely Rerro – and agree with Kathy – we don’t often think about this perspective. love your preset

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 2 at 11:26 am

        Thanks so much Jeanette…yes…my preset…this took a lot of refining, and now it defines my work.

    • Juan
      Juan on March 2 at 10:54 am

      very nice Rerro, I like the dullness of the flower with the dark background. Tells a great story which we all know what the ending will be. It is a like a Romeo and Juliet kind of poetry.

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 2 at 11:24 am

        Thanks Juan, I am so glad that I have managed to get you ‘the viewer’ seeing what I see through my image. This is so inspiring for me.

    • Richard Hutson
      Richard Hutson on March 2 at 11:58 am

      I like the way you captured the soft light on this image. I echo Juan’s and Kathy’s comments. I think this is one of the most elegant stages in the life of a flower.

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 2 at 12:09 pm

        Thanks Richard. And I agree I love this stage in the life of the flower. A perfect parallel to our lives.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 2 at 3:38 pm

      Love your tones Christine, there is something “fine arty” about your images, dark and moody with those lovely purples and pinks. Who would have thought that a dying flower could be displayed in this wonderful way. No real suggestions on how to improve it 🙂 Brent

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 2 at 5:37 pm

        Thanks so much Brent…..I am hoping my passion for photography and nature is portrayed through my images 🙂

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 4 at 6:34 pm

          It TOTALLY is – and thanks for being part of BootCamp, loving your contribution. B

    • vjmudd
      vjmudd on March 3 at 10:54 am

      All I can say is, gorgeous!

    • Chris
      Chris on March 4 at 5:16 pm

      Beautiful. I had a photography teacher that honored flowers as they were growing as well as when they were dying. He had an entire process for this and it seems you do as well.

    • Eric Vincent
      Eric Vincent on March 5 at 8:57 am

      Love the way you’ve developed this shot.

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 5 at 9:09 am

        Thanks so much Eric….i have developed a Fine Art Preset…..and use it with most of my flower images. I have a theme going 🙂 It is called ‘Contemplation’

    • Steven Kirk
      Steven Kirk on March 7 at 11:41 pm

      Well done! I love the texture in this image.

  39. Karen Padilla
    Karen Padilla on March 2 at 9:51 am

    I like to take late evening or night photos during the summer. This photo was taken at the Albuquerque Hot Air Balloon Fiesta in New Mexico. I took it in Oct 2015 while there for a photo expedition. It was the first time for hot air balloons and fireworks. I love the Southwestern states of New Mexico and Arizona and I have spend quite a bit of time there in the last few years. The landscapes are beautiful and the nights can be stormy or lit up with stars. Sunsets and sunrises are my passion. I may have to have 2 passions for this because I want to learn macro ( bought the lens last year), so you may see some of my first bug photos. While I’m not a beginner, I think this Bootcamp will inspire me and bring back my passion for photography.

    My photo didn’t load. Is there a size limit?

  40. Karen Padilla
    Karen Padilla on March 2 at 10:14 am

    I found a sunset by my house. I lean out my back window to take the sunsets through out the year. This was taken with my Samsung Galaxy 8S that shoots RAW. I’m hoping that by participating in the Bootcamp and I renew my passion for photography. Like evening and night shots in the summer. I love the Southwest US because of the beautiful landscapes. the evenings and nights can be stormy or totally lit up with stars. I am a travel writer so I spent a lot of time there in the last couple years. I also want to learn to use my macro lens this year.
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/c2f341ac30abb14fcd01ab257f24bece72612a778550892bf9645416698efd66.jpg

    • Juan
      Juan on March 2 at 10:57 am

      Karen very nice sunset. I would try looking fpr a different view to see if the foreground is not as busy. The contrast of the dark tree shadows with the nice sunset does work though.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 2 at 3:34 pm

      Welcome @disqus_W9X9AYgvoB:disqus so good to see you here. Great image love the cool snow and warm sunset and then the blue at the top. Something to consider here is “what is your main point of interest in this shot?” Is it the red clouds? My eye is wanting to settle on one thing but I keep looking around for it. Might be that reflection below the trees off the water (or ice). If that’s what you decide it is (your main point of interest), then I suggest you go closer, walk through those trees, get low and make it more prominent. Does that make sense? Brent

    • vjmudd
      vjmudd on March 3 at 10:53 am

      When I first saw this image I didn’t notice that you could “see more”, so I was just looking at it where the tree line in the background was the start of the image. I think that there is more drama and emphasis on the beautiful colors in the sky behind the darkened silhouettes of the trees. I like it!

    • Juan
      Juan on March 2 at 10:58 am

      Hazel, I like the story you are trying to tell. can I ask why you decided to take this picture as a vertical?

      • Hazel
        Hazel on March 2 at 11:07 am

        Hi Juan, thank you. I just took this shot using my phone. This shot was taken during sunrise in my hometown. Teh reason I took it as a vertical because the right side part of that image is a mess LOL.

        • Juan
          Juan on March 2 at 11:16 am

          Thank you that is an excellent reason. get rid of all of the distractions prior to taking the picture. Some people take them out post processing but why not do it while you are shooting.

          • Hazel
            Hazel on March 2 at 11:47 am

            Thank you Juan 🙂

    • Jeanette Rusbatch
      Jeanette Rusbatch on March 3 at 9:50 am

      I love this image Hazel, the colour, the waves playing chasing with the boat, the suns rays through the clouds ( i’m a clouds fan 🙂 ) Its calming

    • vjmudd
      vjmudd on March 3 at 10:46 am

      The reflection of the sun on the water is really nice and I like the texture of the sand and the wave in the foreground. Nice image.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 3 at 8:02 pm

      Beautiful image and the sun rays are amazing. I think that it can be even better if you’ll straiten the image and crop it a little top and bottom

  42. Jeanette Rusbatch
    Jeanette Rusbatch on March 2 at 10:39 am

    My passion at the moment is Long Exposure – I love nature, especially landscape but my hours of work are in evening so I miss many golden hours at night and are usually sleeping during the morning so I wanted a way to be able to do landscape during the day which took me on a pathway to discovering ND filters and with the help and inspiration of Brent, Johny, and the Patels courses i am learning much. This image is one of my first attempts taken at Purakanui Falls in the Catlins, New Zealand, iso100 18mm f16 60second exposure with a 10stop ND. I have lightened up the shadows in lightroom – am learning that too:) https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/ef0c96b180956cbf492a4d85be687e2d1e4771384a35b89e3ddb13295b47cb37.jpg

    • Fleur Mead
      Fleur Mead on March 2 at 12:05 pm

      Wow fantastic! This is something I am really keen to try out too. Love the effect on the water and the shades of colour you’ve got in the trees. What sort of ND filters have you got?

      • Jeanette Rusbatch
        Jeanette Rusbatch on March 2 at 12:42 pm

        Thanks so much Fleur. I got confused with all the different filter brands available , colour casts etc so after doing Brents Long exposure course I decided to get Lee filters as Brent had been using them so I figured they had to be good 🙂

        • Fleur Mead
          Fleur Mead on March 2 at 5:36 pm

          Great thanks, I will have to investigate! 🙂

    • Gary Edwards
      Gary Edwards on March 2 at 3:08 pm

      Very nice. Great exposure of the water and goo detail in the shadows. Looks like I need to use more filters in my long exposures too. Beautiful image.

      • Jeanette Rusbatch
        Jeanette Rusbatch on March 3 at 8:30 am

        Thanks very much Gary. i always shoot RAW now so that I can bring out that detail in the shadows. The original image was darker so I was pretty pleased that the detail was there 🙂

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 2 at 3:56 pm

      Love this image @jeanetterusbatch:disqus and yes I’m also a LONG EXPOSURE NUT! I remember shooting those falls before sunrise because the day was meant to be clear with full sunlight – so we hiked down in the freezing cold to shoot before the sun got into the gorge. Lovely capture and I do like the 60 second exposure. How to make it better? I’m thinking a little more post processing – maybe playing with the black and white points in LR (lightroom), also a grad filter here and there. Please upload the original for me here https://goo.gl/jxatUo so that I can have a play. Excellent capture. Brent

      • Jeanette Rusbatch
        Jeanette Rusbatch on March 3 at 8:54 am

        Thanks Brent – I’m my worst critic so never know if an image is decent or not but that would be awesome if you can have a play with it – post processing is still in the learning stages :). The day we were at the falls had been rain overnight and was still cloudy, so I hadn’t put any gaffer tape across the top of the filters, but just half way through the exposure the sun came out through the clouds ( our crazy NZ weather – 4 seasons in one day! ) so I had to edit out some sun spots.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 4 at 6:30 pm

          Cool @jeanetterusbatch:disqus I’ll give it a try in the next few days. I’ve never tried the “gaffer tape on filters” thing – but I have had those pesky sunspots before. Cheers, Brent

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 2 at 5:43 pm

      Love love love long exposures…..and this is a great image. Something I haven’t quite mastered yet….well done!

    • Sarah Rodríguez
      Sarah Rodríguez on March 3 at 9:47 am

      Beautiful photo Jeanette!! I tried some Long Exposure and I always find it complicated. I am quite impressed this was one of your first attempts. Well done!! I also miss a lot of golden hours because of work. It is great to see you find an alternative that works for you!! Maybe I will steal your idea and try again Long Exposure! hahahahaha

      • Jeanette Rusbatch
        Jeanette Rusbatch on March 3 at 10:32 am

        Thanks Sarah – haha – work! yes, many nights I look out the windows at work and think I’d rather be out taking photos! lol . The SOOC image isn’t as great – was darker and I had to get rid of some sunspots 🙂 This was the Lee Big Stopper and I have an app on my phone to work out the exposure times which helps a lot. I haven’t got into the grad filters so much yet. I found that the Lee website had some good tutorials on using their filters and Brent has a course I did.

    • vjmudd
      vjmudd on March 3 at 10:38 am

      I love water images, and this is just beautiful. Love it.

      • Jeanette Rusbatch
        Jeanette Rusbatch on March 3 at 12:06 pm

        Thanks vjmudd 🙂

    • Eric Vincent
      Eric Vincent on March 5 at 8:54 am

      Love the look of silky water! Beautiful contrast in this shot!

    • Rodney
      Rodney on March 7 at 12:45 am

      Great smooth water, and I like the colours, green against the dark rocks. I haven’t tried a 60 second waterfall shot yet (have only done about 10s) but will have to give it a go now.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 2 at 2:56 pm

      Wow @disqus_GS4axOeNE1:disqus so much more PUNCH!!! Well done, that’s what bootcamp is all about – already improving with just a few suggestions. I’m impressed! Brent

    • Sarah Rodríguez
      Sarah Rodríguez on March 3 at 9:44 am

      WOW!! I just scrolled down to see the first picture and I totally see a difference! Well done!! I love the colors and the textures of the clouds. It makes me feel like if I am inside the plane. 🙂

    • Kennedy
      Kennedy on March 3 at 12:08 pm

      WOW, i didn’t get to see this first picture but this is amazing. How did you get this picture, through a window? What lens did you use? Love those clouds!!

      • Juan
        Juan on March 3 at 12:11 pm

        Thanks Kennedy
        Yes it was on the plane. that is why I added the part of the wing to give more of a story

    • Juan
      Juan on March 2 at 1:46 pm

      Beautiful picture Kevin. It would be interesting to see green leaves as Bokeh to give it that nice contrast. Try to do the vignette with a softer brush where it touches the flower so you do not lose the edges of the flower. I see it as cutting off the fingers of a person in a portrait. Nice job

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 2 at 3:01 pm

      Hey @disqus_R7CPNa88Qx:disqus great first image – well done. I can see what you are trying to do by eliminating distractions with your reverse-vignette which is a good start. I wonder if there is another way to highlight the flower that be more effective? Please upload original here https://goo.gl/c1abKw and let me see what I can do. Brent

      • Kevin Hart
        Kevin Hart on March 2 at 3:28 pm

        okay I’ll send it your way

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 2 at 4:26 pm

      Here’s a quick edit I did @disqus_R7CPNa88Qx:disqus with the JPG you sent me. A few things to note – when you shoot leave more room around the flower to crop later on, I would have liked to have more greenery around the flower. Also, shoot in RAW if you can that gives you more options in post processing too. I can record a quick video if you like to show you what I did to your image – let me know. Brent
      https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/bede9b3fc86bbce2b74dfda31820f192da49365b231e76d12697806116e2a428.jpg

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 2 at 6:11 pm

        Hi Kevin…have you thought about using the radial filter in LR. By placing the radial around the flower you can process everything around it without touching the flower. You can then feather the changes so it looks part of the image

        • Kevin Hart
          Kevin Hart on March 3 at 12:21 am

          thank you for the suggestion

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 4 at 6:33 pm

          Great tip – that’s what I did on this flower @rerrorocher:disqus and it’s such a great technique to highlight things in your image

      • Kevin Hart
        Kevin Hart on March 3 at 12:23 am

        thank you I’ll accept any info I’m here to learn

    • Juan
      Juan on March 2 at 1:49 pm

      Hi Richard love the flair of the Sun. Did you use any fill lite in the foreground? or was that post processed? Nice job

      • Richard Hutson
        Richard Hutson on March 3 at 7:30 am

        Juan, Thanks for your comments. The shot was intentionally underexposed so that I could bring out the sunburst and remove the shadows in the foreground in post processing. I usually start post processing using the 3C Workflow and Finishing presets, then make the final adjustments with the individual sliders on the right side of the LightRoom panel.

    • Gary Edwards
      Gary Edwards on March 2 at 3:06 pm

      Very nice job with the light and the sun flare. A little cropping might help to get the horizon line out of center. Great job.

      • Richard Hutson
        Richard Hutson on March 3 at 7:12 am

        Gary, Thanks for your comments. The cropping improved the image.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 2 at 4:13 pm

      Hi @disqus_VMEwMaCfC1:disqus welcome to BootCamp, great first image. Love those rays of light as the sun goes over the mountain and at f16 you’ll get that star-burst effect. Gorgeous colours and like that foreground grass and the reflection on the right (I think). How to improve: Composition is the one thing I notice and you can easily crop off part of the left of your image to take the sun off centre. Maybe lightening the foreground grass a little more might help too. Beautiful image – you should print this one and hang it on your wall. Brent.
      P.S. You were the VERY FIRST person to signup to BootCamp – you ROCK!

    • Kennedy
      Kennedy on March 3 at 11:54 am

      Love this picture. I too love getting sunsets. I think what you did with the grass really emphasized the distance between the grass and mountain. Great Job!

      • Richard Hutson
        Richard Hutson on March 8 at 12:33 pm

        Phyllis, Thanks for your comments.

    • Rodney
      Rodney on March 7 at 12:48 am

      Wonderful shot. I could just pull up a chair and sit and watch it.

      • Richard Hutson
        Richard Hutson on March 8 at 12:36 pm

        Rodney, Thanks for your comments … actually that’s exactly what I did to get this shot from the balcony of our room at Bodega Bay Lodge.

        ps: I was also siping a fine Pinot Noir !

  46. Rerro Rocher
    Rerro Rocher on March 3 at 8:30 am

    I also have a deep attraction to black and white photography, and this is certainly an area I am finding a sense of satisfaction with my photography. I find I can create a sense of drama when using this medium. And I love it! This photo was taken down at Fremantle one evening….the wind was 30 knots….so camera (even though it was on a tripod) was getting battered. but then I saw the scene….Wood vs Iron….old vs new….and just had to get the pic! Would love critique as I have never delved in so deep into B&W before. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/8d7e2823324c066acd2e29ae2d91013ca148749d853896765aadb478a688a168.jpg

    • Jeanette Rusbatch
      Jeanette Rusbatch on March 3 at 9:30 am

      Wow Rerro – I havent gone into B&W yet so dont know much about it but I love this image – very striking, old & new

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 3 at 9:40 am

        Thanks Jeanette….this is totally new territory for me. Especially black and white at night 🙂

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 3 at 2:20 pm

        wow….thanks Juan….I truly prefer your version. What a difference….love it!

        • Juan
          Juan on March 3 at 2:29 pm

          you could probably do a better job with the original so it won’t be as grainy

          • Rerro Rocher
            Rerro Rocher on March 3 at 2:35 pm

            But thanks for the advice….I will keep this in mind…made it grainy because of the incessant wind

          • Rerro Rocher
            Rerro Rocher on March 3 at 2:38 pm

            I am thinking I could have pulled out the detail in the wooden ship using the adjustment brush…

      • Eric Vincent
        Eric Vincent on March 5 at 8:51 am

        Awesome! I really like this one! I would agree with Juan, try removing the vignette entirely just to see how it looks. I would keep the grain though, it gives is an older feel.

  47. vjmudd
    vjmudd on March 3 at 11:15 am

    I am very eclectic and will shoot just about anything. While trying to figure out what my true passion(s) is/are, I began to understand that rather than a specific subject, I love to turn images
    into paintings, and I will shoot relentlessly if I can see the subject
    as a painting. That said, one of the things that I love to shoot are
    waterlilies, they look like a painting just being themselves. Here is
    one of my favorites. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/be34030d88c3bed33fd2d52fabde2c963b2c37f38f61bd3e8b22e5ad873c9b61.jpg

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on March 3 at 8:43 pm

      Hi vjmudd, a beautiful shot of a tropical water lilly. I love the dark background and gorgeous detail in the petals.

    • Ronald Young
      Ronald Young on March 4 at 7:33 am

      Wow, that is a fantastic photo. I love the purple against the black background and the bright yellow. You turned something somewhat ordinary into a very lovely and impressive image.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 4 at 7:57 am

      Love how this flower jumps out at me. I think it’s that dark background that really makes it pop. Suggestion: I’d like to see all the petals if possible. Brent

      • vjmudd
        vjmudd on March 4 at 5:36 pm

        Thanks Brent. Sorry, this is how I purposely composed and shot the photo because some of the longer petal ends were in the water and were turning brown and with others the ends were mostly missing because they had been chewed on by bugs. This was taken at a botanical garden that was so infected with aphids that they stopped displaying the waterlilies until they can get them under control.

    • Jill
      Jill on March 4 at 10:10 am

      Love this – purple is my favourite colour and this just jumps out – especially the yellow centre. The dark background really sets it off.

    • Chris
      Chris on March 4 at 5:13 pm

      Beautiful. I love macro shots as well of purple flowers. Love the crop.

  48. vjmudd
    vjmudd on March 3 at 11:20 am

    Brent, per your request, here is one of the vintage vehicles I shot as a painting. I had to clone out a lot of distractions in Photoshop, including a campaign poster that had been placed on the gate in the background. I then took it into Topaz Adjust and messed with some of the settings, then into Topaz Impression and used the Impasto 1 preset to come up with this final image. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/b4c86a15ae4e3db6ad3fc4ce7f80533be61f212badd5de8ae98386cb0cc74a27.jpg

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 3 at 8:06 pm

      Just love the approach. Beautiful image

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 4 at 7:55 am

      Love these old cars – I’ve akways wanted one. I do like the way you’ve converted it to a painting. Can you tell me your motivation to do this – I’m interested? Print them? Brent

      • vjmudd
        vjmudd on March 4 at 6:02 pm

        Thanks Brent. I once owned a 55 Chevy Bel Air, I loved it. This was the very first vehicle I turned into a painting. My motivation was to do something that no one else was doing after my husband asked me to take a photo of his friends car, at a car show, so that he could give it to him as a gift. It was August and very hot, but I agreed to do it. After tracking him down at the car show, my husband’s friend rudely replied that he had hundreds of pictures of his car. That was not the response I wanted to hear and I turned around and walked away. But, after I walked off my annoyance, it started me thinking about what he had said. So, I decided to try doing something that no one else was doing with photos of vintage vehicles and make them into art. That was my motivation. I do have a print of this truck, and have some prints of several other vehicles that I have done as well.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 4 at 6:21 pm

          Excellent – I love stories like this, it gives so much more insight into WHY you’re doing what you’re doing. Love it! Yes I agree, be unique and do what makes you happy. That’s what being an artist is all about. Brent

    • Jill
      Jill on March 4 at 10:09 am

      I absolutely love this – it looks just like a painting.

    • Ronald Young
      Ronald Young on March 4 at 12:23 pm

      I love it. In my younger days we looked for old cars abandoned on farms in Upstate New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio to turn into cars for drag racing. Every once in a while we would encounter an old pick up such as your photo so beautifully shows. Somebody would put a big hemi Chrysler V-8 or a big block Chevy and have a really unique car to race. The one in your photo would make an excellent starting point. Do you know the year and make of this truck? I only use Lightroom to process my photos so I am always impressed with photographers who use Photoshop to such excellent effect.

      • vjmudd
        vjmudd on March 4 at 5:44 pm

        Thanks Ronald. Based on the plate and the grill, I have always thought that it is a 51 GMC, but that is just my guess since I could put into a thimble what I know about vintage cars/trucks. If I find them abandoned, I can only photograph them. It would be cool to be able to do a before and after they’re rebuilt though.

      • Ronald Young
        Ronald Young on March 4 at 7:31 am

        Very nice selection of colors-the rust and yellow against the green and the gray of the sidewall and the reflections make a pleasing composition. The trees in the foreground nicely frame the colored leaves and reflection in the water.

    • vjmudd
      vjmudd on March 4 at 6:09 pm

      I like the reflection of the autumn colors in the water. Do you have a photo with just the water and the red and gold trees? Always makes such a pretty image when the fall colors are at their peak.

      • Valerie Worthen
        Valerie Worthen on March 5 at 9:00 am

        Hi Vj unfortunately I didn’t get a photo without the trees. One of those times when you get home and wish you had taken more.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 4:16 pm

      Love those fall colours, reflecting off the water and the way you’ve framed them with the foreground trees. Suggestion: Zoom in more (or crop in) and make this colours more prominent in this image. Can you upload the original image (RAW if you have it) here: https://goo.gl/jxatUo so that I can do a quick edit? Brent

      • Valerie Worthen
        Valerie Worthen on March 7 at 2:40 am

        Thanks Brent, I have uploaded the original for you.

  50. Alex
    Alex on March 3 at 2:36 pm

    Hi everyone, after some thought I’d have to say what I’m most interested in right now – passion project – is aerial landscape photography – using my drone of course, not a helicopter! Unfortunately the camera on my Phantom 4 is pretty hopeless, frankly, compared to my “real” camera, which is a Canon 6D. It’s got a very small sensor, doesn’t render colours particularly well, has a fixed aperture of 2.8 and fixed focus, has a limited dynamic range and the detail is somewhat lacking. However, as I understand it, the most crucial element of photography is composition – without that, you’re going nowhere, with it, you’re winning. So the rest of it doesn’t matter so much. I’ll be buying a new drone sometime this year anyway with a much better camera which will fix those problems.

    This photo was taken on a privately owned island, which I visit once or twice a year for work. Unfortunately this was the only shot I took of this scene, wish I’d tried some different angles as I can see room for variety here. But I still like it – if it looks like a little slice of paradise, it is!. Also I overexposed it so I have some blown out highlights. The colours aren’t too bad in this one and it goes to show the old maxim of the golden hour being the best time to shoot doesn’t always apply. This was taken well before the golden hour on a perfect summer day. I wanted to show the idyllic beauty and symmetry of the place – curving beaches, curving headland, snaking road. The road adds a certain something to this shot I think. From the air too you get to see the submerged rocks and changing colours in the water which you just can’t see from the ground.

    I want to be on that boat drinking a glass of vino 🙂

    Drone photography is a whole new world, so many possibilities. I still get slightly nervous each time I send it out – will it come back? Because very occasionally, they don’t!

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/5c367a1f218bf6cd394984139718b48eaadfdb6d0050ce6f07340da986b85ef4.jpg

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 4 at 12:04 pm

      Hi Alex and welcome. So good to see you here too. Firstly thanks for posting and your excellent description of why you chose this image, what you were thinking and feeling and what you learned. Yes aerial photography is so much fun – I’m loving it and I learn something every time I fly. Composition is the key ingredient in aerial images and you’re right it is super important. Fantastic image, very inviting – I want to swim in that water too. One thing I would have done is fly further backwards to include more water in the foreground surrounding the headland. Also go a little higher so that the beach lines on the right flow longer and not cut off by the headland. Hope this helps. Brent

      • Alex
        Alex on March 4 at 2:05 pm

        Hi Brent, good to see you’re back in business so to speak, and good to be here. Thanks for your comments, it’s one of the main reasons I’m here, to get an honest assessment from someone who knows what they’re talking about. Hard to get that elsewhere! Next time I go to the island I’ll be paying a bit more attention to this location, and see what I can come up with. Cheers, Alex

          • Alex
            Alex on March 5 at 3:31 am

            Anyone can visit the island, you just need your own boat to get out there – about 8 km off shore. It’s worth a look, if you’re ever back in NZ with time up your sleeve

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 6 at 7:47 am

            I’ll look you up next time I’m there

          • Alex
            Alex on March 7 at 4:01 am

            For sure, that would be great. Check out Great Mercury Island on Google Earth

    • vjmudd
      vjmudd on March 4 at 6:16 pm

      The colors in the water are beautiful and I really like the colors of the rocks and the grass as well as the different textures between rocks, grass and water. Nice!

      • Alex
        Alex on March 5 at 3:50 am

        Thanks, I love this shot – it takes me back there every time I see it

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 3 at 8:18 pm

      Great capture and lighting. Love the light penetrating the spider and the colors. Have you tried to emphasize the colors little more using the LR colors menu? Warming a little the warm colors of the spider and cooling the sky a little more

    • Ronald Young
      Ronald Young on March 4 at 7:29 am

      That is a very impressive photo. Luckily I do not have arachnophobia or I might have nightmares thinking about that critter. Great job of capturing a photo by shooting something unexpected at the precise moment.

    • Jill
      Jill on March 4 at 10:09 am

      Wow this is fantastic – I hate spiders and find it hard to get that close but they are fascinating critters. I love this light in this photo.

    • tara
      tara on March 4 at 3:37 pm

      I find spiders very interesting subject to photography I like how the light captures the tiny little hairs on the spiders legs and his web

    • vjmudd
      vjmudd on March 4 at 6:23 pm

      Creepy! But, I mean that in a good way though. The hairs in it are so sharp it made me shutter. And the light on the leg banding is great. Again, creepy!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 4:13 pm

      Brilliant capture. Love the back-lit spider against the blue sky. My only suggestion is to give it a little more blue sky space, especially at the bottom. Brent

  53. Kerrie Clarke
    Kerrie Clarke on March 3 at 8:38 pm

    This is my passion project.
    Water… I’m hoping to get in to some long exposures…
    I’ve never posted a photo anywhere before, and I’m here to learn as much as I can. I took this photo just after sunrise at Pebbly Beach, Yuraygir National Park, NSW . 1/100 sec f/11 iso 200. I wanted to highlight https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/fe4c70000454c240f2d8494712cf8d4f19f93fa56c8113792f9d64f433f138ec.jpg the muted pallet and silvery start to a new day.

    • Gary Shaddox
      Gary Shaddox on March 3 at 10:34 pm

      I love this shot. The colors are amazing. Leaves me wanting to see more of the same along this coastline.

        • Jill
          Jill on March 4 at 10:07 am

          I love this – the reflection is great. My passion that I posted was close up but my next biggest passion is water – especially the beach as I live on the coast. This looks so tranquil.

        • Ronald Young
          Ronald Young on March 4 at 12:17 pm

          Wow, Jill, I love this evocative photo. The combination of the tree branch, it’s reflection and the blue water and brown sand with the dune in the background really leads the viewer’s eye along the branch, across the water and to the dune. Very nice composition and also I love the various colors.

          • Kerrie Clarke
            Kerrie Clarke on March 5 at 9:21 am

            Thanks for your comments Ronald, I LOVE Station Creek. Access by 4 wheel drive only, and perfect isolated camping spot. This was one shot in a series of 5, which I wanted to stitch together as a panorama. Unfortunately I was not using a tripod, so I have had no real joy with aligning the horizon as where there was a lot of movement in the waves. Lesson learned….take the tripod!

        • vjmudd
          vjmudd on March 5 at 6:50 am

          I really like this one. I wish I lived somewhere near the ocean. I have to drive several hours to get to a walkable beach. Nice image.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 5 at 4:11 pm

          This one is stunning – a clear day makes all the difference in the water. Like how the branch comes in from the side. Suggestion: move around a little more to the left so that the branch comes in closer to the bottom of the frame where it touches the water and it’s reflection touches too. Brent

          • Kerrie Clarke
            Kerrie Clarke on March 8 at 6:31 pm

            Thanks Brent, I took a few images shooting back to the left, hoping to stitch them for a panorama.

        • John Costello
          John Costello on March 8 at 11:12 am

          I like your photo. I like that you have the horizon high in the photo, yet clearly the emphasis is on the water and branch. Must have been a wonderful day at the beach to get this still of water just off of the beach. Wonder what the view would have been like if you had been a bit further to the right, looking more to the left, and had the end of the branch over the water a bit closer to the right edge and seen a bit more of the creek running down to the ocean?

    • Craig
      Craig on March 4 at 5:11 am

      I love the sea and water too. This shot evokes such peace. Loverly pic

    • Ronald Young
      Ronald Young on March 4 at 12:15 pm

      I like water also, I am lucky enough to live about 10 minutes from the Pacific Ocean. Looking at your very nice photo really does evoke the sounds of the waves gently lapping the shore and the rays of the setting sun breaking through the clouds. Or is it the rising sun?? Lovely photo. Very serene!

    • Hilry Wright
      Hilry Wright on March 4 at 2:41 pm

      This is a really beautiful shot, as is your second shot of the branch. The colours in this first shot are so calm – is this how it came out of the camera, or did you improve it with Lightroom? Whatever, thr result is so tranquil.

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on March 4 at 4:19 pm

        Thanks Hilry, the sky in this shot was a bit blown out, so I addressed this in LR. I also brought up the shadows a little in the grasses on the right.

    • Jeanette Rusbatch
      Jeanette Rusbatch on March 4 at 11:19 pm

      Love this image Kerrie, the colour is beautiful! I’m with Gary – I wouldn’t mind having a nice walk along that beach! I’m interested in long exposure too – Have you watched any of Brent and Johnys SIC Shows – i liked No.16 – Long Exposure Love – showing their two different techniques of long exposure – well worth a watch 🙂

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on March 5 at 3:01 pm

        Thanks for that Jeanette. I hadn’t looked at any of the SIC show topics….so glad you suggested it! There is a huge amount of great info there. The long exposure video is really inspiring.

    • vjmudd
      vjmudd on March 5 at 6:45 am

      I really like the soft muted colors as well.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 4:09 pm

      Great first image @kerrie_clarke:disqus thanks for sharing with us. Yes I love those silvers too. This would have been an excellent long exposure with the cloud and water movement. I do see a bit of a tree on the top right – maybe if you went a little further back you could frame this shot on the right with that tree? Brent

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on March 8 at 1:53 pm

        Thank you for your feedback, Brent. I do need to be more mindful of getting a better composition.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 6 at 3:21 pm

      The colours are divine & I find this photo very peaceful. I like the long width which echoes the length of the beach.

  54. Erez Shilat
    Erez Shilat on March 3 at 8:43 pm

    I enjoy landscapes, but I enjoy even more playing with the images in Photoshop to push them beyond that – trying to emphasize feeling (limited success in that for now).

    The image was taken using Fujifilm x-t20, Fujifilm XF 18-135 LM OIS WR lens. Settings: 1/4 sec, f/13, ISO 200 at 25.4 mm.
    Tried to emphasize the motion of the water and to enhance the feeling of the uniqueness of water in the desert. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/89db1fc88a76605e40651c6f3d1f048ecf837288ecb54c14c70f461532796f17.jpg

    • Ronald Young
      Ronald Young on March 4 at 12:13 pm

      I love how you made the waterfall “flow” into one smooth ribbon of white against the greens and browns. I haven’t yet mastered Lighroom although I use it all of the time. Right now Photoshop is beyond my capability but I admire your using it to bring feeling into your photos. Keep up the good work.

    • Jeanette Rusbatch
      Jeanette Rusbatch on March 4 at 1:30 pm

      I enjoy Landscapes too, Erez, and in this image I love the rich colour and texture of the rocks against the long exposure of the water – quite striking.I haven’t used Photoshop yet, still learning lightroom. is there a way in Photoshop to edit out the stick in the water in the foreground? for some reason that keeps drawing my eye away from the waterfall 🙂

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on March 4 at 7:03 pm

        I’ll try removing it. Haven’t even thought about it before – thank you Jeanette!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 4:02 pm

      Hi @erezshilat:disqus great capture, and yes I do like the water in the desert. You’re in Israel right? To me all the settings are correct in this image, like the slower shutter speed to give that water a milky feel. A few things I’d suggest you do. Shoot at dawn or dusk when this mini-waterfall is in full shade so that the light is more even and softer. Also, move backwards more or use a wider angle lens to get more of the foreground pool in the image. Right now the water is flowing out of the right of your image, I’d prefer it to flow into some negative space in your image. Also look for one more point of interest (other than the waterfall) that you can “feature” in the foreground – a colourful rock maybe? That would add an extra element to this waterfall shot. Next time you go there – walk around and find the best composition first (spend 30 minutes or so) then setup your camera and tripod. Those 30 minutes – I think of them as meditation, because you are so focused on creating something that time seems to stand still. Hope this helps. Brent

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on March 5 at 5:43 pm

        Thank you very much @brentmail:disqus for a very helpful comment
        Yes, I’m from Israel and this image was taken near the dead sea without a tripod. I just put the camera on a rock using 2 sec timer. I know that I should use a tripod, since I’m very limited composition-wise without it, but I hate to carry it for the rest of the travel. I’ll give it a try so next time I’ll travel near water.

        • Sarah Rodríguez
          Sarah Rodríguez on March 9 at 7:18 am

          Really nice photo!! And the editing too! I totally understand you with thetripod situation. I hate to carry it too, but then I always regret I didn’t take it! Hahahahahah! I have been living in Israel for several years and I love the Dead Sea area. Your photo brings me nice memories! 🙂

          • Erez Shilat
            Erez Shilat on March 10 at 7:26 pm

            Thank you Sarah!
            I often regret not having the tripod, but always decide not to take it next time also…

  55. Gary Shaddox
    Gary Shaddox on March 3 at 10:31 pm

    Do my best to get images as clear and in focus as possible and I struggle with this all the time. My passion is to shoot photos that people will be awed with and like. Took several shots in Costa rica last year, thought I had shots people would like, the response was under whelming. Maybe I need to just try to please myself. This was one of the many shots of wild white faced monkeys we encountered on a boat trip down a river in northern Costa rica. Taken with a canon 6d mark2 at 1/1600 sec f/6.3 and 1600 iso with a tamron sp 150-600mm.
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/f5f1688fa28cdbbbf6165964bcbf1ed489642c1f04230adf9307345eb3a012e2.jpg

    • Ronald Young
      Ronald Young on March 4 at 7:26 am

      I love your photo. I have visited Costa Rica and tried to get some good photos of white faced monkeys too but they didn’t turn out very well. I too have big issues with getting my photos in sharp focus. I sometimes get in too big of a hurry when making photographs and fail to check the the images I take are in sharp focus only to find out when I get home and look at them at 100% that they are not in good focus. I do stock photography and images in poor focus are the main source of my rejections. I am going to try to be more diligent about insuring that my photos are in focus!

      • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
        Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 4 at 11:22 am

        Really Nice and sharp photo

    • Jill
      Jill on March 4 at 10:06 am

      I love this – its very hard to take photos of moving subjects. I also have a tendency to shoot quickly in case the subject moves and then end up with something out of focus.

    • Valerie Worthen
      Valerie Worthen on March 4 at 1:32 pm

      This is very good. It feels like he is looking right at you. I especially like the shallow depth of field. I struggle with getting the subject’s face in focus as well as the correct exposure.

    • Hilry Wright
      Hilry Wright on March 4 at 2:27 pm

      I love this too, very much my sort of photo.

    • tara
      tara on March 4 at 3:38 pm

      I love this photography I feel the monkey is looking straight a me

    • Chris
      Chris on March 4 at 5:12 pm

      Love this. Feel like he/she is disappointed in humanity. But what a beautiful face. Love the colors too.

    • Jeanette Rusbatch
      Jeanette Rusbatch on March 4 at 10:36 pm

      What a cutie! I think this is a great capture…and the eyes – lovely! I struggle with sharp focus too – you’re not alone on that one 🙂

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 3:53 pm

      Hi @garyshaddox:disqus I’m impressed with your image. Wildlife is not easy to capture! The monkeys eyes are tack-sharp. Did you shoot this at 600mm? Would love to see your original, can you upload here: https://goo.gl/jxatUo RAW if you can. Cheers, Brent

      • Gary Shaddox
        Gary Shaddox on March 5 at 10:16 pm

        Uploaded hopefully to the correct place, raw dng if there is such a thing. And yes it was taken at 600mm. My edits start in lightroom and the I take it to luminar to finish.

  56. Ronald Young
    Ronald Young on March 4 at 7:23 am

    My main interest is in travel photography so that really takes in most every genre including landscape, like this photo, portraits of different people, action shots, black and white, etc. This photo is the Canal St. Martin in the 10th Arrondissement in Paris, a city I love very much. This photo was shot with a Fujifilm X-T2 mirrorless camera at F 3.6, 1/400th, ISO 200 with 18-55 mm lens at 31.5 mm. The apartment that I stay in is only a couple of blocks from the canal.
    I love feeling like a local wherever I travel and I enjoy photographing the neighborhoods that I visit around the world.
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e9c1a132bfcf40689a084edaec0b8a6b939fb4f886809e1502d6265c0ed7f181.jpg

    • Jeanette Rusbatch
      Jeanette Rusbatch on March 5 at 2:45 pm

      Love the leading lines right up to the bridge – makes me want to take a nice quiet stroll up that path and across the bridge and see what lies beyond 🙂 . Very beautiful – No wonder you love this city, Ronald.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 3:48 pm

      I’m also a fan of Paris, especially in the summer. Great shot, love that leading line from the bottom up to the walkway. Noticed you shot with a very fast shutter speed and wide-open aperture, I’m interested why? With a landscape scene like this I’d shoot around f8 to f16 – in aperture priority mode. If you’re shooting portraits, or zooming right in then use the faster shutter speed and wide open aperture. Love that Fujifilm X-T2 camera, so handy for travel photography. Keep sharing. Brent

      • Ronald Young
        Ronald Young on March 6 at 4:16 am

        Thank you for the suggestions Brent. I sometimes get carried away with the scene I am trying to capture and don’t think enough about camera settings. I will try to be more cognizant of them in the future. The X-T2 is certainly great for travel photography because it is so much lighter than my Canon 5D Mark IV.

  57. Hilry Wright
    Hilry Wright on March 4 at 2:43 pm

    Trying all this on my iPad as this is the only means of doing it I will have on a forthcoming weeks long camping trip. Another West Australian, I live in Perth Hills. My passion, I had to think hard about that. As retirees, we travel a lot, usually to fairly remote places, and of course I document the trip. But the photos I really enjoy are all about nature, flora, fauna, land/seascapes. Hate cities and don’t take portaits, though like to take craftsmen at work, village life, etc, especially in Africa and India. I lived in Zambia for 20 yrs. Locally its is mostly animals/birds and wild flowers. This photo is one I have wanted for a long time. The tree is on our boundary, a hakea, and only 5m tall. Behind the tree is a bridleway frequented by dog walkers and children on bikes. The birds are Carnabys Black Cockatoo and they are pretty big. We usually see them way up in the really tall gum trees where you would need a telephoto lens. They are very easily spooked in our tree, probably because they are so near to ground and the foliage is not dense. They don’t come often and it’s a case of grab what ever is available and shoot – I managed 7 shots before they flew off. This was taken on a Sony Rx100 mk3, 26mm, ISO 125, 1/800 at f4.5. It’s been cropped a little, that is all. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/232c85bc72e029b5ab4ee7c23e2b715501bdbfa6edeb0d750144d136a4d4c72f.jpg

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on March 4 at 4:25 pm

      Awesome shot Hilry! I love the composition, especially the bird flyng out of the shot. I wouldn’t change a thing. Looking forward to your next post.

      • Hilry Wright
        Hilry Wright on March 4 at 4:49 pm

        Thanks Kerrie. I was so pleased to get a reasonable shot at last and may be able to improve it further in Lightroom, though I am a beginner at that. I shoot in raw+jpeg – this is the jpeg. My “big” camera is a sony alpha 6500, but I hadn’t got time to get it!! Mind, the little RX100 is fabulous for it’s size and particularly good in low light. This shot was about an hour after sunrise.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 3:43 pm

      Great post @hilrywright:disqus love those black cockatoo’s. When I’m camping up at Mungo brush they come flying over, very low at sunset – such large wings. OK, how to make this image better? With anything moving, I love to leave space for it to move into. Right now the bird on the left is about to fly out of your image. Also boost up the shadow a little more if you can – that will give us more details below the birds. Do you have lightroom to edit with? Brent

      • Hilry Wright
        Hilry Wright on March 5 at 4:03 pm

        Hi, Brent. Yes, I do have Lightroom, but on my desktop, though I am no expert. Don’t like the CC version on iPad. I haven’t as yet tried this on the desktop. Wanted first to make sure I could log in and post on the iPad as we are off for six weeks camping just now and I will have to rely on the iPad and JPEG downloads whilst away. On the desktop I would be working with the RAW file. These were only taken the other day in rather a rush!! I was very aware of not spooking the birds and knew I wouldn’t have very long, but thanks for your comment. I will certainly try to lift it a bit, and play around with the crop as well.

    • Hilry Wright
      Hilry Wright on March 4 at 4:50 pm

      Love this photo too. Possibly it would look better in portrait?

    • Chris
      Chris on March 4 at 5:11 pm

      Wow! I love this! That’s my passion as well. I would love to capture a dragonfly but I never see them resting. Great pic!!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 3:38 pm

      Hi @disqus_KyFLQqV8AT:disqus welcome, and lovely image. I love that your image is sharp, and what are those dragon flies doing, should we make this a “R Rated” BootCamp 🙂 – just joking. Have a look at the comments I made on @disqus_jT6tbkcRRn:disqus image of the bee – the same applies to yours, except for the crop. How can you seperate the insects from the background even more? Also, how about having that upright twig more at an angle so that it draws the viewer into your image (and doesn’t cut the image in half). I’d love to see what you come up with – post your updated version in this thread and tag me. Brent

  59. Chris
    Chris on March 4 at 6:55 pm

    Hi everyone. Hard to pick a passion so I looked back over my favorite pictures and guess I have to say nature and wildlife, birds and bees and macro. With that in mind, I am uploading a shot of a bee I just took. I am passionate about bees and love to watch them. They are so busy and if you let them be, they don’t bother you. Plus the planet needs bees. I think my passion project will be things with wings. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/7849e46e02554372e677973474978c21d5216ece47e20c9a9f6bc6c16c10e474.jpg

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 4 at 8:10 pm

      Great shot….and awesome passion….love Bee’s……and they are an integral part of our existence. I love clarity of the bee in this image. Have you thought about cropping this slightly differently. I think if you crop the top and the left, and have the bee in the top left….rule of thirds, This will draw the viewers eye into the frame.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 4 at 8:11 pm

      This is a great capture – the bee is so sharp! Love also the orange vs. green in the image.
      I think that you can improve the image by drawing more attention to the bee – crop the image a little and maybe add some vignetting.

    • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
      Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 5 at 5:23 am

      This is a great set with a sharp bee – amazing – As Erez wrote it will improve the picture if you crop the image.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 3:33 pm

      Yup, we do need bees and I believe they are dying out which is not good. Thanks for sharing this super-sharp image @disqus_jT6tbkcRRn:disqus I’m viewing it large now. I know how difficult it is to shoot bees, because they don’t stay too long before flying off (well, at least not for me), so great capture. A few things here: How can you make that bee jump-out more? The eye normally goes to the lightest, or darkest, or most contrasty part of an image – as well as the sharpest. So firstly, I’d crop this image and get rid of that light bit above and to the left of the bee. Also that black blob on the right that’s competing for my attention. Then have another look at this shot – post your cropped version in this thread and tag me the this @brentmail:disqus so I’m notified. Brent

      • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
        Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 6 at 7:56 am

        Wow it is really amazing now

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on March 6 at 3:12 pm

        The detail here is fantastic. I also like all the green. Perhaps it could be brightened a little bit? I think that would help highlight the colours of the bee vs the plant.

  60. Craig
    Craig on March 4 at 11:17 pm

    Hi all. I am a vet and as such have many pics of animals. Joining the theme below I would like as a first to add my bee. I have been playing around with my camera for just under 2 years.

  61. Peter Brody
    Peter Brody on March 5 at 12:47 am

    Thanks for your comment, Brent. I do try to take photos in different orientations.

  62. Eric Vincent
    Eric Vincent on March 5 at 9:11 am

    It’s difficult for me to choose a passion seeing as I have so many interests. I thought I could choose a photo that incorporated a few of those interests all-in-one. This photo was taken a few years back when I was visiting my Dad in Alberta, Canada. It incorporates 3 of my interests; dramatic skies, antiquity, and black & white photography. This image was shot with the following settings: 1/13sec f13 ISO100 at 17mm
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/6d3ffb12fbd7e93bf890903267d3ddde00cf2bfb813b0415247bfa8a698618b4.jpg

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 5 at 10:03 am

      Love the drama you have captured here Eric….and the low perspective. This would have been a great opportunity to use long exposure, to get the movement from the clouds. I think having the tractor more sharply in focus would have better added to the depth of field.

      • Eric Vincent
        Eric Vincent on March 5 at 10:07 am

        Agreed that a longer exposure would have made for an interesting effect, however I wanted the dramatic clouds to give the sense of impending rain … heavy down pour started about 20 minutes after this shot was taken.

        • Rerro Rocher
          Rerro Rocher on March 5 at 10:12 am

          Fair enough, looks like it was a fierce storm….was just thinking about bringing the detail of the tractor and the barn out a bit using the ‘adjustment brush’ in LR…the ‘dodge tool’

          • Eric Vincent
            Eric Vincent on March 5 at 10:14 am

            Hmmm… Hadn’t thought of that. I’ll have to make a point to see how that looks.

    • Eric Vincent
      Eric Vincent on March 5 at 11:21 am

      I updated this photo with suggestions provided by @rerrorocher:disqus … I was going save the update for another time but got thinking; one of the reasons for this is to do now what you would normally put off until later so now it was.

      This quick update (should work it a little more I think, what do you think?) adds some dodging and burning (it had been so long since I had done it I forgot how to add the Dodge/Burn layer in Photoshop) as well as an Unsharp Mask filter.

      https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/4f24ca583c353b997d51f0abb2b494b304cdfe838ed7b0de72544c3fd8ec06b1.jpg

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 5 at 11:47 am

        I like it…..fantastic! I definitely think it adds more depth to the image! Great stuff!

        • Eric Vincent
          Eric Vincent on March 5 at 12:04 pm

          Absolutely! Great suggestions, thank you!

      • vjmudd
        vjmudd on March 6 at 4:55 am

        I liked the first image, but this second one is so much better. My only suggestion would be to crop out or clone out the machinery or whatever it is, on the right. I found it a little distracting because I kept trying to figure out what it was. I think cloning would work best, if possible. Then you wouldn’t lose your negative space to the right. I really like the grain elevator, sad it is the last one. Did you get any photos of just the elevator and/or tractor by themselves?

        • Eric Vincent
          Eric Vincent on March 6 at 5:17 am

          I would have to check to see if I got the tractor solo but I know that I got some images of the grain elevators solo. I thought about removing the bucket arm, just didn’t get around to doing it yet. Something I’ll try when I get the photo of just the elevators.

      • Christin McLeod
        Christin McLeod on March 6 at 9:20 am

        This 2nd edit knocks it out of the park, Eric. My eye immediately went to the tractor, which seems like the main actor, and then moved onto the grain elevators, which are the phenomenal supporting actors. I love the mood and the drama! Great image!!

        • Eric Vincent
          Eric Vincent on March 6 at 12:04 pm

          Thanks so much Christin! Very much appreciated, but can’t take all the credit as it was Rerro that suggested the Dodge on the tractor and elevators.

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on March 6 at 3:06 pm

        Hi Eric! I grew up on a farm about 25km SE of Rowley near Morrin. The skies are big here and spectacular when a storm is brewing, so I would personally like to see more sky in the top and a bit less grass in in the foreground, just because I’m a prairie girl and the love these skies. I like the angle you used..deliberately low. I also wonder if you could crop out that bit of equipment on the right. I agree that the updated version helps give the image a more specific focus. Nice!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 3:27 pm

      I’m a huge fan of B/W images too and this is a great capture. I do like those very dark blacks, they add mood to this shot. Question – what is your main point of interest in this image, and how can you make that POP out even more? Is it the tractor or the barn? If it’s the tractor, then I’d like to see more of it, and I’d love to see some separation between tractor and barn. I do like your low angle perspective here and those clouds are epic too. Brent

      • Eric Vincent
        Eric Vincent on March 6 at 1:11 am

        Thanks Brent. To answer your question my objective was to have both the tractor and grain elevators as the main point of interest. I opted for a higher f stop to try and have both elements in focus (though I didn’t do the greatest job of that). Reason for my decision is that, from what I’m told, these are the last standing grain elevators in all of Alberta. Another reason is the complimentary nature of the elements, tractor used to harvest the grain that would end up in the elevators.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 6 at 7:42 am

          Nice to know the history – and you did a good job to capture both. Next time think “what’s my ONE main point of interest in this scene – and then what is my secondary point of interest?” The human eye wants to settle on one thing, then move off to another – that’s what makes great photography. Brent

          • Eric Vincent
            Eric Vincent on March 6 at 12:05 pm

            Thanks Brent, I’ll definitely keep that in mind for future shots.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 5 at 9:57 am

      Beautiful photo Lone…..the colours are amazing. Based on what you have said, you want the image to be sharper. I am not sure if you used a tripod here, but i would try shooting on a tripod, and shooting in ‘Manual mode’ and taking the ISO down to 100 then set your aperture to about F8 as a start and check your shutter speed. Play around checking your histogram until you get the low light you are after.

      • Eric Vincent
        Eric Vincent on March 5 at 10:09 am

        To add to Rerro’s suggestion, perhaps a little more negative space would add to the interest as well. Otherwise it’s a beautiful shot.

        • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
          Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 6 at 7:54 am

          Thank you for your feedback

      • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
        Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 5 at 10:15 am

        Hi Rerro
        Thanks for your reply – your Right i want the image to be sharper i Will try your suggestion – i didn`t use a Tripod and i Can see your point in setting the apperture to F8, it Will of course make more of the image sharper.

        • Point Reyes
          Point Reyes on March 6 at 1:27 am

          I love the colors and the way the lighting was cast onto the Orchide.

          Using a tripod with close-ups I have found using the self-timer or some other form of remote shutter release to be of benefit especially if you are using a slow shutter speed.

          • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
            Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 6 at 7:53 am

            Thank you for the feedback

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 3:22 pm

      Lovely orchid @lonehauerbergjensen:disqus I clicked on your image to see it large. Love that the stignma (I think) is in focus and the rest is out of focus and those colours are amazing. Love the warm colour in the foreground and then the greens and grey in the background. When I look at it large and zoom right in, it looks like a painting, maybe due to sharpening the parts that are not in focus? I’d love to see your original image – can you upload the RAW file here for me to check https://goo.gl/jxatUo that would be great. Thanks for sharing your passion. Brent

      • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
        Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 6 at 7:20 am

        Hi Brent
        I have uploaded the raw file to the link you provided here – And I have made some sharpening, and removed some Grain.
        Lone

    • Chris
      Chris on March 5 at 7:45 pm

      I love this, and I especially wish I could grow orchids but I can’t. Love the colors in this photo.

      • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
        Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 5 at 11:27 pm

        Hi Chris
        Thank you for your feedback
        For 2 years ago i couldnt get the orchids grow but then We moved to another House and suddenly my orchids just grow

    • vjmudd
      vjmudd on March 6 at 5:01 am

      The colors are beautiful. I also looked at it in full view and zoomed in and I agree with Brent, it looks like a painting.

      • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
        Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 6 at 7:52 am

        Thank you for your feedback

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 6 at 9:04 am

      Here is a quick edit I did on your original image @lonehauerbergjensen:disqus – see I cropped if differently and if you zoom right in you’ll see that the petals look more natural (I think). Also my white balance is different, more cool and I used the radial filter to highlight the main flower, give it more contrast and sharpness and a little more warmth. I can create a lesson from your image if you like. Here’s my version. Brent (what do you think?) https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/488efbd5232bc092abd8dd2c821e4bd7a4b3e8b66b0506f641972f2d45dcba44.jpg

      • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
        Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 6 at 10:13 am

        I like that – Your crop of the picture is very good, as it put the main flower in focus. And I like tha way you have sharpen it, I can see that I had to much focus on remove the Noise, and getting it sharper.
        I would be happy if you create a lesson from my image. Thank you.

    • Changed Lives
      Changed Lives on March 8 at 8:33 pm

      Beautiful colors and the shallow depth of field creating the nice bokeh.

      • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
        Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 12 at 6:31 am

        Hi lonnie
        Thabkbyou for your feed back

    • Lisa Chapin
      Lisa Chapin on March 12 at 2:30 am

      Vey pretty. I like the composition of this photo. My passion is flowers too!

      • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
        Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 12 at 6:30 am

        Thank you for your feed back

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 5 at 12:52 pm

      Nice shot John…..and great contrast with the colours. If you look at your image now….your focal point is right in the middle of your frame, and you have quite a bit of ‘dead’ space at the bottom right hand side. Try cropping your image, so that the focal point is off-center and lands on one of the ‘Rule of thirds’ points. By doing this the eye will automatically go straight to the flowers, and you will also magnify the flowers slightly.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 5 at 3:14 pm

      Great image John, and I’m a big fan of flowers too. Nice sharp image and those colours really jump out. My advice like @rerrorocher:disqus (Christine) says is crop off part of the image to highlight the point of interest more – then post your new image in this same thread (reply to your original post). Brent

      • Sarah Rodríguez
        Sarah Rodríguez on March 9 at 7:14 am

        I like this cropping. The flowers are much more outstanding now. Well done!!

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 9 at 11:22 am

        The flowers are more prominent now and we can see the detail….A much improved image now. Just a thought, but have you thought about flipping the photo around (horizontally or vertically) to see how it looks…:)

  66. Judy Ward
    Judy Ward on March 6 at 3:16 pm

    I’ve had a hard time deciding on the subject for my passion project. I’m really enjoying macro photography right now so that will be my main focus for my passion project. I also love abstract images which often influences the way I compose and crop images. The original shot was taken using a tripod and https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/2286dd30c424301bae766d7889236ee162e687c811ef0894aea2ded370f6b6a6.jpg contained the whole flower, composed to highlight the contrasting colours of the flower and focus on the stigma. I deliberately cropped it to highlight the stigma. I’m looking forward to hearing what you think and what I could do differently to enhance this image. Settings: f3.2 at 1/100 sec and ISO 100 using a 100mm macro lens.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 6 at 5:06 pm

      Hi Judy…i love macro….and especially like the way you have cropped the image, i love the blurred background. Great image, and the composition is good too. I tend to operate in the same way! I have looked at a bigger image of your photo, and the stigma is partly in focus and partly not…..which is expected with the narrow focal plane. Have you tried focus stacking to get more of the focal point in focus?

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on March 7 at 1:57 pm

        Thanks for your comments, Rerro. The blurred background was a very deliberate decision. I also softened it up a little more in Lightroom. The downside of that deliberate decision to have a very wide aperture was that I missed having the tack sharp focus for the whole top of that stigma.

      • Lisa Chapin
        Lisa Chapin on March 12 at 2:54 am

        What is focus stacking and how do you do it?

        • Rerro Rocher
          Rerro Rocher on March 12 at 6:45 am

          Hi Lisa, focus stacking is a technique used in post processing where we combine several images taken at different focal lengths to give a resulting image with a greater depth of field. You can just increase the the F-stop (but then you could lose detail). What you need for this. A tripod, a camera that can shoot in manual mode and post processing software, like Lightroom or Photoshop. So, it works in 3 stages, taking your multiple images, aligning them, then blending them into 1 image.

          • Lisa Chapin
            Lisa Chapin on March 12 at 8:12 am

            Good info. Sounds pretty intimidating. I haven’t used post processing software. Sounds like I need to try that!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 6 at 7:08 pm

      Amazing image Judy, just love the yellows and reds here. Also that the stigma is tack sharp (or at least the ends are). I wonder if you shot at say f16 you’d get a little more depth of field here. Or try focus stacking like Varina does in the Ultimate Landscape Photo Course. Love your composition too. This is an image you should print LARGE! Brent

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on March 7 at 1:47 pm

        Thanks Brent. You and @rerrorocher:disqus picked exactly what I was least satisfied with in this shot. I tend to forget that I can also adjust my ISO setting. I realised later that I should have bumped it up a bit. That might have been enough to let me expand the focal plane just enough to get the whole stigma in focus. I have never tried exposure stacking, but I’m going to give it go this weekend.

    • Point Reyes
      Point Reyes on March 7 at 1:32 pm

      I like the colors and I like the way you composed the shot. Instead of a dead center shot you made it so that my eyes flowed from the stigma down to the center and follow the yellow petal separation to the left.

      Sounds like we have similar interest. I too like macro/close-up photography and abstract images.

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on March 7 at 1:54 pm

        Thanks for your feedback, Point. I tried many different crops with this image before settling on this one.

  67. Rodney
    Rodney on March 7 at 12:37 am

    Hi all. For this Passion Project I have chosen insects. It was hard to choose as I am interested in many different areas of photography, however I have been concentrating on these little creatures most recently. This shot was taken in my front garden last weekend, and was selected from quite a few photos taken that I didn’t choose because of distracting backgrounds, out of focus (insect), movement, or that the insect wasn’t in the frame as it had flown off, leaving some sometimes quite nice but empty flower shots. I am not sure what this insect is yet but it is about 10mm long with black and yellow stripes, although these cannot be seen from this front shot. Settings were: 1/125 @ f/11, ISO200, using a 60mm lens,
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/c6261e7ba173f5c2c913cd2b0a08cd2070a87d103dbe74774b6a86c5b2f4271d.jpg

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 7 at 1:57 am

      Great capture! Very sharp and I love that you got the insect “in action”.
      I think that cropping left and bottom can improve your image by focusing more on the insect – keep the same ratio, but crop it so the other branch will not be in the image

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 7 at 10:15 am

      Excellent, looks like you’re joining @disqus_jT6tbkcRRn:disqus and @disqus_KyFLQqV8AT:disqus with your passion project. You’ve chosend a difficult subject, but in this shot you nailed it! Well done. Like that you chose a dark green and brown background, makes your insect really POP! I’d crop in a little more and remove the branch on the left of the image – it takes away from your main point of interest. Well done – and post your updated image in this thread, simply reply to your original post. Brent

    • Chris
      Chris on March 7 at 12:43 pm

      Love it, insects also my passion. What kind of bee is that? Maybe a wasp of some sort. I would agree that cropping it slightly would really make it pop.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 7 at 2:05 pm

      I am also a fan of how the darker background helps the insect and twig stand out. I really enjoyed checking out the hairs on the wasp and twig at this full size on my computer. Good job, indeed.

    • Rodney
      Rodney on March 7 at 11:40 pm

      Thanks @erezshilat:disqus , @brentmail:disqus, @disqus_jT6tbkcRRn:disqus and @disqus_W81kCdSr3n:disqus for your comments. I had cropped the original to remove a dead leaf on the left side of the branch. Have now cropped it more and it does look better.
      I have also found out that the insect is a “Hover Fly/Syrphid Fly, Family Syrphidae”. I should have guessed because that is exactly what is does between flying around, just hovers in the same spot in mid air. Even so I am still trying to get a good photo of it doing just that … it seems to always stop hovering and fly off just after I get focus set and as I press the shutter. Perhaps next time 😉
      https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/8f871a9333595586ebb57e867d21a0bbc455e7f39f269d5b53001a9266945a3d.jpg

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 7 at 10:20 am

      Stunning image @phil_messer:disqus , love this winter landscape. I like that you used the tree on the right to frame this shot. Can you give us your camera settings please? Also where is this? Something I did notice was a little noise in the sky which you can remove quite easily in lightroom. I’d also add a little blue in the shadows to make it more “colder” feeling. Brent

      • Phil Messer
        Phil Messer on March 7 at 11:26 am

        camera settings 1/160th sec @f22 ISO 320 24 mm (EF 24-105mm f4 L IS USM) Lens
        The location was Lake Louise Banff National Park Alberta Canada Thanks for your comments.

    • Chris
      Chris on March 7 at 12:45 pm

      What a beautiful and cold looking image. Often my white images have a yellow or blue cast to them. I love that yours looks very natural.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 7 at 2:18 pm

      My eye was drawn to the icy blue lip of the glacier in the middle of the photo. The overall tone is very consistent and works very well to convey the cold. You say you used HDR? I like that you didn’t overcook it. My main suggestion would be to try softening that sky a bit to make it look every bit as natural as the rest of the shot.

      • Phil Messer
        Phil Messer on March 9 at 10:13 am

        thanks for your comment Judy

    • Sarah Rodríguez
      Sarah Rodríguez on March 9 at 7:12 am

      Beautiful!!! I work with water (I do microbiology quality control) and I am always attracted to water-related projects!! You totally managed to convey the freezing temperatures!! -28C!! Do you need to do something special to keep your equipment ok at this low temperatures?

      • Phil Messer
        Phil Messer on March 9 at 10:16 am

        The only thing I had to do special with equipment was to work fast!!! When it was that cold I just made decisions really fast. The camera worked very well at that temperature. It was a Canon 7D

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 7 at 10:24 am

      Great capture @phyllis_kennedy:disqus can you give us more information on what your passion project is, and why you chose this image, what you were thinking etc. Thanks, Brent

      • Phyllis Kennedy
        Phyllis Kennedy on March 8 at 3:45 am

        Living in Tucson there are a lot of historic structures with a lot of history. My passion project is capturing these structures. When exploring ghost towns or historical sites I am always amazed by the story behind the structures.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 8 at 1:20 pm

          What’s the story behind this one? I’d love to know – and that red door really adds to the mystery. Have you considered desaturating this image except for that door? Brent

          • Phyllis Kennedy
            Phyllis Kennedy on March 9 at 11:42 am

            The picture was taken in the town of Two Guns Arizona. Two Guns was the site of a mass murder of Apaches by their Navajo enemies in 1878 and where Billy the Kid and his gang hid 1879-1880. This structure was part of a trading post which began in the 19th century, run by a couple of homesteaders and later updated in the late 20’s, and was on the Route 66 Highway.

            Is this what you were thinking?

            https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/1e9b7d14b35ae0bc7e3266a1c6c63cb7b26353bccf063df5b1a5fc4bf8f8ebc8.jpg

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 10 at 12:16 pm

            LOVE this @phyllis_kennedy:disqus yes that is what I was thinking. Also great to know the story behind this structure – your image is so much more interesting now. Brent

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 8 at 3:36 pm

      I like the contrast between the ragged walls of the old building and the straight lines of that newer door, stone colours vs red, red door vs blue sky.

      • Phyllis Kennedy
        Phyllis Kennedy on March 9 at 5:33 am

        That is what I thought, Thanks

    • Lynn Redding
      Lynn Redding on March 9 at 2:38 am

      Beautiful image, balancing strong elements color, and texture. The sky is so rich, that I feel its warmth and brilliance. Look forward to seeing more.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 10 at 11:54 am

      Beautiful! The colors are wonderful,

    • Leila Gonzalez Sullivan
      Leila Gonzalez Sullivan on March 11 at 7:37 am

      Marvelous composition here–the diagonal line of the stones, the red door right where your eye first lands, just enough of the foreground to enhance the desolate feel. Where was this taken?

      • Phyllis Kennedy
        Phyllis Kennedy on March 11 at 9:40 am

        This was taken at Two Guns Arizonan not far from Flagstaff.

  70. Point Reyes
    Point Reyes on March 7 at 2:03 pm

    I think I have discovered that I have too many passions in photography. :p I hope I can pick the broad category of nature so that I can submit landscapes, animals, and close-up/macro work.

    This photo was taken April last year. I was driving to work on a very stormy morning and seen the sunrise breaking through the clouds. On a hunch, I drove down a gravel road to see if I could get a shot and I found it. No time for tripod, I had to get my camera out. Seeing the dynamic range I needed to cover, I decided to quickly switch the camera to take 7 AE shots with exposure compensation also taken down 2/3 stops since I thought the sunrise would be white at the higher exposure shots. Within minutes of me getting the 7 shots, the storm clouds covered up the sunrise. While taking the shot I had rain hitting my backside. Taken with X-Pro2, XF 23 f/1.4 @ f/8, 1/125th sec. I did crop the left side due to brush (not very appealing).

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/029278289afd5eb254b5f5d6119f9de8cc7ef8f7d59f02d78c60965da3f41698.jpg

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 7 at 2:26 pm

      Love this image. The layers of changing elements from the foreground through to the sunrise sucked me right in. That fine rim of light on the top of the boulder is icing on the cake. Well worth the panic of getting the shot, I would say.

      • Point Reyes
        Point Reyes on March 8 at 12:28 am

        Thank you Judy. Yeah, I was glad I took the risk. The lens was not weather resistant which helped to add to the panic. :p

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 7 at 3:19 pm

      great shot @point_reyes:disqus. at first i thought the boulder was a distraction, but then it pulled me into the shot and then drew me into the sun rise. The only thing i would look at, would be getting some more detail out of the rock, as he is the star of the show here (in my opinion), especially with the sun rim 🙂

      • Point Reyes
        Point Reyes on March 8 at 12:36 am

        Thank you, Rerro. I think the jpg lost a lot of detail posting on here. I tried to upload my original jpg which was compressed to 5.04 Meg which I discovered was 0.04 Meg too big. I resized it to a compressed “Medium” size jpeg which drop the size down to 455 KB. I need to get better with resizing jpg files. 🙂

        • Rerro Rocher
          Rerro Rocher on March 8 at 7:58 am

          @point_reyes:disqus are you shooting raw or jpeg? Also, have you watched the @brentmail:disqus videos on hints for uploading into ‘Boot Camp’ – the videos give you easy to follow instructions on the best way to export your images, so you don’t lose any of the precious pixels! 🙂

          • Point Reyes
            Point Reyes on March 11 at 2:21 am

            Yeah, after I uploaded the picture I realized I should have watched the video first. Once I get a chance to make the edits to the photo, I will watch the video before uploading.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 7 at 7:33 pm

      I think your passion project is “dramatic light in nature”. Love those sunrise colours breaking through and the mist in the valley – plus the foreground rock with moss on it, great! Suggestions; I’d move back just a bit so that your foreground boulder has more foliage surrounding it and it doesn’t “grow out of the bottom” of the shot. I’d also bring the viewers eye to the boulder a little more in post processing, either upping the shadows of playing with the white and black points. Keep working on your passion project. Brent

      • Point Reyes
        Point Reyes on March 8 at 1:10 am

        Thank you, Brent. Since the time that I took this picture I have gained some skill with luminosity and color masking through the zones. I’ll see what I can do as well as see if adding more detail to the boulder as @rerrorocher:disqus suggested is possible.

    • Lynn Redding
      Lynn Redding on March 9 at 2:48 am

      Love this photo. Look forward to seeing your experiments with it and more with “Light in Nature”. You have captured the calm before the storm here.

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on March 10 at 9:39 pm

      I’ve looked at this photo quite a number of times over the last day or so
      I like it then I don’t like it… and so on
      I like the sun and the cloud formations over the distant hills, they look spectacular.
      Then I look at the rock and this is where I’m in the love/hate relationship
      Awesome rock but I’m thinking it over dominates the quadrant.
      could you have moved back a couple of metres to reframe the shot?

      • Point Reyes
        Point Reyes on March 11 at 2:56 am

        I truly wish it was possible move back a couple of metres and since you and @brentmail:disqus have mentioned stepping back a little I guess I better explain why it is where it is and why I was were I was. 🙂

        1) Directly below the rock/plants is dirt road.
        2) I had to crop the top of the photo due to a tree branch.
        3) This is a storm I was in – there was wind, the clouds were moving rapidly.
        4) I was standing in a ditch to take the picture.

        Due to the ditch, when I moved back a little I was also moving up the ditch and the branch on the top got more in the way plus my body position to take the shot would have been questionable for a steady shot. In the length of time I tried to include more of the rock the rapidly changing sky was quickly encroaching on the sunrise to the point that the sun rays were gone.

        I might have a chance to get a better shot of the rock because at least the brush is no longer beside and above the rock and the dirt road is no longer touching the rock but only by a 1/2 meter. Dramatic sunrise in the spring where I live can happen but thanks to that miserable thing called “Daylight Savings”, I will have to wait till April for there to be a sunrise in that area before heading to work. It’s back to dark morning commutes for the rest of this month.

        The picture below is an example of the type of “dirt” I have on the roadsides. It is because of this picture that I refrain from including the dirt roads in my area. 🙂

        https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/ee8edb5ff97f0646fc23d15b5f0a73f75431deccfdb465b885f04cc6cd4384bb.jpg

        • Nick Ellis
          Nick Ellis on March 11 at 11:45 am

          When I commented I thought there’d be a good reason, nest of vipers, alligators, 60 meter cliff etc
          Sometimes we just have to get the shot that is available.
          Well done and maybe a chainsaw to remove offending branches! lol
          PS I can see why you’d edit out the road verge, adds nothing and is distracting

    • Eric Vincent
      Eric Vincent on March 18 at 1:37 pm

      I like this shot… I like the rock, I like the sun in the background… As @disqus_4pYt18DaZN:disqus pointed out, it’s almost too much in the 1/3rd of the image… What if the background sky was mirrored? It would probably take a bit of work in Photoshop but worth it I think.

    • John Costello
      John Costello on March 8 at 10:57 am

      Rerro – I like your photo. It has great focus and the background colors help highlight the colors. Without your description of it being a leaf, I don’t think I’d have figured that out.

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 8 at 11:12 am

        Thanks @disqus_oR6eqNkTBa:disqus yes, incredible to see the detail in a leaf…and to know that inside the leaf we have structures and Photosynthesis occurring. a bit like photography itself. White light coming in and green light (Cholorophyll) coming out ! amazing nature 🙂

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 8 at 1:18 pm

      OMG – what an amazing image @rerrorocher:disqus – so love your fine art work. Nothing to really add here except maybe more space above the leaf? Wouldn’t it be cool if you had a red lady bug on the leaf somewhere? Brent

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 8 at 3:16 pm

      Wow! Isn’t nature amazing. Maybe add a little more negative space and darken those lighter spots in the background? That’s being picky, though. I really like this unconventional view.

    • Changed Lives
      Changed Lives on March 8 at 8:29 pm

      Beautiful image. I really like the lighting and detail in the image. Well done.

    • Craig
      Craig on March 9 at 4:01 am

      awesome image. Really like the detail and the bokeh. Well done

    • Eric Vincent
      Eric Vincent on March 9 at 5:41 am

      Absolutely great capture!! Like Brent suggested the only thing I would have done different is add a little more negative space above the leaf… Other than that I wouldn’t change a thing!

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 9 at 7:18 am

        Thanks @disqus_0edd8Vko9G:disqus, and noted about the space….in this case i wanted to fill the frame with the leaf….but i can see where you and @brentmail:disqus are coming from 🙂

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 9 at 10:20 am

      Love the color and the detail of this leaf. The depth of field is great too.

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on March 9 at 3:55 pm

      This really works for me. I’ve tried to capture plant life in a similar vein (pun intended) with varying success. This I think works because not only is the focus spot on but the strong diagonal leads the eye to the tip and then along the top of the leaf, and then to the detail in the leaf.

    • John Costello
      John Costello on March 8 at 10:53 am

      Doris – I don’t see you’re image. Would love to see your take of Canon Beach, since I’m out of Battle Ground!

      • Doris Nelson
        Doris Nelson on March 8 at 12:44 pm

        I am having trouble uploading the photo. I could not export to desktop. It is on my pc folder.

  73. Janice Chen
    Janice Chen on March 8 at 6:59 pm

    My passion project is beautiful sunrise and sunset. This photo was taken at Auckland’s west coast. I setup the camera on a tripod and shoot the sunset. Two playful kids jumped in front of the camera. Setting: F16, 1/15s, ISO 100, 38mm. As I was aiming to shoot the sunset, I set the camera to f16. I didn’t have the time to adjust the setting. Does this photo work? I like this photo, It has a sense of movement of the jumping kids. What do you think? Thanks https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/50613ee2dcc31926eeeb02199af5b861147c608d12be654f93510c969a59be99.jpg

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 8 at 8:27 pm

      Great capture @disqus_0xljvyhrLA:disqus the human element does work for me. Kind of like that the kids are a little blurred due to movement and I like that they are off centre too. F16 is a good aperture to get everything in focus – have you tried adding ND filters to get even longer exposure image like 30 seconds or 2 minutes, they look amazing for sunsets too with the water milky etc. Or simply wait for half and hour after sunset then shoot with longer shutter speeds. Brent

      • Janice Chen
        Janice Chen on March 9 at 4:01 am

        Thanks Brent. I will try ND filter and longer shutter speeds this weekend.

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on March 9 at 4:06 pm

      Nice. I would have missed this photo as I waited for the kids to get out of the way. They do definitely add a sense of life and movement to the photo. I like the mercury effect of the light on the water and wondered whether the photo is a little underexposed

        • Nick Ellis
          Nick Ellis on March 10 at 9:22 pm

          Which do you prefer? I think I like the 2nd interpretation
          I made the original comment as I generally tend to underexpose sunrise/sunset shots to get the colours. I then try to get close to what I saw.
          I’ve also played with light balance to try and get closer to what I think I saw.

          • Janice Chen
            Janice Chen on March 11 at 7:30 am

            I like the 2nd version as well. 🙂

        • lynne F Murphy
          lynne F Murphy on March 12 at 6:25 am

          The sense of joy from the movement in the children and the sunray touching a child is really a nice touch to the composition. i prefer the second interpretation as well

  74. Lynn Redding
    Lynn Redding on March 9 at 4:02 am

    It’s great to see all the photos and comments here. Right now my photography knowledge and tools are pretty limited. I have an i-pod touch for photos, and not sure what tools that I can access to edit – at least until April when I get back home to Montana. But I’m excited to start with what I do have. Lots of passion projects, so will see how giving this one a label shakes out, probably something to do with spirit. Definitely will consider it a victory to post a photo of Sainte Chapelle that I took during recent visit to Paris. There were hoards of us filling the space accessible to humans sharing the beauty of the sanctuary. It was a rare moment of sun on a Sunday afternoon in February, coming through windows on one side. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/fce3b835d0281d1c60f9333a0f099cd306fd3bdf098908a85eae7eb898507fa5.jpg

    • Sarah Rodríguez
      Sarah Rodríguez on March 9 at 6:42 am

      Wow Lynn!! Really nice photo!! I like the blue and purple colors…there are colors I relate with spiritual emotions, so I think they work really well in this photo. The way you cropped the photo is a great creative way to avoid the hoards of people! hahahah Are you travelling around Europe these days?

      • Lynn Redding
        Lynn Redding on March 10 at 12:56 am

        Thanks. Those colors seem to echo the heavens, especially set in burnish gold. This room is really dynamic with its light and the overall proportions are like a miniature cathedral. Definitely draws crowds moving around the earthly plane most of the time with all this going on above – kind of parallel universe. There is quite a bit of blue glass in the windows too, and all of them tell stories. On the opposite side of the room, the windows were brilliant then. I’ve just gotten back to NYC, but had been in Paris, Berlin, and Prague on a kind of pilgrimage,

        • Judy Ward
          Judy Ward on March 13 at 2:07 pm

          Hi Lynn – I’ve been here, too, and was awed at the beauty of this room. This image is more creative than the shots I took. The angle is interesting and you managed to exclude the tourists. Well done.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 9 at 10:19 am

      I love the angle of the photo. The colors are great.

      • Lynn Redding
        Lynn Redding on March 10 at 12:58 am

        Glad that you’re enjoying them too. It’s so great to experience and hear more about everyone’s photos here.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 10 at 11:47 am

      I like “spirit” passion project – very broad one and there are so many images popping into my head when I think of it. Great choice. As far as this image goes, I like it to start your “spirit”project. Those windows are great, and I know how dark it can be in a Cathedral. Can you change settings on your camera on your i-pod? I use snapseed app to edit my images on my iphone. Brent

      • Lynn Redding
        Lynn Redding on March 11 at 1:28 am

        Thanks Brent! Yes there should be a lifetime of possibilities to explore with ‘spirit’ project. I’ve just installed that app, but have not opened it yet. It does not look like there is much opportunity in the camera settings. This week I will see if I can find someone who knows about i-pod to learn more about that.

  75. Sarah Rodríguez
    Sarah Rodríguez on March 9 at 6:52 am

    Hi!! I keep working in my passion project! Second week= second photo about “Still photography: Coffee”. This time I tried to place better the coffee beans (in a way that you can see what they are!!) and I worked with a brand new ring flash I got this week!! I always have light problems because I get home late and I have no time to use natural light. I have no much experience with flashes, so this project is encouraging me to experiment a little. I had problems with the light reflection in the coffee. I got a tone of light spots that I tried to remove with Lightroom. Any idea how to avoid them? Thank you!!! https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a62bdddb621c7a0f414fcbe2c2dfc790ad0537f6e3a1974e0475e8cbe1665102.jpg I hope you like it!!

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 9 at 9:04 am

      Love your subject….and your composition Sarah….i personally would have preferred to have the coffee beans in focus. I like the contrast in colours…the green handle on the red background, and the texture of the mat. The circles within circles are also very effective….sharpness and focus would be what i would be looking for in a picture with this perspective….a good image!

    • Belinda Davis
      Belinda Davis on March 9 at 7:17 pm

      Sarah, I really like this photo and think it has a lot of potential. I love the composition, the colors and the textures. I do like the way you placed the beans, however, with this perspective, I would prefer they were in focus. If you could give your camera settings maybe we could determine if it was a setting issue.

      I can totally identify with you on lighting issues and not being able to use natural light. What has helped me is to take your lighting off camera and bounce it off of a white wall, the ceiling or poster board onto your subject. You can even play around with reflectors to help guide the lighting where you want it.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 10 at 11:51 am

      Great new image – and it reminds me to go out and get my morning coffee! Also glad you are experimenting with ring-flash, that’s what our passion projects are all about – pushing ourselves in a creative way. Like how you framed this image with the coffee cup on the left and the beans going from very dark and concentrated to lighter on the right. I do like the reflection from the coffee too. Keep them coming @sarah_rodr_guez:disqus . Brent

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 10 at 7:47 pm

      Beautiful image! I love the composition and colors.
      Is it an artistic choice or a technical issue to have the beans out of focus? If it is a technical issue – have you tried playing with focus stacking?
      Off camera light can help you with the highlights. You can achieve even more control by taking multiple images with few direction of lights and combine them into a single image, controlling final shading and highlights

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 9 at 11:48 am

      Great shot Sara….astro photography….something i need to learn more about. I love how you have framed the moon with the silhouette of the branches, this definitely adds to the image. Maybe changing your perspective slightly would have brought the moon more off-center…perhaps cropping the bottom of the frame from where the prominent branch is on the RHS….play around with the cropping 🙂

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 10 at 11:53 am

      Is the moon you passion project @disqus_cdh6bhNTbb:disqus – can you tell us more about it and why you chose this passion project? Also what settings did you take this image with and what did you learn from the other 2 that were blurry? Brent

      • Sara O'Brien
        Sara O'Brien on March 10 at 12:04 pm

        I would have to say trees are my passion project. Roots, branches, leaves, I love to photograph them all. I chose this picture to share as it was the most recent at the time. ISO 200, f6.3 1/640. I held the camera steadier on the third photo. I think my patience kicked in and I took my time. I have a tendency to rush photos, not sure why as most of my subjects don’t move. It is something I am working on.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 10 at 12:18 pm

          Yeah don’t rush – take your time and once you’ve chosen your settings then give your right brain a chance to kick in, and allow your creativity time to flow. Trees, I like that – I love trees too. I told my wife that I want to live in a place surrounded by mature(large) trees. Brent

    • Doris Nelson
      Doris Nelson on March 10 at 12:04 pm

      nICE shot of the moon. What lens did you use?

      • Sara O'Brien
        Sara O'Brien on March 11 at 6:26 am

        Tamron 16-300 mm f3.5-6.3. It is my favorite lens. I wore my last one that was 16-270mm out.

      • Richard Hutson
        Richard Hutson on March 11 at 11:45 am

        Brent, I really like what your edit, but why did you do it in Photo Shop instead of Light Room ? I have not yet ventured into PS so I’m somewhat limited to LR.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 13 at 6:22 am

          I could have done it in LR too – I had PS open and levels is a very quick thing to do. Brent

  77. Nick Ellis
    Nick Ellis on March 9 at 5:03 pm

    I have a number of passions in my photography (I might be directionless as a result, lol)
    Anyway I take a lot of photos of trees and their bark, so I will probably stay with that for the time being.
    This is a Spotted Gum taken in the Botanical Gardens in Sydney, 19 Feb 2018
    ISO 200, 24 – 70 at 24mm, f13 and 1/200 on manual. Cropped and half a stop exposure correction added.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/d68588e4ab042def10073211170b6371a2d9eed71a55992200d92ada511a8cb7.jpg

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 9 at 9:47 pm

      Great composition and perspective Nick. Have you thought about converting to black and white for this one, and perhaps bringing more detail out the tree trunk. and maybe a slight vignette to tone down the brightness of the sky. I too am a lover of tree’s…..:)

      • Nick Ellis
        Nick Ellis on March 9 at 10:05 pm

        Thanks muchly
        Your comment re B&W is interesting as I originally took it with that in mind. I thought I’d show the subtle colours here. The overcast sky wasn’t really what I wanted either

        • Rerro Rocher
          Rerro Rocher on March 9 at 10:37 pm

          I like it in B&W…..much more striking! Tells a great story this image 🙂 I am not sure where you exposed (on the tree or on the sky) but next time try worth shooting in HDR or bracketing your shot when you have such a vast dynamic range.

          • Nick Ellis
            Nick Ellis on March 10 at 6:49 pm

            Thanks
            The exposure was for the tree (sky was washed out anyway – overcast promising rain which didn’t happen)
            I expected the foliage and limbs to be silhouettes

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 10 at 11:58 am

          Yeah B/W rocks!!! What software are you using to edit @disqus_4pYt18DaZN:disqus – if it’s Lightroom you can do all sorts of things when you convert to black and white. Can you upload your original here: https://goo.gl/jxatUo RAW if you can. Brent

          • Nick Ellis
            Nick Ellis on March 10 at 7:21 pm

            Brent
            Thanks
            I’m using Affinity Photo as I was not happy paying the monthly fee to adobe for photoshop.
            Upload done

          • Sara O'Brien
            Sara O'Brien on March 11 at 6:30 am

            I use Affinity Photo too, as I do not have much internet at home. I have 8GB to share with my family of four per month. I am still learning, but I do like it. Before that I used Capture NX from Nikon.

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 13 at 6:26 am

            Have not heard about that one. You’ll have to show me how it works @disqus_4pYt18DaZN:disqus

          • Nick Ellis
            Nick Ellis on March 13 at 7:59 am

            It’s quite similar to photoshop in it’s workings
            Fairly new on the scene – out of Germany (I think) I’ve only just made to move and am still learning my way around it. But it’s about $90AUD rather than the $13ish a month. There’s also a very good version for the iPad.
            It’s possible to trial it.
            I might have to go for a drive and bring the laptop, what’s for dinner?

    • Doris Nelson
      Doris Nelson on March 10 at 12:05 pm

      I like the black and white version.

  78. Craig
    Craig on March 9 at 7:01 pm

    This was a picture of a puppy I took at work. I know its a bit blown out on the side but I just love this capture

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 9 at 9:52 pm

      Love the expression…..and you have got the brilliant blue eye in focus. Bring down the exposure slightly and play around with contrast and clarity to bring out the detail in the puppies face….such a great image!

        • Rerro Rocher
          Rerro Rocher on March 9 at 10:19 pm

          Much better…..its a great image!….you are even getting some bokeh coming through now too! Well done…:)

          • Craig
            Craig on March 9 at 10:59 pm

            Thank you

            Craig Mostert
            Village Vet Hospital

        • Ralph Grimshaw
          Ralph Grimshaw on March 10 at 3:47 am

          Totally agree with Rerro, the difference between the two is quite striking. might try the radial filter to lessen the highlights in areas of the ear and above the eyebrow. Love the shot.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 10 at 12:02 pm

          I like this 2nd version a bit more too. Any chance you can upload a 2000px wide image – so that I can have a closer look @disqus_xQQMdbpif2:disqus that would be awesome! Love the low angle you shot this at, and that expression in priceless. Also the fact that you left space in front of the dog is great too – I’m following his/her eye’s up into the image. Brent

        • Sara O'Brien
          Sara O'Brien on March 10 at 12:05 pm

          Love this version! The eyes are gorgeous!

        • Erez Shilat
          Erez Shilat on March 10 at 7:55 pm

          Wonderful portrait – love it

        • Lisa Chapin
          Lisa Chapin on March 12 at 2:32 am

          Great photo and nice editing.

        • Chris
          Chris on March 12 at 7:00 pm

          Look a that face! I want to rub my nose on his head!

    • Ralph Grimshaw
      Ralph Grimshaw on March 10 at 3:43 am

      good focus, back ground blends nicely, took a look at 100% and the focus of the eye is close to perfect. Nice job.

    • Janice Chen
      Janice Chen on March 10 at 12:19 pm

      Sharp image and nice soft background. I love it

    • Chris
      Chris on March 12 at 6:55 pm

      Beautiful bee! Getting ready to post another of mine too.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 13 at 1:57 pm

      I like the composition and the way the background does not compete with the bee. Very nice!

  82. Lonnie
    Lonnie on March 10 at 9:07 pm

    Hello everyone. As for my passion, they are varied, but I do love nature, landscapes, animals and so on. I took

  83. Belinda
    Belinda on March 10 at 9:38 pm

    My Passion is Waterdrop Photography; therefore I have posted my latest water drop. I find it amazing to see the different shapes created by water drops colliding. Who knew a water drop could be so pretty … simple yet so complex. Settings: f/13 0.6s ISO 100 EF100mm Macro Lens

    In between shooting Waterdrops, I am trying to broaden my photography with seascapes, landscape, nature, animal and macro photography which I would like to get feedback on those to help improve in those areas but I don’t have a particular passion yet for any particular one. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/f064688089ad248482695df320599cd3e63111754874b70204c11be987574653.jpg

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 10 at 10:37 pm

      I have tried this myself….and it is an addictive technique. Love the sharpness and the clean look of your image. Were you using an electronic timing device to produce the drops? And could you share your camera settings, and lighting set-up with us please?

      • Belinda
        Belinda on March 11 at 9:36 am

        Thank you so much Rerro Rocher, Yes I do use an electronic timing device to time the drops. My Settings: Canon 5D Mark III f/13 0.6s ISO 100 Canon EF100mm Macro Lens, along with speed lights off camera on each side.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on March 11 at 5:12 pm

      I would love to learn how to do these. Maybe I can at last. Thanks.

      • Brent Mail
        Brent Mail on March 14 at 7:08 pm

        Yes it’s really easy – simply fly the drone to where you want and shoot. The real skill lies in finding interesting compositions. What I love about it is you have unlimited space to fly so you can shoot anything from any angle and any height which gives a lot of options. B

    • Lisa Chapin
      Lisa Chapin on March 12 at 2:28 am

      Very cool. Way beyond my photography capability!

    • Anna Black
      Anna Black on March 12 at 3:57 am

      Amazing! Would love to see a time-series of one droplet forming… How did you do the black drippy bit at the bottom, did you add it afterwards in another programme?

      • Belinda
        Belinda on March 12 at 9:19 am

        Thank you Anna, the Black is the water the drop was created from.

    • Alex
      Alex on March 12 at 5:41 pm

      Absolutely fantastic – love it! Who knew, indeed. The shape and detail are amazing – it almost looks like a drawing. And nicely exposed too. I’d like to see more of these.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 5:38 am

      Unbelievable – wow!!! This looks like a painting. Super sharp and such a cool design – kind of looks like a tree growing upwards with black roots going down into the ground. Would love to see more of these. Brent

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 13 at 9:23 am

      Amazing! I would never have thought to try this! I might just have to now. Beautiful.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on August 11 at 2:01 pm

      Awesome capture , it does look like a tree root system into the ground great shot

  84. Lonnie
    Lonnie on March 10 at 9:39 pm

    Hello everyone. I currently have many passions but would have to say anything related to Nature. This can include landscapes, animals, forests, water and so on. This is called: ‘The Tears of Freedom’. There was this Tiger I took a picture of at a reserve for animals. I sat down by him, he was in a large enclosed chain-linked fence. There were no other people around and I just talked to him as I would our cat, Sami. At first I could tell he was a bit tense with me but the more I talked to him he started to relax. He actually laid on the ground and then put his belly up, which means he trusted me. He then placed one of his huge paws out and hit a ball that he plays with. The people who work with the animals said they had never seen him act like that. I told them he just wanted the company, just to have a good talk and roar. I actually felt guilty even taking this picture. But I am going back to visit my new friend.

    Oh and by the way, the tears, I hope he is happy but it might be my tears that I placed on him. He paces https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/b4ec3ade2638c5db89fd8fa8d8e379cbd89351ff8a7dba8137638430d90ad24b.jpg back and forth and I know the enclosures are not that large. I just know I brought him some joy that day. One day, maybe freedom.

    Took this picture with a Canon 5D Mark 4, Lens was a Canon 24-105L at about 50mm. Aperture was F/9, Shutter Speed was 1/250 and ISO 500. It was a cloudy day and he was behind a chain link fence. I had to get rid of that fence and set him free.

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on March 10 at 9:58 pm

      Brilliant, I like the symmetry with the touch of asymmetry from the tear

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 10 at 10:33 pm

      Brilliant image and perfect symmetry….i would prefer it without the tear though. But i can understand this is part of the story of you and the Tiger. I like photo this very much!

    • Lisa Chapin
      Lisa Chapin on March 12 at 2:27 am

      Very intense. Lovely photo and story.

    • Valerie Worthen
      Valerie Worthen on March 12 at 7:15 am

      Great capture and intensity of the eyes.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 5:42 am

      I love the mood you’ve created with this image @changedlives:disqus – great post processing. Those eye’s have really drawn me into this image, they seem to be glowing. I like that you have added an extra element to the image – the single tear. I feel for caged animals too, as I grew up in Africa and have seen animals “free” in the national parks, free to hunt and live and play. Thanks for the share. Brent

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 13 at 9:23 am

      Love the color intensity in this image!

  85. pjarhead
    pjarhead on March 11 at 12:30 am

    I also have a number of ‘passions’, mostly revolving around nature and color. I love sunrise/sunset landscapes, but living in the woods means travelling extended distance and time and won’t make a good subject for this particular project. The other two main passions would be the animals around my home (mostly squirrels, but an occasional deer or fox will wander through) and micro photos of my wife’s flower gardens. I’ll post one from each, and decide from the reactions in the comments which one will dominate my posts here (although I’ll probably maintain both).

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on March 12 at 5:09 am

        Beautiful image – love the reflection and the leaves in contrasting colors.
        I think that a significant crop left and bottom can push the image further by focusing on the puddle. Maybe also try to add contrast to the puddle – again, to try and push the viewer attention to it.

      • Brent Mail
        Brent Mail on March 13 at 5:46 am

        I’ll comment on this one @disqus_0mZTVOIKLI:disqus – I really do love that reflection. At first I looked at the thumbnail and thought this image was out of focus, but when I looked closer I spotted the fall leaves in the background. Well done, love image like this – where you don’t see the entire image until you really look! How to make it better? I’d crop put the top left part – the lightest bit of this image. That way the viewer won’t be distracted by the highlights and they will be pulled into the reflection more. Brent

          • pjarhead
            pjarhead on March 13 at 1:13 pm

            The colors look washed out on my web-surfing laptop compared with the 4K screen where I do my editing. I even tried to balance them with a color munki.

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 13 at 4:14 pm

            No need to move leaves – but yes I do like this version. Well done. Brent

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on March 11 at 5:11 pm

        This is a really cool pik.

      • Lisa Chapin
        Lisa Chapin on March 12 at 2:25 am

        I really like this. Looks like a water splash and wouldnt know it was in a spider web if you hadn’t have mentioned it.

      • Anna Black
        Anna Black on March 12 at 3:52 am

        Love this, it’s so unusual! Bigger depth of field might be nice, so we can see more of the droplets in focus, but maybe it wouldn’t have the same effect.

        • pjarhead
          pjarhead on March 12 at 4:06 am

          I agree on wanting to have a greater depth of field. It was more due to the picture being taken early in the morning with an overcast sky and no tripod. I’m perhaps a bit too leery of noise from high ISO settings, so I had a wide open aperture to get the exposure.

      • lynne F Murphy
        lynne F Murphy on March 12 at 6:17 am

        love these kinds of photos. the droplets provide a texture and you can almost feel the moisture.Nice

      • Alex
        Alex on March 12 at 5:20 pm

        That’s pretty cool. At first glance I thought it was water flying through the air frozen with a fast shutter speed. It looks like the web is weighed down with the water. Shallow depth of field really works with this shot. Maybe the leaves on the left/top could be darkened a bit to help emphasise the droplets?

      • Belinda
        Belinda on March 12 at 9:05 am

        Nice composition and capture!

      • Sara O'Brien
        Sara O'Brien on March 13 at 9:13 am

        Love the squirrel! Great angle.

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on March 13 at 1:52 pm

        I really like the way that small pool of light picks up the squirrel and the surrounding grass and leaves. Great capture.

        • pjarhead
          pjarhead on March 17 at 11:08 am

          There was a bit of light there, and I upped it a bit with a radial filter in lightroom to enhance it more. A trick I picked up from a Brent and Johny video…

      • Olof Herolf
        Olof Herolf on March 17 at 8:55 am

        I do understand why it is one of your favourites. I love the rule of thirds in the picture. Can I ask what settings you had and also how long time you had to take the shot before the squirrel was off to the next county?

        • pjarhead
          pjarhead on March 17 at 10:53 am

          I had my Canon set for aperture-priority and set f/9.5 for depth of field and ISO 1600 as it was early morning. Camera set shutter speed at 1/250.

        • pjarhead
          pjarhead on March 17 at 11:03 am

          The wife had gotten into a habit of scattering walnut pieces for the squirrels in our front yard. They aren’t ‘domesticated’ but they aren’t very skittish anymore, either, which allows me to get quite a few photos of them.

          • Olof Herolf
            Olof Herolf on March 17 at 10:12 pm

            Many thanks. Olle

  86. Lisa Chapin
    Lisa Chapin on March 11 at 7:38 am

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/d12ec81f395ffd71999f4e48b58a3e3d4541397d56923bb6713bf3d6fb3a85b0.png
    I’m a little late getting started here, so I hope this works. I see a file path link to my photo above this line of typing, so I hope my photo actually shows up! I don’t see these file path links on other people’s posts so I’m not sure what I’m doing wrong. Anyway! My passion? Flowers and outdoor photography. I have always like the play on depth of field where the forefront is in sharp focus and the background is blurred out. I always thought it was a Photo Shop trick or something but eventually learned it’s how the picture is taken. I have a Canon Rebel T4i camera and bought a lens for it that allows me to get the depth of field photos I was wanting. I like that the flowers and focus of this photo is on the left and fades to virtually nothing on the right. Our eye is trained to read left to right so it’s a comfortable flow for your eye to follow. The flowers face to the right automatically drawing the viewer from left to right as well. So this is my passion. And I’m looking forward to being a part of the Boot Camp Community! I’m gonna hit the “Post” button and see if this works. . .

    • Lisa Chapin
      Lisa Chapin on March 11 at 7:38 am

      Yippee!! I guess it worked! And I don’t see the file name/path link so I must have done it correctly!

      • Lone Hauerberg Jensen
        Lone Hauerberg Jensen on March 12 at 6:26 am

        Hi Lisa
        A Nice image but be aware of the focus point – it seems like your focus point is on the leave but i like the flower and the Color – i would crop it a little more i Think the green background take too much place in the image – Nice image

        • Lisa Chapin
          Lisa Chapin on March 12 at 6:29 am

          Thanks for the feedback. I was thinking maybe I should crop some from the right side. I do like a little “dead space” to give the eye a place to rest, but I think I have too much here. I see what you mean about the focus. Helpful feedback.

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on March 12 at 8:34 am

      Intriguing, it seems as though the second flower is looking at something outside the photo frame, something we can only wonder about. The muted background adds to that effect.
      I agree that the focus is a bit out. I’d try focusing on that second flower and see how that helps the dynamics of the photo.

      • Lisa Chapin
        Lisa Chapin on March 12 at 9:04 am

        Thanks for the feedback

    • Chris
      Chris on March 12 at 6:55 pm

      This is so pretty, I love the colors! Those are my passions too, flowers and macro. Beautiful shot.

      • Lisa Chapin
        Lisa Chapin on March 13 at 3:40 am

        Thank you. I’m ready for spring so I will have new flowers to practice with!!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 5:58 am

      Glad you managed to get your image uploaded @lisa_chapin:disqus – great share and welcome to BootCamp! Flowers are a great passion project, there are so many to photograph out there. I like that your flowers pop due to their “warm” colour and your background “cool” colour. A few things I noticed about your image: Ask yourself this when shooting flowers “what is the ONE main point of interest in this image?” and “How can I make that really stand out, and get rid of all other distractions?”. For me, I’m torn between which flower is your main point of interest here – the one facing us, or the one facing right? Once you’ve decided which one it is, then use things like focus, light and composition to make that stand out more. Use a tripod and “live view” with focus on your camera to make sure the flower is tack-sharp. Looking at the larger image – looks like your focus is slightly off both flowers. kind of in between them. Once you have your main point of interest in focus and sharp, then look at the rest of the image around that flower – which things are distracting the viewer away from the main flower, and which things will lead the viewer into the main flower (leading lines like stems or leaves). Great share Lisa, and I would love to see more flower images from you. Brent

    • Rodney
      Rodney on March 11 at 8:45 pm

      Keri, I like the mostly blue colours with the mid ground shorelines directing my eye to the touch of yellow glow of the sun. The dramatic clouds with reflections add further impact. Great photo.

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on March 12 at 7:22 pm

        Thanks Rodney. I appreciate the feedback ☺

    • pjarhead
      pjarhead on March 12 at 11:17 am

      I love he brooding feel of the deep blues, with a hint of lightness coming just over the horizon, a picture of hope.

    • Craig
      Craig on March 12 at 11:55 pm

      Love the colors. Really like the “mood” of the capture, well done

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 6:06 am

      Beautiful sunset @keridown:disqus love those reflections on the water and the way you have used the beach on either side to “frame” the sunset. Great that you live close to the water – that means you can go down and shoot many of these sunsets. A few things to consider next time: Use an aperture that’s smaller, like f16 and a tripod, especially like in this shot after the sun has set and it starts getting darker. As I look at your larger image I see the focus point is the end of the “lagoon” and the sun is slightly out of focus due to using a wider aperture of f5.6 – are you shooting in RAW mode of just JPG? I’d advise shooting in RAW and jpg mode next time, that way you have more options later on in Lightroom. Well done. Brent

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on March 13 at 5:15 pm

        Thankyou Brent. I shoot in raw and jpeg but I dont have lightroom or photoshop. I dont edit alot. Only with my pc editing program but not this shot. It’s how I saw it. I am thrilled with your feedback and thats what I’ll try next time.

    • Alan Sharp
      Alan Sharp on March 13 at 11:15 am

      Wow, fantastic. Love the composition with the narrow water leading your eyes straight to the sunset in the distance. Well done

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 12 at 1:50 pm

      I love this shot…i particularly like the icy water on the horizon line, and the slight green hue it gives to the photo (I think it adds to the photo in a big way). Having the tree coming out the corner of the frame is also a good way to draw your viewer into the shot. It has a very ‘Fine Arty’ feel too it this shot….right up my street! Well done!

    • Chris
      Chris on March 12 at 6:58 pm

      I have a thing for bare trees too. I love this time of year, or a month ago, bare trees and blue skies. Lovely photo.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 6:10 am

      Great share @lynnefmurphy:disqus and yes it does have a fine art feel to it too. I think your depth of field is good here. Tree is very sharp and does stand out from the snowy background. Noticed you kept this image in colour, have you considered boosting the greens in the water? I’d love to see a little more of that hole in the ice, a little more on the left (unless you cropped it for a reason), and more space above your tree. Brent

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 13 at 9:15 am

      I like this shot also. Would like to see the ice colors a little more, or in B&W.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 13 at 8:02 pm

      Love it as is – great minimalist shot

  89. Anna Black
    Anna Black on March 12 at 7:12 am

    In the long term I’d really like to develop my photography in other areas (historical buildings, landscapes, etc), but since my main photographic subject these days is my kids, I’ll start there! Here’s one I took the other day of my youngest. It was hard to get any photo of her without her tongue sticking out!!
    Here are the details: Canon EOS 1000D, F7.1, 1/100s, 18mm, ISO-400.
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/0fca719773aac1447adb76dd26bd6937f72d0e7cc73040636f885bfc021b2a67.jpg

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on March 12 at 9:45 am

      nice shot, looks playful
      I found with my kids I had to use a longer lens and go for the more candid shot. Otherwise they’d smile for the camera and that was just plain gruesome.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 6:17 am

      Love shooting kids too – they can be very challenging @disqus_1WTdtgikRg:disqus that’s why I suggest you distract them with some activity. If you can get them playing a game and really focusing on something other that you, you’ll get more natural “real” images of their personality. I do like the tongue shot though – funny! Great capture, sharp image even with the movement and I like that you left space to her right so that her eyes and face are not in the middle. Also that side light really adds a 3-D look to this image. Something you can do if you have a little time is lighten her eyes a bit more. Can you upload your original image here goo.gl/jxatUo for me to have a play with? Brent

      • Anna Black
        Anna Black on March 13 at 6:53 am

        Thanks, I’d love to see what you can do with it! I’ve uploaded the JPG file, if you prefer to use the CR2 file then let me know (I just edited the Jpeg).

          • Anna Black
            Anna Black on March 13 at 9:43 am

            CR2 file now uploaded.

      • Anna Black
        Anna Black on March 17 at 8:19 pm

        Hi Brent, thanks so much for having a play with my image, you got a good result! I just wanted a bit more info on how you did it – did you have to mask off the eyes somehow and edit only them? Thanks for mentioning the exposure tool, I just discovered it in the Adjustments menu, hadn’t noticed it before! Already learned something new… BTW I’m working with an ancient copy of Photoshop (CS2).

  90. Julie Ng
    Julie Ng on March 12 at 2:26 pm

    It’s a bit difficult to pick one genre for my passion project. Maybe I’ll try landscape and cityscape first as these are the kind of photos I shoot most.
    The subject in this photo is the Tsing Ma Bridge in Hong Kong. It is “the world’s 11th-longest span suspension bridge, and was the second longest at time of completion” as described in Wiki. It was the first time I was able to get to the location that I could shoot right under this bridge. It was supposed to be a restrictive area. I quite like this perspective of seeing the bridge. I have adjusted the exposure, increased a little bit of contrast and color enhancement in post-processing.
    ISO 100, 1/80, F8 https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/11853afbe3910e4369273f682dee11637d846ffedba1408779fb7b10dac8ca40.jpg

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 12 at 3:09 pm

      WOW…interesting perspective….i like the symmetry too. However, i think the image would pack more punch if shown as B&W. And then, trying to sharpen and clarify the detail in the bridge. There is a lot going on, there’s a grid of sorts etc. The B& W will also dramatize the cloud. also. maybe bring some detail to the grass in the foreground too. Also, i think your story here is the city at the end of the bridge, so making the end goal more of a focus will enhance the image too. These are just my thoughts….a striking image from an unusual perspective! well done

    • Alex
      Alex on March 12 at 5:05 pm

      Striking image, great vanishing point perspective. At first I didn’t like that big lamp pole or whatever it is is right in the middle of the bridge, but now I’m not sure – it helps give scale but does it clutter the image or is it a focal point? I’m not sure. Whatever, it is perfectly positioned or framed within the span. I agree it would look good in black and white, can you show us one of those? I wonder what it would look like if it was cropped a bit from the top – might make the two pillars stand out even more and I don’t think you’d lose any of the vanishing point effect. Cheers

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 6:35 am

      Welcome to BootCamp @disqus_SjYpp6vrXe:disqus – hope you didn’t get into trouble for being in a “restricted zone”. I love the symmetry of your image and the way it leads my eye from top of image to bottom. I think you should convert to B/W here – would love to see how it turns out. Brent

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 13 at 1:45 pm

      My favourite thing about this image the perspective. It is unexpected and I think that adds an extra layer of interest. Are you going to have ago processing it as black & white? I think it could be very dramatic and quite futuristic.

    • Julie Ng
      Julie Ng on March 13 at 2:13 pm

      Hello @rerrorocher:disqus, @disqus_gaqxeQxtLL:disqus, @brentmail:disqus and @disqus_W81kCdSr3n:disqus, thanks for all your comments. Can’t agree more of what you have said. The B&W is much more dramatic. About the pole, it is a pole holding the surveillance cameras. I tried to get rid of it, but I could not do it perfectly. It might take much more time for me to do it. For now, in order to finish the editing, I would just leave it there first.

      Here is my B&W conversion. Would you give me some thought? https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/8c889eaabcd4065558e5fe7aa5e3ddb50150dfc68f6b891a3a67f17cce0fe8bd.jpg

      • Brent Mail
        Brent Mail on March 13 at 4:03 pm

        HELL YEAH @disqus_SjYpp6vrXe:disqus you rock girl, love this B/W conversion. Now you should print this large and hang it on your wall. B

        • Julie Ng
          Julie Ng on March 13 at 7:25 pm

          Thank you Brent! Yeah, I should print this out!

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 14 at 11:36 am

            Would love to see a pic of the print on your wall @disqus_SjYpp6vrXe:disqus

      • Alex
        Alex on March 13 at 6:17 pm

        Now we’re talking, for sure. Good one Julie

  91. Alex
    Alex on March 12 at 6:06 pm

    Here is another drone image from Great Mercury Island. I wanted to capture these interesting rocks/formations in the afternoon sun. I like how the rocks are pointing up/towards the big rock at the top – I call it the Citadel. This land is grazed by sheep and cattle and you can see the ridged tracks they have https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/ebae7ee42773b96659348d62aefb8767f2c7f2471c0a2cab6c0659c301746978.jpg made over the years, cutting across the slope in front – gives an idea of how steep the slope is.

    • Chris
      Chris on March 12 at 7:14 pm

      This is a very cool picture. The longer I look at it, the more I like it.

      • Alex
        Alex on March 13 at 6:21 pm

        Thanks Chris. I’m about to upload the improved version…

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 7:53 am

      Love the yellow tones here @disqus_gaqxeQxtLL:disqus and yes the rocks pointing up are really cool. You know what would work well in this image is a bluer sky – maybe a gradient mask in LR would work, apposing colours would really make this image pop! Brent

      • Brent Mail
        Brent Mail on March 13 at 4:01 pm

        Another thing @disqus_gaqxeQxtLL:disqus is I don’t mind the pano crop you see in disqus (before hitting see more below). Something to consider too. Brent

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 13 at 1:42 pm

      Hi Alex – I also think a deeper blue in the sky would work really well. Very interesting landscape formation. This image is nice and sharp, too. I like it.

      • Alex
        Alex on March 13 at 6:40 pm

        Thanks Judy, and here is the bluer sky, and cropped as per Brent’s suggestion

    • Alex
      Alex on March 13 at 6:46 pm

      Here is the new improved version, cropped as per Brent’s suggestion. I darkened the sky in Lightroom just by taking the blue luminance down and bumping up the saturation, plus I fiddled around with a few other things – makes a difference. It’s always good to revisit a photo and have another go at it, it’s like you’re seeing it with fresh eyes. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/16d45ebba23f8b167dbef9d8032513b62e9f18fdd0c25246fead7e4d90198674.jpg

      • Julie Ng
        Julie Ng on March 13 at 8:24 pm

        Hi Alex, I like this version. The rocks really stand out and the colors pop!

      • Chris
        Chris on March 15 at 4:47 pm

        I love this, love the colors and starkness. Great capture.

        • Alex
          Alex on March 15 at 5:49 pm

          Thanks Chris. I look forward to getting some more of these at some point.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 7:58 am

      Loving your bee shots @disqus_jT6tbkcRRn:disqus and another beautiful capture – especially with those purples. Something I noticed with this particular image – try this: Close your eyelids almost completely closed, then look at this image, does the bee pop? To me it gets lost in the shadows but I do notice the flower. That’s the issue when dealing with very bright and vibrant objects really close to your main subject. Not sure how to make the bee pop here, maybe in LR (lightroom) reduce clarity of the entire image, up the shadows and reduce contrast – except the bee. Brent

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 13 at 7:57 pm

      Beautiful capture – love this image!
      Try using the brush in LR to add little more exposure and clarity to the bee, especially to its head to help the bee pop, but its a small issue – wonderful capture!

      • Chris
        Chris on March 15 at 4:44 pm

        Thank you @@erezshilat:disqus

      • Chris
        Chris on March 16 at 6:27 pm

        Thank you @erezshilat:disqus

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 14 at 10:46 pm

      Hi Chris. Like this shot. Detail is great. Can you let me know Lens and settings used?

      • Chris
        Chris on March 15 at 4:45 pm

        Thank you @@denisobyrne:disqus
        Sure, I use at Nikon D750 and this was shot using a Tamron SP90MM f2.8 Di Macro lens
        my setting were 1/320, F9 and ISO 200. I had to use manual focus because there was a breeze and that bee was moving too much for auto focus.

        • Denis O'Byrne
          Denis O'Byrne on March 15 at 7:36 pm

          Chris, many thanks for coming back to me. Well done on the shot again.

  93. Steven Kirk
    Steven Kirk on March 13 at 1:40 am

    I am fascinated by the variety of birds in the Texas/Louisiana Gulf Coast and have made learning to capture them my passion project. I took this photo of a young white ibis https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/89bed6047d4168a4ca16b2401f8483fb3943138ed01a424963b3dd1ccc8becb7.jpg last week (Canon 6D, 100-400 mm lens with 2X teleconverter at 800 mm, 1/640, f11, ISO 200). I struggle with the manual focus, as these birds are moving constantly. I am not really satisfied with this shot, but it was the best of the lot.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 8:04 am

      Yup birds are tough to shoot. Thanks for sharing this image with us @disqus_UyswuW5MDS:disqus – overall good shot with the side-on bird, leaving space in front of it to move into. Couple of things I noticed here: I think your 2x teleconverter is softening your focus. I tested these converters, 1.4x and 2x on my 100-400mm and found that my focus was always soft – so I stopped using them and cropped my images instead. 2nd thing is – why are you using manual focus with moving objects? Why not put your camera into AI-servo focus mode (tracking mode) or one-shot and keep the middle focus square on the head of the ibis? (have you checked out my focus guide – where I cover a lot of these things?) I think if you do these 2 things (remove teleconverter and switch to auto focus) you’ll get a much sharper image. Would love to see what you post next. Brent

      • Steven Kirk
        Steven Kirk on March 13 at 8:33 am

        Thanks for the recommendations Brent; I will be trying them out on my next shoot. I was trying the manual focus because i felt the teleconverter was slowing down the autofocus – yet another reason to take it out i suppose. Steve

    • Chris
      Chris on March 13 at 4:47 pm

      A lovely bird. I love to watch them and take pics of them.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 13 at 8:26 am

      Love the dome shot…..so much detail in the frame. It feels like the horizon is not level…Sharpening the contrasts and details in the image would also enhance it. At the moment it feels a little ‘flat’….so try using LR or PS to bring out detail….especially in the beautiful colours seen on the Dome. Well done!

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 13 at 9:20 am

      Very nice. I would like to see Zephyr a little more clear, but over all great shot

    • Alan Sharp
      Alan Sharp on March 13 at 11:16 am

      Love it. Same passion as mine, just love this photo. Well done.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 3:59 pm

      Another great fine art passion image Christine. Don’t mind the way you cropped this one too, really draws my eye into the chrome name. Brent

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on March 15 at 11:02 am

      Oh interesting angle. I like the monochrome. I wondered why the back fender was cropped. Like the old fashioned feel to it

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 15 at 3:48 pm

        Thanks Lynne, i cropped it as best as i could to restrict seeing the ‘modern’ number plate, but still keeping the angle i wanted.

        • lynne F Murphy
          lynne F Murphy on March 15 at 9:03 pm

          Of course! Love this idea. Will start playing with it also. Thanks

  96. Alan Sharp
    Alan Sharp on March 13 at 11:25 am

    I have had a passion for classic cars for many years now and I will shoot them whenever the opportunity arises. This photo of a beautiful 1967 soft top Mustang was from the weekend and at a local Mustang show. What got me with this particular car was firstly the color, the deep blue combined with the high quality shine was just amazing. Secondly was the reflections of the grass on the side and front of the car. This was shot on a Canon 80D with a 50mm f/2.8 prime lens, settings were: 1/125 sec, f/9, ISO 100. I was very happy with this photo, even straight out of the camera before any editing, I loved it. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/82d5eb08a889ddaeb5b230ab16da6e81ccbecd09181d24e7910a85e1f11a5328.jpg

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 13 at 11:34 am

      Love this one too @disqus_x9csWXlU2w:disqus….i have a few shots of some ‘Mustang Sally’s’ too….beautiful lines on these machines! Great shot, i have found that they shine them up so well, that we have to be careful of reflections….so i try and always shoot with a polarizer.

      • Alan Sharp
        Alan Sharp on March 13 at 11:39 am

        I agree with that, but as I was only shooting with my 50mm prime lens, and I do not have any filters for this lens yet, but looks like I will be getting one soon.

        • Rerro Rocher
          Rerro Rocher on March 13 at 11:45 am

          Definitely a must for your camera bag…esp when shooting cars and water. Actually, i hardly take mine off now, i have adapters for each lens size, so i just move it from lens to lens. 🙂

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 3:58 pm

      Yup love these classic cars too, and that’s a great colour that really stands out from the green grass. I’d try what @rerrorocher:disqus says about the polarising filter (even though I’ve never used one to shoot a car before). For this image, love the low angle that you shot it at, gives the car a more dominating feel (standing over us). Tack-sharp image especially when I click on it and see it large – I like that starburst from the front rims and bumper too. The only thing that could be improved is the background toilet block, not sure if you had any other angles you could shoot this at or get it moved, or here is something I’ve done in the past – if you have a zoom lens walk backwards and zoom in. At some point (walking backwards) the toilet block will be off to the left and out of frame and the trees will be more blurred due to shallow depth of field because of the longer focal length (zoom) of your lens. Hope this helps. Brent

      • Alan Sharp
        Alan Sharp on March 14 at 10:18 am

        Thanks Brent. This was the only angle, because if I moved to the other side of the car I would have been shooting almost directly into the sun. Also space was limited as where this was held was a small park on the main road, so I had about 2-3 steps back then I would be on the road. I will be looking at the polarising filter for future. As the car owner is local, I will be trying to get in contact and hopefully orgainise another shoot at a convenient time, and a location of my choice. This way I can control all the elements and surrounds and get a much better photo.

    • Chris
      Chris on March 13 at 4:46 pm

      Love this, only with it was a ’67 Camaro, haha! 🙂 When I try to take cars, I end up with people in the reflections, love that yours just has grass.

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on March 14 at 7:59 am

      Nice shot – thought it was a corvette number plate at 1st glance! lolI always been dissapointed with my photos of cars – to ho hum. This works, nice low positioning and the angle of the car is just right
      Pity about the “ladies” at the left
      As much as I like eucalypts, I’d have tried opening the lens up a bit to blur the background. It might have made the car stand out from the trees a bit more
      PS can you ‘photoshop’ the ladies sign out?

    • Lonnie
      Lonnie on March 14 at 12:18 pm

      Nice shot and like the sheen on the car.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 14 at 10:41 pm

      Hi Alan. I like this shot. Well composed. Detail is excellent.

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on March 15 at 10:59 am

      Great colours. Found the ladies sign in the right hand corner fun

  97. RJ@BrentsBootCamp
    RJ@BrentsBootCamp on March 13 at 1:02 pm

    Hey All. Been shooting for about 45 years now – never stop learning. Passions are widefield astro and night but I’ll give most things a go. These are a couple of my older ‘passion’ images.

    The Milky Way shot is a single frame heavily post processed in Photoshop with multiple layers, masks and adjustments to – well everything! Youtube is your friend for this stuff. It’s a single long exposure (20 sec??) at 8mm f4, ISO3200,Canon 650d, EFS 10-18 @10mm on manual focus, remote wireless release, tripod. It turned out pretty well how I imagined it, I would have preferred landscape but the galaxy is unforgiving. I included the power wires for scale and context.

    The factory is the Zinfra works in Hobart. Canon 1000d, 18-135efs @90mm, f11, ISO1600, (4 sec?). I was about 1km away, tripod, timer release. Long shutter was chosen first to get the steam how I wanted it, then the exposure.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/386356d644e3861f3362b1c3f3425a11dd214755f49a4baec0578a846decf804.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/dc6494812242b85be7d0022235db43d52c49079b5e08d515cacaf07a2aa3b631.jpg

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 13 at 3:50 pm

      Hi @rjbrentsbootcamp:disqus and welcome to BootCamp. Which image would you like comments on? Also watch this first video here: https://shareinspirecreate.com/addingimagedisqus about commenting on others images (I recommend comment on 2 others images before expecting comments on your image) and uploading images. Lovely night photography by the way. Brent

      • RJ@BrentsBootCamp
        RJ@BrentsBootCamp on March 14 at 11:50 am

        Uhh – whoops! Jumping in eyes wide shut – noted – assumed it was to be an intro style image.

        How do I DM you – you’ve got my location wrong in the personal video – I’m in Hobart, Australia – did I set something wrong in signup?

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 14 at 7:06 pm

          Mmm, not sure sorry? I’m going off my email provider location. Tassie, love it there – been a while but time to visit again I think. Brent

          • RJ@BrentsBootCamp
            RJ@BrentsBootCamp on March 15 at 10:37 am

            Ah – my email system uses Fastmail and while they are an Aussie company they house many servers in NY so a system that looks up the server location will see it in NY.

            Tech trivia to ruin your day!

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 16 at 9:45 am

            Oh, that must explain it then. Brent

    • Chris
      Chris on March 13 at 4:45 pm

      Wow, that’s amazing. I am only recently starting to try to get some night shots. I hope to get something a quarter this great!!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 14 at 7:16 am

      Hi I have just joined the Boot Camp. New to all this technology. The factory shot looks magic. Great detail. Something I would love to aspire to.

    • Olof Herolf
      Olof Herolf on March 17 at 8:46 am

      Fantastic shots, I think, both of them. I used to live close to a factory like this one, and, looking at your shot, the sounds from the factory come back to my mind. The indirect light on the steam is just great. Olle in Sweden

  98. Brent Mail
    Brent Mail on March 13 at 6:10 pm

    Shot this yesterday on our way back from a weekend away. My son and I went to 3 different skate parks up the coast and on our way back I flew my drone while he was skating. I’ve always wanted to capture this bridge – and I was lucky with the low tide and the sand banks too.

  99. Brent Mail
    Brent Mail on March 13 at 6:11 pm

    Shot this yesterday on our way back from a weekend away. My son and I went to 3 different skate parks up the coast and on our way back I flew my drone while he was skating. I’ve always wanted to capture this bridge – and I was lucky with the low tide and the sand banks too. This goes into my file with my aerial abstracts passion project. Brent https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/0132a8174f21b7cce6e8bfa6341bb22a9f67ff0d99d4fb613a255723dc4c1270.jpg

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 13 at 7:40 pm

      Almost looks like a mirror image with the cars…..great shot….and i love the colour of the water and the diagonal composition….plus the soft lines under the bridge. Loving the drone shots!

    • Julie Ng
      Julie Ng on March 13 at 7:50 pm

      Hi Brent, although I don’t shoot drone photography, I really like to look at other people’s photos shot by a drone because many of them are absolutely stunning. I like the contrast in this photo. The water is peaceful while the diagonal line is dynamic. While the main color of the water is cyan, the 2 red cars came by just right acting as the complementary color. Love this photo!

    • Janice Chen
      Janice Chen on March 13 at 8:57 pm

      Hi Brent, love this image. Love the colour, the diagonal line and the soft shadows under the water. Just wondering whether the diagonal line from bottom left to upper right will make even stronger image?

        • Janice Chen
          Janice Chen on March 14 at 8:59 pm

          Hi Brent, I am studying the set subject of my photoclub, it’s “diagonals” – diagonal lines are perhaps the most powerful element of any image. They can either be the main focus or lines to lead us to the COI. They create dynamic energy and tension within an image and give us a sense of movement and direction. As we read from left to right, it is perhaps best to have our main diagonals going from L to R, bottom left to top right.
          That’s the reason got me wondering 🙂

          • Belinda
            Belinda on March 15 at 3:46 pm

            Interesting discussion, I liked this image when I first saw it, but with the various comments about the position of the diagonal lines it peaked my interest. I took the image and placed the bridge corner to corner and in my opinion it took away from the image; I then thought about the suggestion of reading from left to right, but we also have to consider that when we read, we read top to bottom; therefore, I think it depends on the image whether top to bottom or bottom to top would be appropriate. In this image the way it was composed works for me – bottom left to top right didn’t appeal to me. We also have to remember that the viewers eye is drawn to the lightest areas first in an image and the lightest area on this image is top left – for me my eye is immediately drawn to the top left and then follows the bridge to the bottom right.

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 16 at 9:44 am

            Yeah interesting discussion – love everyones point of view here. I’ve really missed these discussions. Brent

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 14 at 7:13 am

      Hi Brent. Using this to check if I am doing things correct. You might be so good as to confirm. I like this shot for the space it shows – hight, never ending bridge, and the expanse of water.

      • Brent Mail
        Brent Mail on March 14 at 11:34 am

        Yes you are doing things correctly @denisobyrne:disqus and welcome to BootCamp. Brent

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on March 14 at 7:41 am

      cool photo, great colours and impact.
      There’s a shot I’ve wanted to take on the approach to this bridge (driving south) bur I’ve never been able to stop to take it. L
      little or not enough room to park safely

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 15 at 2:28 am

      Love this image, beautiful colors and this diagonal line is really cool.
      @brentmail:disqus not to criticize, just to learn from you: you could easily crop the image so the diagonal line will connect corner to corner, but you choose off-corner. Do you always prefer to treat diagonal lines like that? Do you encourage symmetry in an image, or do you try to break it?

      • Brent Mail
        Brent Mail on March 15 at 6:15 am

        Yes I could have but didn’t want symmetry. Maybe if I edited it now I would want that – just how I felt when I cropped it I guess. That’s the great things about creativity- you are allowed to change your mind depending on your mood. B

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on March 16 at 6:04 am

      I like the blue negative space created by the diagonal. Also the lines in the water created by the flow under the bridge

    • Lisa Chapin
      Lisa Chapin on March 17 at 11:46 am

      Ummm…I’m afraid of heights and this makes me dizzy!! It’s an awesome photo for sure. But wow this was taken from high up!! Could you have taken this shot and blurred the cars to show their movement? If so, how do you do that?

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 14 at 7:16 pm

      Welcome to BootCamp @denisobyrne:disqus I think you’re the first from Ireland. I’m going to a St Patricks Days party this weekend with a good friend from Ireland. Anyway, back to your image… Lovely shot. Those trees are HUGE. A few things I’ve noticed, the road which is a leading line into the trees and the green house seems to be cut off at the bottom. I’d love to see more road leading my eye into the main point of interest in this scene. Also there seems to be a bit of a halo around the trees, not sure if it’s my screen or not? I’d love to have a play with this shot can you upload original here goo.gl/jxatUo if you have a RAW image that would be better, but if not that’s OK too. Can you tell me more about this shot Denis? Why you chose it, what you were thinking? Brent

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 14 at 8:33 pm

        Hi Brent. Have loaded the original RAW File as requested. Called Denis O’Byrne. Many thanks thanks for your comments. The Halo could well be there as I adjusted in Lightroom and Photoshop. The shot just grabbed me as I went in the gates. They are imposing particularly this time of year. Liked the light and cloud formation. Right at that moment I was feeling how nice it was to be out. January was a cps wet month here and long. Sense of freedom. My main purpose that day was to try and capture weak winter sunlight. The shot I attache now might be a better example. Look forward to hearing back from you. Many thanks for all your encouragement. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/9cee683cb89d12b1250bde44b74cda543f4f58e170b967b482a81f0d42c0f9c6.jpg

        • Chris
          Chris on March 15 at 4:56 pm

          Wow, this is so beautiful! I want to visit Ireland now! So lovely, like a postcard, simply perfect.

          • Denis O'Byrne
            Denis O'Byrne on March 15 at 7:27 pm

            Ah Chris, many thanks for the positive feedback. Ireland – not a bad place to visit at all. Should you do so dress for all weathers.

          • Denis O'Byrne
            Denis O'Byrne on March 15 at 11:52 pm

            Hi Chris. Many thanks for the feed back. Glad you like it. Ireland not a bad place to visit. That said dress for all weathers!!!!

        • Bruce Miller
          Bruce Miller on March 15 at 8:57 pm

          Very peaceful image, makes you want to just lay back and relax and enjoy nature

          • Denis O'Byrne
            Denis O'Byrne on March 15 at 11:50 pm

            Hi Bruce. Many thanks for the feed back. Glad you like it.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 16 at 9:43 am

          Love that leading line in the water – the reflection from the sky leading my eye up to the pine tree. Well done. Next time you’re out here look for an interesting foreground object. Spend most of your time looking around, once you’ve found it, then try different angles, heights etc. Brent

          • Denis O'Byrne
            Denis O'Byrne on March 16 at 7:29 pm

            Hi Brent. Many thanks for that advice.

        • Lisa Chapin
          Lisa Chapin on March 17 at 11:43 am

          I see me nestled into this scene having a picnic. I have been transported!

          • Denis O'Byrne
            Denis O'Byrne on March 17 at 8:16 pm

            Lisa, Many thanks for that kind reply. Gives me encouragement to go out for more.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 15 at 7:22 pm

        Hi Chris. Many thanks.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 17 at 9:22 am

      Love it! I will be heading that way in a few weeks! I CANNOT wait for the photo opportunities I will have. We will see how patient my husband is with me. 😉

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 17 at 8:18 pm

        Sara, Many thanks. I hope you enjoy the visit and get many photo opportunities.

  101. Peter Brody
    Peter Brody on March 15 at 12:57 pm

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/1078ce8aa6757ce5da1040cbd457e13914af6828156f7e0f210cbdaaaf3ed87e.jpg
    I was in India this past fall. We were on a tour and met a gentleman that had decided to open a food kitchen to feed the hungry in New Delhi. He took us to his kitchen . It was there that I took this photograph. I have a Canon7D. ISO 100,19mm, f/ 3.5, and 1/50th sec. I sot it in raw and edited in Lightroom and Luminar. The story was to demonstrate the kindness given to those less fortunate than we are. It truly was an emotional experience.

    • Chris
      Chris on March 15 at 4:42 pm

      i really love this. Love the color and textures and expressions.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 15 at 5:00 pm

      Such a good image. Such a powerful story. Love the energy, and the connections between the eyes and the loaf. And the extended cupped hands. WOW…this is National Geographic material! This is what street photography is about. The colours and textures are perfect for the setting. A timeless image! Well done 🙂

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on March 16 at 11:56 am

        Thank you. This trip was all about the people we met. Such a colorful country.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 15 at 7:20 pm

      Hi Peter. Magic, great shot. Makes you think how lucky we are.

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on March 16 at 11:52 am

        Absolutely. Thank you.

    • Bruce Miller
      Bruce Miller on March 15 at 8:56 pm

      A very moving image, it touches your heart and soul.

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on March 15 at 9:01 pm

      What an incredible shot. The expression of poverty in its essence. Colour, textures all add to the emotion.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 16 at 9:26 am

      So much emotion in this image @peterbrody:disqus well done. My eye goes to the guy with his hands out in the green shirt. I wonder how you can highlight him even more? Brent

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on March 16 at 10:35 am

        Thank you. I could try a vignette. I am not good with radial filters.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 16 at 11:31 am

          Or desaturate a little the rest of the image, or yes try radial filters or brush tool. B

    • Amber Pallas-Brunt
      Amber Pallas-Brunt on March 18 at 1:41 am

      Yes! I love this shot! I personally love images of people caught in their everyday activities. I love the painterly effect here.

  102. Chris
    Chris on March 15 at 4:54 pm

    Hi everyone,

    It’s true I am obsessed with bees but I also love shooting birds (with a camera!). Here’s a snowy egret from my neighborhood trail. I am fortunate to live walking distance to this bay trail and habitat of all sorts of birds. I took a lot of pictures of him in different poses. Here’s one of my favorites. It was a sort of cloudy day but the sun was starting to peak through before getting ready to set.
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/2be2252baadb013f56fad2951715d189ec92ce0cd93fc44282e1e7e78e055f3a.jpg

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on March 16 at 6:02 am

      layers of colour interesting Love the moodiness created by the clouds

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 16 at 9:40 am

      Love these old treasures too @disqus_7mfegO6Gqz:disqus – when I’m out driving I always look for old structures to shoot. Have you considered B/W on this one? I think those textures would really pop. Brent

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 17 at 9:20 am

      I agree try B&W. The mood of the sky and the contrast would look great. I try to get as many of these shots as I can. Love it. Sara

    • Anna Black
      Anna Black on March 17 at 8:27 pm

      Nice shot, Bruce – love the atmosphere. Have you used a preset to make it more ‘arty’? It really glows! Maybe glowing a bit too much for me, I’d love to see the more gritty edge, although I’m not sure how to do that. Is the barn leaning, or are we leaning? If it’s us, a little straighten up might help too. I see others are suggesting a B&W version, which would be good to see, or maybe bringing the saturation down to ALMOST B&W, but not quite – could keep the barn with a little colour to accentuate it. Just ideas….

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 17 at 8:38 pm

      Bruce. Something interesting in this shot. Cant put my finger on it. Since you posted I have re visited it several times.

    • Amber Pallas-Brunt
      Amber Pallas-Brunt on March 18 at 1:40 am

      Great shot! I think it could really pop with some additions done in LR. I agree with Anna…put it through it’s paces and see if you can come up with something a little more “Arty” or moody.

    • pjarhead
      pjarhead on March 17 at 11:59 am

      Very nice capture, and the depth of field with the f/6 is spot on, in my opinion.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 17 at 4:51 pm

      Very interesting shot Sara, love the sun rim on the ice at the tips of the branches. I do feel is is a bit dark overall and feels flat. I think there is potential to make this pop, by making the snow whiter. Have you thought of using the ‘dodge and burn’ or the radial filter tools, to whiten the snow?

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 17 at 5:53 pm

      Nice capture, love the backlight.
      You can turn it to a really outstanding image using some basic editing. If you are not using Lightroom and Photoshop, there are free software like GIMP

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 17 at 8:35 pm

      Sara. I like this. The light glistening on the ice on the branch tips is nice and soft but yet is there.

      • Brent Mail
        Brent Mail on March 19 at 9:24 am

        I do like this lighter version more @disqus_cdh6bhNTbb:disqus and my eye is taken right to that long icicle – just beautiful with that warm light. When I zoomed right in, it looks like the focus on slightly off – or maybe it’s just my screen? Did you focus and then recompose this image using the centre focus point? Brent

        • Sara O'Brien
          Sara O'Brien on March 19 at 10:03 am

          The photo I took right before this one was a wider angle and included the road, sun, and house on the left. I zoomed in and took the shot. I have my camera set up for closest subject and sometimes I have issues with the three focus points in the viewfinder and keeping my focus on where I want it. It may be the patience thing again. I am working on that.

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 19 at 10:11 am

            Yeah that’s why I only use the centre focus point – just a habit for me, focus then recompose. Brent

  105. pjarhead
    pjarhead on March 17 at 11:57 am

    Settings: Canon 70-300mm lens set at 300, f/9.5, ISO 1600, 1/250 sec (aperture priority).
    Another fall morning with the squirrels, this one took a piece of walnut up into the tree to eat in the sun. On this I really had to tone down the tree on the left with a graduated filter, added a bit of contrast, clarity and sharpening. Played a bit with some mild split-toning. Finished with noise reduction and a vignette.
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/940c5193074687ed1bd11291b4dc7a059c11f309f71c2b771aa4f279f3176e66.jpg

  106. Steve Beller
    Steve Beller on March 17 at 12:39 pm

    So I’ll add my macro experience. I read online a while back that you can turn your lens around to create a macro lens, rather than buying special lens. I took my 18-55mm lens and held it by hand against the camera body. The difficulty is you lose all features on the camera that involve the lens (aperture, autofocus, image stabilization). I had to rock back and forth to get focus, then try to hold steady. Luckily the light was bright, so with an ISO of 800, I got a high shutter speed of 1/3,000. This bug is about the size of a large flea. It is in the middle of a tea-cup rose blossom, I’ll upload a wider shot for perspective next. I was very pleased with how this one turned out.
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a263c9ea4635be7cf836efe7be5229cbd8fbb40711dd9e574f227701f892f1a1.jpg

    • Steve Beller
      Steve Beller on March 17 at 12:42 pm

      Larger view for perspective/scale. The rose blossom is perhaps 2 inches / 5-6cm in diameter. This one was taken with the 18-55mm on the camera correctly zoomed in at 55mm, f/5.6, ISO 800 and 1/3000 shutter speed.

      • Steve Beller
        Steve Beller on March 17 at 12:45 pm

        Later I found that you can buy ring adapters so you can attach the lens backwards rather than trying to hold everything together, and for (quite) a bit more money you can get one that returns the automation features. Maybe when I’m rich and famous like our Drill Instructor, I’ll be able to afford some of the cooler gear like that 🙂

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 17 at 2:17 pm

          Yeah maybe famous (I keep telling my kids I’m a super hero) but far from rich! B

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 17 at 8:26 pm

        Steve. You did a great job on getting the close up. I like this one too. There is a certain mystic to it.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 17 at 4:46 pm

      Great shot Steve….i like how the bee is sharp and the background melts and fades away. Very effective, considering how you have achieved this and how tricky it is to get the bee sitting still 🙂 Well done!

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 17 at 5:44 pm

      Great results working in tough conditions!
      You can find however cheap solutions that save you the some of the trouble – there are rings that actually do what you tried to obtain manually and macro diopters to put above the lens. Both solutions turn a regular lens into a macro lens in a reasonable price.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 17 at 8:21 pm

      Steve, that is a great result.Very useful data about how you got the shot.

    • Anna Black
      Anna Black on March 17 at 8:22 pm

      Love this shot, Steve, and love your experiment with the lens! You got a beautiful result. The colours are so nice, it would look great on my wall, lol.

    • Leila Gonzalez Sullivan
      Leila Gonzalez Sullivan on March 18 at 4:18 am

      Very interesting technique, Steve. I’ll have to give it a try. This closeup is absolutely frameable and would make a great shot to put into a collage or series.

    • Eric Vincent
      Eric Vincent on March 19 at 10:52 am

      This is a beautiful capture! First I’ve heard of this technique, I’m going to have to try that sometime soon!

    • Chris
      Chris on March 19 at 5:31 pm

      That’s beautiful. It’s a paper wasp I believe. Certainly a wasp. I just read this same article, so it’s nice to see someone tried it. It’s all I can do to work my camera with the lens attached though, ha!

      • Steve Beller
        Steve Beller on March 20 at 3:15 am

        Chris, You got me curious (thank you!), so I did a quick bit of research – turns out it is a
        Virginia flower fly, quite a beneficial little creature. Looks like a wasp except for the distinctive fly-like eyes. Larvae will gobble up any plant-damaging bugs. And I now know that this is a female fly from the link below.

        https://www.insectidentification.org/insect-description.asp?identification=Flower-Fly-Toxomerus-Marginatus

        “Seeing this Flower Fly in the garden is a win. Not only is it harmless to people, it helps clear vegetable and fruit plants of insects that drain and damage them. They are keen mimics of wasps with similar colors and banding on the abdomen, but a look at the eyes and antennae reveal what they really are. In this species, female eyes are separated (see photo), while male eyes are smashed right next to each other (holoptic).”

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 18 at 12:25 am

      Hi Erez. You are getting to complicated for me – combining images. Looks good. Maybe the foreground is a bit weak on colour. That said it is all a matter of taste.

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on March 18 at 2:47 am

        Thanks Denis. At least in my Canon d100, there is not enough dynamic range to capture both the color range in the foreground and the color range in the sky, so I had to take an image for the sky and an image for the foreground and combine them using luminosity masks.

    • Amber Pallas-Brunt
      Amber Pallas-Brunt on March 18 at 1:38 am

      Very interesting. I like the movement of the hills. I almost feel like I’m going to fall off to the left.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 18 at 3:28 am

      I like it! I might crop a bit of the bottom off, not too much. Or maybe try B&W.

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on March 19 at 4:25 am

      On the black and white shot, do you have software like Lightroom where you can lighten the shadows to increase the contrast of the greys a bit?

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 19 at 9:48 am

      Lovely capture @erezshilat:disqus those mountains look awesome. When I look at your scene I noticed that really green tree on the left. To me that would be the main point of interest in this scene. So what I would have done was walk around and find different angles to test out that interesting foreground element and how it would fit into the scene. Also, is that a person just over the hill? To me that is a bit of a distraction – so I’d remove them because they are competing for my attention. Did you get any other angles of this scene with the tree more prominent? Brent

  108. Anna Black
    Anna Black on March 17 at 8:49 pm

    Here’s another kid photo, this time very much on-the-go! I was pleased I actually got her in focus, and got lucky with the sun highlighting the outline of her hair, but I’m afraid it’s still very ORDINARY! I’m sure there I plenty of things I should be doing either when taking the photo or in post-processing to jazz it up a bit, but I have no idea where to start. Help please!
    Here are the tech specs: Canon EOS 1000D, f4.6, 1/1000 sec, 18mm, ISO400.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/62dc4825da590b222d0818da423bb4451b89cb56e4c3261e6f6d8a5095f70eea.jpg

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 18 at 12:21 am

        Hi Anna.I prefer this shot as against the one above.

      • Sara O'Brien
        Sara O'Brien on March 18 at 3:25 am

        I prefer this version also. I love the joy on her face.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 17 at 10:00 pm

      Nice candid shot Anna – i prefer the first image, as your little person has room in the frame to move forward, maybe bring back the bit you cropped off the bottom so we see more of the body. Have you thought about using some vignetting to frame your subject and bring down the blown out exposure in the top right hand corner. Another idea you might want to try is using the radial filters in LR on your subject.

      • Anna Black
        Anna Black on March 17 at 10:03 pm

        Hi Rerro, thanks for the comments. I did think about vignetting, but don’t really know how to do that! I’m using an ancient version of Photoshop (CS2). Will have to look up how to use radial filters too…..

        • Rerro Rocher
          Rerro Rocher on March 17 at 10:10 pm

          I am a Light room user so my knowledge of Photoshop is pretty limited, but i am sure @brentmail:disqus will have some tips for you on the CS2. Keep at it, you have a good eye! 🙂

        • Erez Shilat
          Erez Shilat on March 18 at 2:29 am

          I agree with Rerro regarding the crop. There are many ways for Photoshop vignetting, google “photoshop vignetting” and you’ll find many tutorials showing different approaches. One easy way that will give you a full control over the result is using, on a new layer, a 100% soft and large brush of black color and just draw the vignette. Play with the brush and layer opacity and you can try to change the bending mode as well (normal, multiply, soft light and overlay will be the popular choices).

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 19 at 9:51 am

      Lovely expression – this is what photographing kids is all about. Not about the lighting, or the background – it’s all about the expression and FUN! You nailed it here, and leaving space to run into is great too. Yes there are many things you can do in post but do you need to do anything? Brent

  109. Amber Pallas-Brunt
    Amber Pallas-Brunt on March 18 at 1:37 am

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/31729b2ce083e3d96860c9d4e0df0bcfb079c20c980be1f5d46a8902524f6be8.jpg

    It’s been so hard for me to choose my passion project. I really just love to capture a great image. However, I really drawn to travel photography. AKA landscapes.
    I took this image while we were adventuring around New Zealand. Every 5 minutes I was asking my husband to pull over so I could try to capture the breathtaking beauty of NZ.

    Specs: Nikon Coolpix P900, F3.5,1/640 sec, 14.3mm, ISO100

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 18 at 2:43 am

      Love the B&W and the partition of the image to 3 almost equal regions. The dominant horizontal lines are also beautifully done.
      You can enhance a little by straitening the image according to the water line and maybe emphasize a little more the clouds on the mountains (matter of taste)

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 18 at 3:23 am

      Beautiful. I am always asking my husband to stop so I can take pictures as well. I owed suggest cropping a little bit of the road out, but not all of it. (matter of taste)

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on March 18 at 5:20 am

      I love all the different shades of grey. Great contrasts.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 19 at 9:54 am

      I’m a huge fan of B/W images – and this one ROCKS!!! Love that the dark road is leading me into the mountains and the lake – and to have snow on the peaks is the “icing on the top” excuse the pun 🙂 I like how you’ve darkened the clouds at the top too. Well done! The only thing I think to improve this is a different composition – maybe a little further back, or higher up and to the left more, where the road leads more into the image, as apposed to leading out the left – but this is a minor thing. Brent

      • Amber Pallas-Brunt
        Amber Pallas-Brunt on March 21 at 4:48 am

        Fantastic feedback! I can see what your talking about in regards to composition. This is validation I needed. 🙂

      • Amber Pallas-Brunt
        Amber Pallas-Brunt on April 6 at 9:54 am

        Thanks for this feedback! Next time I’m in that spot in NZ I’ll keep that in mind. 😉

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 19 at 9:58 am

      Well done @leilagonzalezsullivan:disqus and congrats for uploading your first image. Can you tell me more about his flower – why you chose it, what you were thinking etc? Just love the colours, and how it pops from the background. Your focus looks really sharp especially right in the middle of the flower. With macro you need to make some hard decisions when shooting, like which part of this flower will be the main point of interest, and how can I remove all other distractions (like that lattice fencing). Move around, try different angles, take your time and really get into the present moment. I can spend 60 minutes just shooting this one flower – and it feels like 30 seconds have passed. Keep posting more images. Brent

      • Leila Gonzalez Sullivan
        Leila Gonzalez Sullivan on March 20 at 10:26 am

        Thanks, Brent for the input. It’s what I hope for in bootcamp. This is a daylily in my backyard and I love the unusual red color. Many day lilies are the orange-gold type. It is right up against that lattice fence and shooting from other angles probably would pick up neighbors’ houses and other distractors. I was disappointed that the dew drops didn’t show more; they’re kind of yellow. I generally do like to shoot straight into the heart of the flower and to make the pistils and stamens sharpest. I may try to see if I can take out the fence in Lightroom to see what the lily would look like alone. I’m going to upload a couple more macros shortly. L

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 18 at 7:31 pm

      Hi Leila, two beautiful shots.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 19 at 4:28 am

      I love the different shades of red!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 18 at 7:29 pm

      Hi Peter. Lovely shot.

    • Steve Beller
      Steve Beller on March 19 at 1:08 am

      I really like the composition of the sunset photo. Nicely done!

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 19 at 4:31 am

      Beautiful! I am jealous, that is one place I would love to photograph!

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on March 19 at 4:37 am

        Africa was one of the best trips that I have taken. I highly recommend going if you ever have the opportunity.

    • Valerie Worthen
      Valerie Worthen on March 19 at 8:25 am

      Great contrast of the red sky and shadowed trees. Both are very nice images.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 19 at 10:00 am

      Can you tell us more about this image @peterbrody:disqus – is this Africa? Is that a one of those famous thorn trees? Lovely sunset -what settings did you use and why? Brent

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on March 19 at 10:43 am

        Thanks, Brent. Yes , these pictures were taken while on a safari to Kenya and Tanzania. The sunset was taken with my Canon 7D, ISO 200, 300mm, f/5.6, and 1/125 of a second. The lens is slow as it is a telephoto one, so I used the wide aperture. I increased the ISO and was able to take it at 1/125 of a second. I was lucky that I didn’t get much noise. Yes, the tree is the one seen in so many African photos. I was in the right place at the right time from our jeep.
        The shot with the zebras could have been in either Kenya or Tanzania. I found I had to increase the ISO and shutter speed because I was shooting from a distance and had to deal with moving animals. From your courses, now I know I should have been shooting in continuous mode to compensate for movement. The settings for the second shot were ISO 800, 260mm, f/8 for depth of field, and 1/500 sec for speed. Your zebra shot made me remember my trip. Great memories.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 20 at 9:11 am

          Cool, yes shoot faster shutter speed and more images when dealing with movement and wildlife. Brent

          • Peter Brody
            Peter Brody on March 20 at 10:47 am

            I learned that from you and the bees !!!!

    • Chris
      Chris on March 19 at 5:27 pm

      Beautiful photos, I too am jealous!

    • Alex
      Alex on March 19 at 6:58 pm

      These two just shout Africa. Classic sunset shot. Cheers

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 19 at 5:23 am

      Hi Peter. Very impressive.

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on March 19 at 6:22 am

        Thanks, Denis. I was fascinated and in awe of all the different mountain ranges we flew over. This was the sharpest in focus.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 21 at 3:04 pm

      Hi Peter – this looks like it was painted. Did you do that in post processing? I think it works really well, and I especially like the softer range in the background and soft clouds at the front corner because I think they help to balance the mountain.

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on March 22 at 5:28 am

        What I find with my iPhone is that things tend to get more pixelated, than with my Canon 7D. The mountain was sharp, but the background edited fuzzy. Thanks

  114. Denis O'Byrne
    Denis O'Byrne on March 19 at 5:43 am

    Hi all in Boot Camp.
    My main passion project is not necessarily a particular subject or style rather getting up and going out there to use the camera, take shots, and post them within this group. So here I go.
    Last week I went walk about an area of my capital city – Dublin Ireland – did the tourist thing and took photographs. I will post more over the coming days and I hope you enjoy. This first shot is of what we call the Halfpenny Bridge looking east down the River Liffey on which Dublin is built.

    The Ha’penny Bridge was built in May 1816 of Cast Iron. Originally called the Wellington Bridge and changed to the Liffey Bridge it’s official name today – commonly known as the Ha’penny Bridge. Before its construction, 7 ferries operated and they got into such a poor state, it was a question of repair them or build a bridge. The latter was decided and a toll of a Halfpenny was charged from anyone crossing the bridge. This toll increased for a time to a penny and a half (1 1/2 pence) but was dropped in 1919.

    Photo Settings: ISO 200
    FL. 40mm
    F8
    SP 1/125 sec https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/3660f31f2f11d77af4726d48757af22179da3e051d4803d0de778b780ba00c44.jpg

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 19 at 10:03 am

      Love that story @denisobyrne:disqus – and the reflection here is lovely too. My eye settles on the tower in the background and then I noticed that dome on the right, wouldn’t that be a good point of interest? Brent

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 19 at 8:06 pm

        Hi Brent. Many thanks for the above. That Dome on the right is further down and the top of what we call the Customs House. I worked my way down passed there and it will come into play later.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 20 at 9:07 am

          Yes, look for another interesting thing that you can direct a viewers eye to – after they’ve looked at the bridge and reflection. Brent

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 21 at 7:12 am

      Lovely image and history.

  115. Eric Vincent
    Eric Vincent on March 19 at 10:24 am

    For my second post to the group I thought I would share another of my passions: Spirits, Wines, and Beers. In the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day I thought I would shoot an image of an Irish Whiskey, Jameson Caskmates (and enjoy a little of it too).

    Settings used for this photo: ISO 100 Shutter 1/6 sec at f/13 focal length: 26mm
    Additional equipment used: 2 Speed Lights on stands with shoot through umbrellas with wireless triggers, black backdrop

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/d11a032f3ca411d11973a24c4de0d9243256f4b4773a490b447c68cfd392792d.jpg

    • Chris
      Chris on March 19 at 5:26 pm

      Very nice. Crisp with no reflections of camera.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 19 at 8:01 pm

      Hi Chris. I like it. That said I would like bottle a little brighter. I hope you enjoyed your drop of the old stuff.

      • Eric Vincent
        Eric Vincent on March 20 at 4:52 am

        I did take one with a 42″ reflector and it did brighten up the bottle a little but there was too much of a reflection of the reflector so I opted not to use that one. It was brightened a little in Lightroom but didn’t want to overdo it so I held back, maybe I’ll add a little more exposure and repost.

        And I most certainly did enjoy my “drop of the old stuff”.

        • Denis O'Byrne
          Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 5:27 am

          Maybe if you put a circle around the bottle and play with light inside the circle leaving the outside as is will give you a result. That said if I had all your gear and could get the above result I would be over the moon. I am not using the correct terminology above but I am sure you will get my drift.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 20 at 9:06 am

      Love this image @disqus_0edd8Vko9G:disqus your lighting makes it so good. Rim lighting like this is awesome. I’ve photographed wine in my studio and it’s the most difficult thing I’ve ever shot in a studio – because of the reflections. The only way I could do it was to shoot 2 images and blend them, you may want to try that with this image in the future. This image and then one that is side/front lit. Something I did was simply boost the mid tones in this image in photoshop. What do you think? Brent https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/8e77e41c498cdad102cddd2701d80f23285de6defbc1564037f8f7f378e0bdab.jpg

      • Eric Vincent
        Eric Vincent on March 20 at 11:09 am

        It most definitely brightens up the image and blending images probably would have yielded better results. What I would have liked is a third light, front on a downward angle for the neck label and cap.

    • Lonnie
      Lonnie on March 19 at 11:32 am

      Like this picture very much.

    • Chris
      Chris on March 19 at 5:25 pm

      Love it. They seem like happy cows. Did you make it intentionally dark or was it just the overcast weather?

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 19 at 5:31 pm

        Thanks Chris, it was a gloomy day, but i added more drama in post processing. Gave it ‘my’ touch! 🙂

        • Chris
          Chris on March 19 at 5:38 pm

          Well it’s a great shot for sure.

    • Alex
      Alex on March 19 at 6:45 pm

      I can honestly say I’ve never seen a Milky Way photo quite like this one 🙂 I like the dramatic post processing too, great mood. Good one!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 19 at 7:51 pm

      Hi Rerro. Very good. Just like a painting.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 20 at 9:00 am

      Fascinating that you can make art image of cows – that is really creative @rerrorocher:disqus – love your tones and I’m starting to see your “style” now with the magenta tones. I like it and encourage you to keep on this path of discovering your unique style. Comments on this image and how to improve… I think the main point of interest, the cow up close looks a little funny because of the cow right behind it, the shadow and leg under it’s belly and hump back. I think if you could move around (or move the cows around lol) and get a single “clean” cow that would make your image much stronger. Here is an example of a horse that I shot – similar experience, so I moved around quite a bit to make sure I could get a clean shot of it. Hope this helps. Brent https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/d346bf58262e5b13d97599b3868608677f7d56676b0da6c801073bcb19acc2d4.jpg

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 20 at 9:12 am

        Ah….thanks Brent, you know i never noticed that hump before now. Fresh eyes, and all that…! This helps for sure. I tend to shoot with my ‘hearts eye’ and forget to look at the obvious. This is part of my learning curve….i still have so much to learn 🙂

          • Rerro Rocher
            Rerro Rocher on March 20 at 10:23 am

            Agreed……this is such a great forum to be part of! We are all cadets earning our stripes!

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on July 31 at 3:29 pm

        Just love the soft lighting in this shot. My daughter is a horse trainer and would have this hanging in her house.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 21 at 3:12 pm

      I like how you have processed this. It reminds me of vintage farm illustrations. Very homey.

      • Leila Gonzalez Sullivan
        Leila Gonzalez Sullivan on March 22 at 6:05 am

        It could also be just before the tornado in the movie, the Wizard of Oz. Love the deep tones.

    • Jim Albertson
      Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:59 pm

      Love the vintage look and the ominous sky.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 31 at 3:30 pm

      Really does look like a painting!

  117. Alex
    Alex on March 19 at 7:07 pm

    I’ve been meaning to go to this place for quite a while, was hoping to get glorious golden hour sunlight on these dune grasses and the cliffs and a nice sky but the weather didn’t play ball. Got a little bit but not enough for what I had in mind. Great location – Karekare beach, west Auckland, NZ. I just love the drone perspective, there’s two aerial shots, one with me in it as a focal point and for scale, and one without. And the third one is what I saw on the ground. I’ll be back… https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e9676016ed26959824d4bfde5307c124e62935c1edc14278135314de0c893872.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e653277957d786b097d1b46252566c2958635a9ad8a45afd3cc664563203c078.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e52bc3f6cf14d61ff183cad6b2305b0528a70c95035280acb0c6fbdd0dfea9ff.jpg

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 19 at 7:49 pm

      Hi Alex. Pity the weather did not play ball for you. For me the first shot (Ground Level) is the one. Maybe the cliff face could be lightened a small bit. But then again there is no right or wrong here.

      • Alex
        Alex on March 20 at 3:10 pm

        Thanks Denis. I’m about to have a go at Brents suggestion, B&W. Should be interesting

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 19 at 7:51 pm

      Wow…incredible shots. Have you done any post processing on them yet. Not sure if it is a matter of Lens correction or aspect ratio, but it looks like the horizon in the top image is a concave shape. When i zoom in, the images are still incredibly sharp. I would like to see the top image cropped using the beach as the point of interest, and the ripples in the sand. Just for interest sake. Great shots…well done!

      • Alex
        Alex on March 20 at 3:09 pm

        Thanks Rerro, yes I’ve processed them, and I think the lens correction thing is an optical illusion – I’ve clicked the correction button in Lightroom… I don’t know about that crop though….

    • Craig
      Craig on March 19 at 9:17 pm

      really like this, beautiful capture

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 20 at 8:51 am

      I’m thinking black and white for this one @disqus_gaqxeQxtLL:disqus – those textures in the foreground would really draw me into this image. Highlight that small island somehow (contrast, or radial brush or something) to draw the viewer into it – settle their eye there. Would love to see what you come up with. Brent

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 21 at 5:44 pm

          I love very deep blacks when converting to B/W – and more contrast. especially for that island rock. Can you upload original here https://goo.gl/jxatUo and I’ll have a go sometime? Brent

          • Alex
            Alex on March 21 at 6:59 pm

            For sure, I’ve uploaded it, that will be interesting. I’ve never really looked at how to edit B&W, so this could be a useful learning experience. One thing about monochrome is it’s a good way to disguise a less than fantastic sky.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 19 at 8:25 pm

      Nothing like an African sunrise…or sunset for that matter! Love the soft tones of this image, as the day breaks on the horizon. The image does however look to be slightly off-balance. Have you thought about cropping a bit off all 4 sides and seeing what is looks like? Great image!

          • Craig
            Craig on March 19 at 9:05 pm

            I have to confess, as a scientist I always felt I had no artistic talent whatsoever- I understood the technical aspects of cameras well but composition etc were always going to be a challenge. All the kind words expressed here are coming as a bit of a surprise- thank you

          • Rerro Rocher
            Rerro Rocher on March 19 at 9:08 pm

            Craig….i am a Scientist too! We can be creative when in the right mood!

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 20 at 8:48 am

            I studied engineering at university and tech – so I’ve also got that science/tech brain. We are all creative beings, and I just read somewhere that up to the age of 5, about 95% of us use our creativity all the time – and then we are schooled to not use it. So it’s there, dormant and waiting to come out. I encourage you to get into that non-thinking zone and create these images. You’ll know when you are there because time tends to stand still. I’ve spend 60 minutes shooting a single flower and it felt like 30 seconds. That is what photography is all about – that feeling of being in “flow”. Brent

          • Denis O'Byrne
            Denis O'Byrne on March 19 at 11:45 pm

            Hi Craig. This one I like.

          • Judy Ward
            Judy Ward on March 21 at 3:24 pm

            The starburst around the sun is terrific, and the colours seem very natural. Then again, I also like what @rerrorocher:disqus did to the other image to make it so vibrant.

          • Craig
            Craig on March 19 at 9:08 pm

            With pleasure

            Craig Mostert
            Village Vet Hospital

          • Craig
            Craig on March 19 at 9:17 pm

            wow you’ve really got the colors to POP.
            I edit on my Mac, which has a calibrated screen. When I send to my PC to post, the pics look quite different?

          • Rerro Rocher
            Rerro Rocher on March 19 at 9:23 pm

            I cropped the image slightly, trying to get the horizon on the top 13 guideline, but couldn’t quite get there without cropping the foreground or the sky even more. So compromised with this one. I also straightened the horizon. I played around with the colours and tones in LR, and also used the adjustment brush to lighten up the foreground, and bring out some of the detail in the grass

          • Denis O'Byrne
            Denis O'Byrne on March 19 at 11:43 pm

            Rerro, love the work you have done here. Different shot.

          • Peter Brody
            Peter Brody on March 20 at 11:56 am

            I love the edit. Makes it much more dramatic.

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on March 20 at 8:45 am

            Yup – that really pops. Brent

          • Chris
            Chris on March 20 at 4:54 pm

            Beautiful. I wish I was there.

          • Jim Albertson
            Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:55 pm

            Love the color crop and composition of this image.

          • Jim Albertson
            Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:56 pm

            I think this is a good example of what a 16:9 crop can do. Did I get that right Rerro?

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 21 at 3:31 pm

      Hi Craig – love that bit of web in the bird’s beak, and the blurred background with the lighter colours behind the bird’s head help to highlight your subject. There are two things I would explore here. Firstly, is it possible to highlight the eye somewhat? Secondly, what about ‘pruning’ some of that tree on the right with a tighter crop? It would remove some distraction.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 19 at 8:29 pm

      Hi Craig. This I like. Nice definition and lighting.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 20 at 8:44 am

      Hi @disqus_xQQMdbpif2:disqus choose you single best image and post that – otherwise I get confused as to which image to comment on. You’ve got a few different genre’s here – not sure which is your “Passion Project”? If you post one, and comment on two other peoples images then everyone gets a turn to post and comment. Also, keep your image and re-post improved versions of that image in the same thread – that way I can see how you’re improving and it keeps everything in one place (for the magazine). Hope this helps. Brent

  122. Denis O'Byrne
    Denis O'Byrne on March 19 at 9:03 pm

    Good morning from Ireland:
    The next 4 shots on my walk about are of Christ Church Cathedral. It is one of Dublin’s oldest buildings and a place of pilgrimage for approx 1000 years. I will have to revisit on a better day weather wise. From a photographic point of view it can be a stand alone project. My walk about is is providing me with inspiration already.
    Photo Settings:
    Shot 1. Shot 2 Shot 3 Shot 4
    ISO 200. ISO 200 ISO 200. ISO 200
    FL 41mm FL 18mm FL 18mm FL 22mm
    F8 F8 F7 F 5
    SS1/50 sec SS 1/80 sec. SS1/100 sec. SS 1/125 sec

    Apologies for the multiple shots together.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/aac6931afd3e9328e05fa874fbb51ad9c89b830a813f5a5c2844c9e5300c9dab.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/42d65b191026e2a7f8ab0c2c9a19e9adcc67f86445886f89fac65226dea2e4a5.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/5fd8482b0823897715f47a5f1593f5e228ab351642012ee97fe716d9ac798402.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e5bcf8aaec26ddc3f86b18b2669db96a72d1bfb803820c05a5b15cff55aff76c.jpg

  123. Denis O'Byrne
    Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 5:06 am

    These next shots brought me back to the city centre and Trinity College. 4 shots in al taken in the front square which I will post individually.
    Founded in 1592by Queen Elizabeth 1 and modelled on the universities of Oxford and Cambridge. It is now surrounded by Dublin and located on College Green opposite Dail Eireann (Parliament). The college occupies 47 acres and offers degrees and diploma courses at both Undergraduate/Post Graduate levels.The library is a legal deposit library for Ireland and the UK, which includes the famous Book of Kells.

    Photo Settings: Shot 1.
    ISO 200, FL 18mm, F3.5, SS 1/400 sec https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/aba87355fbbbaa7b40ee47b20073b8c08861523116de68ce435f3a075ef4fe08.jpg

    • Eric Vincent
      Eric Vincent on March 20 at 6:36 am

      Oh this is good one! The only thing that would have made it better is if the crowd wasn’t in your way lol

      Have you tried playing with the sky to get really dramatic clouds? I think that would be added value to this image.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 7:16 pm

        Hi Eric, Many thanks for your comments. Will have a look at the sky in this one later.

    • Kathy Potter
      Kathy Potter on March 20 at 6:04 am

      This is a beautiful shot. Its cool undertones make me want to put on a jacket!

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 6:27 am

        Kathy,. Many thanks. It was that kind of weather.

        • Kathy Potter
          Kathy Potter on March 20 at 6:33 am

          I also think it has something to do with the tones in the photo. I love older buildings, they have so much character.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 20 at 7:30 am

      More really beautiful shots Denis. Something to keep in mind, is the space in the foreground that is serving no purpose. I know you want to get the whole building in your shot, but maybe coming from a lower perspective will help. Also, when you are shooting, think about what you can do to transform your images from everyday ‘snaps shots’ into master pieces. Maybe taking photos from a different angle, or using filters to capture the movement in the dramatic sky, or having a point of focus. Keep them coming….you have the passion! 🙂

      • Brent Mail
        Brent Mail on March 20 at 8:38 am

        Agree – you need to find a foreground object of interest in these image to really make them POP. Brent

        • Denis O'Byrne
          Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 7:14 pm

          Hi Brent. Many thanks for takin g the time to comment and I agree with the need to find a foreground object of interest.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 7:10 pm

        Rerro many thanks and advice that I will take notice off.

    • Leila Gonzalez Sullivan
      Leila Gonzalez Sullivan on March 20 at 11:25 am

      I agree with Brent that you could eliminate all that space at the front. What I found intriguing is that it looks like a sepia photo until you notice those little touches of color just in front of the building. Loved my visit to Trinity last year but it was rather crowded and that distracted from my building shots. You were there at a good moment.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 7:07 pm

        Leila, Many thanks and I agree with the foreground. Too much of it. There were quite a few people around but took them out with Photoshop. Left the few to the right.

    • Chris
      Chris on March 20 at 4:54 pm

      i love this, the colors, the period. Sure, I agree, crop a little, but otherwise it’s perfect. Love the bare tree as well.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 7:04 pm

        Chris. Many thanks. Agree with the crop. Too much foreground. Will have to watch that for future shots.

    • Jim Albertson
      Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:52 pm

      I love the stark color contrast here. The trees and the building on the right are almost reminiscent of a B/W image.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 6:35 am

      Kathy. Nice shot. I look forward to your upcoming shots. My only advice is when out shoot often and a lot. Like you I am just a keen amateur and learning as I go. When I am going out I try to have a plan and a general idea of what I want. This makes me focus in on camera settings etc before I go out. Anyway that is how I generally approach my field trips.

      • Kathy Potter
        Kathy Potter on March 20 at 6:44 am

        I agree! Before I just grabbed my camera and took random shots. I have just learned the exposure triangle so I will be much more mindful of light. I have also realized I will need to start carrying a tripod. I appreciate your advice!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 20 at 8:37 am

      Another amazing image Kathy. Advice for shooting outdoors: Simplify the technical things, shoot in Shutter Priority for birds etc, at a fast shutter speed like 3x your focal length which you did here. Focus is important so use the focus and recompose technique I teach. That’s it for technical stuff, then what you need to do is LOOK and FEEL what you’re shooting. Enjoy every minute of it – try different angles, compositions but most importantly, enjoy it. Stop thinking technically and fire up your creative brain. Enjoy. Brent

      • Kathy Potter
        Kathy Potter on March 20 at 8:46 am

        Thank you! I will remember the shutter speed with the birds. I feel much more confident now! I have back button focus so I am getting better with recomposing, I’ll even try to remember the rule of thirds, and other composition rules!

    • Leila Gonzalez Sullivan
      Leila Gonzalez Sullivan on March 20 at 11:22 am

      I like how sharp the feathers are here, but wonder what would have happened if you had focused on the eye. The rule of thirds might have worked if you took a step back and then the eye would have fallen on an intersection, but I think the way you framed the bird with space on either side worked better than worrying about the rule. Was the light really this color or did you enhance it a bit? I went to Costa Rica a couple years ago and have lots of bird pictures–have to go back and see what I did there. Great shot.

    • Chris
      Chris on March 20 at 4:52 pm

      Beautiful! I have a bird like this down the street from my house but he only comes out at night so hard to shoot. Great shot, love the feather details.

    • Janice Chen
      Janice Chen on March 20 at 7:19 pm

      I like the soft colour tone and the details of the feather. Beautiful shot.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 21 at 3:45 pm

      Nice photo, Kathy! I think the bird looks very majestic. The only thing I would maybe change is adding a little more brightness to the bird’s head, beak and neck… just a little, though…because I wouldn’t want to lose the effect of that soft, morning light.

    • Point Reyes
      Point Reyes on March 23 at 1:26 pm

      It’s pictures like this that inspire me to try to get better with birds. Great shot. 🙂

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 20 at 9:06 am

      I like the perspective here Keri. In my opinion the rocks in the foreground are a distraction here. If they were in focus you could have used them in the shot, by using a great F-stop number like F8 would have helped here. I would try cropping out the rocks and the left and right hand side of the frame, and then focus on getting symmetry in the shot. Then look at editing to make your image pop.

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on March 20 at 9:56 am

        Thankyou Rerro. And I agree about the rocks.

        • Peter Brody
          Peter Brody on March 20 at 10:51 am

          Great repetitive pattern. I like the cropped photo. I would also crop the rocks out.too.

      • Alex
        Alex on March 20 at 2:47 pm

        Definitely a stronger image although I find the rocks in the front are still a bit distracting – maybe Photoshop them out?

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 7:00 pm

        Hi Keri. This is a fine job now. I would agree with the comments re the rocks.

    • Craig
      Craig on March 20 at 3:59 pm

      I like it. Really good symmetry. (maybe straighten it a little)

    • Chris
      Chris on March 20 at 4:51 pm

      It definitely draws me in. I was going to say, I would crop it a little more tightly but upon reading below, I see that’s already been done. Great shot!

    • Jim Albertson
      Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:50 pm

      Great example of framing the image with repeating geometric forms to draw the viewer in. You might be able to address the overexposure outside by using a graduated filter in lightroom and bringing down the exposure in that portion of the image only.

  129. Keri Down
    Keri Down on March 20 at 8:45 am

    There are no waves at Wellington Point but a perspective from lower down gave the illusion of surf on this sunrise
    ahttps://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/fd298a52f53b1982c6377ceb5c1d05b4822db8caa32ff00763369f18a424754c.jpg

  130. Keri Down
    Keri Down on March 20 at 8:50 am

    There are no waves at Wellington Point so I got down low for a different view. I really like this perspective because it gives an illusion of surf. There were bushfires so the sun was a beautiful colour. Sunset F10, 1/60, iso 200.

  132. Peter Brody
    Peter Brody on March 20 at 11:39 am

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/74d167f2c965110072bb922725fb88d8de3ef55a61c93fe4ed971cc6aabb0815.jpg This photo was taken at Plitvice Lakes, Croatia. I was shooting down from a cliff to the waterfalls and wooden walkway below. I shot it with my Canon7D, ISO 100, 30mm, f/9, at 1/80 sec. It looks like a drone shot. Notice the lone walker to the far right for perspective of how grandiose these waterfalls were. There were so many of them . The water was that green !!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 6:55 pm

      Hi Peter. Lovely shot.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 21 at 4:03 pm

      Beautiful shot, Peter. The winding shapes of forested areas and the path draws me in, and the walker does put it into perspective. I have a question about your composition.. what did it look like if you moved a bit to the right? The walker is really close to the edge, so that would move him/her more into the picture, and I don’t think you would lose much of interest on that far left hand side.

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 22 at 9:59 am

          Yes like this version better @peterbrody:disqus because of the walkway leading me in more – that place is just stunning. Brent

        • Judy Ward
          Judy Ward on March 22 at 1:07 pm

          I’m so impressed you had this shot, too, @peterbrody:disqus I tend to rush and miss capturing different points of view and kick myself about that later. I think I like this one better, even though the path is out of the frame at the bottom; it still feels balanced and the cliffs at the back become a contrasting feature. Both shots are lovely and will appeal to different people in different ways.

          • Peter Brody
            Peter Brody on March 23 at 4:24 am

            Thank you. What I’ve learned from Brent and Johny is change your perspective with composing – take landscape and portrait, as well as different angles.

    • Jim Albertson
      Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:45 pm

      Love the high perspective, the details and the color.

  133. Chris
    Chris on March 20 at 4:58 pm

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/695e352e27fdd17f4f6bccc3f7e58adb286f7f6f352f880cbecfb087b0f21845.jpg

    Hi All, I read an article on how to capture birds in flight and wanted to go out and practice today. I am generally happy with this shot and detail like the feathers and water droplets. I am not happy with the color. It was kind of gray out, it was low tide so the water was shallow and murky and the bird is all white. Also, next time I will use a lower ISO. Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 6:54 pm

      Chris. When shooting subjects in Nature there will always be something not just right. That said you can minimise these with a few checks before you go out such as tide, weather in general, and set up accordingly. I think the focus might be a bit soft. That said I like the shot.

      • Chris
        Chris on March 21 at 2:56 pm

        I agree. But this is walking trail by my house and as I am off Monday’s, I take my chances with weather and birds, I never know what I will see on that trail.

    • Eric Vincent
      Eric Vincent on March 21 at 12:41 am

      Very nice shot… Curious, have you thought of converting to B&W? I think it would work well for this shot.

    • Belinda
      Belinda on March 21 at 9:06 pm

      Hi Chris, Great Capture! I did a quick edit on your photo to bring out those lovely tones … the white bird with the blue water is stunning

      Composition – I placed the bird’s neck/head on the 1/3rd intersection with the left wing tip on the other 1/3rd line… this gives a stronger composition and gives room for the bird to look into the frame. I added a little extra water on the lefthand side in order to accomplish this composition – If you have room from your crop to move the bird you could do it that way.

      Colors: I took your image into Camera Raw Filter in Photoshop … Under the “Basic” tab click on “Auto” – it will adjust the exposure, contrast, highlights, shadows, whites, blacks etc…. Under the White Balance I added a tad bit more blue in the temperature and added some Magenta in the Tint … Then added a bit of clarity.

      Your original file will render better results as I am working on a low resolution photo… but you get the idea.
      Hope this helps, https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/642d683233293687dde1b7f2e1ac8dc824370b4d828d5b282c6e66529a923af9.jpg
      Belinda

      • Chris
        Chris on March 22 at 5:41 pm

        Wow, great ideas. I will play with it Camera Raw as well. I have gotten so use to editing in LR that I don’t think of some other tricks. Thanks for editing.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 20 at 6:49 pm

      Chris, I like this and the softness of the background. Perhaps the focus is a slightly soft.

      • Chris
        Chris on March 21 at 2:55 pm

        Thanks @denisobyrne:disqus I wanted the background soft but the bird crisp.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 20 at 8:40 pm

      Just Beautiful….love this shot, and love how you have captured the movement of the wave! Great shot Janice, well done! Can i ask, were you using any filters?

      • Janice Chen
        Janice Chen on March 21 at 5:45 pm

        Thanks Rerro, I used polarizing filter.

    • Eric Vincent
      Eric Vincent on March 21 at 12:39 am

      Awesome capture of the movement of the waves! I really like this shot!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 21 at 1:25 am

      Janice just magic. Love it.

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on March 21 at 6:18 am

      You caught the moment and the feeling. Lovely

    • Julie Ng
      Julie Ng on March 21 at 12:17 pm

      Awesome capture of the splash. Love this shot.

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on March 21 at 12:35 pm

      Great photograph!! Dramatic, yet calming with the warm sunset and cottony water.

    • Chris
      Chris on March 21 at 2:54 pm

      Beautiful, it’s like a painting. Very soothing.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 21 at 4:40 pm

      Gorgeous. Love the drama and the effect of that slower shutter speed.

    • Janice Chen
      Janice Chen on March 21 at 5:42 pm

      Thanks for all the encouraging comments. 🙂

    • Belinda
      Belinda on March 21 at 7:41 pm

      Great capture and post processing Janice! Love this shot

    • Leila Gonzalez Sullivan
      Leila Gonzalez Sullivan on March 22 at 6:10 am

      This photo seems beautifully composed–light to dark, a bit of diagonal line, the spray is perfectly captured and it reflects lovely sunset colors. If we can’t all travel the world, we can enjoy it through our fotofriends’ eyes.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 22 at 10:01 am

      Just stunning @disqus_0xljvyhrLA:disqus – the wave action the tones and the rocks. Magic. Brent

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on March 22 at 10:03 am

      Great shot Janice, I love the light and mood you have captured ,the power of the ocean really excites me. I also love the vertical element of the wave.

    • Jim Albertson
      Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:43 pm

      Wow! What don’t I love about this image! I think you nailed the shutter speed on this one just right. not too much, not too little. Love the color and the mood. I am a silky water fan as well.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on March 24 at 1:25 am

      An amazing image, just love everything about it – perfect!

    • Brenda Potts
      Brenda Potts on May 12 at 4:03 am

      Fantastic image, Janice. I love the powerful blast of water and then the soft, calm areas in contrast at the bottom of the image.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 31 at 3:19 pm

      Just sensational!! Love everything about it! I’d have that up on my wall. Can’t add anymore than what has already been posted.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on August 10 at 10:28 pm

      WOW ! postcard perfect ,what a great scene the lighting & colors of the sky & clouds are calming to balance out the power & ferocity of the surf on the rocks ,beautiful .

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 21 at 7:59 am

      A wonderful shot Lynne. Love the contrast of colours here, very effective and the bokeh you have got from your lens is lovely. Not sure if you have purposely cropped this shot this way, but it would be a ripper of a shot if he leaf was not slap bang in the middle. The only other thing to be aware of, i saw you shot this using a wide open aperture (F2.8), perhaps for the low light, or to remove the distracting background…not sure…..but your focal plane becomes quite shallow, so the whole leaf is not sharp, and there are some soft sections. Try just upping your f-stop slightly to adjust for that, and if light was the issue, lift your ISO a little. Well done, this is very pleasing to the eye!

      • lynne F Murphy
        lynne F Murphy on March 21 at 8:25 pm

        Rerro. I really appreciate your comments and detailed suggestions. I see what you mean re the sharpness and the composition. Much appreciated

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 21 at 8:07 am

      To answer your question on macro, and water droplets and the leaf. Absolutely, a macro lens would be the best way to capture the detail and reflections. You would definitely need to be working on a tripod, and have a low ISO and maybe some extra lighting depending on location. If you want to use F2.8 you might want to use a technique called focus stacking, to extend your depth of field. This will mean capturing an image at different focal planes, stacking, aligning and blending them in PS.

      • lynne F Murphy
        lynne F Murphy on March 21 at 8:22 pm

        Great. Thank you. I’ve never done stacking. Will wait til i’m better at photography but will eventually get a macro lens

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 21 at 6:51 pm

      Hi Lynne.I like this.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 22 at 10:13 am

      Love your fine-art on this one @lynnefmurphy:disqus the leaf really POPS! Something to try to get a more pleasing composition is to rotate the image slightly anti-clockwise. That way the branch will come up from the left bottom and move my eye up to the leaves. Try it. Brent

    • Chris
      Chris on March 21 at 2:53 pm

      WOW!! This is my favorite so far! Love it. What did you use strip lighting for? Sorry if that’s a dumb question.

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 21 at 2:59 pm

        Thanks Chris….no question is ever dumb! 🙂 The led lighting i used was lighting inside a portable studio box. So on the LHS and the RHS of the image i had a long strip of led lighting. If you look up close in the reflection of the water droplets you can see them there.

        • Chris
          Chris on March 21 at 3:01 pm

          Oh, thank you! I see them now! It’s beautiful.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 21 at 4:37 pm

      Gasp… love it. Orange and purple together pops, and the composition really stands out.

    • Janice Chen
      Janice Chen on March 21 at 5:53 pm

      I love the colours and the composition. These water drops are so clear and gorgeous.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 21 at 6:49 pm

      Rerro. All I will say is magic.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 22 at 10:16 am

      Another stunning creation @rerrorocher:disqus – love those strip light reflections in the water drops. This one should be printed LARGE – I’m talking wall-size large and displayed where it can be appreciated. Just magic! Brent

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 22 at 10:21 am

        Thanks Brent! it is amazing to see your work in print….takes it to another level!

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on March 22 at 5:29 pm

          That’s going to be the 12th month challenge – passion project in print

          • Rerro Rocher
            Rerro Rocher on March 22 at 5:40 pm

            Awesome idea! I can’t wait 🙂

    • Jim Albertson
      Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:40 pm

      Wow! Tack sharp and great detail. Love the water drops and the vibrant colors. Really good example of a very creative and effect crop that proves you don’t always have to include the whole subject to make a big impression. This would look great as a card at the other end of the size spectrum even though I agree with Brent.

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 23 at 2:53 pm

        Thanks Jim – this was one of my first attempts when i got my macro lens. Very happy with the outcome! And this was was cropped in camera, and not in post processing – so very deliberate 🙂

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 31 at 3:28 pm

      Absolutely awesome photo Rerro!

  138. Peter Brody
    Peter Brody on March 21 at 12:59 pm

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e732912c5d47ed8afd8b302f147b7be3d07eba93efebd66c900aa27cecc78930.jpg This is a jpeg of a photo that I took in Taos, New Mexico. I edited it in Lightroom and Topaz Impression to turn it into a painting. My settings were ISO 100, 15mm, f/8, and1/1000 sec. We were walking down the street when my eyes were drawn to this turquoise antique car in front of an art gallery and motorcycle. The colors were so art-deco and southwestern.. I can include the original photo if you want it, Brent.

    • Chris
      Chris on March 21 at 2:53 pm

      Very cool! It’s what I imagine Taos looks like anyway!

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on March 22 at 5:15 am

        Taos and Santa Fe are great places to visit and take photographs.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 21 at 4:50 pm

      This is really fun, Peter. I think the Impression treatment works well with this theme of the older car.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 21 at 5:13 pm

      Very clever post processing on this image….it works extremely well. the only thing i would look at changing if you can is the cropping on the left-hand side of the image where the bricks are…..there is a nice s-bend there that is cut off, and at the bottom the crop is a bit tight. Brilliant ediing…i like it!

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on March 22 at 5:14 am

        I see what you are saying. Unfortunately on the original, the curb was cut off, too. I was walking with the family, took the shot, and kept on going. The cruse of the tourist. Thank you.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 22 at 10:20 am

      LOVE this – wow! I think converting it to a painting is such a good idea, and then boosting the colours like a poster. Love it! Only thing that distracts me is that sky, seems a little too dark in the middle (like a polarizing lens). Brent

        • Vicki Mudd
          Vicki Mudd on August 20 at 3:44 pm

          Peter Brody, I just found this image. I have been more focused on the challenges than on this area, but thought I should check it out again. I love what you have done with this image in Impression!

          • Peter Brody
            Peter Brody on August 21 at 1:43 am

            Thank you. The Santa Fe colors all just blended in so well, I figured it would make a great painting.

    • Jim Albertson
      Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:35 pm

      Love the vibrant colors and the subject matter. The painting effect conversion is awesome

  139. Judy Ward
    Judy Ward on March 21 at 5:10 pm

    This shot was taken in late summer in an alpine meadow. I think the botanical name is anemone occidentalis. My main goals with this shot were to show the detail in the plant and highlight it with backlighting. Changing it to black & white helped highlight the detail of the plant. I had several attempts to get more depth of field and the sharpest focus I could given there was some wind tossing the plant about. Settings: 1/320, f6.3, ISO 100 using 100mm macro lens
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/3a61723b9f365789711e4085b0babef4fbf5e7566db751157fc02a78990a2012.jpg

    • Chris
      Chris on March 21 at 5:37 pm

      Lovely photo. I am curious what colors it was before it was changed. It’s really crisp and sharp.

    • Janice Chen
      Janice Chen on March 21 at 5:49 pm

      Gorgeous photo. Like hairs blowing in the wind.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 21 at 5:59 pm

      Wonderful…i love it! the black and white conversion is very well done. Very difficult to master when the wind is blowing…i have found rocking back and forth on my feet, and spraying will get a few images just right.

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on March 22 at 12:48 pm

        Thanks for the tip, Rerro. I will have to try your rocking and spraying technique the next time I’m out on a windy day.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 21 at 6:47 pm

      Hi Judy. I Like this shot.

    • Eric Vincent
      Eric Vincent on March 22 at 12:38 am

      WOW! Absolutely love this image! I’d be printing this one.

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on March 22 at 12:44 pm

        Thanks you Eric. I have printed it, but my first attempt was not successful. I didn’t have the resolution right and it looked over-sharpened and ugly.

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on March 22 at 5:20 am

      I love the mystery that is created. It attracts your eyes and makes you think about what you are looking at. Well done.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 22 at 10:26 am

      So good @disqus_W81kCdSr3n:disqus looking at your image large it’s got so much detail and tack-sharp. Well done. The only minor thing that you can do with this image is clone out those 2 stray strands that shoot out on the right – but that is minor. Brent

    • Jim Albertson
      Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:32 pm

      Love the subtle yet vibrant colors in what almost seems like a B/W image

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on March 24 at 9:07 am

      Hi Denis, Are you able to make the sky more dramatic to contrast against the building and the statue and the green dome? Nice composition.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 24 at 7:05 pm

        Hi Peter. Many thanks for the comments. Can you give me some advice as to how to go about doing that. I am basic in Lightroom and photoshop. Self thought. Look forward to hearing back from you.

        • Peter Brody
          Peter Brody on March 24 at 11:51 pm

          Try using the graduated filter inLightroom and drag it and drag it over the sky to the building. use the sliders for contrast, vibrance, and saturation. In addition go to the color panel and play with the different colors in the sky. Don’t over edit, though, as it turns wonky and weird.

        • Peter Brody
          Peter Brody on March 25 at 12:21 am

          I downloaded your picture and tried some things on my computer. Go to tour develop panel. Go to radial filter. Cove the entire sky with the filter. Next move the sliders. Move theTemp to -18, Exposure to .49, Contrast =100, Highlights to -100, and Clarity to -30. Go back to basic panel and move the white point to + 39. I tried to include it here, but it didn’t upload. Good luck and have fun.

          • Peter Brody
            Peter Brody on March 25 at 3:30 am

            See how the sky looks more dramatic. The blue sky is more apparent. You might try lightening up the clouds on the right a bit. Try tweaking the exposure to brighten and / or shadows. Good job !!

          • Denis O'Byrne
            Denis O'Byrne on March 25 at 3:54 am

            Yes indeed Peter. Many thanks again.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 22 at 8:44 pm

      Just awesome Belinda…..i love the graceful movement of the water that you have captured. And the colours are magnificent! Beautiful shot…well done!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 22 at 10:59 pm

      Hi Belinda. Magic. Great shot.

    • Janice Chen
      Janice Chen on March 23 at 4:08 am

      Amazing shot Belinda, I love the movement of the water drops.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 23 at 9:42 am

      Stunning @disqus_0318UBWWd3:disqus – Not sure which of your passion project images I prefer, the “almost B/W” drop of this one? I do like the magenta centre and green top and bottom. Must be fun editing these drop shots. Brent

      • Belinda
        Belinda on March 23 at 9:52 am

        Thank you so much Brent, yes it a lot of fun and very addicting

    • Jim Albertson
      Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:28 pm

      Awesome abstract! Love the colors!

    • Julie Ng
      Julie Ng on March 23 at 8:08 pm

      I like photos of freezing water drops very much. Both your water drop photos posted here (your last one and this one) are awesome! Hope to see your next one soon. If you don’t mind, it would be great if you can show us some photos of your setup (like the strobe placement, the background, the color gel, etc.). Really curious and want to learn from you.

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on March 24 at 9:02 am

      This is truly magical. The choice of colors are so well blended together. I stare at the drops wondering about their impact when the hit the water. Mesmerizing!

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on March 25 at 10:22 pm

      absolutely fascinating Puts me in a meditative flow. Wow

    • Alex
      Alex on March 26 at 7:05 pm

      These photos just make me smile – cheers!

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 27 at 4:53 am

      Fascinating image! I really like the colours and the complex shapes formed by the water, and the focus is excellent. I think the image is well balanced.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on March 27 at 4:54 pm

      OMG this is incredible. Wowsers!!!

    • Chris
      Chris on March 29 at 5:00 pm

      Wow, agree, simply incredible! May I ask how you captured that?

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 22 at 10:58 pm

      Hi Keri. Like the angle on this one.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 23 at 9:44 am

      I like the low angle too on this image @keridown:disqus and that transmitted light coming through the wave-spray. I think what you need to do here is bring in the raw image into lightroom and bring out more detail in the shadows. Brent

    • Jim Albertson
      Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:27 pm

      I love the wave action and the surf foam you captured. Also the low angle. I would agree with Bren that Lightroom would allow you to bring more detail out of the shadows. If you are intimidated by lightroom as I first was, Brent’s friend Johny @ 3 colors has a great straight forward image processing workflow. I use it religiously now and love it. Brent, Johny did not pay me to say this!

    • Julie Ng
      Julie Ng on March 23 at 7:55 pm

      I love the wave action and the low angle too. If you can lighten up the shadow a bit and bring more details, I think it will be a very interesting shot. Look forward to seeing your edited version.

    • Alan Sharp
      Alan Sharp on March 26 at 12:34 pm

      I too love the wave action and low angle, absolutely stunning shot.

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on March 28 at 6:23 pm

        Thankyou Alan. Very encouraging.

    • Jeannie Elliott
      Jeannie Elliott on March 26 at 5:59 am

      Great photo of the gritty city. Not all life is flowers and marshmallows. Perhaps you might crop the top portion to draw focus to the graffiti and the human element.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 27 at 4:52 pm

      Hi @niliyovel:disqus can you tell us more about this image – what you wanted to show, settings etc? Brent

  146. Jim Albertson
    Jim Albertson on March 23 at 1:21 pm

    This image of “Grand Teton from Schwabacher Landing” in Grand Teton National Park is one of my favorite spots to take photos. This pic shot in 2014 really started me on my photography journey after a 30 year hiatus while life got in the way.It was shot with my first DSLR, a Nikon 820 point and shoot in automatic landscape mode using a tripod and time delay on the shutter. Settings were ISO 125, 6.8mm?, F/3.4, 1/800 sec. This is how it came out of the camera and I have done zero post processing on it. I was trying to capture the Majesty of Grand Teton while also capturing the serenity of this Snake River backwater beaver pond. I intentionally caught a little bit of shore line grass to add a little interest in the foreground to help create some depth. I also tried to use layering to add to the depth of the photo and used the two large evergreens to frame the mountains. I also used somewhat of the rule of thirds horizontally but not including too much sky and capturing more of the pond so as to anchor the image down by bottom waiting it. I have probably rambled on and written way to much here but this is the first time I have ever posted anything. I am 66 years old and not real tech savvy. My passion is Grand Teton, Yellowstone and Glacier national parks and the spectacular landscapes & wildlife that call these three parks their home. I am also partial to flowing water and waterfalls and wildlife almost anywhere including in my home state of Ohio.. I am looking forward to feedback from the group to help me along my photo https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/f72f71db29b20ddd20590c9148cbe01528fc38ab8cfc616acaf5a3fef68d6f83.jpg journey.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 23 at 6:55 pm

      Hi Jim. Welcome to the age group. You have given me hope with this shot. Magic.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 23 at 9:54 pm

      Great shot Jim….you have mastered the DoF ……wonderful reflections…..and no post processing….the weather looked crisp, and still and all the natural stars must have aligned for you! The only advice i have is the grass you have in the foreground. If you could clone that out, you would enhance them image even more! Well done….this is very impressive indeed 🙂

      • Jim Albertson
        Jim Albertson on March 24 at 12:46 am

        Thanks Rerro. I wondered about the grass. Torn between having something in the foreground to add depth versus it being a distraction.

        • Rerro Rocher
          Rerro Rocher on March 24 at 10:32 am

          You have already portrayed wonderful DoF Jim – you have the water, the reflection, the tress, then the mountains in the distance – so in this case the grass is not necessary, and a definite distraction, as my eye was immediately drawn to the grass. 🙂

          • Judy Ward
            Judy Ward on March 27 at 4:59 am

            Hi @disqus_sy7k92j4W1:disqus – I agree that you don’t need that grass element in the front because you already have a lot of interest in the foreground, middle and far distance. It might be an optical illusion, but is the horizon line straight? I looks slightly sloped down left to right. It’s definitely a lovely landscape shot.

    • john donnelly
      john donnelly on March 24 at 8:24 am

      I do like this image, I would not change a thing, great.

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on March 24 at 9:59 am

      Hi, Jim. I wouldn’t do anything with this shot. The composition and colors are perfect. The reflection is spot- on, too.
      Have you been to Chagrin Falls? One of my classmates from Vet School lived there. I remember visiting him while I was at Ohio State. Cute city.

      • Jim Albertson
        Jim Albertson on March 24 at 12:52 pm

        Peter thanks for the comments. I have not been to Chagrin Falls. I should probably go sometime. Even though I am a Purdue Boilermaker I am a native Ohioan. Go bucks!

        • Peter Brody
          Peter Brody on March 24 at 11:43 pm

          O-H-I-O I attended Ohio State from 1970 through 1978. Will be going back this fall for my 40th Vet School reunion.

          • Jim Albertson
            Jim Albertson on March 25 at 1:02 pm

            Peter, we are the same age. Where do you practice? Large animal or small or both?

          • Peter Brody
            Peter Brody on March 26 at 2:41 am

            Hi, Jim, After I graduated Vet School, I moved to New Jersey where my family was. I have been practicing small animal medicine here in the same town, New Providence, for the past 40 years. I am the co – owner of a 10 doctor practice. We are 25 miles west of Manhattan.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 25 at 2:24 am

      Beautiful shot! My photography teacher in high school drilled into my head about mentionable foreground, that is your grass at the bottom.

    • Jeannie Elliott
      Jeannie Elliott on March 26 at 5:55 am

      Beautiful shot! The only improvement would be if there were puffy clouds on this perfect day. Also agree that grass in foreground is a distraction.

    • Valerie Worthen
      Valerie Worthen on March 27 at 1:00 pm

      Also one of my favorite places. Great capture of the reflection.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 27 at 4:54 pm

      Stunning landscape @disqus_sy7k92j4W1:disqus – those colours just POP! Love the reflection and the way the greens blend into the blues and then the snow peaks in the background. Wow!!! One thing you could do is pull more info from the shadows, they look a little too dark for me. Love it. Brent

      • Jim Albertson
        Jim Albertson on March 28 at 12:02 am

        Thanks Brent. I will edit and re-post. Are we supposed to do one passion project pic submission per week or one per month?

  147. Point Reyes
    Point Reyes on March 23 at 2:23 pm

    OK – so I have “dramatic light in nature” but I’m including this one for several reasons:
    1) The light rays
    2) In was taken outside in a natural setting
    3) It is emotional dramatic

    So I hope that is ok.
    Taken in October – my daughter wanted me to do engagement shots and this is one of them that I took.
    As of the 2nd of this month, this couple is now married.

    Settings: Fuji X-Pro2, XF56 @ f11, 1/125 sec. ISO 1000
    Bummed about the excessive flare, this is one time where I think having the Fuji clear (and expensive) filter on the front of the lens was a mistake. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/fb8d5b7d2dcda1db2df34e0bdb8f0327dfa1def1376d394230b021a18c33e092.jpg

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 23 at 9:57 pm

      Nice shot….but i agree the flare is distracting in this case. Does the Fuji X-Pro-2 have a lens hood? when shooting into the sun like that, it is a good idea to use a lens hood.

      • Point Reyes
        Point Reyes on March 24 at 3:20 am

        Thank you. For this lens, the lens hood is always on it. However, I don’t understand how a lens hood would help when the Sun is in the shot. I think the next shot after this one was of them kissing and that helped to block more of the direct Sun hitting the lens and thus mitigated the flare.

    • john donnelly
      john donnelly on March 24 at 8:23 am

      Love this shot, I love the flare, adds to the private moment,
      almost like hiding in the shadows.

      • Point Reyes
        Point Reyes on March 26 at 8:12 am

        Thank you John. Your perspective must have been the thing I was subliminal thinking. :p When I added too much contrast, it did not “feel” correct to me almost as if the private moment seemed less private.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 27 at 4:56 pm

      Love this image – the mood is what makes it @point_reyes:disqus I don’t think the lens flare takes away from this shot I think it adds to the mood. Tell me, why did you shoot at f11? Brent

      • Point Reyes
        Point Reyes on March 28 at 3:58 am

        Thank you. I used f/11 to push out the sun rays across the frame. I switched to my 10-24 zoom after this shot to get that popular sun-star look. I was able to get the couple without distortion at 12mm but I still like the way the 56mm FOV looks.

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on March 25 at 4:18 am

      Great shot. Love the eyes and the reflections in them when the photo is enlarged. Good lighting, too.

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on March 25 at 10:14 pm

      I like the pose and the sharpness of the photo.

    • Janice Chen
      Janice Chen on March 26 at 6:36 pm

      Very nice shot, like black and white treatment.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 27 at 5:05 am

      Hi John – what I like best is that the angle allows the eyes to be seen without the glasses. The pose is natural. I also think B&W is a good choice for presenting faces with character.

    • Valerie Worthen
      Valerie Worthen on March 27 at 12:58 pm

      Great detail, really like this shot. I find people hard to capture.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 27 at 5:00 pm

      Bold portrait for sure – yes the B/W was a good choice here @disqus_FB2ImORM70:disqus and it’s tack sharp. I do like the way you cropped this too, with eyes and teeth in the top and bottom 3rds. Can you tell us more about this character and why you chose this light etc? Brent

      • john donnelly
        john donnelly on March 27 at 10:01 pm

        Hi Brent, Yes this is David my Granddaughters Husband,
        we had been invited to a BBQ on there property. ( which is
        in Queensland Australia ) .
        I took this shot on the spur of the moment, it felt right, we were just under
        an awning with the late after noon light coming from his left.
        Thanks John
        John

    • Chris
      Chris on March 29 at 4:56 pm

      Great shot. I struggle capturing people. This is great. Love and B&W.

  150. Jim Albertson
    Jim Albertson on March 24 at 12:55 pm

    Tack sharp, great detail. Great black & white. The temporary crop on the page showing from the nose up I actually like better than the full photo.

    • john donnelly
      john donnelly on March 25 at 8:06 am

      Thanks Jim,
      I also tried the same crop, I like them both .

    • Alan Sharp
      Alan Sharp on March 26 at 12:32 pm

      Wow that is fantastic. Love the building, and such a fantastic shot, you focus go straight to the circular glass on the building, well don

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 27 at 5:13 am

      Hi Lynne – I also love the detail in tree bark, the contrast of textures and colours. I also think a greater DOF would have worked better here. The image is a bit soft at the top of the crown and below the snow in the middle. Because my the eye is drawn to the lighter ‘face’, that spot to the right is like hair and I was looking for the textural detail there, too.

      • lynne F Murphy
        lynne F Murphy on March 27 at 5:52 am

        Thank you Judy. Appreciate the suggestion and comment

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 27 at 5:01 pm

      Yes I see the tree nymph too. It’s amazing what you can find when you just take the time to look at something. Well done. Brent

  154. Jeannie Elliott
    Jeannie Elliott on March 26 at 5:46 am

    I share your passion of trees…As in many of my own photos, this is a bit “busy” and doesn’t have a real focal point. Perhaps cropping down will bring out the face that you want to share:)

  155. Rerro Rocher
    Rerro Rocher on March 26 at 8:58 am

    The first month of Boot camp is coming to an end……it has been such a good experience so far, i have learnt so much and seen so many fabulous images. So much talent…..love the interactive forum….Loving being part of Boot camp!
    I have uploaded my last image of my ‘Fine Art’ passion series….this bouquet of flowers was the size of 50c coin, but looking at it through the macro lens, there was incredible detail within the folds of the petals….needless to say, i wanted to magnify and share this intricate detail. This is the result of the pink geranium.
    See y’all in the next challenge!!
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a9f24522f756f6b7db8212416e548d1943b462157c647ea79b52619f75f1612f.jpg

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 26 at 6:29 pm

      Hi Rerro. Fully agree with your comments above. The month flew by. One minute I think it is a bit dark, the next ok. I suppose that is the mystic you have created here.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 27 at 5:21 am

      Hi Rerro – your style does shine through in this ‘fine art’ series. There is good contrast between bright and darker sections of the cluster of blossoms and the muted effect does add a touch of mystery, without detracting from the details of the petals. I also think the image is well balanced…perhaps cropped a bit tight at the top, and to a lesser extent the bottom? I do like it very much.

    • Leila Gonzalez Sullivan
      Leila Gonzalez Sullivan on March 27 at 10:55 am

      Hi, Rerro: I’m a great fan of purply colors so this does it for me. Actually, what I like best is that the lowest flower seems to jump out of the picture, a real 3D effect.

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 27 at 11:13 am

        Thanks Leila, it is so amazing to think that this was a tiny little flower, brought to life by the macro lens!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 27 at 5:03 pm

      Wow, thanks for those kind words about BootCamp, and I think you totally deserve to be our very first featured artist. Well done @rerrorocher:disqus and just love your fine art images. Think we should jump on skype sometime so that you can show me how you edit these. Brent

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 27 at 5:18 pm

        Thanks so much Brent. This is a great way to learn. Looking at each image in this forum with a critical eye makes you think about how you compose and structure your own images.
        Sure thing…would love to show you how i edit these! 🙂

    • Phyllis Kennedy
      Phyllis Kennedy on March 28 at 4:56 am

      I absolutely love this photo! Would you please tell me what micro lens you used?

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 28 at 7:21 am

        Thanks so much Phyllis, I am using the TAMRON SP 90mm F/2.8 Macro 1:1 Di VC USD lens.

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on March 28 at 7:14 am

      So much like a period painting – lovely. I like the way some of the flowers soften in the back and the sharp texture on those in the foreground. Just a question – what is the small white hue behind the middle flower on the right.

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on March 28 at 7:28 am

        Thanks Lynne, I thought it might be that the bottom of the petals were a lighter shade than the top.

  156. Alan Sharp
    Alan Sharp on March 26 at 12:42 pm

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/71dd57587dcb366da33aa2d104ab4c9142cc74106d8f74a5f713b4042a494970.jpg
    Another one in addition to the Mustang I previously uploaded. As my passion project is undoubtedly Hot Rods, Classic and custom cars. This is definitely my favorite out of the two shots. Shot on a Canon 80D with a 10 – 22mm wide angle and focal length of 22mm, f/5.6, 1/200 sec, ISO 100. Although due to my passion project it can be hard to find a car to shoot, I have had to work harder on my shots when they are available. In this first month I have learnt so much and cannot wait for next months challenge.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on March 26 at 6:27 pm

        Hi Rerro. The detail in these old vintage cars is great, even down to the engine. I think your shot gives a very good perspective of this detail.

      • Alex
        Alex on March 26 at 6:58 pm

        I like this one – great perspective and the editing hits the spot too. Looks good in black and white.

      • Alan Sharp
        Alan Sharp on March 27 at 10:48 am

        @rerrorocher:disqus thanks for the tip. This shot is absolutely awesome, will definitely give it a go next time. Love the B & W conversion too, I think this enhances this shot greatly

      • Chris
        Chris on March 29 at 4:53 pm

        Wow, Love this. Normally I default to color but this makes me think I should try B&W more. I can never get a good car shot without getting a reflection or a person or something.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 26 at 6:24 pm

      Hi Alan. Like this. Great shot and the setting is great.

      • Alan Sharp
        Alan Sharp on March 27 at 11:08 am

        Thanks, I love this one too

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 27 at 5:45 pm

      Yes I prefer this one too – cleaner background and I like the way you are using “short lighting” for this vehicle, shooting more on the shadow side of the car. Well done. Brent

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 29 at 2:42 pm

      Alan, I also like the way the light is reflected off the car and the focus is very sharp. I like the angle you achieved by crouching down low.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 26 at 6:41 pm

      What an outstanding shot….absolutely beautiful. I love the golden tones, and the DoF works really well. The only thing the feels odd is the tree on the right. My personal preference would be, to have the tree on the left side of the image.Have you tried flipping it to position the tree on the LHS, so the eye moves from right to left. Other than that this shot is a winner! Well done Janice!

      • Janice Chen
        Janice Chen on March 26 at 7:16 pm

        Thank you so much Rerro. Actually I was https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/cd54d8a9df7f1127462ca2e90cfff96f729bab8e018008f0b2b8aa5f2dd81e4b.jpg shifting from left to right while out there shooting. Before the sunrise, I positioned the tree on the left side. When the Sun hit the white snow mountain tops, I changed to position the tree to the right side as I like to show more of the golden tones of the mountain. Here is the shot before the sunrise, tree on the left side.

        • Rerro Rocher
          Rerro Rocher on March 26 at 7:39 pm

          Just as beautiful….and it feels more balanced indeed. The blue tones give it a completely different feel. I love both images, in their own unique ways. 🙂

          • Janice Chen
            Janice Chen on March 26 at 8:07 pm

            Thanks Rerro 🙂

        • Belinda
          Belinda on March 26 at 8:10 pm

          What a beautiful capture Janice, very peaceful. I prefer this version as the composition is stronger. The tones and lighting are spot on, love the snow capped mountains in the background and the tree leaning into the frame – whereas in your previous image the tree is leaning out to the right making your eyes want to go out of the frame.

          • Janice Chen
            Janice Chen on March 26 at 8:25 pm

            Thanks Belinda 🙂

        • Denis O'Byrne
          Denis O'Byrne on March 26 at 11:44 pm

          Hi Janice. I like both shots for different reasons. My preference would be the second one. A nice tranquil feel about it,

          • Janice Chen
            Janice Chen on March 27 at 4:17 am

            Thanks Denis

        • john donnelly
          john donnelly on March 27 at 4:40 pm

          the second version has my vote, great composition

          • Janice Chen
            Janice Chen on March 27 at 7:57 pm

            Thanks John

          • Janice Chen
            Janice Chen on March 27 at 7:59 pm

            Thanks Brent

        • Point Reyes
          Point Reyes on March 29 at 1:13 pm

          Interestingly, I just watched a video about the way a person looks into or away from the center of the picture changes the perspective. I see that with this tree. With the tree on the left leaning to the right seems like it is in peace to its surroundings. With the tree on the right leaning to the left almost feels like the tree wants to move on to something else.

          Kudos for taking the time to try different angles and lighting.

          • Janice Chen
            Janice Chen on March 29 at 7:30 pm

            Thanks Point. Very Interesting discussions about the position of the tree, the directions the tree leaning to and the compositions. Thank you all.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on March 27 at 4:57 pm

      That’s a beautiful shot. So peaceful.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 27 at 5:48 pm

      Love the Wanaka tree, and you’ve created an amazing shot – do different to all the other images I’ve seen. Like how you’ve chosen a very long shutter speed of 68seconds to smooth that water and wisp the clouds. I like how the tree is almost touching the water on the right, kind of leaning over and just dipping a finger in. Well done. Brent

      • Janice Chen
        Janice Chen on March 27 at 8:09 pm

        Thanks Brent, love your comments. It is a great way learning from your comments and suggestion on all the photos.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 29 at 2:10 am

      I really like this. A beautiful image. I haven’t make many long exposures as yet, this image makes me want to try it.

    • REVillanueva
      REVillanueva on May 11 at 6:35 pm

      Amazingly beautiful image, Janice. It’s really a wonderful scene, nicely captured. This is the kind of scene I would love to see after a hard day at work. Inspirational.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on August 11 at 2:00 pm

      Love them both ,but the tree on the LH side was a good move ,great shot.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 27 at 5:52 pm

      Great colours @valerieworthen:disqus and yes it is very inviting. One thing I’m wanting to see here is more of that bridge (or dam wall) going off to the right. I think if you moved more to your left and got down a little lower we might be able to see the path and bridge, framed by the leaves – or maybe there was something in the way? Brent

      • Valerie Worthen
        Valerie Worthen on March 28 at 2:01 am

        Thanks Brent for the suggestions. I struggle with composition while in the field something I need to continue to work on.

  159. Leila Gonzalez Sullivan
    Leila Gonzalez Sullivan on March 27 at 10:47 am

    I’m still working on macro photography as my passion project. In fact I just bought a macro lens and am learning how to focus it. In the meantime, Brent asked us to post the best passion photo, so here is mine. It’s not a flower; rather, https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/cd341d68268aa5e9a3ac51eac59e87311cc3cc30623c652aaf317aa299ba344d.jpg it is a closeup of a stuffed jaguar in a museum in Costa Rica. It feels right, with focus on that one staring eye. Taken with my Nikon D5300; 1/60; f/4.8; 50 mm; ISO 900.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 27 at 6:09 pm

      This is a good example of hard light, next months challenge. Keep it and post again. Brent

  160. Jim Albertson
    Jim Albertson on March 28 at 12:00 am

    You can buy it outright for I think about $149. However, you can also do monthly subscription for about $10/month and that gets you any future updates when they come out. It also gives you access to Elements & Photoshop. Check with Brent. Sometimes he can get you a deal fro the first year fro $8.99/m.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on March 28 at 6:23 pm

      Cheers for the helpful info Jim

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on March 28 at 7:35 am

      Nice shot Lynne, i too am a lover of trees….any reason you shot as a portrait and not landscape, or perhaps you cropped it this way? My thought is it needs breathing space. also, in my opinion i think this would be a more powerful image if you converted it to B&W.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 29 at 2:08 am

      I like the image, I love trees. I do agree with Rerro about portrait vs. landscape for the orientation. I would like to see what the tree is leaning towards or away from. I would also convert it to B&W as it is almost there.

      • lynne F Murphy
        lynne F Murphy on March 29 at 3:30 am

        Yes I see what you are saying. I had purposely done it in portrait. It had nothing else around it. It is leaning from a wind from the north that we get here in the maritime provinces of Canada. i will check to see if I have one that shows the landscapre and upload here. Thanks

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 29 at 4:15 am

      Hi Lynne. I like the concept of the shot, and would agree with the comments already given. Could the sky be a little more dramatic?.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 29 at 6:14 am

      Love your trees @lynnefmurphy:disqus – this one looks really wind-blown leaning like that. One thing to do is give it more space at the bottom, think you cropped a little too close. Brent

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 29 at 4:09 am

      Hi Craig. Nice shot. Good sense of the vastness with the road leading to nowhere.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on March 29 at 6:13 am

      Stunning @disqus_xQQMdbpif2:disqus love those leading lines, and colours in the sky. Only thing I’d do is clone out that branch on right. Brent

      • Craig
        Craig on March 29 at 6:17 am

        thanks. To be frank I never really saw that 🙂

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 29 at 9:08 am

      Looks like the way to an awesome adventure. I really like the clouds.

    • Chris
      Chris on March 29 at 4:51 pm

      What a stunning picture. It’s warm and inviting with beautiful shades of gold.

    • Annette Halloran
      Annette Halloran on April 1 at 11:12 am

      Wow I love the mood this picture gives and it is more like a painting than a photograph. It makes me want to walk into the picture and take the adventure. I would remove the branch on right, otherwise it is perfect. Well done.

    • REVillanueva
      REVillanueva on May 11 at 6:22 pm

      Beautiful shot, Craig. I imagine maybe in another time of year the sun would set a bit more to the left that the road would direct the eyes to the setting sun. I wonder if there would even be such a time. Nice mood and color, very good capture.

      Btw, have you tried erasing the tree branch in the upper thirds of the right edge of the photo ?

      Have a nice day.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 29 at 4:19 am

      Hi Lynne. Again I like the concept here. To me the sky is bland and needs to be more dramatic.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on March 29 at 9:07 am

      I like the B&W and the landscape. I agree with Denis that the sky could be a bit more dramatic. On the way to a great image. 😉

      • lynne F Murphy
        lynne F Murphy on March 29 at 9:19 pm

        Thanks Sara. Yes on the way!

    • Chris
      Chris on March 29 at 4:49 pm

      I love this. I really enjoy a bare tree. So bleak and moody. I take pics like this all the time.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on May 13 at 12:04 pm

      I prefer the black and white version – It’s simpler with less distractions. Brent

  164. Point Reyes
    Point Reyes on March 29 at 7:30 am

    And one more but with two for a story. 🙂

    I was getting used to using my “new” used Nikon camera and from a distance I seen this:
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/97c5576791430275fc42a8e1ae17d14a52ee16059ff471e29cf00b49dc673a26.jpg
    Taken with D300s, Nikkor 80-400 AF-D @400mm, f/5.6, 1/8000 sec., ISO 400

    I had to tone down the reds because my wife said that it looked too much like a fire which were really bad in the Fall last year when I took this picture.

    Just a few weeks before that foggy morning shot the following was taken:
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/d684a9d4a669b25098f73e095872e4ac1da2356b90dcdc8119cbc184c4d9b57a.jpg
    Taken with X-Pro2, XF55-200 @ 200mm, f/5.6, 1/250 sec., ISO 400 (@ 6:54 AM in August, by this time of the month the light from the Sun was past golden hour)
    A week before this picture, I got shots of the solar eclipse and thankfully no smoke in the air at that time.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on March 29 at 3:04 pm

      The different tones of the same colour works so well here. I particularly like the layers and the way the rays of light come through the fog (or dust?) in the trees. Beautiful image.

      • Point Reyes
        Point Reyes on March 30 at 1:15 pm

        Thank you. It is fog and yes between the light rays and the layers is what drawn me to the scene. I seem to go out looking for more to photograph when I have fog – something about the way the light plays with fog inspires me. 🙂

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on May 13 at 12:03 pm

      Both of your images are standing @point_reyes:disqus – and yes that first one does look like a bushfire, but I really do like it even more. There is something very special and mystical with that first image. Brilliant! Brent

  165. Judy Ward
    Judy Ward on March 29 at 2:58 pm

    Here is another example of my abstract macro photography. I really enjoy experimenting with longer shutter speeds. The subject was a hand blown glass starfish and I moved the camera along the length of one leg to stretch out and blur the edges of the colours. I then adjusted the individual colours in Lightroom to give the image more depth I expect this is not an image that will appeal to everyone, but I am looking forward to reading your thoughts and ideas. Settings: 0.3 sec, f22,ISO100 using 100mm macro lens.
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/d85b2720a2ba0d98f2027465f2b17ca0f283dd18fa0dd2ff4066f6bd0c139545.jpg .

  166. Judy Ward
    Judy Ward on March 29 at 4:16 pm

    This is another example of my abstract macro photography. I enjoy experimenting with longer shutter speeds and intentional blur. The source subject was a glass starfish. I moved the cameral along one of the legs to stretch and blur the colours. Various adjustments were done in Lightroom to bring out the colours. I’m looking forward to your comments. Settings: 0.3 sec, 100mm, f22, ISO 100 using 100mm macro lens.
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/d85b2720a2ba0d98f2027465f2b17ca0f283dd18fa0dd2ff4066f6bd0c139545.jpg

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on March 29 at 6:29 pm

      Hi Judy. I am not really into Abstract. That said, many thanks for sharing your technique. I can learns a lot from this.

    • Janice Chen
      Janice Chen on March 29 at 8:41 pm

      I like the colours, especially the bottom half, like a painting. I also like to shake the camera to capture the impressionism kind of photos. 🙂

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on April 2 at 3:41 am

        Thanks, Janice. Secretly, I want to be a world class painter, but I don’t want to deal with the mess of paint, so I’ll see if I can create art from my photos. I need to put in several hours more practice to truly control the output. It tends to be random with my current level of skill.

    • Point Reyes
      Point Reyes on March 30 at 1:22 pm

      Soothing to me. The flow of the colors with the blending into the neighboring colors are a pleasure to look at. Very well done.

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on April 2 at 3:42 am

        Thank you, Point. Of all my deliberately blurred photos, this has some of the best blending results, and that is one think I was very pleased with.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on March 30 at 6:25 pm

      I see liquid light in this image. I think it would look amazing printed BIG onto glass or metal. So creative, I love this Judy.

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on April 2 at 3:47 am

        I didn’t know you could print on glass! I will have to look into that. When using this technique, I tend to see every spec of dust that might be on my sensor. I’ve cleaned up a few spots in Lightroom, but will have to polish up some Photoshop skills to truly blend all those imperfections away. Then I will be ready to print big. Thanks for your comments.

      • Alex
        Alex on April 4 at 3:53 pm

        I agree entirely. Colours are great too. Nice one!

    • Annette Halloran
      Annette Halloran on April 1 at 10:17 am

      HI Judy, I am really impressed with this image. The blending and flow of colours is very beautiful and inspires me to experiment. Well done.

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on April 2 at 3:49 am

        Hi Annette – thanks for your comments. I’m glad you have been inspired! There are many contributions in Boot Camp that have also motivated me to practice different techniques with my photography.

    • Chris
      Chris on April 13 at 4:08 pm

      Wow, that’s a beautiful image. I agree it would be great printed on metal.

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on April 14 at 10:48 am

        Thank you! I have never printed on metal – got to look into that.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on May 13 at 12:00 pm

      Oooh – I really do like this image @disqus_W81kCdSr3n:disqus – very creative and artistic! One thing to keep in mind when creating these types of images is to find that single point of interest in all the colours and then somehow to enhance that, so that the viewers eye settles on one thing. Brent

      • Judy Ward
        Judy Ward on May 14 at 10:44 am

        I really appreciate your comments, Brent. This style is not your run-of-the-mill photography, but I love it. My goal is to get a portfolio together and then get to work marketing it.

  168. Annette Halloran
    Annette Halloran on April 1 at 12:39 pm

    This is my first real attempt at capturing movement and power of water at the seaside and posting a picture so I hope I have done it correctly. I took this picture just after sunrise when it was too cloudy for much colour so I tried to capture the mood of the water and early morning. Taken at 1/3 sec, f/11, ISO 200 35mm I used Lr to bring out colours a bit more.
    Looking forward to your comments and very pleased to be part of Boot Camp.

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on April 2 at 4:05 am

      Annette I think you have used the shutter speed and depth of field very well to capture the movement of the water through all areas of this image; I really like that. It looks a little dark, but that might have been part of the mood you were capturing. Brighter whites from the waves would help the image pop, in my opinion. Also, looking at the composition, the activity at the top of the frame looks interesting & I would like to see more of that, too.

  169. Alex
    Alex on April 3 at 4:46 am

    Here is another drone photo and another perfect day in paradise. I visited this area over the Easter break, suitably far removed from the city. The aerial view reveals nature’s elegant sculpting, her tools are water and wind. I like the leading lines in this one too – the waves and the beach itself, terminating at a place called Waipu Cove. Cheers

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/964c462935d3e38e68918bc744b7c680f5308f1da39cef2a602e183884dc0807.jpg

    • Judy Ward
      Judy Ward on April 4 at 12:00 pm

      I also like the leading lines and the swirl in the middle; a very pleasing photo. What a beautiful spot.

      • Alex
        Alex on April 4 at 3:14 pm

        Thanks Judy – it’s a cracker of a place alright 🙂

    • Janice Chen
      Janice Chen on April 6 at 8:20 pm

      I really like the leading lines, like the colours and patterns in the water, beautiful shot. I feel the horizon is dipping to the right a little bit.

      • Alex
        Alex on April 7 at 7:55 am

        thanks Janice, you might be right about the tilt – it’s a bit tricky to get this one right

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on April 8 at 4:53 pm

      Alex. Very nice shot. Is it safe to go in the Water?

      • Alex
        Alex on April 8 at 5:34 pm

        Thanks Denis. NZ surf beaches can be dangerous and best treated with caution. It’s safe at the far end where it’s patrolled, no one has ever died at a patrolled beach Cheers

        • Denis O'Byrne
          Denis O'Byrne on April 8 at 6:01 pm

          Alex.Good to hear. I was thinking of the Bull Shark. From your the view you give – River entrance off too he right and inlet straight ahead – looks like prime habitat for this kind go wild life.

          • Alex
            Alex on April 9 at 6:37 am

            Yep, plenty of sharks around but the bigger problem in NZ is drownings, people get caught in rips which drag them out to sea – they get exhausted and drown.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on April 9 at 5:30 am

      What a beautiful shot! Looks lovely and warm.

      • Alex
        Alex on April 9 at 6:34 am

        Thanks Sara – it was as warm as it looks

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on April 17 at 10:10 am

      Excellent capture Alex, I really like how those waves are drawing my eye into that inlet. The only thing I think you can do to improve this image is the sky. Looks like you have a polarising filter on the drone which is giving us that blue blob – Which you can easily fix in lightroom. Brent

      • Alex
        Alex on April 17 at 8:03 pm

        Thanks Brent, and yes it’s the dreaded blob alright, and yes I used a polarising filter. This camera seems very susceptible to the blob – I’ll have another look at it later. Cheers

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on April 18 at 11:45 am

          Johny created a video a while back on YouTube – how to remove the dreaded blue blob, or something like that. Brent

  170. Annette Halloran
    Annette Halloran on April 3 at 12:16 pm

    Thank you Judy, Your comments are very helpful and I will take them on board for next time. I agree with what you say. Many thanks.

  171. Annette Halloran
    Annette Halloran on April 3 at 12:22 pm

    Hi Alex Great picture, I especially like the curves in the centre of the picture, that is a an interesting aspect of the lines drawing the eye into the centre rather than to the horizon. I guess you could only do that with a drone or a high elevation. Well done!

    • Alex
      Alex on April 6 at 3:58 am

      Thanks Annette, yes the drone gives a fantastic perspective, cheers

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on April 8 at 4:59 pm

      Annette. Nice shots. By the way if you click the reply under the comments or photos you are looking at, then your reply stays in the same tread and does not start a new feed as it were.

      • Annette Halloran
        Annette Halloran on April 10 at 2:02 pm

        Thanks Denis, yes I have worked that out now. Thank you.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on April 8 at 6:04 pm

      Keri. Good capture. I have become so intense on the Hard/Soft light project I had forgotten about the overall Passion Project. Will have to go back out there.

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on April 9 at 4:43 pm

        Thanks Dennis. It’s good to back to that’s for sure.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on April 9 at 5:28 am

      Great capture! I really like the colors.

    • Annette Halloran
      Annette Halloran on April 10 at 2:05 pm

      Hello Kerri, yes I think it does nicely. Love the soft colours that blend beautifully. Well done.

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on April 10 at 4:46 pm

        Thanks Annette. Appreciate the comment.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on April 17 at 10:12 am

      Another excellent capture Keri, love the way that bee is drawn into the flower – reminds me of Star Wars when the space craft come back to the mothership. Brent

  174. Dianne McIlwain
    Dianne McIlwain on April 12 at 12:50 pm

    Hi, a late entrant my current passion project is images with water. I have had a recent holiday where I was able to spend time exploring this project. I’m looking forward to being involved with this group and hope I can improve my skills and confidence. This photo was taken this morning and I wanted to use slow shutter speed to blur the water. My settings were F16, ISO 100, and 1/4sec.
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a518912cfd8568ff755bfe29592c32478dd8921d59a8d44a45e57c484264f450.jpg

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on April 13 at 1:07 am

      A soothing image. Nicely done.

      • Dianne McIlwain
        Dianne McIlwain on April 14 at 5:41 am

        Thanks Sara for you comment.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on April 13 at 2:52 am

      Dianne. Welcome to the club of Boot Camp. Like this shot. Very easy on the eye.

      • Dianne McIlwain
        Dianne McIlwain on April 14 at 5:39 am

        Thanks Denis for your welcome to Bootcamp. I sure it will be a great group to belong to. It wasn’t the best day for a sunrise but I felt having the blurred waves added some interest.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on May 13 at 11:58 am

      Standing capture Dianne – Love the drama in this image you’ve created here. My eye goes up to the sun and that island and then I start to notice the blurring waves in the foreground. Beautiful! Brent

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on April 13 at 1:06 am

      Beautiful. I look forward to the golden hour shots! They look to be spectacular.

      • Alex
        Alex on April 14 at 3:05 pm

        Thanks Sara, the golden hour will be great alright, but just rain and wind at the moment. Maybe next week.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on April 13 at 2:53 am

      Alex. Nice perspective in this shot. Look forward to seeing it in softer light..

      • Alex
        Alex on April 14 at 3:04 pm

        Thanks Denis, I’m looking forward to getting out there again but had lots of rain and wind recently,

    • Chris
      Chris on April 13 at 4:31 pm

      Hi Alex, what a beautiful shot. Where is this? How did you shoot it? It give me a sense of calm and peacefulness.

      • Alex
        Alex on April 14 at 3:03 pm

        Thanks Chris, it’s a great spot alright, very photogenic. It’s Karekare beach, west Auckland, NZ, a wild place on the doorstep of the city. I shot this with a drone.

    • Terri Carr
      Terri Carr on May 13 at 3:24 am

      Would love to see this in the golden hour.. So beautiful.. the view goes on for miles and leading lines are of the cliffs and river lead you right to the end and out of the photo.. Well done 😉

      • Alex
        Alex on May 14 at 4:37 am

        Thanks Terri… I’ve since posted a golden hour of this 🙂

        • Terri Carr
          Terri Carr on May 14 at 4:51 am

          I found the post… Much better and I really love the tone and feeling it has.. Its really a great improvement. I love it!

          • Alex
            Alex on May 14 at 5:17 am

            Thanks!

  176. Rodney
    Rodney on April 16 at 9:42 pm

    Here is another of my insect photos for this month. This was a fly I noticed on the roof of my daughters car, and it helpfully seemed to want to linger a while. However not the easiest of places to get close too. Not tripod friendly, but there was the car roof to rest on provided I didn’t move too much or quickly to startle the fly. Without a long eye, i couldn’t reach to use the viewfinder so the rear LCD live view was it. This was a 75% crop of the original image and LR was used to improve the general brightness from what was an overcast day. The great colours were in the original, although I didn’t notice them in the field.
    Settings: 1/100s, @f/16, ISO800 using lens Olympus M. 60mm f/2.8 macro

  177. Rodney
    Rodney on April 16 at 9:43 pm

    Here is another of my insect photos for this month. This was a fly I noticed on the roof of my daughters car, and it helpfully seemed to want to linger a while. However not the easiest of places to get close too. Not tripod friendly, but there was the car roof to rest on provided I didn’t move too much or quickly to startle the fly. Without a long eye, i couldn’t reach to use the viewfinder so the rear LCD live view was it. This was a 75% crop of the original image and LR was used to improve the general brightness from what was an overcast day. The great colours were in the original, although I didn’t notice them in the field.
    Settings: 1/100s, @f/16, ISO800 using lens Olympus M. 60mm f/2.8 macro
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/cfe020c208cefe950111601489ddc97110bce82fc2c08bbbe3e93fe91ba6aaec.jpg

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on April 17 at 7:37 am

      wowsers. That’s great.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on April 17 at 10:15 am

      Wow what an amazing image Rodney. Never knew that I fly to look so colourful – you have done well capturing this in so much detail. Brent

    • Alex
      Alex on April 19 at 4:53 am

      Great detail and colours. And what a weird looking creature it is, when you see it up close.

      • Rodney
        Rodney on April 25 at 12:16 am

        Yes. The “zipper” down the middle of the head is what you could call weird.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on April 22 at 5:13 pm

      Hi Rodney. This is a great shot. Love the colours and detail. Well done man.

    • Chris
      Chris on April 24 at 4:30 pm

      Wow, flies are so annoying yet you made this one beautiful!

      • Rodney
        Rodney on April 25 at 12:14 am

        Thanks. Many flies I have seen close up do have some slight colour (not just black), but I hadn’t seen any as bright as this one. I will keep looking. 😉

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on April 25 at 5:46 pm

      Hi Rodney, this is such a great image. the colors and the shadow are just amazing!

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on May 7 at 5:53 pm

      Rodney this is just fabulous. Who would have thought there was so much to see on a fly. Really cool.

  179. Sara O'Brien
    Sara O'Brien on April 21 at 11:14 am

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/6969c85671740efe62832b2d2681c4a2fa91536fbf82d01bd871fcd7787d8f1c.jpg

    Here is a shot I took on my way home this afternoon. I converted it to B&W because there really wasn’t much color in the photo. After this weekend spring will have hit Minnesota and things might start turning green. ISO 100 f/6.3 1/640 70 mm. Nikon D60. I am trying not to center my subject so to avoid the road on the left I moved the tree towards that side.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on April 22 at 5:23 pm

      Hi Sara. You certainly caught the bleakness of the last days of Winter trying to hang on. Spring has hit here in Ireland and things are beginning to turn. The sun was shining for the last 3 days, temps were up, and people had a smile on their faces. Spent it in the garden, first grass cuts of the season, starting to prepare beds for summer planting. They have been a nice few days. I hope Spring hits in your neck of the woods in the coming days and would love to see the above shot then for comparison.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on May 13 at 11:55 am

      This is a really cool non-tone/artistic image. I do you you like the way you have moved your main point of interest off to the left, and the way it reflects in the water. This image might also be good as a panorama crop – removing some of that sky. Brent

    • Terri Carr
      Terri Carr on May 18 at 12:47 am

      My eye is drawn to the left to the single tree.. I love black and white and the way you can see the reflection off the water.. IMO I would remove the trees on the right if I were doing it and like Brent said, crop the sky out more at the top. Good job keep it up!

    • Rodney
      Rodney on April 24 at 7:37 pm

      Chris, great clear photo of the bee ( I know from experience they don’t generally stay still for photographers or anything). I like the blue flowers that complement the colour of the bee along with the nicely blurred background.

      • Chris
        Chris on April 25 at 1:22 pm

        Thank you @@disqus_QehLPdlEcl:disqus, I spend a lot of time stalking bees, sometimes they are so busy they just ignore me.

    • Janice Chen
      Janice Chen on April 25 at 11:49 am

      Great shot Chris. The blue flowers make the perfect background.

      • Chris
        Chris on April 25 at 1:21 pm

        Thank you @@disqus_0xljvyhrLA:disqus, I like them too.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on April 25 at 5:20 pm

      Hi Chris. Maybe one day I will achieve something like this. Magic.

      • Chris
        Chris on May 7 at 6:40 pm

        Thank you @denisobyrne:disqus I have seen your pictures, you take beautiful shots.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on May 7 at 5:52 pm

      This is really beautiful Chris. I love the colours of the flowers and how the bee is captured.

    • Brenda Potts
      Brenda Potts on May 12 at 3:12 am

      Love it! What a great shot… love the angle of the flower through the frame, and the nice capture of the bee. Have you tried brightening the bee just a little in post-processing to make him pop a bit more?

      • Chris
        Chris on May 15 at 1:26 pm

        Thank you @disqus_jQhbwBCFPu:disqus. I just brightened the bee a little, will repost.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on May 12 at 6:10 am

      Love it! The angle is great, the blue spectacular. I find it hard sometimes to capture bees, as soon as I seem to notice them, they fly away. 😉

      • Chris
        Chris on May 15 at 1:27 pm

        Thank you @disqus_cdh6bhNTbb:disqus. I tend to look for bees that are busy and not paying attention to me, then I wait and stalk!

    • Terri Carr
      Terri Carr on May 13 at 1:07 am

      I have admired people who can get that close to a bee and not run in terror lol… I love this, especially the angle of the flower and the sharpness of the features of the bee. So detailed. Nice depth of field too 😉

      • Chris
        Chris on May 15 at 1:28 pm

        Thank you @disqus_imjBJuoPfH:disqus When I was a little kid my father told me if I didn’t bother a bee, it wouldn’t bother me. The one time I shooed one away I got stung. Since then, I say hello to them and let them go about their business. I also try to be patient and just watch them too. Wasps I stay clear of!

        • Terri Carr
          Terri Carr on May 16 at 12:54 am

          Thanks for explaining that.. I had a couple of bad experiences with wasps especially and ever since then I steer clear of anything that remotely looks like them .. I think I will stick with anything that crawls on the ground and that does’nt buzz lol

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on May 13 at 11:53 am

      Excellent capture here Chris. You nailed the focus on your bee. Something I would try it with this image is to lighten it a little bit – Or at least increase the whites or the shadows of the bee so that it pops even more. Well done! Brent

    • Chris
      Chris on April 25 at 4:12 pm

      Wow, this is very cool. I love the colors in the dirt. Like a rusty sun, which makes no sense actually. Really pretty though.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on April 25 at 5:19 pm

      Hi Janice. I would like to visit this part of the world. May be one day!!!. Have watched a lot of documentaries on Yellowstone. Like this shot. Well captured. However the trees at the Botton are a littles distracting for me.

      • Janice Chen
        Janice Chen on April 26 at 6:32 pm

        Thanks Denis. I tried to crop/clone out the trees in one of the photos, but the effect is not good. Should have tried to get the trees out of the way while shooting.

        • Denis O'Byrne
          Denis O'Byrne on April 26 at 8:54 pm

          Janice. No worries. Just a thought. Still a great shot.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on April 25 at 5:38 pm

      Hi Janice, great shot! I love the colors in those radiating lines of mud. Could you tell us what your settings were for this image?

      • Janice Chen
        Janice Chen on April 26 at 6:02 pm

        Thanks Kerrie. The settings are F11,15s, ISO100, 28mm and 10-stop ND filter.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on May 7 at 5:56 pm

      Hi Janice. Love the colours. Coming from NZ I am a bit partial to thermals and hot springs.

    • REVillanueva
      REVillanueva on May 11 at 5:19 pm

      Hi Janice,

      Wow ! The steam lead me to the packets of clouds above. I would love to visit the place someday.

      Have you tried erasing the treetops in the foreground and see how the photo would look like?

      Have a nice day.

    • Brenda Potts
      Brenda Potts on May 12 at 3:07 am

      Beautiful… love the rich colors. Great idea using the ND filter!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on May 13 at 11:50 am

      Wow Janice, this image is stunning. I like the way you’ve used 10 stop ND filterTo give some cloud movement, and steam movement to you this image. Love the warm tones in the foreground and the cooler tones in the background. Something to remember is to make sure your horizon is level. Brent

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on May 20 at 11:19 pm

      Love the colors and the motion of the steam, wonderful image.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on April 30 at 6:11 pm

      Hi Leila. Nice crisp shot. Like the water drops on the branches.

    • REVillanueva
      REVillanueva on May 11 at 5:08 pm

      Hi Leila,

      Nice shot and beautiful bokeh. The droplets of water were perfect. If I am not mistaken this is a papaya tree. I never thought such a simple plant could turn out to be an interesting subject. I guess I need to stretch my imagination a little bit more.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on May 12 at 6:08 am

      Vary nice! The colors are wonderful.

    • Terri Carr
      Terri Carr on May 18 at 12:42 am

      Nice bokeh and dof. Love the water drops and the fresh feeling it gives like right after a rain.. Green is so soothing and calming.. 😉

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on May 2 at 4:34 am

      Alex. I like this one which I think as better than your first one. The definition is better as is the sky. A lot more feel to it.

      • Alex
        Alex on May 2 at 4:57 am

        Yes, thanks Denis, agree. Amazing what a difference good light makes. It has some texture. Cheers

  184. Alex
    Alex on May 6 at 9:05 am

    This beautiful little island is owned by the Salvation Army. For many years they used it as a place for alcoholics to dry out but now it’s being turned in to a bird sanctuary and they are replanting the forest. Day visitors are welcome and I happened to visit there on this perfect day and got this golden hour aerial shot. I wanted to highlight the curve of the two beaches and the trees ringing them, and that aqua shallow water. You can see the neighbouring island and the mainland in the far distance. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/0fa7c94fc38a36a09f2fdedb0ba9e04def490cc00ac38470e3de58ab3431fb74.jpg

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on May 9 at 1:50 am

      Hi Alex, It looks a lovely place as is the shot. Being a recovering alcoholic for some 19 years now ( a day at time ) it is interesting to see the different approaches taken to treat this illness. I like the way you have captured the shot. It leads me in to explore as it unfolds in front of me.

      • Alex
        Alex on May 9 at 4:35 am

        Hi Denis, thanks, and congratulations on 19 years dry – no mean feat. There is an excellent visitors centre here showcasing the island’s history – at least since the Sallies have owned it – from the early 20th century. As you might imagine some of that history, and the people who made it, are rather “colourful” 🙂

    • REVillanueva
      REVillanueva on May 11 at 4:56 pm

      Hi Alex,
      Beautiful shot. I like the curves. You captured them perfectly. Btw, when you said the place was used for alcoholics somehow the curves kept reminding me of the letter “B” as in booze instead of the more obvious number 3. I think I am going straight home and have a bottle of beer instead.

      Have a nice day.

    • Brenda Potts
      Brenda Potts on May 12 at 3:04 am

      Great shot. My eyes were immediately drawn to the interesting pattern in the light green area. I would love to see a bit more of the beach and shallows at the bottom of the photo.

        • Brenda Potts
          Brenda Potts on May 12 at 4:36 am

          Beautiful… good luck getting a morning shot! Can’t wait to see it and how the different light changes the entire shot.

          • Alex
            Alex on May 12 at 3:21 pm

            I’m looking forward to it as well… might be waiting a while though – the logistics of getting to this place, especially in the early morning, means I don’t think it’ll be happening soon. But it will happen!

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on May 13 at 11:48 am

          I like this one even more Alex because you’re driving is a little higher. Brent

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on May 13 at 11:47 am

      Stunning aerial image Alex. Yes I like those two beaches also – And the red roof of the building which to me is the main point of interest in your image. Because I’ve been photographing a lots of aerial images recently something you can try with this shot is to use a graduated filter from the bottom and increase the shadows and whites so that the water looks lighter and more appealing. Also consider enhancing that red roof a little more? Brent

  185. Keri Down
    Keri Down on May 7 at 5:47 pm

    In keeping with my theme of natural light I have chosen this shot because it is a whole lot of minimalism. I cant explain why I like it because there is nothing to capture your eye, but I thought I would throw it out there for critique because different things appeal to different people.

    • Chris
      Chris on May 7 at 6:41 pm

      I love the sky. It’s the pink and yellow that speak to me. It’s a beautiful, calming, serene picture.

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on May 8 at 12:58 am

      I like this because it is so minimalist. The blue texture in the water is entrancing. Very calming

    • Rodney
      Rodney on May 8 at 8:09 am

      Keri, clouds covering the horizon reminds me of many of the sunrises I have got out to ;-). I like this photo too. My eye is drawn to the horizon which nicely separates the soft clouds from the sparkling blue water.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on May 9 at 1:44 am

      Hi Keri. Foe me there are two pints of Interest: 1. The softness of the sky, 2. The emptiness of the ocean – gives a great sense of the vastness of these two atmospheres that surround us. Lovely shot.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on May 10 at 3:48 am

      Just beautiful! Very calming.

    • REVillanueva
      REVillanueva on May 11 at 4:27 pm

      Hi Keri,
      Very pleasing to the eyes. Simple and yet very relaxing.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on May 13 at 11:43 am

      Very artistic Keri – I like this image too. Love the cool tones at the bottom and the warm tones at the top. My only suggestion is to put the horizon not right in the middle, but instead to either drop it or raise it. Brent

    • Terri Carr
      Terri Carr on May 18 at 12:40 am

      I like the contrast in color in this scene.. I would like to see more ocean and less sky only because there is not that much happening there. I love the tones of the water and sky however. I would call it very simple and Minimalistic in nature. Very clean and uncluttered. Nice job!

  187. Brenda Potts
    Brenda Potts on May 12 at 3:02 am

    I’m new to BootCamp. My passion project is “Flora”, and since I live in the stunning Pacific Northwest of the US, I have many options. I’m fascinated by the play of light on natural textures. This was taken last October: D200, 1/50, f5.6, 18mm, ISO125, and minimal post-process to bring up the shadows a bit. If I were to shoot this again, I’d blur out the foreground a bit more. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a0d70432cb4b89048d06d3bc97a4e894730768e7a8e41634223c6dc0c7ba35e3.jpg

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on May 12 at 5:36 am

      Hi Brenda. Welcome to the club. I find the Boot Camp experience very good and learning lots. This is a nice capture. A nice balance to it. You could always crop a little of the foreground out, but I think it would take away from the shot. If anything that tree in the right background is inclined to catch my eye. I might crop a little tighter on the right side and see how that looks. Anyway it is still a great shot and welcome to the Boot Camp Gang.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on May 12 at 6:07 am

      Very nice! We enjoyed our vacation to Washington State a couple years ago. Beautiful area, you will find lots of inspiration there. Welcome aboard.

    • Terri Carr
      Terri Carr on May 13 at 1:05 am

      I love the Pacific NW.. I could die there happy ! So beautiful and green and lush.. I like the moss on the trees and the sharp colors of the leaves in the foreground.. The color is striking and complements the scene. Great job!

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on May 13 at 11:41 am

      Awesome passion project Brenda. Yes you do live in a beautiful part of that United States – I have yet to explore that area. Fascinating image you have submitted here– I really do like the warm colours at the bottom of your image and the cooler moss leading up to the top. The textures in this image are amazing – Well done! Brent

    • Chris
      Chris on May 15 at 1:18 pm

      Beautiful shot. I love taking pictures of moss on trees too. The different colors and textures means every shot is different and unique.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on May 16 at 8:50 am

      I love this image, Brenda. The lighting, colors and textures work so well here.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on May 20 at 11:13 pm

      Love it. Beautiful colors and textures.
      It is always great to shoot a location again, but you can easily blur the foreground in post-process as well. I love your image as is.

  188. Terri Carr
    Terri Carr on May 13 at 1:01 am

    Newby here for my first passion project in this https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/5424c0b63f4d6a273f831b6cb529ae3b2fd092fa14c6e67f34ec267d3095f260.jpg Bootcamp.. “The Lighthouse”. This is an iconic lighthouse on a jetty reaching out into a local lake called Lake Hefner and gathering spot for tourists and locals alike. I love to photograph it at different times of day, especially at sunset when the sun is dropping below the surface of the lake. Its a beautiful time of the evening.. It challenges me to find new and different POV and sometimes that can be difficult because you can only access it from the front and sides of the lighthouse. Settings: 1/100sec F/9 ISO 200

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on May 13 at 11:32 am

      I am a huge fan of lighthouses too. Great choice for your passion project @disqus_imjBJuoPfH:disqus. I really like the leading line from the path to the lighthouse and the colours in the clouds in the background. Makes for a dramatic image. Something to be careful of when post processing this image is the slight halo around your lighthouse. Well done! Brent

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 13 at 10:41 pm

        I appreciate your input and suggestions.. Being a beginning photographer I miss things as I shoot.. Did’nt event notice the halo till I zoomed in close.. What causes this? Can you tell me?

        • Brent Mail
          Brent Mail on May 14 at 9:32 am

          It’s when you lighten the lighthouse the brush overflows and lightens the background too. You can overcome this in LightRoom using auto-mask feature with the brush tool. Brent

          • Terri Carr
            Terri Carr on May 14 at 9:55 am

            Awesome, Ill work on that .. Thats’ very useful and good to know 😉

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on May 13 at 5:25 pm

      Hi Terri. This is very nice. Like it. Simple and well balanced.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 13 at 10:40 pm

        Thanks Denis.. I just love our lighthouse.. Its a place I go to often and enjoy the lake and surrounding area.. 😉

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on May 15 at 1:22 am

      Great capture. Love lighthouses.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 15 at 3:12 am

        Me too love them ! Just wish I lived near an ocean to take some with the waves crashing into them 😉

    • Brenda Potts
      Brenda Potts on May 15 at 1:38 am

      Nice composition and love the light in the clouds… looking forward to seeing more shots of the lighthouse!

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 15 at 3:11 am

        Thank you Brenda for the kind compliment.. I will post more soon 😉

    • Chris
      Chris on May 15 at 1:17 pm

      Wow, that is a beautiful shot. I feel like I could just step in and be on that path. Where is this?

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 16 at 12:59 am

        Standing 36 feet tall, the Lighthouse at East Wharf flashes a red, two second off-on pattern from dusk to dawn over Lake Hefner. Found on the north edge of Oklahoma City, the 2500 acre Lake Hefner was created in the mid 1900s and named after Oklahoma City’s mayor. Its a gathering place for locals and tourists with walking trails and restaurants and a great place to gather at sunset for people.

        • Chris
          Chris on May 16 at 2:57 pm

          It’s beautiful, thanks for the info @disqus_imjBJuoPfH:disqus

          • Terri Carr
            Terri Carr on May 16 at 9:37 pm

            Anytime … glad to share information about my city.. It’s certainly got alot to offer 😉

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on May 16 at 8:45 am

      Great image, Terri. Great composition! I love the mood you have captured, and the detail in the rocks in the foreground. Perhaps you could straighten the horizon a tad? It looks to be a little lower on the left of the frame.

        • Jim Crabtree
          Jim Crabtree on May 27 at 8:47 pm

          Hi Terri, this is a great image, lots of mood that draws you in. I know you say you have straightened it, but on my screen the water definitely slopes to the left. Did you level it on the water or the vertical of the lighthouse?
          Can it get posted out of level Brent?

          • Terri Carr
            Terri Carr on May 27 at 9:50 pm

            I used the level tool in Lightroom and leveled on the water.. I don’t know what else I can do. The lighthouse is not on level ground and is at a slight angle to the land. Maybe that’s whats throwing you off.. I don’t know what else I can do really.. I don’t know what you mean by leveling it to the vertical of the lighthouse.. Maybe explain?

          • Jim Crabtree
            Jim Crabtree on May 29 at 8:54 pm

            Hi Terri, If you go to the icons immediately under the histogram in the Lightroom Develop Module there is a crop tool on the left and clicking on that there is an Angle Straightening Tool. You can use that to level the waterline. Alternatively you can use this tool to put a vertical plumb line from the top of the lighthouse. I think the waterline is more reliable and hope this helps.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on May 20 at 11:07 pm

      Beautiful and dramatic sky. I love that the image has 2 points of interest. My eye is first led to the light house and than moves left to the dramatic sky. Great work.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 21 at 12:00 am

        Thank you sooo much.. I really appreciate it.. The lighthouse for me is one of my local passions and I am lucky to be up the road from this landmark.. 😉

  189. Brent Mail
    Brent Mail on May 13 at 12:13 pm

    This Challenge is OPEN so keep posting images and comments – I’ll try to comment from time to time but my main focus will be the current challenge for the month. Well done everyone – love the BootCamp Magazine (see above). Brent

  190. Terri Carr
    Terri Carr on May 17 at 8:32 am

    I am still working on more lighthouse photos for my Passion Project… This is the second one in the project.. I did this just this morning after the rainstorm we had last night in Oklahoma City. I tried a different POV and different time of day to switch things up. I really like the way the colors are intensified after a rainstorm..they are richer and more vibrant and the sky so bright and clear. This was basically right out of the camera except for a little cropping and basic adjustments and the use of a polarizer to bring out the colors in the scene.. My settings were: 1/60sec F/8.0 ISO 160 , using a 35mm Tamron lens at 7:24 am this morning https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/eabdd9eac4899a82d6588d9d5992e08542490cf24b594f5119b418c0e432f34c.jpg

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on May 17 at 5:21 pm

      High Terri. Lovely shot. Nice texture and colour to it.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 18 at 12:34 am

        Thanks! I look forward to hearing your observations and critiques.. It helps me to grow as a beginning photographer and keep striving to look for fresh and different ways to see my subjects ..

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on May 17 at 6:07 pm

      Hi Terri, I really love your subject choice, and viewing it in different conditions and from slightly different viewpoints. In this one I especially like the contrast between those dark clouds, and the softer tones of the ones below. your focus is spot on, and again, great composition. Well done.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 18 at 12:32 am

        Thank you so much Kerrie…. I love experimenting with different POV’s .. The hard part is getting up at those hours because I’m not as young as I used to be lol.. Emphasis on getting up and down particularly..;) I appreciate your comments and critique very much.. I’m already learning so much in here..

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on May 18 at 1:10 am

      Very nice! Love the colors and the mood of the photo.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 18 at 1:53 am

        Thank you so much Sara… Very nice of you 😉 Lighthouses are so iconic and different.. Wish there were more around here but I work with what I have.

    • Alex
      Alex on May 18 at 4:15 am

      Nice one Terri, you’ve captured the light and the mood very well.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 18 at 5:41 am

        Thank you Alex.. I appreciate it … 😉

  191. Alex
    Alex on May 18 at 4:44 am

    Here is another one from Karekare beach. I’m not sure if I’ve overdone it with that big triangle of sand – does it dominate the scene too much? I think it might do. It might be more than enough to do what I want it to – lead the eye into the photo, and provide great contrast to the rest of the scene. Next time I’ll try the same sort of composition but with less sand. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/1e24e1154a747797d7e55d2228bd462eac400fadd1aa399983b7f2f9aafda8fa.jpg

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on May 18 at 6:04 am

      Alex, If you crop out about half of the sand, I think it would work more for leading your eye. It seems to be fighting for dominance. but it looks like a grand place to hang out for a while!

      • Alex
        Alex on May 18 at 6:00 pm

        Thank you Sara, fighting for dominance is what it’s doing alright, especially when compared to the crop below which I like much better. The problem is it’s now heavily cropped as I’d already cropped it a reasonable amount to get the first one. And because the camera on this drone is so pathetic pixels-wise it’s a bit much of a price to pay. I’m just going to have to go back there and get it right in camera. It takes me more than an hour to get there, https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/c95bf7f533ba4cd95f3e342e1ae149b2e4f71a2bf672ec2f65ff7c4935437f37.jpg but it’s not a hardship because as you’ve noticed, it’s a grand place to hang out!

        • Denis O'Byrne
          Denis O'Byrne on May 19 at 6:55 pm

          Hi Alex. Looks a great place to hang out. Like this one better. The valley ahead comes into play and I am drawn in to have a wander.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on May 18 at 4:55 pm

      Hi Alex.I like the concept. I would agree to much sand and lead in.

      • Alex
        Alex on May 18 at 6:01 pm

        Thanks Denis – check out the crop below

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on May 20 at 11:02 pm

      I like how the triangular dune leads the eye into the scene. Beautiful work.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on May 21 at 12:34 am

      Hi Erez. That blended together well. I wonder could the highlights on the middle rocks be taken down a tad, and the sky in the right top corned brought up a little. What programme did you use to put this together?

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on May 21 at 4:29 am

        Thank you Denis. I’ll work on it again – very helpful comments.
        I used Lightroom, but for the fixing I’ll use Photoshop. I think that it’ll be easier to balance the sky colors using PS.

        • Denis O'Byrne
          Denis O'Byrne on May 21 at 9:32 pm

          Hi Perez. Many thanks for that additional data.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on May 22 at 3:54 am

      Beautiful shot. I agree with Denis about the highlights not he the middle rocks.

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on May 22 at 4:42 am

        Thank you Sara and I agree with Denis too. I’ll fix it, just need time to work on it 😉

        • Sara O'Brien
          Sara O'Brien on May 22 at 6:17 am

          Isn’t just it, trying to find the time. 😉

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on May 26 at 4:26 pm

        Hi Erez. Great job. Nice balance to the shot now.That is in my opinion of course.

        • Erez Shilat
          Erez Shilat on May 26 at 6:05 pm

          Of course, it is always our opinions only. Thanks again for your feedback. I should have noted these problems my self before posting, but I haven’t. Thanks to you it is a better image now.

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on May 30 at 10:12 pm

        Me too and I just came back from there few weeks ago 🙂

    • Ingrid Pomeroy
      Ingrid Pomeroy on June 14 at 2:11 pm

      Paradise! Beautiful!

  193. Terri Carr
    Terri Carr on May 22 at 10:09 am

    Sunrises and Sunsets have always been one of my passions.. I was fortunate to capture this scene a few days ago down on the lake. The sunrise was particularly beautiful , full of warm light and texture in the clouds so I grabbed my camera . This is Lake Hefner again, on the Northside of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/420fea579c8e90ca1036230f19ecb4795a2414c1fa759c950bc995e099357d7e.jpg looking away from the lighthouse on the other side. Basic adjustments done but pretty much SOC.. Would love some pointers to improve this shot.. Settings were : 1/125sec F/11 ISO 1600 using a 35mm lens in aperture priority

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on May 22 at 5:17 pm

      Hi Terri. I like the shot. However for me it is a bit bland. I can’t put my finger on it.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 22 at 9:11 pm

        Thats why I asked for help making it better.. I llike the shot too but I’m sure it needs some post processing.. I am not sure what it needs right now… Can use some good advice.. The light was still low in the sky being so early so that might have something to do with it but I did’nt want to take away from the beautiful sunrise colors by brightening it too much. I don’t know .. any help would be appreciated.

        • Denis O'Byrne
          Denis O'Byrne on May 22 at 11:41 pm

          Hi Terri. Can I down load and experiment?

          • Terri Carr
            Terri Carr on May 23 at 7:10 am

            sure have at it… I am open if you can make it better always 😉

          • Denis O'Byrne
            Denis O'Byrne on May 23 at 5:27 pm

            Hi Terri. Messed around in Lightroom as follows: Highlights up to +11. Shadows up to +39. Clarity up to +15. Colour – Hue – Orange down to -6, Yellow down to -40. Sharpening up to 109. Masking to 86. Noise Reduction to 20. On the sky I used the Grad Filter and brought the contrast to +100 and Highlights to -100. On the water I used the Radial Filter in spots and increased the exposer to add a little light in places. Sometimes I find I take a shot, come home and find it is not what I wanted or at least that is the perception in my minds eye as against the shot. I have tried to improve it and only make it worse. I have often just file them away and go back in a few months and I see things in a different perspective and go from there. That may even mean going back and taking the shot again. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/f92cf1f69a8fc476c472cd4ceef151f24aad77dcb5949cfde8c3e23756f11bbc.jpg

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on May 27 at 10:20 am

            Nice touch to @disqus_imjBJuoPfH:disqus image Denis, way more dramatic especially in the sky. What do you think Terri? Brent

          • Terri Carr
            Terri Carr on May 27 at 10:56 am

            I love it! I like what you did to the sky and in brightening up the water.. So much more dramatic and vivid .. I appreciate your helping me Denis. You took a good shot and made it much better.. Thanks again 😉

          • Denis O'Byrne
            Denis O'Byrne on May 27 at 6:59 pm

            Hi Terri. Many thanks for your feedback. Great to be able to help. It was a good image to start with and got me thinking. Keep shooting Terri. I find when I go out with the camera I am learning minute by minute because everything keeps changing. Nothing stays the same.

          • Terri Carr
            Terri Carr on May 27 at 9:53 pm

            You are so right…nothing ventured , nothing gained… I will keep shooting. I never tire of photography and learning new things along the way.. 😉

          • Denis O'Byrne
            Denis O'Byrne on May 27 at 7:02 pm

            Hi Brent. Many thanks for that feedback.Got some tips from BoothCamp members on earlier shots I took. Applied them here and the rest is history as they say.

          • Brent Mail
            Brent Mail on May 28 at 10:41 am

            Yeah – love that we are all learning from each other. B

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on May 23 at 7:38 am

      Terri, Maybe cropping to a panorama? a little off the top and a little off the bottom. I like the colors. That is all I have for you to try.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on May 23 at 7:45 am

        I am open to any and all help. Keep em coming lol

        • Jim Crabtree
          Jim Crabtree on May 26 at 2:40 am

          Hi Terri, You can tell I’m new to this as I have posted the reply to Sara and not to you. But maybe it all gets sorted in the end.

          • Terri Carr
            Terri Carr on May 26 at 8:03 am

            Thats ok Jim Crabtree…newby here myself …no worries 😉

      • Jim Crabtree
        Jim Crabtree on May 26 at 2:38 am

        I really like this photo. There is some lovely light in this image and agree with Sara to crop to a panorama. I would crop so that the skyline is on the lower third. Then maybe remove the rocks in the bottom right hand corner using content aware.

  195. Brent Mail
    Brent Mail on May 26 at 11:06 am

    Here is another from my passion project – Aerial Abstracts. Surfer who just emerged from water, first thing in the morning. I had to wait for him to turn sideways to the sun to get that “surfboard” shadow. Did a little post processing here – made the contrast heavier, warmed up the whole image then used a gradient filter to cool down the water so that the image goes from cool colours at the bottom left to warm colours at the top right. Brent https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a53789d703f6a357cfb2d21d5627a5759475c6351e937b53cd48127e5da86963.jpg

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on May 30 at 5:46 am

      Hi Sara. Can you remember where this shot was taken. It is well wind swept. I would be inclined to brighten it a tad. Lift the shadows maybe. Interesting shot.

      • Sara O'Brien
        Sara O'Brien on May 30 at 6:01 am

        Denis, It was in the Killarney National Park somewhere. Beautiful area, but not the green often associated with Ireland. I will try to brighten it a bit more. Thank you.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 9 at 8:07 am

      Love the colors and tones. Well done with the leading lines!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on June 14 at 4:49 am

      Keri. This is a lovely shot. The light is well balanced throughout. I like the soft flares of the street lamps and the way the bridge leads me into the shot.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 2 at 9:29 am

      Awesome shot Keri. It looks like this jetty goes on forever.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 14 at 8:05 am

      Denis, great job. It is an imposing structure. We saw circle forts and round towers, but this is different. Love the color of the sky! Not a normal sight in Ireland, from my experience anyway. 😉 I like it!

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on June 20 at 5:35 pm

        Sara, many thanks for the feedback.

  199. Ingrid Pomeroy
    Ingrid Pomeroy on June 14 at 2:07 pm

    Hi! I just joined and am looking forward to meeting all of you and being inspired by your work. I love taking photos of flowers, sunsets and anything else that catches my eye. I never leave home without my camera!

    • Rodney Charlton
      Rodney Charlton on June 14 at 5:08 pm

      Ingrid, welcome to Photo Boot camp. Great sharp photo of the bee. Many of my bee photos have a leaf or flower covering the head of the bee. Good start.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 15 at 3:37 am

      Welcome! Beautiful soft colors. Very well done. What were your camera settings and what did you post-process?

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on June 20 at 5:35 pm

      Ingrid, welcome to bootcamp. Nice soft colours and light balance. Look forward to seeing more of your posts.

    • Chris
      Chris on June 27 at 2:32 pm

      Welcome Ingrid, What a stunning image! Love the colors and sharpness. Bees are my passion project too.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on June 28 at 8:08 pm

      This is an awesome image Ingrid. Beautiful soft colours, I love the way you have filled the frame with those radiating lines out from the bee.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 2 at 9:26 am

      Gorgeous photo Ingrid. What were your camera settings?

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on June 20 at 5:33 pm

      Keri. I like this shot. I think you have caught the artificial/natural light very well. Maybe the left bottom corner and side could be lightened a bit. Was this taken at low water?.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 21 at 1:12 am

      Keri, Very nice capture. I like the leading line of the fence.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 2 at 9:15 am

      Kerri, I really like the dark, moody feel to this photo.

    • Chris
      Chris on June 27 at 2:31 pm

      Very pretty. This is the sort of shot I would take, I have a bunch like this of trees in my neighborhood. They always look different.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on June 26 at 9:00 pm

      Rerro. This is great. Like it.

    • Terri Carr
      Terri Carr on June 26 at 10:15 pm

      What a gorgeous photo.. So serene and the still glassy reflection off the boats in the calm water is amazing! Everything about this photo is wonderful from the lights of the city in the background to lovely shade of blue. I would so hang this on my wall.. 😉

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 27 at 3:44 am

      Wonderful shot all around!

    • Chris
      Chris on June 27 at 2:30 pm

      Beautiful shot, love the crispness. So calm too.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on June 27 at 10:02 pm

      Really great photo. Wish I’d taken it. :o)

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on June 26 at 8:58 pm

      Keri. I like this. Good shot.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 27 at 3:45 am

      Nice job, love the silhouette of the pelican and the reflection of the sun on the water.

    • Chris
      Chris on June 27 at 2:29 pm

      Beautiful shot, love the orange and yellows and of course LOVE the pelican.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on June 27 at 9:57 pm

      love the colors a the pelican silhouetted against the water.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on June 26 at 1:57 pm

      Thanks @keridown:disqus – got to love those meerkats and his golden fur against the blue sky really does make him pop more. Brent

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on June 26 at 8:58 pm

      Keri, great shot. Very nice soft background.

    • Chris
      Chris on June 27 at 2:28 pm

      Awww, look at that little guy, love it. So clear!

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:23 pm

      Lovely image. Love the colors and that you captured it from bellow with the blue sky behind.

  207. Brent Mail
    Brent Mail on June 26 at 1:54 pm

    Here’s another from my ‘aerial abstracts’ passion project. I was out filming new new venture – “Mailman’s Epic Adventures” which involves me travelling on a postie bike (Aus post motorcycle) when I spotted horses in the paddock next to us. Had to hover my drone for a while until this horse separated from the others and turned sideways to the low sun. I like the B/W because it makes this shot even more simple and more of an abstract. What do you think? Brent https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/77bccfeb96c717486e0a70ed12119e7d3aaa1fd4fc2b6c63abe3ed6188938038.jpg

    • Terri Carr
      Terri Carr on June 26 at 10:12 pm

      Amazing capture and the sillouette of the horse is so outrageous! I love black and white anyway but this takes the prize. I wish I had a drone to be able to get this kind of view. Was the shadow that sharp and clear or did you do any post processing to get it that way? Talk about luck and timing .. The angle is perfect!

      • Brent Mail
        Brent Mail on June 27 at 7:40 am

        Almost right off camera – all I did was make it B/W and added contrast. Brent

        • Terri Carr
          Terri Carr on June 27 at 8:05 am

          Thanks ! Wonderful photo 😉

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 27 at 3:49 am

      Beautiful, It captures the beauty of the horse in the shadow. I love the simplicity of the shot, very impactful!

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on June 27 at 9:53 pm

      Like this and you still have amazing detail in the horse.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on June 28 at 7:30 pm

      Wow…that’s awesome, Brent

    • Amber Pallas-Brunt
      Amber Pallas-Brunt on June 30 at 8:39 am

      Super cool! At first I thought it was a toy horse…lol. I love the artistic quality to it.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:24 pm

      An awesome image – love it

    • Juan
      Juan on June 27 at 12:57 am

      Denis, this is a beautiful landscape. did you use a drone or you are standing above it?

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on June 27 at 1:17 am

        Juan. Many thanks for your feed back. I was standing above it. It was a nice fine day around 4pm.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 27 at 3:52 am

      Denis, I really like the composition of this shot. You’ve got the lighthouse and the building and the bushes forming a triangle-great grouping of three separate items to make a whole. Well done.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on June 27 at 6:20 am

        Sara, many thanks for your feed back. An added piece of data for you, we are in the middle of a heat wave in little old Ireland, not a cloud in the skies since last week and it is to last until next week. You should pay a flying visit.

    • Chris
      Chris on June 27 at 2:27 pm

      That’s a beautiful image @denisobyrne:disqus , my favorite one of yours yet.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on June 27 at 5:16 pm

        Chris. Many thanks. I am glad you like it. Made my day.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on June 28 at 7:29 pm

      Denis..I agree with Chris. This is great! I LOVE the composition. If anything, I’d clone out the car.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:31 pm

      Lovely image Denis and the version without the cars is indeed better.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 10:35 pm

        Erez. Many thanks for the feedback.

  209. Terri Carr
    Terri Carr on June 27 at 4:17 am

    Well I was inspired to post a current photo I took while on the island of Galveston Texas.. Could’nt resist the sunrise and the glow of the sun so I snapped this while enjoying my morning coffee on the seashore. I liked the light on the seagrass and the homes up on the hill and the way they were bathed in warm light.. Was a great place to walk along the seashore and get away from it all.. Settings were : 1/125 sec F11 ISO 100 . https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e171a3c0bc095867e42f79063de02103d162d2e0c6f0e80ef922f37f7fb4ad33.jpg

    • Juan
      Juan on June 27 at 4:49 am

      Terri
      I like the leading lines in the sky and in the horizon leading towards the farmhouse. Did you try cropping some of the foreground to see how it looks? nice job

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on June 27 at 8:14 am

        I did try to crop alittle foreground and it seemed to have lost that depth of field for me personally.. Thank you however for pointing that out for me.. Appreciate it 😉

        • Juan
          Juan on June 27 at 11:46 am

          great point Terri. Loss of depth of filed changes the whole picture. thanks for sharing

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on June 27 at 6:16 am

      Terri. Nice shot. I like the play of the shadows coming and going. Gives a nice balance to the shot.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on June 27 at 8:07 am

        Yeah it sort of adds depth to the landscape.. I like it also 😉

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 27 at 8:04 am

      Well done, I like the leading line.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on June 27 at 8:16 am

        Appreciate it Sara.. The fence does help with leading your eyes to the horizon and the sun rising on the right.. 😉 Thank you

    • Chris
      Chris on June 27 at 2:47 pm

      The more i study this, the more I love it. It’s peaceful and serene.

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on June 27 at 9:38 pm

        Nothing like waking up to this every morning.. I only wish I lived by the ocean.. 😉

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on June 28 at 7:22 pm

      Hi Terri, you’ve captured a beautiful image. I love that light that accentuates the vegetation, fence and houses. The sun rays look great, but I feel that the sun itself is a bit blown out…Have you thought about cropping out the sun? I think doing this would add more emphasis on that magic light. Just my thoughts..

      • Terri Carr
        Terri Carr on June 28 at 11:36 pm

        Cropping it out might work 😉 I will play with it .. Unfortunately I realized that the sun was blown out before I posted it.. I think you have a valid point.. Maybe theres a way to darken or take out some of the brightness in post processing. If you know how to lessen the brightness I would love to hear about it 😉 I actually had a Polarizer on the lens while shooting but apparently it was’nt dark enough

        • Kerrie Clarke
          Kerrie Clarke on June 29 at 5:37 pm

          Terri, you could make it less bright using a radial filter or brush, but from my experience you just end up with a dull smudge. If there is no information there in the file, there is nothing to retrieve. A graduated ND filter may have been more useful here. I hope this helps 🙂

          • Amber Pallas-Brunt
            Amber Pallas-Brunt on June 30 at 8:38 am

            I think both images are beautiful. I love the softness of the light.

          • Terri Carr
            Terri Carr on June 30 at 9:02 am

            Thank you Amber, good to hear it.. I think the second one is better only because I toned down the light from the sun alittle more but I like either one.. Just love sunrises !

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on June 27 at 6:13 am

      Leila. I like the clarity in this image. That said it almost seems a bit to perfect. No blemish of any description.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 27 at 8:06 am

      I feel like I could reach out and touch it! Beautifully done, tack sharp.

    • Juan
      Juan on June 27 at 12:20 pm

      Leila, very nice picture. Is there a reason you used f/8? It was good that you did because you were able to capture depth in the Anthers of the flower. great job

    • Chris
      Chris on June 27 at 2:11 pm

      That pollen is so sharp I might sneeze! Great capture, really love macro photography.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:33 pm

      So sharp and beautiful – love it

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on June 27 at 5:15 pm

      Chris. Nice shot. I wonder could the shadows on the bee be lifted a bit?

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on June 27 at 9:49 pm

      Wow, great shot. Awesome detail. What were your camera settings?

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 28 at 3:18 am

      Really well done! What settings did you use?

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:36 pm

      Great capture Chris. Love these insect on flower photos 🙂

  212. Rachel Gilmour
    Rachel Gilmour on June 27 at 9:48 pm

    I’ve been struggling with this “Passion” thing and have finally decided that, recently, my passion has been astrophotography. So much so that I bought a lens specifically for that purpose.
    This picture, of the Milky Way’s core, was shot in my backyard. Wispy clouds were coming in and light pollution is on the left side. Palm tree fronds in the lower left. Really have to get away to the country to get a better shot.
    Samyang 12mm manual lens ( 19mm FF equivalent ) set at f/2, ISO 1600, 20sec. Extensive post processing, in Affinity, to bring out and enhance the colors that are already there.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/564789b9da23ed4c973846ec5f51372fc02f438d4adf710f44b462e86ff7b3fa.jpg

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 28 at 3:20 am

      Nice! I have not tried this type of photography yet.I might have to try now.

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on June 28 at 9:45 am

        It’s pretty simple. You’ll need a sturdy tripod for the long ( 10-20+ sec ) exposures and a relatively fast lens. I’ve taken workable photos

        with my EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 lens.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on June 28 at 4:52 pm

      Rachel, great shot despite the interference .

    • Amber Pallas-Brunt
      Amber Pallas-Brunt on July 2 at 2:55 am

      Love the star filled sky. I do find the palm tree in the lower left corner a bit distracting. I wonder if you lowered your focus to include some of what is on land if that would provide another nice composition?

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on July 2 at 8:15 am

        Thanks Amber. This shot was taken in my backyard, as are a lot on my photos. The only scenery is a color bond fence and other peoples’ backyards. Not attractive. As I stated, I need to get out to the country for decent astro photos.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:43 pm

      Beautiful Rachel. Never tried this kind of photography. How much of the light pollution can you remove – can you see the milky way from your yard by naked eye too? What do you use to reduce the ISO1600 noise? Love your image

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 9:28 pm

        Thanks Erez. Re: noise. Mostly in post processing. I’m going to try plying with ‘stacking’ multiple images that are shot at faster shutter speeds.
        That’s supposed to help reduce the noise level.

  213. Kerrie Clarke
    Kerrie Clarke on June 28 at 7:58 pm

    I took this image today in the forest near my house…it is my first attempt at bracketing and merging 3 images to HDR. They were shot in aperture priority at f11 ISO 100 at 1 sec, 1/4 sec, and 4 sec. I know this is not much of a waterfall, but I consider it a test run for when the rain comes! https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/8b325911d582856a59f47ec655519c6ae4819b5c39187164045f9da061e6350b.jpg ahttps://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/8b325911d582856a59f47ec655519c6ae4819b5c39187164045f9da061e6350b.jpg I’m not sure if bracketing moving water is the right way to do this, but I gave it a go!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on June 28 at 8:48 pm

      Keri, nice job. Would like to see this with the water in full flow.

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on June 29 at 4:59 pm

        Thanks Denis, I’ll go back and shoot again when it rains.

    • Rerro Rocher
      Rerro Rocher on June 29 at 3:47 pm

      Brilliant shot…..the bracketing has worked a treat to get the exposure spot on! and using F11 and ISO100 has got your image tack sharp right the way through!

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on June 29 at 4:59 pm

        Thanks so much Rerro, I was pretty happy with it, apart from the lack of water flow! I’ll definitely try the same shot after good rain.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on June 30 at 12:44 am

      Awesome shot! Great depth, can almost hear the water and the bugs!

    • Amber Pallas-Brunt
      Amber Pallas-Brunt on June 30 at 8:35 am

      Awesome image! I’ve not used this combo of photography goodies but I am inspired to do so! Well done!

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on June 30 at 9:39 am

        Hi Amber, so good that you’re inspired. Thanks for the feedback.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 2 at 9:01 am

      I think HDR worked really well, for you, in this photo. I wonder what a contrast tweak and a bit of sharpening would do!?

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 17 at 6:01 pm

      Sara, nice capture here. Background id soft but there.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:48 pm

      Lovely image and good DOF.

      • Amber Pallas-Brunt
        Amber Pallas-Brunt on July 2 at 9:36 pm

        Thank You! I did enhance the image in post.

    • Chris
      Chris on July 11 at 3:23 pm

      I love this and instantly recognized it as Thailand before I read the caption. Great shot!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 17 at 6:00 pm

      Amber, a very pretty shot. Love the colours.

      • Amber Pallas-Brunt
        Amber Pallas-Brunt on July 23 at 8:23 am

        Thank You Denis!

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:49 pm

      A great decision to focus on the bow only. Beautiful image

      • Amber Pallas-Brunt
        Amber Pallas-Brunt on August 2 at 8:29 am

        Thank you Erez! It was the most interesting part! 🙂

  217. Rachel Gilmour
    Rachel Gilmour on July 2 at 8:47 am

    The only astro photo I’ve taken outside of my backyard. Lots of light pollution but it still came out half decent. This is taken from the Lake Illiwara shoreline, in the same location that I’ve taken several sunrise photos. Looking North East towards Wollongong.

    ( I just re-posted this after a quick re-edit. Tried bringing out the Central core of the Milky Way a bit more.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/3c03c079b8233e1617e04cad5b6c6c1ec3de70d8873a468a8ddf4451376012c6.jpg

      • Christina Young
        Christina Young on July 14 at 8:26 pm

        I really like this image. I find that getting astro shots is not easy so well done.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 17 at 5:58 pm

      Rachel, a lovely shot.

  218. Alex
    Alex on July 8 at 11:20 am

    Continuing my aerial passion here with a shot from my new drone, a P4 Advanced – much better camera than the other one but still getting to know it. This peaceful scene is at a public park less than 30 minutes from where I live. ISO 100, f10, 1/100. I believe this drone has a 35mm full frame equivalent, fixed focal length. I love the texture of the ripples in the sand, exposed at low tide. This was taken with auto focus and doesn’t seem to have great depth of field even though it’s f10.It’s done alright up to the closest yacht but after that we’re getting fuzzy. The manual https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/23271cd2b17eff40a111750fd324849c4968167d2752e69b53bfabf2e9aa3a21.jpg focus seems to produce better results.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 9 at 3:52 am

      Alex, wonderful shot. The sand and clouds really stand out for me!

      • Alex
        Alex on July 9 at 4:41 am

        Thanks Sara. I love this drone!

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 9 at 8:41 am

      I haven’t been a fan of drone photography, however, I really like this photo. Between you and Brent, I might start appreciating more.

      I can picture myself, on my boat, in this location. RE: focus. It looks to me like the point of focus is more in the foreground.

      • Alex
        Alex on July 9 at 3:37 pm

        Ahh, then I hope Brent and I can make a convert of you! I love it – it opens up a whole new world, with a birds eye view. Photos like this aren’t possible without it, and the thing is, standing on the shore I didn’t even know those ripples were there or that this photo opportunity existed, until I saw it from above. You never know what you’re going to get 🙂

      • Alex
        Alex on July 9 at 3:51 pm

        Check out the other one I’ve just posted 🙂

    • Christina Young
      Christina Young on July 14 at 8:25 pm

      Such a beautiful, peaceful scene. Love the detail in the sand bar.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 17 at 5:57 pm

      Alex you are getting great use out of the drone. A whole new way of taking photos.

      • Alex
        Alex on July 29 at 4:05 am

        It’s a whole new world alright Denis – love it!

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:52 pm

      Beautiful image Alex. Makes me consider buying a drone…

      • Alex
        Alex on July 29 at 4:04 am

        Thanks Erez, naturally I’d recommend you buy one!

  219. Alex
    Alex on July 9 at 3:51 pm

    Here is another one from the same location below, but at sunrise, on the seaward side of the spit. The colours in it are quite something – my previous drone/camera wouldn’t have been able to capture it that well. ISO 400, f9, 1/60th sec, manual focus. Nice to see you can still get a clear shot at that shutter speed, in the air. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/09cf15829b5a520dee29107d7ef8b50bd330a64d2f9e18183ade56551c648563.jpg This camera sensor shows a bit of noise although I’ve adjusted it a bit in LR. I was lucky to get this shot as I’d left it a bit late getting to the location so was in a great hurry to get the drone in the air as soon as I saw this fab sunrise.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 9 at 5:04 pm

      Wow, that’s an amazing photo! The colors are awesome! Love it!

      • Alex
        Alex on July 9 at 5:45 pm

        Thanks Rachel, sunrises are like fishing, you never know what you’ll catch. Caught a big one that morning 🙂

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 12 at 8:30 am

      So Awesome! Love it! The colors are spectacular.

    • Christina Young
      Christina Young on July 14 at 8:24 pm

      The colours are stunning Alex.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 17 at 5:55 pm

      Alex, great shot. Is the horizon a bitt off. Maybe it is just my eye this morning.

    • Christina Young
      Christina Young on July 14 at 8:23 pm

      Beautiful image Rerro! Could tell it was yours as soon as I saw the top half.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 17 at 5:53 pm

      Rerro, great image. Love the detail. You are still top of the class!!!

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 18 at 3:28 am

      Absolutely stunning! Great detail! The colors are awesome!

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on July 23 at 6:56 pm

      OMG!!!! How????? This is gorgeous.

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on July 23 at 8:05 pm

        I used a macro lens and focus stacked…..about 12 images from front to back….then blended them together 🙂

        • Keri Down
          Keri Down on July 23 at 8:20 pm

          Um……I dont even know what that means but if I can create something like that them Im going to start learning…..quick smart. It’s just breath taking.

          • Rerro Rocher
            Rerro Rocher on July 23 at 8:26 pm

            Thanks so much Keri….let me know if you need any help

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on July 27 at 9:46 am

      absolutely stunning almost overwhelming
      brilliant
      Did you change focus point with the lens or move the camera?

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on July 27 at 10:15 am

        Thanks Nick, no, never changed the focus….just the focal distance. In macro photography, you focus on the nearest point to the camera, take a shot…then move the camera forward a little (i use a focus rail) take another shot….and so on until you have covered the full range front to back…depending on the aperture chosen this can range from a few images to many 20+. this then gets blended in post processing to achieve the tack sharp image from back to front. Hope this helps 🙂

        • Nick Ellis
          Nick Ellis on July 27 at 8:11 pm

          Thanks
          I have a rail which is relatively unused, hence my question
          Though I have heard of some changing the focus point and thus had to ask.
          It is now clearer in my mind
          cheers

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 27 at 7:33 pm

      OMG! I want to do this! I imagine it’s not that easy… Awesome image, Rerro.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:18 pm

      An amazing image and technically impressive as well. Love it

    • Valerie Worthen
      Valerie Worthen on August 10 at 11:47 am

      Christine this is absolutely beautiful! I don’t have a lot of time on the computer so I haven’t visited the passion project very often. So glad I had time tonight or I would have missed this amazing photo.

  221. Alex
    Alex on July 15 at 3:47 pm

    This was an interesting capture, flying my drone very carefully in amongst these big trees about 5m altitude here. ISO 400, f7.1, 1/80th. There is a large grove of these rather photogenic trees here and I knew there had to be a decent photo in it somewhere. I was trying to capture the scale and spread of it all, I think a little elevation helps with that. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/81bef906910199ab8fb6c0eb1a94e61017b9f07c3af7d4c3e507700949894c0b.jpg

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 17 at 5:51 pm

      Alex, nice capture here. Like the perspective.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 18 at 3:29 am

      Nice job. Would it be more dramatic in B&W?

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 18 at 3:31 am

      What a great distraction! Love it.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on July 18 at 4:38 am

        Sara, they were very cooperative. Got a few others that I might post as time goes by.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on July 23 at 6:55 pm

      The one on the left is “oh stop it” the one on the right is all showy. I like this shot Denis.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 21 at 5:47 pm

      Rerro. Different alright. What is Pinhole photography. Forgive my ignorance with this question.

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on July 21 at 6:59 pm

        It is the earliest form of photography…..you can try it by using a lens cap with a pinhole sized hole attached to your dslr camera. As you are literally shooting with no lens….your aperture will show 00 on your camera, but you can calculate the actual aperture, but it usually around f100-f150….because you cant see through the viewfinder, you kind of aim at the area you want to shoot….and trial.So, essentially all you need to worry about is shutter speed.
        https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/dce9f1e976f7bee9494f9010f58c307bcd5beff669bcf188a9424cf3f19b8976.jpg

        • Denis O'Byrne
          Denis O'Byrne on July 21 at 8:54 pm

          Rerro, many thanks for coming back to me with that data. I remember reading about it now when trying to understand Aperture.

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on July 27 at 9:19 am

      very interesting and thanks for sharing and giving me something (else) new to try!

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on July 27 at 10:16 am

        I absolutely love the simplicity of this technique….and the resulting images just blow me away….this is truly my passion!

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 2:58 pm

      Cool! With the right color tone, this would look like a photo from the 1800s.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:55 pm

      What a dreamy mood! So cool. How much control do you have on the outcome? Is it trial and error or do you have a methodology?

      • Rerro Rocher
        Rerro Rocher on July 29 at 6:40 am

        You do have control over the SS and the ISO, and of course composition. For composition, i use my 50mm to set things up, and then swap out the 50mm lens with the pin hole cap. Also, when you have an aperture of f129, you also see very quickly whether your sensor needs a clean!

        • Erez Shilat
          Erez Shilat on July 29 at 8:01 am

          Thanks for sharing, I really love that

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 23 at 5:29 pm

      Keri, a lovely tranquil setting and the shot depicts this. Well done.

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on July 23 at 6:53 pm

        Thank you Denis. It’s actually a sunrise which I have now edited on my post. Honestly it was so lovely.

    • Brent Mail
      Brent Mail on July 24 at 5:26 am

      Such a peaceful image Keri, and yes it looks cold too. Love that the sun is just peaking over the horizon. Something I would do is crop off the little bit of shoreline on the bottom right. Brent

      • Leila Gonzalez Sullivan
        Leila Gonzalez Sullivan on July 28 at 5:40 am

        I’m thinking about this one, Brent and Keri. If the photo is cropped too much you lose that dark part of the water which adds some contrast. On the other hand, Brent, one of your recent emails noted that we should try to include something in the foreground of a sunrise. Maybe if Keri had gotten down closer to the ground, she could have included a bit more of the shore. Like the one in the photo, our beach is very flat so my sunrise pictures don’t have much foreground either. Instead, I caught a sand-replentishing ship in the scene for some variety. Will post in another challenge section.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 24 at 12:50 pm

      Superb Keri, I love the combination of the smoothe water and the detail on the point. And those colours are just gorgeous!

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on July 27 at 9:21 am

      great – love the colours and the composition
      though I wonder whether the little bit of beach bottom right is distracting?

    • Graeme Worth
      Graeme Worth on July 27 at 6:58 pm

      Nice photo Kerri. The contrast between the complementary blue and yellow works well. I garee with others that just that litlle bit of beach as it is is a distraction. Depending on whether this has been cropped from a larger shot, you could try leaving more beach so as to have a foreground interest and sense of distance?

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 2:55 pm

      Love the pastel shades!

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:56 pm

      Beautiful colors and so relaxing!

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 29 at 5:41 am

      Well done! Very calming shot.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 27 at 6:42 pm

      Beautiful smooth water and great composition, Nick. I do find the shadows a bit lost in the mountains, or perhaps this was your vision for this image… What time of day was this taken? and filter?

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 27 at 6:45 pm

      Is that the moon I see ?

      • Nick Ellis
        Nick Ellis on July 27 at 8:06 pm

        No moon, sorry – though it was a full moon during our visit.
        it was taken at about 8:30 in the evening and from memory I was using a 6 stop nd, I also had a 3 stop with me. Other photos taken at about the same time lead me to believe it was the 6 stop I was using.
        and in my defense the version in Affinity Photo has lighter shadows – ie some definition in the trees above the water line. I was trying to depict a darker light effect though this post does seem a little too dark.

        • Rachel Gilmour
          Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 2:53 pm

          Well Nick, I would say that you achieved your objective. It does make for a somber image. I like it!
          It reminds me of some photos from William Patino, when he first started as a professional photographer.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on July 28 at 2:19 am

      I love, love the sky, Nick! Not sure what your version has, but the tree line appears a bit dark and would try to bring that up a bit….but absolutely stunning!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 3:42 am

      Nick. A very nice moody shot. I wonder could the shadows be lifted a bit at the base of the mountains. Just a thought.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 8:59 pm

      Great composition and long exposure with the smooth water and these wonderful clouds. Love it

  226. Graeme Worth
    Graeme Worth on July 27 at 7:22 pm

    Only joined Bootcamp recently and wasn’t aware that we could continue posting in this Passion challenge. I’ve always photographed nature but it was birds that finally convinced me to get serious and get a decent camera, so birds are probably my foremost passion. Here is a photo of an Australasian Darter male showing off its beautiful wings and markings. 1/2000 sec, f 6.7, ISO 5000, 270mm. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/c9f67e12b09d3671f2e5679a29a165b8f3d3f31ab5382ea8e1ef4e6d849af532.jpg

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 27 at 7:57 pm

      Great shot, Graeme. Your subject jumps out from the background, I feel that the bird’s eye could be a bit more in focus.

      • Graeme Worth
        Graeme Worth on July 27 at 8:30 pm

        Thanks for the feedback Kerrie. I’m not sure if it’s actually out of focus or just the result of the high ISO?

    • Sheree
      Sheree on July 28 at 2:17 am

      I am like you Graeme, just recently joined and have not yet posted anything in the different challenges! Good for you to get one in…..
      I really love the detail in the wings—not sure if you cropped in post production, but would have played with giving him something to look at, or more space in front of his sight line….

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 3:40 am

      Graeme Lovely shot of the bird. I find the reflecting glare off the water a bit of a distraction, I would like to see a similar shot with the water blurred out.

      • Graeme Worth
        Graeme Worth on July 28 at 10:10 am

        Thanks Denis. When you ‘blurred out’, do you mean reduce the luminance, or reduce the water pattern without losing the contrast? I’m not sure that my post-processing ability is good enough to do either, but might be a challenge to think about .

        • Denis O'Byrne
          Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 5:50 pm

          Graeme, what I mean by blurred out is a soft out of focus background. They call it Boket. My spelling here is not correct. It is a feature that I am always working on and find it hard to achieve. I always end up with several shots. I posted a shot yesterday which I think shows what I mean. Either way I think your shot is very good and worthy of praise.

          • Graeme Worth
            Graeme Worth on July 28 at 7:22 pm

            Thanks for clarifying that Denis. Yes, I also like bokeh and have a lot of shots where it has worked well. However, if there is a way to reliably control bokeh I haven’t found it . Possibly it has something to do with the relative brightness of the background? I routinely shoot birds and flowers with an almost fully open aperture to try and get bokeh.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 2:30 pm

      Lovely shot Graeme! It looks like you had a CPL filter on your lens!? Maybe just reducing the highlights some.
      Wondering why such a high ISO?

      • Graeme Worth
        Graeme Worth on July 28 at 3:56 pm

        I shoot in manual mode and had a fast shutter as I was hoping the bird might oblige and take off, and it was quite late in the afternoon so light wasn’t ideal. No filters used. Birds in flight is what I really enjoy trying to photograph, so when I’m out I usually have the camera set to at least 1/1500 sec,f 6.7 and auto ISO as you don’t get a lot of time to fiddle about. Easier to adjust for static shots, but one of the things I have to work on is making sure I check and make adjustments when necessary, instead of forgetting as I did with this one. Denis also suggested toning down the background. I’m just a bit worried that by doing so the black bird won’t stand out as well.

        • Rachel Gilmour
          Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 5:51 pm

          “you don’t get a lot of time to fiddle about”. I can attest to that. Heading back from the beach after taking some long exposure photos, this week, I missed taking decent shots of two Yellow Tailed Black Cockatoos because in my excitement, I forgot that I was in Av mode.

          BTW, your original image looks better, to me, than this cropped one, for whatever reason.
          Would always having a CPL filter on work for you? It would keep out unwanted glare and highlights.

          • Graeme Worth
            Graeme Worth on July 28 at 7:18 pm

            Been there, done that! The second image I only posted to show how much I had cropped from the first. I don’t like the second one much either. I think with the gear I have and the times I like to shoot I would probably lose too much extra light to make a CPL worthwhile. I have been contemplating one for landscapes, but I doubt I’ll use one for the bird photos.

    • Graeme Worth
      Graeme Worth on July 28 at 12:32 am

      I reckon that is a pretty good first attempt Kerrie. The white water almost looks like fog, and the exposure is good – did you have to adjust that in post-processing? Many people claim that f22 is too small and leads to diffraction artifacts – to be honest I’m not sure what they look like. Maybe one of the pros can comment on whether they an see any?

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on July 28 at 6:34 pm

        Hi Graeme, I didn’t adjust the exposure in post, tho I did bring up the shadows. I didn’t mean to be at f22,….for some unknown reason I was in shutter priority mode rather than aperture priority. That is why my aperture went to f22. I think I was just too caught up in the moment, and not paying attention to my settings. I was trying to keep my footing, and not let my gear go over the edge! I don’t know anything about diffraction artefacts, or what they look like. Thanks so much for your comments 🙂

        • Graeme Worth
          Graeme Worth on July 28 at 7:28 pm

          If you didn’t need to adjust exposure it’s an even better attempt! Trying not fall off a cliff sounds like a pretty good excuse to forget to check settings. I can forget easily without any good excuse . I don’t know much about diffraction artefacts either, except that most landscape photographers seem to suggest apertures between f8 and f16 to avoid them.

          • Kerrie Clarke
            Kerrie Clarke on July 28 at 9:04 pm

            yeah, I would have..should have been at somewhere between f8-f16 🙂

    • Sheree
      Sheree on July 28 at 2:16 am

      I think this is brilliant, Kerrie. Especially as you say it is a first attempt! You may have slowed down the water a bit too much? My own preference would have been to have a bit more detail in the water—but it looks like clouds all around down there…so it is a great result!

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on July 28 at 6:24 pm

        Thanks, Sheree..I started with 10 sec exposure, which did give me more detail in the water, and went to 20 then 30 sec. I didn’t know which one to post. I guess it’s all down to personal preference and artistic license?

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 3:38 am

      Kerrie. Nice action in this shot. In particular I like the sky.

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on July 28 at 6:19 pm

        Thanks Denis, I’m just learning this technique, and loving it. Hope you enjoy your time away.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 2:24 pm

      Wow Kerrie, that is a great first shot! Love the composition and sharpness of the photo.

      Do you have “live view” on your camera? If so, I highly recommend using that as you can see, in real time, how your settings are affecting
      your shot. As for filters, I found a brand, “ICE”, that appear to be of high quality and wont break the bank. Have only seen good reviews.

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on July 28 at 6:16 pm

        Thanks for the feedback, Rachel. I used live view, and the histogram, and zoomed up live looked fine to me. Could you clarify what you mean by settings affecting the shot?

        • Rachel Gilmour
          Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 9:23 pm

          Kerrie, just saying that as you play with it in “live view” you can see ‘real time’ how different settings affect your image.
          For me it just makes setting up and taking long exposures that much easier.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 9:02 pm

      Wonderful first shot. Love the waves and moving grass vs. the rocks. Beautiful image

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 29 at 5:45 am

      Great colors! Love the composition also.

  228. Nick Ellis
    Nick Ellis on July 27 at 8:07 pm

    Does it need grounding?

    and Brent is always stealing my best ideas! lol

  229. Denis O'Byrne
    Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 3:53 am

    On my recent visit to the Botanic Gardens in June I paid a visit to Cactus House and took this shot. Was filling time as my purpose (Water Action Shots) was not going well. Thought it was pretty. Thoughts please. I will be away from next Monday to the 7th Aug. Family wedding and a bit of fun. Will have the camera with me but that is it. No internet family rules. Will catch up on my return. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/b7f48257d3a95e95e063433254b7192c1a57e662d4326755762541f8e25f9542.jpg

    • Leila Gonzalez Sullivan
      Leila Gonzalez Sullivan on July 28 at 5:30 am

      Hi, Denis: The muted tones, composition and sharpness are really appealing. Even if you had a different purpose in mind, it shows that your photographer’s eye notes all those little beauties in our world.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 5:41 pm

        Leila, Many thanks for those comments. Appreciate it.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 2:07 pm

      Really nice shot Denis!

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 5:39 pm

        Rachel many thanks for your feedback.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 28 at 8:22 pm

      Denis, the flower stem really stands out well from that nicely blurred background. Great colours, and great shot.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 10:32 pm

        Kerrie, many thanks for the feedback.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 9:25 pm

      Nice image Denis. Like the diagonal main line and the separation from the background.
      I think that you can improve it in post by emphasizing the red/yellow colors of the flowers and darkening the corners a little, even so it is beautiful as is

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 5:59 pm

      Well done Leila. Well captured.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 9:22 pm

      Great capture Leila. Love the framing by leaves

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 29 at 5:48 am

      Cool shot! Well composed.

    • Nick Ellis
      Nick Ellis on July 28 at 3:22 pm

      Nice and the silhouette gives a nice counterpoint

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 5:58 pm

      Rachel, very nice. I like it. No sight of the Moon here I am afraid. Rain is back after 8 weeks. Cant complain we need the rain at this stage.

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 9:14 pm

        Thanks Denis. We need rain down here very badly.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 28 at 6:36 pm

      Nice shot Rachel, I like that we can see the stars and Mars.

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 9:13 pm

        Thanks Kerrie. Had to use 100mm so that I could capture Mars in the photo. #00 gave me only the moon and the palm tree.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 9:21 pm

      Beautiful moon and love the silhouette. Lovely image

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 29 at 5:51 am

      Nice shot! I think I would leave Mars out as it’s location in the photo seems like an after thought. The photo, in my opinion would have more impact if it was just the moon and the trees.

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on July 30 at 8:39 am

        Thanks Sara. I agree, a crop of that pic would have a bit more impact. However, it would be just another photo of an eclipse.
        With Mars, it is something that you wont see again for the next 100 years! That is the context that I had in mind.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 5:56 pm

      Nick, nice shots. I like the way you have displayed them. Gives a a good feel to what you were about.Well done.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 28 at 6:37 pm

      Wow, this is great Nick. You’ve got to be happy with it! I think you should do more shots of the heavens…I got up early as well, and just enjoyed the view. I shot the last eclipse, with limited success with my gear. Well done.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 29 at 5:51 am

      Nick-very cool! Love this.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on July 31 at 1:00 pm

      Love this, Nick. I have tried this a number of times, but you do have to find a place where the light pollution is at a minimum. Where I am we did not have an eclipse, but I figured we would have a beautiful moon—but the clouds got in the way! 🙂

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 28 at 5:36 pm

      Really nice photo! So what is your passion, being on a yacht in the Med or taking photos of yachts on the Med? :0) LOL!

      • Craig
        Craig on July 28 at 5:47 pm

        good question 🙂 After this trip I sincerely feel I am not suited to working, definitly being on a yacht in the Med is more to my liking, taking pics in that environment is truly a pleasure

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 5:52 pm

      Craig, lovely shot. You captured a nice scene. Up early that day!!!

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 28 at 6:59 pm

      Nice capture, Craig. It’s kind of dark and mysterious to me. Portrays that feeling of being there in your own little space….in a beautiful place. I love that the colour is not overdone, oversaturated. I don’t know what you have done in post, but I do feel that perhaps you could bump up the shadows a bit. I have an affinity with shots like this, I lived on, and cruised on a home built yacht for 2 years. (but not sailed to Greece yet)!

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on July 28 at 9:17 pm

      Lovely shot Craig. Would love to be there!

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 29 at 5:53 am

      Beautiful shot! Another area of the globe i need to see!

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on August 7 at 11:19 am

      Great shot ,good colors & reflections ,looks like a great day ahead ,maybe just drop the horizon line a tad otherwise great

  234. Kerrie Clarke
    Kerrie Clarke on July 28 at 8:35 pm

    ha ha…I saw the boat that was photographed for the “peter stuyventstant” add, at Kettering, while I was sailing round Tasmania.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on July 28 at 10:31 pm

      Erez a lovely shot. I wonder if you took out the immediate foreground would that help improve the shot?. Just a thought.

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on July 29 at 12:46 am

        Thanks for your feedback Denis, I’ll try that

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 29 at 5:56 am

      I agree with Denis about the foreground. Maybe convert to B&W?

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on July 29 at 8:00 am

        Thanks Sara, I’ll try

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 30 at 5:41 pm

      Erez, I like the shape and detail in the POI rock. I don’t mind the foreground rocks at all, I would just crop the vertical rock that is on the far left.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on July 31 at 12:58 pm

      I like the textures you have captured, but am not sure what the focal point is. I assume it is the centre rock. I would play with cropping the smaller rock on the left side. I like the foreground…. would keep playing around a bit.

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on July 31 at 3:42 pm

        Thanks for your feedback Sheree. I’ll play more with it in the weekend. I’ll try different crops and different types of vignetting.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 30 at 8:45 am

      Love this. Great contrast and detail. Really good macro shot.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 30 at 5:11 pm

      This is a great shot Hilary. The textures are really nice, and the contrasting colours work really well. I think that a crop from the left might be good.

      • Hilary Wright
        Hilary Wright on July 31 at 1:05 pm

        Thanks Kerrie. Looking at it again when walking this morning I am inclined to think the orange in the fungi needs bringing out more – it was that that caught my eye in the first place. With the crop, I was trying to leave some of the texture of the stump, but I will try cropping it a bit further.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on July 31 at 12:53 pm

      I love shooting fungi, Heather and this is a good shot! I would agree with Kerrie and try a bit of a crop from the left, but love the contrast colours and texture.

      • Hilary Wright
        Hilary Wright on July 31 at 1:07 pm

        Thanks Sheree. It is just the strat of the native fungi here after a lot of rain recently. They are fascinating things. See also my reply to Kerrie below.

  238. Graeme Worth
    Graeme Worth on July 29 at 11:27 pm

    I’m not sure how many photos I’m allowed to post, so I’ll just add this one as it’s one of my favourites. This pelican did weird things for quite a while. Didn’t take off even though it looked like it would at any moment. This shot seems to have caught it going through its early morning tai chi exercises .
    1/2000 sec, f 6.7, ISO 560, 300mm. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/90f428456a938508084b929b79aa2334dd38948a7d23a36d1aa2d5dd450e0750.jpg

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on July 30 at 7:18 am

      Graeme: Well done! I might clone out the stick along the top, it’s a bit distracting. That being said, great job capturing the pelican. I like the composition as you have room for the pelican to move into.

      • Graeme Worth
        Graeme Worth on July 30 at 11:02 am

        Thanks Sara. You have just picked out (literally) one of the things I still find very difficult – actually looking at the photo! I have looked at this one many times, and obviously just look at the bird as I had not even seen the stick. Apparently my brain has a mind of its own when it comes to visual processing .

        • Sheree
          Sheree on July 31 at 1:16 pm

          I must be like you Graeme, I never noticed the stick until Sara mentioned! I was focussed on the pelican! Great shot!

          • Graeme Worth
            Graeme Worth on July 31 at 4:01 pm

            Thanks Sheree. I’m glad there is someone else who didn’t see the stick .

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 30 at 8:48 am

      Great shot Graeme. A lot of determination pictured here. ‘I’ve done it before, I can do it again!’

      • Graeme Worth
        Graeme Worth on July 30 at 10:58 am

        Thanks Rachel – that is a different interpretation that didn’t occur to me, probably because I was there and it had ben doing these sorts of things for about half an hour witout showing any inclination to actually take off (which is what I was waiting for!).

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 30 at 5:15 pm

      This one makes me smile… What a great pose! Tai Chi says it all. Great shot, Graeme, though I do agree that the stick could go 🙂

      • Graeme Worth
        Graeme Worth on July 30 at 5:43 pm

        Thanks Kerrie. I haven’t seen another pelican do anything like this, so probably lucky to be there at the right time. I won’t post another version without the stick, but by popular demand it will definitely go if I ever do anything else with this photo . Thanks to all who pointed it out.

        • Kerrie Clarke
          Kerrie Clarke on July 30 at 5:47 pm

          Ha ha…isn’t it amazing what another pair of eyes can do? 🙂

    • Hilary Wright
      Hilary Wright on July 31 at 1:09 pm

      Great shot Graeme. Made me laugh as soon as I opened it – for all the right reasons. What an expression! The focus is spot on too.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 1:05 am

      Graeme. Good action shot. Spot on with the focus. He/She had better get up soon.!!!

  239. Rachel Gilmour
    Rachel Gilmour on July 30 at 9:11 am

    Not my passion, however, I had the opportunity to be one of the photographers at the local yearly ‘mountain to mountain’ 13K run, for my
    camera club. They support the disabilities services company that organizes the run. Thought I would share a pic. The first 6K is all uphill and yet this guy still had the energy for this.

    I found it very challenging due to the conditions. Early morning sunshine on a wet road surface and dark shadows.
    EOS M-6, EF-S 15-85mm lens, CPL filter. Settings; Tv, 1/1000 sec, Auto ISO, auto aperture. This shot was at 1/1000 sec, f/5.6, ISO2500, 85mm. Cropped on the left.
    After the fact, I think I would have been better off at 1/500 sec or so, and limiting the ISO to 1000. Lots of noise around 1600 and worse above that.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/451485d9dac86493a343e270115aeca4c77b6fb3b20246427f21971508fc304e.jpg

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on July 30 at 5:34 pm

      Great action shot, Rachel. This guy looks like he still has plenty of go in him! I really like that you’ve captured both feet off the ground, and his whole body stance (?) is awesome. Sure, there’s some noise, and the wet road is a bit blown out, but at least you got the shot. Sometimes just getting the shot is more important than technical issues. Well done and good on you for supporting a great cause.

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on July 30 at 7:52 pm

        Thanks Kerrie. The whole experience was fun and I’ve learned from it.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on July 31 at 1:17 pm

      Really good action shot, Rachel! Love his expression and placement.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 4 at 5:20 am

      Great job Rachel. He has way more energy than I would at that distance in the race.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 1:06 am

      Rachel. Great shot. I might bring up the shadow on the road in Post if possible.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on July 31 at 11:59 am

      Always keep looking up! Good capture!

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 4 at 5:21 am

      Nice. I have a similar picture with the moon and an eagle. Well done.

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on July 31 at 7:19 am

      I really like this. The monochrome gives it mystery and the sunbeams are an added bonus

    • Sheree
      Sheree on July 31 at 11:58 am

      This is a seriously incredible shot! Love how you have handled the light…the rays and the sillouhettes! Great shot!

    • Graeme Worth
      Graeme Worth on July 31 at 3:58 pm

      Lovely shot Janice. Quite nostalgic in some ways.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 4 at 5:23 am

      Love it! The color is great the clouds and sun are awesome. The people make this photo as they put it all into perspective.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on August 4 at 8:35 pm

      Janice, love this image…Just beautiful, and peaceful.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 1:08 am

      Janice. Lovely shot, well captured.

  242. Peter J Dwight
    Peter J Dwight on July 30 at 8:51 pm

    Hi there just trying to upload once more as I have not been able to upload, Peter

  244. Sheree
    Sheree on July 31 at 11:57 am

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/0e84eeedeb6af5c1135757154d11dd164487571857961b91871a961eaead16e8.jpg I love low light/moon/planet shots. I am trying to get used to my camera and also trying to learn LIghtroom…. so am working very slow.
    I captured this when I was trying to photograph the moon with mars on Wednesday night. I used by D750 ISO 100 200mm Shutter speed was 1 3/10 sec with f7.1 I did crop in a bit. The clouds really messed me up as I could not get the rising moon with mars… but the clouds did render some interest!

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on July 31 at 3:23 pm

      Great photo. DOF looks OK, but maybe f/11 or so, to be on the safe side next time.
      This looks like it could be South Florida!?

      • Sheree
        Sheree on July 31 at 10:38 pm

        Thanks Rachel. I am in the Cayman Islands—- I was actually working on trying to photograph bees! 🙂

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 4 at 5:25 am

      Very nice refections!

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on August 7 at 11:04 am

      Love this scene ,good reflection deep colors ,maybe a little dark up close & maybe offset the horizon a little ,still a great shot

      • Sheree
        Sheree on August 7 at 11:39 am

        Haha, Peter! That is what is so great about this. I never noticed the horizon until you mentioned it!!! I think I need to get photoshop to lighten just the forefront, but I also see what you mean there too, which I did not really notice. I guess I was just looking for clarity and the reflections! 🙂 This is wonderful as it helps us to “see” so much better!

    • Sheree
      Sheree on July 31 at 10:37 pm

      This is really good. What were the settings that you used?

      • Craig
        Craig on July 31 at 10:50 pm

        ISO 200, 600mm, F10, 1/15th sec

    • Sheree
      Sheree on July 31 at 10:36 pm

      Craig, I know what a difficult shot this is! So much fun trying to get them. I assume you are just using a tripod and not in a telescope?
      What were your settings? Hard to get in focus with a long exposure … so would have pumped up the ISO as much as possible and tried with a faster shutter speed!

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 4 at 5:26 am

      Well done, love the series.

  251. David Robinson
    David Robinson on August 1 at 4:43 am

    Got up a silly o’clock this morning to catch the sunrise. I live in Javea, Spain and it has a wonderful coastline to photograph. It was a bit cloudy which for me added to the image and I wanted to capture a boat sailing through the sun’s reflection on the water. For the first time I used a Johny Spencer’s presets to edit the photos. I found them really good and stops me from over editing the photos. You can rundown the presets and see how they affect your photo. So I took the photo with a Canon powershot G5X at ISO 200, 36mm focal length, f8 and 1/800 sec. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/707a8a3ce83009ddaa11255d8b127fb703ae1f4eccc45edb4c4e19a078537fb0.jpg

    • Sheree
      Sheree on August 5 at 8:28 am

      Beautiful, Davie. I love the silhoutte of the boat in the light ray!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 1:13 am

      David. A well taken shot.

  252. David Robinson
    David Robinson on August 1 at 4:57 am

    So this morning I got up really early to capture the sunrise coming up over the Mediterranean. I arranged all my kit and put it in the car yesterday evening for a quick getaway this morning. I arrived at my location 30 mins before sunrise but had a bit of a hike over rough terrain to get to my spot. Once there I set up my tripod, Canon 5DII and a Pluto Trigger to remotely activate the shot. I had a 10 stop filter on the camera as I wanted to get the water silky smooth. I opened my phone and went to the Pluto Trigger app. Everything was set the sky was turning pink and the sun just starting to pop up. I clicked the app on my phone and nothing happened. It was at this time I realised that despite having a play around with the Pluto Trigger at home that I just didn’t know how to use it. Good job I had my compact with me. (It was still too dark to handhold the 5D and turning up the ISO produces too much grain) The moral of the story is know how to properly operate your equipment so that you do not have any disappointments when you are in the field.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on August 5 at 8:27 am

      Been there, done that! 🙂 Still learning!

  253. lynne F Murphy
    lynne F Murphy on August 2 at 7:21 am

    Back to my passion project — nature, environment as embodied in photos of majestic skies and land/seascapes. It’s unusually hot& humid here and not just for a day or two but for two weeks running. Living by the sea in the northern hemisphere, you get a sense that climate is changing. This photo taken near sunset – hot sun, no rain, no wind and heavy cloud cover but again no rain. 18mm; iso 100, 1/100 https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/6b4957c520e2e8907d06137464d2482d0a21306c122e91a306f76e368556f683.jpg

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 4 at 5:29 am

      Beautiful! Love the clouds and the reflection.

    • David Robinson
      David Robinson on August 4 at 9:27 pm

      Lynne, super shot. I love the reflections in the water and the light contrasts in the sky. Good job.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 1:00 am

      Lynne. Very peaceful and serene shot. The reflections are good. In particular I like the light you have captured here. It makes the shot. Well done.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 6 at 6:59 am

      Beautiful shot. What a wonderful place to see a sunset.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 12:58 am

      Sheree. A lovely shot. Nice light balance – soft in foreground. Well done.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on August 10 at 5:32 pm

      Hi sheree,
      I used to use macro lenses a lot (I have about 6 ) & I’m no expert but I get some beautiful shots with zoom lenses just a bit further back from the subject & need very little modifying . Maybe try aperture priority or shutter priority to speed thing up a little although your setting should have been good enough it looks to Me just a little out of focus try spot focus ,( just my thoughts )

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 13 at 5:26 am

      Very unusual flower. What is it?

    • Sheree
      Sheree on August 7 at 11:42 am

      OMG!! This is beautiful! Not sure how much you cropped, or what kind of floral this is, but it is beautiful. I might have tried to get a bigger aperture….. did you try to go up to 3.5? I think a more blurred background would make it pop even more (not that it needs to!).
      Think you could do in layers in PS–post production.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 13 at 10:14 am

        Thanks for your feedback

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 12:55 am

      Peter. You have captured great detail in this shot.Like it. Well done.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 19 at 12:32 pm

        Thank you so much for your feedback Denis

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on August 25 at 11:36 pm

      Beautiful shot Peter

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 13 at 5:27 am

      No flowers or bushes like that in Minnesota! Very cool!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 12:54 am

      Peter. Lovely shot. Great colour and contrast . Well done.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on August 10 at 5:12 pm

      Hi Keri ,
      you know that in days gone by (before Digital)you would make the shot with the best of your ability & what you got when you got your pics back was it ,so if you did your best ,great & that used to be photography ,so be pleased with your shot & if your not ,well now you can fix it.Great shot by the way.

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on August 15 at 12:56 pm

        Thanks Sara. Always so encouraging.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 12:53 am

      Keri. I like this image. Foe me it evokes good day to come and it is good to be around. Well done.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 13 at 5:29 am

      The colors in this photo are stunning! Very cool.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 13 at 10:13 am

        Thanks so much Sara

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 12:49 am

      Peter. Lovely shot of the water Lillie. I might even crop some of the left side to balance it up. Well done.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 19 at 1:37 am

        Thank you for your thoughts on this photo Denis

    • Valerie Worthen
      Valerie Worthen on August 11 at 11:51 am

      Beautiful and great detail!

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 11 at 1:55 pm

        Thank you so much.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 11 at 3:29 pm

        Thank you for your thoughts Valerie

    • Rodney Charlton
      Rodney Charlton on August 17 at 10:33 am

      I like the red colours of the bird against the green and you have nicely separated your subject from the background. My dragonfly above is perched in a similar spot!

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 19 at 1:41 am

        Thank you Rodney ,I did see the dragon fly

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 12:48 am

      Peter. Nice clear sharp shot. I like the eye – good focus. Well done.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 19 at 1:39 am

        Thanks so much Denis

    • Sheree
      Sheree on August 20 at 2:50 am

      So good Peter! YOu have got great lines and a very sharp photo of the little bird!

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 20 at 2:17 pm

        Thanks for your interest & feedback Sheree

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on August 25 at 11:44 pm

      Great capture. The bird has a perfect background and this thing it stands on is visually interesting – great work
      I think that removing the blurred stick on the right can make it even better. Either by cropping the image or cloning it out in an editing program

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 13 at 5:30 am

      Interesting shot. Unusual angle. Nice job.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 12:47 am

      Roseann. Nice B/W shot. Nice lines and angles and play of light versus shadow is good. Well done.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 13 at 5:31 am

      Great job, love the colors.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on August 18 at 12:33 am

      good capture Rodney ,love the colors in the wings ,nice clean shot & good Bokeh.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 12:45 am

      Rodney. Great image. You have to be quick and patient to get these shots.

      • Rodney Charlton
        Rodney Charlton on August 22 at 11:53 am

        Thanks Denis. Agreed !

    • Sheree
      Sheree on August 20 at 2:49 am

      Such a really lovely photo! I found these shots are sooooo hard! 🙂

      • Rodney Charlton
        Rodney Charlton on August 22 at 11:52 am

        Sheree, thanks. Yes a lot of patience and lots of not so good photos.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on August 25 at 11:45 pm

      Lovely photo Rodney – great composition and capture

    • Linda
      Linda on August 30 at 4:51 pm

      What a beautiful photo, so sharp and great composition.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 12:44 am

      Sara. Like the sky in this one. It sets the tone for the weather that was about at the time.

    • lynne F Murphy
      lynne F Murphy on August 19 at 2:41 pm

      Interesting shot. Moody in B/ W

    • Bill Hanson
      Bill Hanson on August 21 at 6:45 am

      Sara, you really nailed the “moody” aspect of the weather, and it has a nice “vintage” feel to it. The horizon and foreground slope to the left, so you may want to straighten that, although you would need to be careful not to lose the two posts on the lower right that provide your foreground interest.
      I really like the image as it is, but I wonder what it would look like if you made it more contrasty.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on August 25 at 11:49 pm

      Beautiful image and a great mood. Well done

      • Linda
        Linda on August 30 at 4:53 pm

        What a difference with the added contrast. Great shot

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 30 at 9:41 pm

        I like the second version better also with some contrast , the first shot did look a little washed out

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 18 at 3:55 am

      Such a little cutie! Awesome picture.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 19 at 12:52 am

        Thank you for taking a look Sara

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 19 at 12:42 am

      Peter. Great shot. Well composed and shot. Like this one. Well done.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 19 at 12:51 am

        Thanks so much Denis

    • Sheree
      Sheree on August 20 at 2:48 am

      Nice capture, Peter! He is sharp with his lovely fluffy feathers!

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 20 at 3:01 am

        Thank you Sheree for your interest & feedback

  266. Sheree
    Sheree on August 20 at 2:47 am

    I have not honed in on one passion—-but focus on “fine art photography”—- as I develop further, I am sure I will find my own style and uniqueness as an artist. My family are all really good painters—I cannot even draw a stick man! But I love photography.
    This photo I “saw’ this morning in my bathroom. It is actually a few colourful pool floats outside behind a frosted external bathroom door. I have cropped to try to get rid of the blow out caused by the sun shining in.
    D750 using my 18-200 lens shot at 35mm with ISO 250 f8.0 at 1/40sec.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a54415e20b72f792e1b7169073fc4d88b2784df345ee4d69bc1d7186ab5ad5dd.jpg

    • Bill Hanson
      Bill Hanson on August 21 at 6:39 am

      Sheree, this is a really nice abstract piece — really gives the sense of a rainbow to me. It’s amazing how shooting through something like a frosted piece of glass radically changes the feel and sense of the image. I urge you to keep experimenting with other kinds of things as your “filter,” like plastic, water, bottles, screens, etc. to evoke the kinds of feelings or moods that you see. Again, nicely done!

      • Sheree
        Sheree on August 24 at 7:56 am

        I will definitely open my eyes more!!! Thanks!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 23 at 6:35 pm

      Hi Sheree. Very abstract shot and well composed. Well done.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on August 25 at 11:50 pm

      Cool abstract Sheree, wait for the next experiments!

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 30 at 11:58 am

      Very cool shot. Would never have guessed the inspiration for the shot.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 23 at 6:33 pm

      Hi Peter. Lovely capture and enjoy your trip.

      • Sheree
        Sheree on August 24 at 7:57 am

        Nicely done!!! Looking forward to pictures from Fiji!!

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on August 25 at 11:52 pm

      Beautiful colors – like the contrast between the blueish colors of the background vs the warm foreground

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 30 at 8:30 pm

        Thank you Erez for your interest .

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 30 at 11:57 am

      Peter, this has an almost under water quality to it, with the foliage between the rocks. Well done, great shot.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on August 30 at 8:28 pm

        Thank you so much Sara for your thoughts

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on September 28 at 8:07 am

      Very nice Peter. I feel I am standing there looking into the valley.

  268. Bill Hanson
    Bill Hanson on August 21 at 6:32 am

    Starvation Draw Petroglyphs. As I shared in the B&W challenge, I am fascinated by the petroglyphs left by the Mimbres people of the American Southwest, who vanished around 1,000 BCE leaving nothing but this mysterious rock art and a few shards of pottery. We can only guess at the meaning of these images — or even whether they were practical signposts, records of activities, spiritual images, or something else. It appears that these petroglyphs may have served all of these purposes, and they reveal to us a world that is much different than we see today.
    Since most of these images are unprotected on public land, they are subject to theft and vandalism — it would be a shame if these thousand-year old works of art were to disappear as well. Sharing these images is my passion project.
    This particular panel is high on a ridge overlooking a place called “Starvation Draw” in southern New Mexico.
    f/8.0, 1/100 sec, 31 mm focal length, ISO 100, Nikon D3400 with kit lens. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/7018f5c6e1d56f42ac0ea6d77da8bd7733da8d47ea882d1522132104cffa3578.jpg

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 23 at 6:32 pm

      Hi Bill. Very interesting History to tis shot. Well captured.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on August 24 at 7:59 am

      Very interesting! Hopefully our modern day graffiti does not destroy!!!

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on August 25 at 11:58 pm

      Nice image and an interesting story. Is there any attempt to protect the drawings that were left? Is it possible?

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 30 at 11:56 am

      Great angle, thanks for preserving part of history. Lovely job.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on August 26 at 2:26 pm

      This is absolutely beautiful, Erez. I really love the combination of different colours and textures of the foliage and rocks, and those rays of light are just magic!

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on August 26 at 10:31 pm

        Much appreciated Kerrie

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on August 26 at 10:01 pm

      Hi Erez. This is great work. Well balanced and nicely put together. Well done.

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on August 26 at 10:31 pm

        Thanks for your feedback Denis

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on August 27 at 6:37 am

      Erez, Very nice use of the golden hour. The sunbeams shining on the ground below add a nice glow. Well done.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 30 at 11:55 am

      Beautiful! Looks like a lovely spot to sit and enjoy life.

      • Erez Shilat
        Erez Shilat on August 30 at 10:13 pm

        Thanks Sara, and yes, it is a lovely spot to relax

    • Linda
      Linda on August 30 at 4:56 pm

      Beautiful, love the angry looking sky and the colours of the foliage.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on September 28 at 8:06 am

      How lovely. Well captured. Rolling hills is something I struggle with in composition.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on August 28 at 3:37 pm

      Amazing colors and a nice framing with the beach at bottom. The industrial structures add an interesting break of the horizon. Beautiful and well done

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on September 28 at 8:05 am

        I appreciate your feedback Erez. Thank you.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on August 30 at 11:54 am

      What great color in the sky! Awesome job!

    • Linda
      Linda on August 30 at 4:59 pm

      Love the colour of the sky with the contrast of the buildings. Great shot

    • Rodney Charlton
      Rodney Charlton on September 12 at 7:47 am

      Great colours and that orange sky!

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on September 28 at 8:04 am

        It’s pretty special Rodney.

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on September 28 at 8:04 am

        Thank you Juan. Fires help with the colouring on sunset.

    • Erez Shilat
      Erez Shilat on August 30 at 10:19 pm

      Beautiful image and lovely colors Linda and an interesting processing. Love the angle you use – adds depth.

    • David Robinson
      David Robinson on September 4 at 3:59 am

      Linda a really nice shot. Super saturated colours and great composition.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on September 6 at 12:11 am

      Beautiful scene ,looks lovely

      • Linda
        Linda on September 6 at 3:09 am

        Thank you, it was a beautiful place near Wimborne in Dorset

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on September 28 at 8:03 am

      Well done Linda. Looks like a story book.

  272. Rodney Charlton
    Rodney Charlton on September 2 at 9:23 pm

    While taking photos of flowers for one of my last month’s B&W challenge posts, this bee came along (suiting my passion of insects). I quickly changed my camera settings back to colour and a faster shutter speed in a attempt to capture a clear shot of this bee. Many photos later this one came out okay. I have been meaning to post it during the last week, and then almost decided perhaps I should just post it in BC07, given it was taken in my backyard. It would save me a photo, but no … I have posted it here.
    Settings. 1/250 sec @ f/8, ISO-200, lens MZ.60mm
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/089ceb6eadb33394f33489a07aae84ff6d98eb3beb4ec0f9233016897c928a26.jpg

    • David Robinson
      David Robinson on September 4 at 3:57 am

      Rodney, excellent shot. Nice details in the flower and bee.

      • Rodney Charlton
        Rodney Charlton on September 4 at 7:03 am

        Thanks David. It is good when the photo works out as hoped.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on September 5 at 1:09 pm

      Wow Rodney! Brilliant detail, and nice composition.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on September 6 at 12:15 am

      Nice capture Rodney < I blew it up to full screen & nice sharpness & focus ,I think it looks better in full screen

      • Rodney Charlton
        Rodney Charlton on September 12 at 7:08 am

        Thanks Peter. I like this one big too.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on September 9 at 8:43 am

      Rodney, well done! Great capture Love the vibrant colors in the middle pf the flower and the pollen on the bee’s legs.

      • Rodney Charlton
        Rodney Charlton on September 12 at 7:31 am

        Thanks Sara. The bee was visiting a few different flowers but this white one helped emphasise the vibrance.

    • Brenda Potts
      Brenda Potts on September 11 at 7:47 am

      Incredible detail… even down to the shadow of the wings on the pedals! Fantastic shot.

      • Rodney Charlton
        Rodney Charlton on September 12 at 7:38 am

        Thanks Brenda. There were lots of photos that didn’t make it. I was very pleased with the detail of this one and that all the bee was visible.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on September 28 at 8:02 am

      Amazing shot Rodney.

    • Rohn Shearer
      Rohn Shearer on October 18 at 12:39 am

      I love this shot, I have taken many of bees on different flowers, but have yet to get on this sharp! Love it!!

    • Rodney Charlton
      Rodney Charlton on September 4 at 6:59 am

      The colour of the cliffs are great and compliment that lovely blue water. Nice photo David.

      • David Robinson
        David Robinson on September 5 at 8:20 pm

        Rodney, thanks for your positive comments.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on September 6 at 12:13 am

      Love it ,great shot & well composed David

      • David Robinson
        David Robinson on September 6 at 1:21 am

        Peter thanks so much for your comments.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on September 9 at 8:43 am

      Well done! Looks like an amazing place. Love the colors.

      • David Robinson
        David Robinson on September 11 at 5:08 am

        Sara, thanks so much for your comments.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on September 9 at 10:03 pm

      Looks good & warm .

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on September 28 at 9:19 am

      Something about an open fire at night, that is hard to resist. Nice capture.

    • Rohn Shearer
      Rohn Shearer on October 17 at 10:59 pm

      Nice capture, I also like playing with fire! 🙂

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on September 15 at 9:01 am

      So peaceful! So pretty.

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on September 28 at 9:18 am

      Really good composition Peter. The blue just pops. Bula Fiji.

    • Rohn Shearer
      Rohn Shearer on October 17 at 10:56 pm

      I want to go there!! 🙂

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on September 14 at 8:57 pm

      wow what a great structure ,good lines & great shot

      • fiat76
        fiat76 on September 14 at 9:27 pm

        Thanks, Peter! It IS quite a structure! The light was perfect. I was moving on a boat, so I was really pleased with the capture.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on September 15 at 9:02 am

      Beautiful! Almost monochromatic. Love the lines.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on September 28 at 8:01 am

      Beautiful balanced shot Bonnie.

      • fiat76
        fiat76 on September 30 at 7:04 am

        Thank-you, Keri! Appreciate your comment very much!

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on September 28 at 9:15 am

      Good lines and composition. Any chance of getting a shot looking down between the two spans?

      • Rohn Shearer
        Rohn Shearer on October 17 at 10:55 pm

        My thought as well. 🙂

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on September 28 at 2:54 pm

      Love the tones in this, Bonnie. Great composition, and great capture from a moving boat!

      • fiat76
        fiat76 on September 30 at 7:01 am

        Thank-you, Kerrie…I think I got lucky with this shot!

    • Rohn Shearer
      Rohn Shearer on October 17 at 10:55 pm

      Very nice! I find bridges facinating. 🙂

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on September 26 at 5:14 pm

      Love the light and soft tones in this, Dane. Nice image.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on September 27 at 9:55 pm

      Really good. I would maybe have placed the building a little of center-personal preference. Lovely image.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on September 28 at 8:01 am

      Hi Dane. This shot has a nice softness about it. I like that the only real colour is the sun on the grass. Gives it a really nice balance.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on September 28 at 8:11 am

      I really love this shot, DAne. I wonder if there is anyway to make the “Chicken HIll” sign stand out more? Perhaps stacking the photo and focus on the sign? Perhaps a slightly different angle? Somehow, for me anyway, the sign tells the whole story….

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on September 28 at 9:11 am

      Kind of a soft, moody feel to this one. Good photo Dane.

    • Dane Wilson
      Dane Wilson on September 18 at 11:54 pm

      Well done Peter almost painterly

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on September 21 at 2:20 pm

        Thank you so much Dane .

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on September 27 at 9:55 pm

      Well done! I can almost feel the sunshine. Lovely colors.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:13 pm

        Thank you sara .

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on September 28 at 7:59 am

      So crisp and such beautiful colours. Well done Peter.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on September 28 at 8:08 am

      This almost looks like 3D, Peter! The lily stands out from the blurred background. Lovely!

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:12 pm

        It Does look 3D to me also ,thanks Sheree .

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on September 28 at 9:08 am

      Wow, Peter! You really nailed the focus on this one. DoF makes the flower jump out.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:11 pm

        Thank you so much Rachel .

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on September 28 at 2:51 pm

      Brilliant capture of the water lilly, Peter. Well shot.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:10 pm

        thanks Kerrie .

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on September 21 at 2:53 pm

      Sorry forgot the settings for the Crocodile .Sony A77 , Tamron 70-300mm @ 70mm , iso400 , f6.3 , 1/60 , Shutter priority.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on September 25 at 7:13 pm

      Awesome image, and detail Peter. I realise that this was a “once off” but I feel that if you had left a little bit more space on the left, for this beautiful creature to move into… this image would have much more impact.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:09 pm

        Thanks for your thoughts Kerrie but I was in a boat with a lens that only went down to 70mm & the croc was so close & I didn’t have a lot of time as it went down as quickly as it showed up ,it was more of a lucky shot than a planed one .

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on September 27 at 9:57 pm

      Fabulous! I like how it is almost B&W, the tones are wonderful.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:03 pm

        Thank you so much Sara .

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on September 28 at 7:59 am

      Love the “slickness: of the water and the colours are terrific.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:03 pm

        Thanks for your interest Keri .

    • Sheree
      Sheree on September 28 at 8:07 am

      REally good shot, Peter. Very sharp, love the texture and the very crisp eye…..

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:02 pm

        Thanks so much Sheree .

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on September 28 at 9:06 am

      Good capture Peter. Great clarity and detail.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:01 pm

        Thank you for your comments Rachel .

    • Juan
      Juan on September 28 at 10:32 pm

      great capture Peter. Appears harmless until he /she opens the mouth.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:00 pm

        Thank you Juan.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on September 26 at 5:12 pm

      Wow, Keri, this is a great shot. I love the way sharp centre fades out to softness at the edge. The black board behind it has worked really well. I may have given it a tad more space at the bottom, but I think it’s beautiful as it is. Well shot.

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on September 28 at 7:58 am

        Thank you Kerrie for your comments. I was hesitant about the bottom because I didnt really want any stem in it but I probably agree with you. Cheers.

        • Rachel Gilmour
          Rachel Gilmour on September 28 at 9:03 am

          You can erase the stem.

        • Kerrie Clarke
          Kerrie Clarke on September 28 at 6:24 pm

          Keri..your shot is your own vision…and I love it as it is.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on September 27 at 9:57 pm

      Looks like it should hang on a wall! Well done.

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on September 28 at 7:56 am

        Thanks Sara. As I have started framing and mounting my pictures, the black is matt board that I will use to frame this one out.

    • Rodney Charlton
      Rodney Charlton on September 28 at 12:19 am

      Keri, good thinking with the black board. It certainly helps to capture the inner fine details which you have got nice and sharp. Great photo.

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on September 28 at 7:56 am

        Thank you for the feedback Rodney.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on September 28 at 8:05 am

      Well done, Keri. I really love the sharp centre and the soft edges. This would be a great piece to hang!

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on September 28 at 8:20 am

        Thank you Sheree. I plan to hang this one because I surprised myself LOL!!!

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on September 28 at 9:01 am

      Keri, I love it! I had the same thought as Sheree, except I inverted it. It would be sensational on my white walls.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:16 pm

      It looks great Keri ,you have done a great job .

    • Rachel Gilmour
      Rachel Gilmour on September 28 at 8:51 am

      I think you may have achieved your goal on this one. Really good composition. Did you consider doing an HDR?

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on September 28 at 8:53 am

      Keri, Wonderful job. In addition to the HDR, maybe try B&W for a noir feel?

    • Sheree
      Sheree on September 28 at 11:45 am

      I love the composition…..but it does feel it is not quite straight….. I would try to straighten a little bit. Also, you have some lovely textures etc., I would play with this in B&W…..and bring u the rusty textures in the car! While I know this was a traveling picture, next time, set up and take a bout 5 or 6 photos using different stops then stack them and see what you get! Might be fun to experiment in this way too!

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on September 28 at 2:45 pm

      A classis outback image, Keri. Love the angle of the car and the wide horizon. You really have captured the essence of Winton here, with hard shadows and the parched landscape. Well done.
      PS We got “stuck” in Winton for 2 weeks waiting for a replacement gearbox to be delivered from the east coast, and then fitted. What did you think of the tap water? 🙂

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on September 29 at 12:13 pm

        Thanks for your feedback Kerrie. 2.5 weeks….geez. tell me you went to the dinosaurs. And I loved the artesian water.

    • Juan
      Juan on September 28 at 10:28 pm

      great shot Keri. Can you try to brush out the three holes in the foreground? That is where my eyes went to at first ( crazy, I know).

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:30 pm

      Nice one Keri you have captured the look of the outback ,I was in winton 6 mths ago on my way up to Birdsville & it was very dry & dusty all over .

      • Keri Down
        Keri Down on September 29 at 12:11 pm

        Thanks Peter. Ioved the landscape. Whole lot of nothing but everything.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on September 28 at 11:47 am

      A lovely shot, Sara. I would crop out the foreground and let the stream start by the bright area. I find the foreground distracting both in that it is just “messy” and out of focus…… This is a really great composition, but think you can make better in post!

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on September 28 at 6:01 pm

      Hi Sarah, I really love your composition with the meandering creek line. I can see that your focus point is the grassy spot just under 1/2 way into the image. Your artistic vision may have been to blur the foreground, If you tried f 11 and focused 1/3 into the frame, you might get better focus throughout.

    • Sheree
      Sheree on September 28 at 11:50 am

      Nice shot, Juan.
      did you try to crop off a bit more on the right side? I am distracted that the sides are not even!…. Nice lines….. I might also have made a bit more out of the flag…… it is hard to see, but you have direct lines all around it!

        • Sheree
          Sheree on September 28 at 12:21 pm

          This is a much more pleasing photo….and your focal point is very clear! I really love this one, Juan!

          • Juan
            Juan on September 28 at 12:28 pm

            Thank you. there were so many people on the bridge and there is a bike lane with fast bikes, It was hard trying to stay in the center of the bridge without being run over. watch this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J87r4Wlw_3o

          • Sheree
            Sheree on September 28 at 1:40 pm

            WOW!…. good for you to be able to capture minus all that activity! 🙂

          • Juan
            Juan on September 28 at 10:17 pm

            Thank you

        • Sara O'Brien
          Sara O'Brien on September 28 at 10:08 pm

          Juan I like this one better. Great job!

          • Juan
            Juan on September 28 at 10:17 pm

            Thanks Sara

        • Peter J Dwight
          Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 10:55 pm

          great shot Juan .

          • Juan
            Juan on September 28 at 11:05 pm

            Thanks Peter

        • Rohn Shearer
          Rohn Shearer on October 17 at 10:45 pm

          I love all the lines. My suggestion would be to move forward or bag to avoid the cable through the flag.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on September 28 at 2:46 pm

      Nice contrast and detail, Juan.

  284. Rachel Gilmour
    Rachel Gilmour on September 28 at 2:48 pm

    My “passion” has been astrophotography, however, it’s really weather and location dependent. Night photography, in general, is a lot simpler and I love the vivid colors that can be captured. I took this photo, while on holiday, last fall. Ive been wanting to do something with it but it’s kept slipping my mind. Not any longer. The photo is a JPEG, right out of the camera, and I only cropped it to eliminate distracting elements on both sides. Taken in Provincetown, on Cape Cod in the US, on a fogy night. Though not vivid, I really loved the scene and hope I captured the mood. 22mm f/2 lens set at f/2, 1/2sec, ISO 100, resting on the back of a bench.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/fdc7f33f6f79ad9e7e7bc2aff682595797330532fa9c2b80f98b1f3bef97b467.jpg

  285. Rachel Gilmour
    Rachel Gilmour on September 28 at 2:54 pm

    My “passion” has been astrophotography, however, it’s really weather and location dependent. Night photography, in general, is a lot simpler and I love the vivid colors that can be captured. I took this photo, while on holiday, last fall. Ive been wanting to do something with it but it’s kept slipping my mind. Not any longer. The photo is a JPEG, right out of the camera, and I only cropped it to eliminate distracting elements on both sides. Taken in Provincetown, on Cape Cod in the US, on a fogy night. Though not vivid, I really loved the scene and hope I captured the mood. 22mm f/2 lens set at f/2, 1/2sec, ISO 100, resting on the back of a bench.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/7a138acf7dc5130f0ac9cd6830f6f313ae112b75ab7577160d5440b214d638bc.jpg

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on September 28 at 3:34 pm

      Wow! I really like the mood you’ve captured here, Rachel. The colours are subtle, but beautiful. All the leading lines, and the foggy glow from the lights disappearing down to the end of the wharf are awesome. Makes me want to explore your image from front to back. Love it.

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on September 29 at 10:33 pm

        Thank you, Kerrie! 🙂

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on September 28 at 10:09 pm

      Wonderful job! Love the mood and the lines that take you deep into the photo.

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on September 29 at 10:33 pm

        Thank you Sara.

    • Juan
      Juan on September 28 at 10:23 pm

      Very nice capture Rachel. I am starting to enjoy night photography as well. Less people around

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on September 29 at 10:32 pm

        Thank you, Juan.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 10:52 pm

      Great scene ,well composed ,leading lines take you to the buildings in the centre of the scene & lovely soft glow to the photo ,great job .

      • Rachel Gilmour
        Rachel Gilmour on September 29 at 10:34 pm

        Thank you, Peter.

  286. Kerrie Clarke
    Kerrie Clarke on September 28 at 4:15 pm

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/b8a66cd202e6b57140fae8916f1ad079dbc29d1faea2739535affe08cd0deae8.jpg My passion is water in the landscape…in it’s varied forms. I took this a few weeks ago while visiting family at Torquay in Victoria. (Australia) It’s a special place for me, as I spent my teenage years here in the 70’s. Despite the fact that there are now asphalt carparks and bollards, and a lot of erosion over time…the ocean just does it for me, every time.
    Torquay Point: Shutter priority at 30 sec 10 stop ND filter f14 ISO 100

    • Juan
      Juan on September 28 at 10:16 pm

      Kerrie
      beautiful shot. What shutter speed did you use? any filters?

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on September 29 at 9:49 am

        Thanks Juan, it was 30 sec exposure with 10 stop ND filter.

        • Juan
          Juan on September 29 at 10:44 am

          Very nice. I am glad you di not get the “X” factor as I did when I was trying to use my 10 Stop ND filter with my previous black and white picture. When I took the picture with a wide angle it would show it. I asked my camera shop friend and he stated that it was normal so I bought me the Haida ND kit and I am going to try it to see how it turns out

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on September 28 at 11:37 pm

      Great job Kerrie ,I have wanted to try slow shutter speeds using ND filters but just haven’t got the chance yet ,beautiful scene .

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on September 29 at 9:53 am

        Thanks Peter. I have a long way to go, lots of learning and practice to improve my photos using this technique, but I love it. Try it when you can!

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on September 29 at 10:21 am

      Beautiful shot! What a fabulous place to visit!

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on October 4 at 6:20 pm

        Thanks so much, Sarah. I’m hoping to get back down there in the next few weeks and get some more shots.

    • fiat76
      fiat76 on September 30 at 7:02 am

      This is a beautiful image…the colors are wonderful…love the softness of the water. Very serene.

    • Rodney Charlton
      Rodney Charlton on October 4 at 5:15 pm

      I like the orange and blue colours and the small rocks in the foreground and the lines of the horizon and the waters edge point to the rock in the top right third. Great composition. I will have to get out my ND filter and try getting that nice smooth water into some of my photos.

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on October 4 at 6:14 pm

        Thanks so much for that feedback, Rodney. It really boosts my confidence. (something that I lack). I love this style, but I have a long way to go to get the shot that I really want! You are such an accomplished photographer, I’m sure you will do amazing things using ND filters!

        • Rodney Charlton
          Rodney Charlton on October 7 at 7:13 pm

          Kerrie, thank you for your lovely compliment, but I just take lots of photos, and choose the better ones to submit for Brent’s challenges, although I have had cameras and been taking photos for almost as long as I can remember. I believe being part of Photo BootCamp has given us all more confidence, as none of us are lacking in submitting photos. I haven’t shared photos with other people like this previously – just family and friends. Your landscape photos like the one above are stunning. I also noticed your foreground and background are so sharp it looks like there are some birds (?) on the left side of that large rock in the water in the background. I can only zoom in so far with the reduce file size we can upload. What can you see in your original?

          • Kerrie Clarke
            Kerrie Clarke on October 9 at 9:53 am

            Hi Rodney, the birds on the rock are Cormorants, not sure which species, but I call them Shags. The rock is actually named Bird Rock!

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on October 4 at 6:18 pm

      This is an amazing image! So so sharp. Beautiful detail. (I like the aphids as well) I dream of being able to capture something like this.

      • Rodney Charlton
        Rodney Charlton on October 7 at 9:26 pm

        Thanks Kerrie. I didn’t really notice the aphids till looking at the photo on the computer, but they certainly add to the photo. I was too busy trying to get an in focus photo, given it was handheld – a tripod is no use when these little things don’t stop very long when they land. (i have plenty of out of focus shots)

    • Brenda Potts
      Brenda Potts on October 5 at 9:03 am

      Wow, fantastic image! Love the rich colors, composition, and it’s amazingly sharp.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on October 7 at 6:51 pm

      Awesome Macro shot ,tack sharp & you can see the little bugs under the leaf also,very nice shot .

    • Rohn Shearer
      Rohn Shearer on October 17 at 1:27 pm

      I love this shot! I have been trying to get some good macro shots, but have not got one this clear yet.

      • Rodney Charlton
        Rodney Charlton on October 18 at 7:22 am

        Thanks Rohn. Just keep taking photos, particularly with little creatures that move from where you have focused and framed. 😉 I have lots of photos that are not clear like this.

    • Rodney Charlton
      Rodney Charlton on October 5 at 10:59 am

      Great shot Brenda. Given the circumstances it is a well composed image (as it seems you were – no signs of camera shake) with the bears face in the top right third with eye contact and the goodies in the bottom left third. Pity you weren’t able to pop out and move the crate 😉 Well done.

      • Brenda Potts
        Brenda Potts on October 6 at 3:25 am

        Yeah, he was way too close to go out on the porch! I was thinking that the crate gives a bit of perspective, but I could crop off a bit more from the right. Thanks for the feedback!

        • Rodney Charlton
          Rodney Charlton on October 6 at 8:25 pm

          Brenda, you would lose too much of the bear if you cropped it. I take your point about perspective and don’t really mind it being there. Something else between you and the bear !! Like many of our animal shots, there is only so much re-positioning we can do when they don’t cooperate and pose in more suitable spots for the camera. Again, well done.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on October 6 at 11:44 am

      Yikes!!! Well done. I am not sure I could manage a clear shot-might have had a bit of “camera” shake. My husband is in north central Minnesota and texted me today he saw 2 bears while walking-grouse hunting. I am glad I have not been that close.

  289. Sara O'Brien
    Sara O'Brien on October 6 at 11:50 am

    So not the picture I wanted or was trying for. I slammed my car door and scared the birds away. My camera was not prepared for the birds taking flight. However, I really like the way this turned out. This is straight out of the camera. ISO 400 300mm f/6.3 1/10. Just goes to show you sometimes things work out well, even when you think they haven’t. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/452feed966a3c80e822c7cb22e7701b87d71fe6048f83ccaadeb671fd81185da.jpg

    • Rohn Shearer
      Rohn Shearer on October 17 at 1:23 pm

      It’s amazing how sometimes the accidental shots turn out to be some of our favorites! 🙂

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on October 30 at 6:51 pm

      I love the tones in this abstract, Sarah. The cross hatching effect looks amazing! Sometimes our mistakes turn out to be a good thing. Nice image.

    • Janet Cook
      Janet Cook on December 14 at 7:37 am

      WOW! Gorgeous! So clean and beautiful. Looks as good as any postcard. I like the diagonal of the white buildings composed here.

      • Peter J Dwight
        Peter J Dwight on December 14 at 2:20 pm

        Thanks so much Janet .

  291. Rohn Shearer
    Rohn Shearer on October 18 at 1:18 pm

    I am not sure what to use as my passion project, I have so many things that I like to photograph. My wife and I have been a lot of stressors the last while, so I try to make sure she gets away to do things she enjoys, & I take a day every once in a while to pack up my camera gear & go explore. A state park, an amusement park, the zoo, whatever. Where ever I am, I tend to find something small to photograph with my macro lens. The other day I found this stuck to the siding of our house behind the garbage can. I’m not sure if it is a chrysalis or cacoon, but I love the gold stripe & spots. It looks like they are painted on. Taken with a Canon T6s & Tamron 90mm macro lens. F10 & 1/60th second.

    • Rohn Shearer
      Rohn Shearer on October 18 at 1:20 pm

      I am told I have to be logged in to upload a picture even though I am. I don’t understand.

      • Rodney Charlton
        Rodney Charlton on October 18 at 5:10 pm

        Rohn. Yes you appear to be logged in okay , first to the Bootcamp pages and 2nd to Disqus otherwise you wouldn’t have been able to add your comment. When making a comment you should be able to click the image icon to add a photo or drag and drop your photo into the comment. I know there is a file size limit on photos (5 MB ?). Not sure if that is the problem?

  292. Sara O'Brien
    Sara O'Brien on October 26 at 11:09 am

    Here is a “secret” door we came across on our craft weekend (really an excuse to drink, and eat and gossip). We try to get together at least once per year. I loved the patina, the texture, the ivy. It is one of my favorite photos from the weekend. It was taken with my phone, ISO 197 3.8mm f2, /50. Hope you enjoy it. I look forward to your comments. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/3177291a54993760e684001cd7aed3d6b445dfcb11b9ce0fbc1250bf4a683ded.jpg

    • Rohn Shearer
      Rohn Shearer on October 30 at 1:22 pm

      Nice pic! I really want to slide it open & see where it goes! 🙂

      • Sara O'Brien
        Sara O'Brien on December 14 at 3:03 pm

        So did I, but thought it might not go over too well.

    • Janet Cook
      Janet Cook on December 14 at 7:35 am

      Sara, you need an “excuse” to drink, eat and gossip? haha I love secret and hidden doors. Even if they aren’t really, if you can make it seem like that it is all the better. The colors contrast so nicely. I love color. Very vibrant photo and there is a story here.

      • Sara O'Brien
        Sara O'Brien on December 14 at 3:05 pm

        Thank you Janet. I really don’t need an excuse, but it does help all of us getting together. 😉 I am intrigued by the panels on the door.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on December 14 at 3:27 pm

      Great capture Sara especially for a phone photo .

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on October 30 at 10:24 am

      Kerrie, gorgeous! I love the color palette, the angle, and the soft waves. Awesome job.

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on October 30 at 6:42 pm

        Thanks so much for the feedback, Sarah! I grew up in that area, so it’s been great to revisit…and photograph it.

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on November 29 at 11:43 am

      Kerrie, I love the way the rocks lead you into the water, them into the sky.

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on November 29 at 7:01 pm

        Thanks Peter, I failed to mention that I used a 10 stop filter for this shot.

        • Peter Brody
          Peter Brody on November 30 at 12:52 pm

          Thanks, Kerrie. What does the 10 stop filter do ?

          • Kerrie Clarke
            Kerrie Clarke on November 30 at 2:22 pm

            Hi Peter, it’s a 10 stop ND filter, which blocks out the light, allowing me to use a longer shutter speed in daylight..

    • Janet Cook
      Janet Cook on December 14 at 7:33 am

      Peter took my words almost exactly. Nice image. Good foreground, middle to the back sky. Nice

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on December 14 at 3:32 pm

      Love the shot kerrie & the water smoothed out with the ND filter & slow shutter ,nice sky & dark in the clouds ,well done .I have the filters at home but have not tried them out yet .

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on December 20 at 3:40 pm

        Thanks Peter. Make sure you try out your filters soon!

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on December 30 at 7:21 pm

      Another wonderful shot Kerrie. This is on my list of places to explore. Well done.

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on January 3 at 6:31 pm

        Thanks Keri, the Great Ocean Road is packed full of amazing photo opportunities!

  294. Denis O'Byrne
    Denis O'Byrne on October 31 at 5:41 am

    Hi all. Not a post, just a comment. With all the monthly challenges going on I keep forgetting about this side of the coin. Well done to you all for those great shots you have posted. A great variety of a very high standard. Well done to you all.

  295. Rohn Shearer
    Rohn Shearer on November 23 at 7:47 am

    So I tried to share my first picture in this challenge about a month ago, but could not get the picture to upload. It turns out it was an issue with the way Chrome handles cookies. It works fine in Firefox, so here is the picture. Here is the description from the original post.

    I am not sure what to use as my passion project, I have so many things
    that I like to photograph. My wife and I have been under a lot of stress https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/37ae959fe4afa7f4180f45fb86c43e0cf264d196b8281f245676ee7e9eda5173.jpg
    the last while, so I try to make sure she gets away to do things she
    enjoys, & I take a day every once in a while to pack up my camera
    gear & go explore. A state park, an amusement park, the zoo,
    whatever. Where ever I am, I tend to find something small to photograph
    with my macro lens. The other day I found this stuck to the siding of
    our house behind the garbage can. I’m not sure if it is a chrysalis or
    cacoon, but I love the gold stripe & spots. It looks like they are
    painted on. Taken with a Canon T6s & Tamron 90mm macro lens. F10
    & 1/60th second.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on November 26 at 5:48 am

      Rohn well done. I am not sure which it is either, but you have done an excellent job capturing it. The gold does indeed look painted on.

      • Rohn Shearer
        Rohn Shearer on November 26 at 6:04 am

        Thanks Sara. I figured when I saw it, it was too late in the year for this, sure enough a few days later I found a monarch on the sidewalk & this was open. I’m not sure if the butterfly was dead, or just not moving because it was so cold.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on December 14 at 3:39 pm

      Hi Rohn , what a find ,it looks great almost ceramic . I can only upload with internet explorer ,my chrome won’t allow it either, so frustrating

    • Peter Brody
      Peter Brody on November 29 at 11:51 am

      Hi Denis. I love bridges and water. Is there a way to bring back the colors and detail in the middle of the picture above the bridge? It seems to be blown out. The fall colors would make it pop more.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on November 29 at 7:56 pm

        Hi Peter. Many thanks for those points. I will have a look at them over the coming days.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on November 29 at 6:43 pm

      Hi Denis, I really Like your composition, but feel that it might be a little overexposed in some parts.. also I feel that if you used the sliders in HSL , you could bring a bit more punch into the background trees.

      • Denis O'Byrne
        Denis O'Byrne on November 29 at 7:55 pm

        Hi Kerrie. Many thanks for those points. I will have a look at them over the coming days.

    • Dianne McIlwain
      Dianne McIlwain on November 29 at 10:34 pm

      Denis this is a very interesting image which draws my eye to the area below the arch. Perhaps the contrast and clarity could be increased to bring more texture and colour to the scene. Well done!

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on November 30 at 12:51 pm

      Denis, I like it, but agree it is a tab bright. Great composition, I almost feel the guy with the bright hat is doing something nefarious, and is nervous about being in the picture.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on December 14 at 3:43 pm

      Lovely shot Denis ,so peaceful but I also see a little bit bright & washed out in the top half ,still a great shot .

    • Gina
      Gina on November 29 at 12:41 pm

      My oh my Peter, I’m awe-struck just viewing this image. Stunning night time shot! and with your iPhone. Thank you!

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on November 29 at 2:07 pm

        Gina, it was truly a magical experience. My wife and I were amazed at how colorful the domes were.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on November 29 at 6:20 pm

      Wow! Love this, Peter. Just magical with that amazing architecture against the dark sky. well shot.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on November 29 at 7:57 pm

      Hi Peter. Vert nice indeed. I like the detail you have captured here.

    • Dianne McIlwain
      Dianne McIlwain on November 29 at 10:35 pm

      Peter I like the way you’ve included the statues on the left hand side and the way the cathedral stands out beautifully against the night sky.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on November 30 at 12:52 pm

      Lovely shot Peter! Another part of the world that is on my bucket list. Well done!

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on November 30 at 12:56 pm

        Thanks, Sara. If you ever get the chance, go there. Moscow and St. Petersburg were unbelievable.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on December 14 at 3:46 pm

      Wow thats a great shot for an Iphone ,I didn’t think they would be as good as that (even full screen its great) well done .

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on December 15 at 8:44 am

        Thanks, Peter. Red Square was amazing, both during the day and night.

    • Janet Cook
      Janet Cook on December 16 at 6:57 am

      Such a nice clear crisp image. The black sky just makes the building jump out at you. Very good.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on November 29 at 7:58 pm

      Hi Dianne. Nice work.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on November 30 at 12:54 pm

      I feel like laying down a beach towel and enjoying the view! What a lovely spot! Great job.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on December 14 at 3:51 pm

      Hi Dianne What a beautiful shot & a lovely clear day to go with it ,so lucky to be close to the beach .I live at least 1 1/2 hrs from any coast

    • Janet Cook
      Janet Cook on December 16 at 6:56 am

      Beautiful beach scene.

    • Gina
      Gina on November 29 at 1:24 pm

      What a stunning image within an image! I am peering through an exquisite window, beyond an ornate iron balcony down a waterway the leads my eyes to a dark stormy sky looming above old European style buildings. I’m so impressed 🙂

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on November 29 at 2:10 pm

        Gina, the photograph complimented the gorgeous artwork in the gallery. Thank you.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on November 29 at 6:14 pm

      Hi Peter, I love the lines, depth and colours in this image, I especially like the leading line to that moody sky, and the closer detail in the top window covering (not sure what it’s called!) and the fixture on the window frame. It appears that there is some misalignment in the horizontal lines in the image.. I’m wondering if this is a result of merging hand held images, or from some refraction through the glass?

      • Peter Brody
        Peter Brody on November 30 at 12:47 pm

        Thanks, Kerrie. This was a single image. The warped effect has to be from shooting through multiple windows that are very old.

        • Kerrie Clarke
          Kerrie Clarke on November 30 at 2:19 pm

          Thanks Peter, I kind of thought that was the case, though I have never seen the effect before. It adds a really interesting effect to the image. I like it!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on November 29 at 7:59 pm

      Hi Peter. great image.

    • fiat76
      fiat76 on November 29 at 11:51 pm

      This has a 3-D effect…love the colors and “image within an image” at the end!

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on November 30 at 12:56 pm

      Peter another great photo. I haven’t tried to photograph through multiple windows before, but I just might try it after this. Well done.

    • Janet Cook
      Janet Cook on December 14 at 7:29 am

      Nice! A frame within a frame! The warm tones of the buildings and the window area so beautifully complements the lovely blue of the sky.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on December 14 at 3:53 pm

      Great shot Peter ,I look through the window & it just keeps on going & going ,I love it.

  300. fiat76
    fiat76 on November 29 at 11:49 pm

    Obviously this is not SOOC, not even close. I wanted to get a shot of a newly painted hull, but there were so many distractors around the boat that I could not get a satisfying image. I resorted to a reflection in the water, and it was better but not quite what I wanted. As a last resort, I used a Pic to Paint option on my editing software, edited out some distractors, and this is the result. Bonnie https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/efda294d4967d348f7a2b44ba88f69baee531cd913cf73a8295906d31edf5cda.jpg and this is the result.

    • Janet Cook
      Janet Cook on December 14 at 7:27 am

      Beautiful shot! I like the composition, the reflections, the trees around the old boat house….. everything I like. Good job on a nice image.

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on December 20 at 3:42 pm

        Thanks so much Janet 🙂

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on December 14 at 3:06 pm

      Kerrie, lovely. I have the sudden urge to jump in and make waves! Very serene.

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on December 14 at 3:55 pm

      Beautiful scene & a lovely reflection with gorgeous colours.

    • Gina
      Gina on December 15 at 11:42 am

      Kerrie this is really such a beautiful capture. Almost feels tropical! 🙂

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on December 28 at 12:28 am

      Hi Kerrie. Very nice composition. Good light balance and reflections. The leading lines are nice the way they draw me in to the point of interest.

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on December 30 at 9:39 am

        Thanks Denis 🙂

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on December 30 at 7:16 pm

      Kerrie, what a wonderful, mystical place. I want to go there. Really nice shot.

      • Kerrie Clarke
        Kerrie Clarke on January 3 at 6:29 pm

        Thanks so much, Keri. It is a beautiful place.

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on December 14 at 3:08 pm

      Janet, lovely and serene. I can picture enjoying a cup of tea or glass of beer/wine in the pagoda in the evening-there will be no mosquitos-in this perfectly relaxing place. 😉

      • Janet Cook
        Janet Cook on December 16 at 6:55 am

        It is a very wonderful place to spend time.

    • Rohn Shearer
      Rohn Shearer on December 14 at 3:15 pm

      Nice composition, I love the reflections!

      • Janet Cook
        Janet Cook on December 16 at 6:55 am

        I am a fan of reflections too. Thanks

    • Peter J Dwight
      Peter J Dwight on December 14 at 3:23 pm

      Gorgeous scene Janet & good reflection ,the water leads you to the bridge ,great shot .

    • Gina
      Gina on December 15 at 11:44 am

      If I had a secret garden…it would look like this!

      • Janet Cook
        Janet Cook on December 16 at 6:53 am

        Right!! The landscape folks there are really incredible.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on December 21 at 5:07 pm

      This is beautiful, Janet. Great composition, love the leading lines of reflections, and the colours are gorgeous!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on December 28 at 12:25 am

      H Janet. Lovely shot and composition. Reflections are good and have an added value. I like the leading lines to the bridge in the far distance which helps to hold me in the shot. If anything I might lighten the building to the right.

    • Keri Down
      Keri Down on December 30 at 7:15 pm

      Really beautiful Janet.

    • Gina
      Gina on December 26 at 12:40 pm

      Hi Sara, Thank you for sharing this image, we do not have cardinals in CA. I appreciate seeing the many different birds from around the US as well as those from distant and exotic places! and who does not love melodious birdsong 🙂 I can see it is quite cold in your neck of the woods, your lady bird has tiny snow crystals in her crest,brrrrrr… she may be small but she is mighty (tough)!

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on December 28 at 12:21 am

      Hi Sara. Like the shot as is. It has a certain mystic to it. Thinking out loud, I wonder how it would look if you lightened the shadows a tad.?

    • Gina
      Gina on December 31 at 4:28 am

      I can appreciate your interest in this black stallion. There is something so noble about horses and he looks magnificent. I love this image, you might possibly consider trying to lighten the shadows a bit, there is much to see here, but I also consider the half lit side of his face intriguing. Horses have always been a passion of mine and given the opportunity…..he would be my passion project! I hope this is just the first of many more images to come 🙂

    • Sara O'Brien
      Sara O'Brien on December 31 at 5:56 am

      I love the way the whiskers on his nose stand out on the right.

    • Denis O'Byrne
      Denis O'Byrne on December 31 at 11:33 pm

      Hi Keri. Happy New Year. This has the makings of a great shot. if it were me I might take down the highlights and lighten the shadows. I think it would help show off the face structure better.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on January 3 at 6:26 pm

      Hi Keri, love the lighting down one side of this beautiful creature! I do agree that bringing up the shadows would enhance your image.

    • Kerrie Clarke
      Kerrie Clarke on January 3 at 6:14 pm

      Great capture, Rodney!

Submit a Comment