Saturday, September 20, 2014

Day 20 - Prickly

I really liked how these caught the light today. Even ex-flowers can be beautiful. I like shooting prickly things, even though I don't do it very often, and I really love shooting nature, as you've probably noticed. Especially closeups and macros.

If you were to look through my photo albums, you might notice that I very seldom shoot people. And if I do, they're very often candid shots. I've never been very good at arranging portraits, and I like the natural look to a photo taken when somebody is unaware. Somehow, photos like that come alive to me, and they take me right back to the moment, rather than to the process of shooting the it, if you know what I mean.

Don't get me wrong though, I really admire those who can arrange beautiful portraits. It must be really hard to get all those little technical details just right and to capture the "essence", the "personality" and the "soul" of the person posing at the same time.

I guess it's a skill like any other, either you're a natural, and just "know" how to do it or you're like me, and need to practice, practice and practice. :)

So, dear readers, what do you prefer to shoot? And what is your Achilles' heel :)

/MrsHjort

10 comments:

  1. Gorgeous, Natalie. Just the right amount of d.o.f. So interesting how many flowers, now spent and gone leave behind traces of beauty and the shapes here with the lighting making their crowns aglow are fabulous and this makes for a very special picture.

    As for me, I like to do still lives. Probably something about the control freak in me as I get to place things where I want but always try to make them look natural and not posed. My Achille's heel? I would definitely say street photography. Not that I wouldn't like to do it, but I feel like I'm intruding on people's privacy. I keep putting myself in their shoes and am afraid to pull out the camera. I do have shots that I do like at a fair or an event, but that is different as everyone is walking around and pointing cameras and it doesn't feel as invasive, somehow.

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    1. Thank you Maggie, I'm so glad you like it.

      Street photography, I find that a bit awkward as well, for the same reasons. Sometimes I wish I had a cloak of invisibility haha :), People always tense up when you point a camera to them.

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  2. Very pretty. That lighting really makes the flowers pop. As for what I like to shoot.... I don't do people either. I'm not comfortable shooting them, giving them instructions, etc. I'm not particularly good at landscapes either, though I try. I prefer shooting things, generally.

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    1. Thank you Carol. I find landscapes hard too. Especially the post-editing, I never really satisfied and end up tweaking forever.

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  3. Oh no, my post hasn't appeared. I think I said beautiful light and dof. My apologies for being so late to your party.
    I find shooting people hard and a cloak of invisibility would be great. I also find posing people hard I am not bossy enough and miss the finishing touches. I like shooting nature which can be arranged or as it comes :-)

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    1. Thank you Sarah. You sound a lot like me, I don't like being bossy either (despite my occupation haha).

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  4. I think your tastes match mine quite a lot, I love shooting nature. Unfortunately none of my friends are particularly interested in sitting for portraits, so I've never really tried them. I much prefer candid shots. I'm sure they wish I would stop snapping photos when they don't expect it, they do appreciate the results.

    I'm far too shy to take photos of strangers, I'm always certain people are annoyed that I'm 'taking photos of them' even when I'm actually taking pictures of pigeons.

    The light on your spiky plants make them look soft and fluffy, I'm sure they weren't though.

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    1. Nice to "meet" a person of such great taste ;). I can so identify with what you wrote about shooting pigeons, I almost want to explain myself in situations like that haha

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  5. I love macros, although I haven't shot many of them for a while. I never used to like shooting people (mainly as I hadn't had the experience). But now I shoot many weddings a year, so things definitely change. Couples are my favourite form of people for photos though. I still enjoy seeing the beauty in nature though - there's so much that you don't see until you take the time to look. I've also had an increasing interest in landscape photography recently as well, so I'm trying to broaden my experience to see what I truly enjoy most. Oh, and this photo is lovely by the way :) The light is perfect!

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    1. Thank you, I love your landscape photography, it's stunning! How great that you're trying to broaden your horizons and do "new" things. You are definitely doing a great job too :)

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