In your quest for epic photographs, don’t ignore what’s directly in front of you. Even a pair of wet jeans drying on a porch beam can offer a chance at great expression. As photographers, we tend to ignore the everyday world and keep our attention on spectacular vistas, epic sunsets, and floral scenes. Rubbish! In this image, a strong perspective and good composition transform the everyday into something much more rich. The colors in the image are reduced to two: green and blue. The shadows on the jeans set up a strong diagonal line that gets reinforced by the puffy white clouds. Minding the negative space keeps the eye moving around the jeans much like the gentle breezes these pants flew in. The best ideas are sometimes right nearby
This landscape photograph was taken late in the day. I was driving to Vermont to visit friends and saw the sky becoming more and more colorful. I knew that their farm was picturesque and wanted to get there before the colors faded, so, without speeding, I made a beeline for their home. It helps to have a location in mind, and then wait for the right time of day.
Early in the morning and late day skies can be incredibly colorful and dramatic, but they don't last long, so make sure your camera is ready to go. Have an extra charged battery on hand. Choose an exposure ahead of time that is in the right range, since, when the light is right, you want to be concentrating on your composition, not trying to find the ISO button. A tripod is very handy in low light situations. Then, take the time to look around, the best shot may be behind you!
As a parent most people use their camera to record the history and memories of their children. "Sit still! I want to take your picture." How many times did we hear that when we were kinds? Now, how many times do we say it when we want that great portrait of our children? We need to take a tip from them. Watch them at play, constant motion, never still with both feet on the ground. They are flurries of activity, climbing, jumping, rolling on the ground. We must do the same! We get stuck so often in trying to stand still and hold the camera steady that we miss some great images. Or, they all look the same because they are all shot from the same level. The eye level of how tall we are.
This first image is of my daughter at Central Park in MN; right behind my house. To get it I had to jump up off my feet, climb on top of those old monkey bars, roll into position and cheer her on to keep going and going as my Camera clicked away, my lens zooming in and out to get the monkey bars to lead into the rung framing her face. I had to keep monitoring the spring clouds that kept giving me nice soft light. My legs staining tight around the bars to keep me from falling off. I was a flurry of activity to get that shot!
Climb up to get a more dynamic perspective, or if laying on the ground works better do that. In Image 2 (below) I had to lay flat on the ground in order to "de-clutter" the background so there was nothing but clouds and sky behind my other daughter.
Let the kids play, we should do the work. The smiles will be bigger and more natural at play than when they are asked to sit still and sit up straight or look here...etc. They're doing all the "work" that way and we're just clicking a button. So, take a tip from the kids, be active
A telephoto lens is a must when photographing sports! If you have a point-and-shoot camera, your zoom lens should suffice for good sports images of the kids (some models even have an extra 'Digital Zoom' feature that enables you to get even closer, like the Panasonic-LUMIX FX07). If you own a Digital SLR camera, we suggest a zoom lens from 70-200mm for the best results from the audience stands.
