Dienstag, 12. Februar 2013

New Year, New Shots

Well it's been over a month since my photography class ended. I was a little nervous that without an assignment to force me to go out and take pictures that my attempts at photography would slowly dwindle into a faddish attempt to be artistic. But, as luck would have it, I've been able to find some time to go out and shoot.  Photoshop seems to have become my after midnight vice when Ali is long asleep and I'm far from it. I've been trying to come up with one 'finished' photo a week, and even though that hasn't always been the case I've managed to scrape together 4 photos that I take particular joy in looking at. I hope you do too.

I actually shot this photo over the Christmas Break when I was in Boise with Ali's family. Ali's little sister Kelsey had just announced that she was moving out for a new town and a new college in Montana, and Ali an I had thought it'd be nice to get a picture of something from Boise as a nice reminder of home. So even though I wasn't sure what my final picture was going to be I packed up my camera gear and snuck out of the house at around 6 am to try and catch the sunrise over Boise. Unfortunately it was completely fogged over, but after getting permission to shoot from a Hotel Balcony (improper use of a tripod and remote trigger) I was able to put together this nice little panorama of the capitol building. In retrospect I really wish I'd put the dome closer to the upper third of the photo and balanced it with more sky, but whatever, Kelsey liked it and I don't think it's half-bad.

 This shot was a lucky find. My church hours shifted from 12pm to 9am with the New Year and Ali and I found ourselves with an excess of time on our Sunday afternoons. We figured a nice drive through the country side would be nice, but after 20 miles that ever so helpful gas-light popped on and we found ourselves counting miles to see if we would make it home. We rounded a corner and I saw this neat little bug barely peaking out from the snow. I gave Ali my "may I?" look and she consented on the promise that I couldn't run the car for fear of wasting gas, and that I couldn't let the car get cold while I was taking photos. So with a quick kiss I was out the door and high-stepping it through 18in of snow trying to get just the right shot. There were a fair amount of good ones, but this one seemed to come together the best. Also, we made it home without running out of gas :D

This shot actually came about due to a recent shoulder injury that placed my ski season on hold for a bit (a separated shoulder makes for a rough ride). It's really amazing how your perspective changes with injuries, and instead of seeing nothing but wonderful skiing snow I started realizing that by the time my shoulder was fully healed bike season would be near. It got me thinking, and this shot was my attempt to try and compose and express the rush of premature excitement I get whenever I realize that Spring is on the way. It was a fun little photo shoot to do, and I was able to get it all cleaned up before Ali came home and had to ask why I had a tripod in the kitchen, and why was I washing a bike chain in the sink. Sidenote: If you look at my right arm you'll see how I'm holding it up against my body for support. I had to take off my sling for the shot and it wasn't exactly comfortable.

 This guy I just finished this morning, and I'm exceptionally proud of it. This tree is in a field just south of Idaho Falls, and every time Ali and I make a trip to IF to visit the temple or family I've always had my camera bag secretly stashed in the trunk. I've been really wishing to photograph this tree for ages. Well last weekend when we came up for a mission farewell and to say goodbye to Kelsey as she left for Montana Ali gave me the green light to sneak away about an hour before sunset. It was freezing and I had to hike through 6 inches of snow for about 200 yards to get in position, but it was totally worth it. I'd hoped I'd be able to add some form of human element (a silhouette of someone standing next to the tree would be amazing), but I was too cold by the time I got out there and was getting colder fast. Maybe next time. Landscape photography has always captivated me, and its been fun to watch my style get more and more developed. It's not as perfect as one of Ron Southworth's landscape shots (a photographer who I'm certainly jealous of), but I feel like I'm getting somewhere as a photographer and its fun. Hope you enjoyed them.