Lesson 3 : MANUAL ~ My Cat Cheetoh!

***You can click on the picture to enlarge!

Camera: canon rebel xsi
Focal length: 50 mm
Aperture 1.8
Shutter speed: 1/13
ISO: 100

I started with f 2.8+1/6, but I wanted more blur in the background, so I chose f 1.8+1/13. It was 7:13 p.m., after the sun had already set and it was getting dark quickly, so I needed to let in more light with the aperture I chose. I'm getting better at hand holding because it seems I never have my tripod with me when I need it, therefore I'm getting lots of practice, without it! Lol

Wow, this was a big week and my head is still spinning from everything I learned and put into practice! We were in Manual Mode.....in other words.....no more auto modes! It was a little challenging at first because there was so much to think about, but now I have a better understanding of how the Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO work together to get a correct exposure.

In this lesson I learned how to meter, how to use exposure rulers and how to read and use histograms. I can't believe it....I now know how to get the perfect exposure! I'm so excited about this because I have so many photos that are under or over exposed or have blown out spots.

I absolutely LOVE being in control of the controls on my camera! I'm learning so much and I'm learning even more, in our forum and weekly chats, where we can ask the teacher and other students questions. This class is fantastic and I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in photography and learning how to use your camera!!! Here is a link to the next class I will be taking: Portrait Photography with Candice Stringham

***Here are mine and my teacher's comments...

deje34
[Sep 28, 2009 at 01:21 AM]
Candice, now I'm wondering if I should have increased my ISO, so I could have had a little faster shutter speed, to freeze motion in the event that my cat Cheetoh would have moved while I was taking the pic. I didn't have motion blur or camera shake, so is this slow shutter speed ok?

candice*stringham
[Oct 12, 2009 at 10:13 PM]
Debra! This is beautiful! Seriously lovely! The lighting, the color and the exposure are all great as well as your very majestic cat! But you were right in your comment, it would be best next time to use a higher ISO so you can get a faster shutter speed. You were so steady, and very lucky at 1/13th not to have any camra shake. I'm quite amazed! But next time just to be safe move the ISO up until you can get at least 1/6oth. Really great work on this though. It is wonderful.

deje34
[Oct 13, 2009 at 04:25 AM]
Wow! Thank you Candice! I'm so ecstatic that you like my photo and that I got the lighting and the exposure just right. Woo Hoo....I'm on cloud nine right now! I will try to remember that I need a shutter speed of at least 1/60th when using such an open aperture.

Tonight's Sunset

I was able to capture a couple of pictures of the sun setting tonight and even though, the sky wasn't orange or red, it was still beautiful to me. I love how every sunset is different! I do wish I would have used my tripod, so this first picture wouldn't have been crooked, but I can actually straighten the horizon in photoshop. I didn't follow the rule of thirds in this pic either *tisk, tisk*, but I still like it and maybe I'll just crop it later anyway.

This pic is actually my favorite and I DID follow the rule of thirds on this one. It was actually nice to just take some pics for fun and not have to focus on an assignment, which I still don't have done for this week, by the way. lol I'm hoping to get it done tomorrow though!

Lesson 2 ~ Apertures

Ok, so this weeks lesson was on Apertures and Depth of Field. I tried to come up with something creative to illustrate my assignment, in case you're wondering what's up with the marbles and the mirror, in my side yard? LOL I must say it was a bit challenging, with the wind and my cat Cheetoh putting his paws up on the mirror, to see what I was up to. Not to mention the three cars that came flying up the driveway leaving a cloud of dust floating my way, after I worked so hard, cleaning every little speck off of that mirror! *sniff, sniff* Oh well, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out anyway and I can't wait, til my instructor critiques me. I will add her comments to the bottom of my post, as soon as she gets to my photos, which will be sometime this coming week.....she has hundreds of photos to go through and critique each week!

If you're wondering......YES, the second photo is supposed to be blurry, except for the marbles that I was focusing on! Can you tell which one I was focusing on? I'll give you a hint....it's the one that is sharp and in focus! :)

Lesson 2: Apertures

Closed Aperture

Shutter Speed ~ 1/250
Aperture ~ f/22.0
ISO ~ 800
Focal Length ~ 50.0 mm

***click on the picture to enlarge!

Open Aperture

Shutter Speed ~ 1/4000
Aperture ~ f/1.8
ISO ~ 100
Focal Length ~ 50.0 mm

***Here is the comment from my teacher...

candice*stringham
[Sep 30, 2009 at 08:11 PM]
I love the use of the mirror! Coupled with the open aperture, the photo has the feel that the marbles are floating. Great job obstacles and all!

deje34
[Oct 02, 2009 at 04:08 AM]
Thank you Candice.....I look so forward to your critique, to see if I actually got it right. This assignment was a fun challenge for me and I feel like I was able to get a little creative with it, which by the way, it doesn't come natural for me to think outside the box, but I'm workin' on it! Thank you, for your comment....I am so happy right now!!!

Oh Shoot! Beginning Digital Photography Class

I started my Oh Shoot! Beginning Photography class and I really love it so far! It was so much fun practicing with different shutter speeds and getting the lighting just right. Fortunately, I've already been practicing with the ISO, so I think I'm getting pretty good with that, but we'll see when we get to that lesson now won't we? I'll probably find out that I've got it all wrong. LOL I haven't done my practice assignment on Panning yet and I haven't done my creative assignment yet, but I'm looking forward to it, even though I'm not sure how creative I am. Hmmm, guess I'll find out soon enough!

Anyway, I took lots of photos of my dog Sunny running on the beach and some of my daughter Kasey jumping in the backyard for me, but these were the two I chose to submit to my class gallery.

Lesson 1: Shutter Speeds

SHARP
Fast Shutter Speed ~ 1/3200
ISO ~ 800
F-Stop ~ 2.0
Focal Length ~ 50.0 mm

BLUR
Slow Shutter Speed ~ 1/15
ISO ~ 800
F-Stop ~ 22.0
Focal Length ~ 50.0 mm

These photos have not been edited.....we're not allowed to in our class, so that way our instructor can critique our work, straight out of the camera.

My photos were taken with the...

Canon Rebel xsi
Canon EF 50 mm Lens
Tiffen Filter UV Protector

***Yay, I'm so excited! I got it right! My instructor critiqued my first assignment and so I decided to add her comment, so I can keep a record of how I am doing.

This is what she wrote:

candice*stringham [Sep 16, 2009 at 12:53 AM]
Debra- GREAT job! You did an incredible job handholding at 1/15 second. The rocks are tack sharp yet the water is silky smooth, whereas in the other photo the water droplets are frozen. Shooting in dappled sunlight is one of the trickiest for your camera to meter correctly. You increased the ISO which works here because of the shade and the dark grey rocks, and the end result is a perfect exposure. I'm so glad you had fun with this lesson!

deje34
[Sep 16, 2009 at 05:30 PM]
Yay....I got it right! Candice, thank you for your reply! I look forward to all of your critiques, so that I can learn and improve. Woo hoo, this is so fun!!!

I WON, I WON....Not Just 1, but 2 Giveways!

Why am I so blessed? Seriously....I never win anything, so you can only imagine, how excited I am! Could I possibly be on a winning streak or something? Take a look at these wonderful gifts and try not to be too jealous, ok?

This awesome candle was given to me by H-Mama over at Family Team. Oh how I wish you all could smell it's scrumptous scent.....I say that because it smells like a Latte and I just want to drink it up! Mmmm, it's so yummy! Espresso anyone? I can't even walk by it without stopping to take a whiff. lol Thank you, H-Mama for drawing my name....I absolutely love my candle! Oh and please tell your hubby he did a great job picking this one out......it's exactly the one I would have chosen myself! How perfect is that? :)

Leah from over at Live Life Simply, sent this beautiful necklace that she handmade! Didn't she do a fabulous job? I just love it! I actually left her a comment on her blog, stating that I was already picturing it with the perfect outfit, not knowing that I would actually win it. Isn't that funny? As soon as I opened it today, I went straight into my closet, to see how many outfits it would go with. LOL Thank you, Leah for drawing my name....I can't wait to wear it! You should think about selling these, that is, if you don't already.

Please take the time to visit H-Mama and Leah's blogs and check them out. They both have been such an encouragement to me and they really and truly have been great bloggy friends! I am thankful for both of you and I will treasure my gifts. Thanks a bunch! :)

Wordless Wednesday ~ Sunrise