A Learning Curve

(This picture has nothing to do with this post. I just like how The Pioneer Woman's Photoshop Actions showed sweet mercy on my forehead. I fess up to vanity, okay?)

I am really reluctant to say that photography is my hobby, because then people might think I should be good at it. But I do love to take pictures, and I have fun editing them, playing with different looks, etc. And I am a little better at taking pictures than I am at knitting.

Friday was exciting for me because we bought our first prime lens. We have a few good zoom lenses, but the maximum aperture on those is about 4.0. Aperture is kind of like how open your lens is. The lower the f-stop, the bigger the opening/aperture (I swear, somebody is messing with our heads to make it opposite like that) and more light enters your camera. (Lenses with bigger apertures are also called fast lenses.) With bigger apertures, you can also get cool shots where one thing is in focus and the rest blurry; which is good when you are shooting your kids and you don't want last night's dishes and the heaps of dirty laundry lying on the floor showing up in the back.

I don't even think I am making sense - lower, higher, bigger, smaller ... we just wanted a lens with a big opening. Small number.

Anyway, a prime lens does not zoom in and out, it just stays at 50mm, 85mm, or whatever, but it is really good and sharp at taking shots at that focal length. Our new lens is a 50mm, 1.8 (that's a lot more light than our 4.6 lenses!). We did a little research, and discovered that this little guy is called "The Nifty Fifty" and the "Plastic Fantastic" because it is dirt cheap (well, for a camera lens anyway) but takes pretty good shots. I think it will be a good learning lens, and then when I become Ansel Adams, we can look at getting some other goodies (like, L lenses, which start at about $1300 - ha!).

I don't know why I am rambling on about this boring stuff, the point of this post was that whoo-wee I have a lot of learning to do! Last night Matt and I took the kids up to this hilltop near our home. There is a beautiful view up there, and we just wanted to play with the camera. "Play with" meaning, take 350 pictures, 30 of which came out decent. And I mean, decent.

I was kind of bummed about how a lot of them came out (did I mention we took over 350?), but I am going to take it in stride and just think of it as a learning experience. Some things worked, some things didn't, and I will know better for next time. (Jen? Did I just see you grab the phone and call Olan Mills?)

Works: The light at sunset.

Doesn't work: The light at sunset on the hottest day of the year blaring on your body, melting your makeup and making your hair matte to your skin in sweat. This kind of lighting gave what I think of as the George Hamilton Effect.

We look like we just emerged from a volcano.

Also in the not working category, the Phantom of the Opera shadow on my face. Sun to the side = not good. Sun behind the photographer = better. Sun at all on a day when it is 926 degrees outside = go home, turn on the a/c, plop on the couch and watch America's Next Top Model reruns.

These are cute of Matt and the kids.



Works: Promising the kids milk shakes if they are good.

Doesn't work: Finally getting the milkshakes an hour and a half past bedtime.

Works: Having your kid take some pictures.

Doesn't work: Having your kid take pictures of your feet when you have chipped nail polish and severe callouses on your feet.

Works: Photoshopping.

Doesn't work: Over-photoshopping. This is a fine line, and I am always nervous about making my pics look overdone. Some pictures are just not salvageable. And sometimes you do too much, and your kid's skin looks like E.T.'s mid-death scene.

I like these.



Always works: Having the old guy jogging by take a picture of your super patient, supportive family. Out of focus or not.