I often carry two cameras with me. Why? Because sometimes one camera will capture the "moment" better than the other. Oftentimes I'll shoot the same picture with both cameras several times and select the best image. It's not always just luck that a wonderful photo emerges, but persistance. I continue to take photos of the same thing trying to improve that "great" shot. Digital photography makes this so much easier, and a whole lot cheaper too! Taking 10 photos of the same thing may seem a bit overboard, but believe me when I tell you that a small difference in position or camera settings can make a world of difference in the end product. For now, all I can tell you is to practice, practice, practice. Good shots will follow, but not without persistance and determination! Get the picture???
http://www.photosbykarl.net/
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
SAME SHOT: BETTER PHOTO.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
PHOTO TIP: SMILE !!!!!CHEEEESE!!!!!
Today I'll talk a bit about how I take what I feel are some of my better "people" shots. Whenever I ask someone to smile for a photo, they inevitably give the "fake" or '"forced" smile. Look at any of the photos you take when you ask someone to smile and you'll recognize it immediately. For some reason, many people do not like their photo taken, so it's natural for them to "goof up the shot". How do I overcome this? Easy......I act like I'm NOT taking the photo and they IMMEDIATELY loosen up. First off, when you ask them to smile, you'll notice the "force" and tension on their faces as they try to determine when you'll take the shot. At this point, I get a focus on them. I HOLD the focus (usually you do this on a digital camera by pushing the photo taking button HALF WAY DOWN, signaling the camera to focus, which will NOT take the picture......... most digitals work this way). I then look as if I'm not taking the photo even though I'm holding the camera EXACTLY where I would if I was taking the photo, in other words, I just move my head to the side and say something like, "okay, can we get a REAL smile?". The person being photographed will loosen up immediately since they think you're NOT taking the photo, you push the button the rest of the way down, and a great NATURAL photo should occur. I've been doing this for years and it always seems to get the best shot. Try this technique and see if it doesn't work for you. I think you'll be amazed at how well this works.
ST. MAARTEN AND THE CRANE
Monday, June 2, 2008
AN OVERNIGHT IN ST.MAARTEN
June 1st, 2008
Well, as usual, SXM was a great overnight. I just never get tired of that place. It's just so relaxing, and FRIENDLY there. Maria now knows why it's one of my favorite overnights with Continental. As high season winds down though, the airplane photo opportunities start to dwindle. Oh well, I'll just have to come up with something else to take photos of. My favorite airplane photo spot is slowly disappearing too. They are putting up some high rise condos behind the area that I take most of my shots from. Does that make sense? At any rate, instead of beautiful blue water behind the planes landing, you'll see a nice condo building. RATS!!!! Oh well, at least I got some nice shots before that happened. Had a little luck at the Maho Casino last night. Lost $60 before I decided to put my last $5 of the night in a quarter machine. Maria has fun playing up to a point........and that point was quickly approaching with my losses mounting up. So we decided to play 7 quarters at a time. On the second spin, we hit a bonus round which turned into a bigger bonus, and ended up with the nicest prize.......and that was worth $292 to us. So, we ended up almost $230 for the night. So...........nice overnight, nice winnings, nice weather, and happy girlfriend. What more could you ask for? By the way, if you go on vacation there, stay at the Maho Resort,( http://www.mahobeach.com/ ) and be sure to tell Claire I said hello. She'll take great care of you!! Now, should I make an offer on that waterfront condo in Hollywood???????
http://www.photosbykarl.net/
ST.MAARTEN, HERE WE COME !!!!!!!
May 31st, 2008
Well, I'm on my way to St Maarten. Looks like it's going to be a beautiful day down there. Maria took an earlier flight since it still had a few open seats. Lucky her, gets to enjoy SXM for an extra hour and a half............... Our flights are packed, so you take an empty seat when you can. She would have made my flight since we had ONE empty seat, but that's just too close to call. Luckily their is supposed to be a couple of empty seats on our return flight tomorrow, so Maria will hopefully get on. St Maarten is such a great little island and a wonderful place to be. If I won the lottery tomorrow, I'd certainly know where I'd end up..........and ALL my friends could come visit whenever they'd like!!
http://www.photosbykarl.net/
