Chiaroscuro II

Here is another example of chiaroscuro, this time a photo of a seagull.  I don't know why but some of my favorite pictures of birds show the bird from the backside.  Besides this photo, I can think of an osprey and a cormorant photo that also are among my favorites, but are taken from behind.

I love the story in this photo which is instantly understood. The seagull had just hit the water in an attempt to catch a fish.  You cannot tell from the photo whether it was successful or not.  They generally catch small fish and it may be hidden from sight.

In reality, the fish was so large, the seagull couldn't carry it away. This is another image of the same bird struggling to lift the fish from the water, but it was simply too large to carry away.  It circled around and tried several times.  That the fish remained at the surface tells me that it was in all likelihood, dying.  On one pass, the seagull barely had it by a pectoral fin and was dragging it across the surface. The whole incident was pretty comical to watch.

It is a good thing the seagull wasn't able to carry it away.  Seagulls don't pick their prey apart, but swallow their prey whole and this fish would have undoubtedly killed the seagull.

Chiaroscuro

Chiaroscuro is an effect of contrasted light and shadow created by light falling unevenly or from a particular direction on something. It is an effect commonly used in drawing and painting, but it is a technique that can also be used in photography under the right conditions. Cross lighting where the light comes in from the side is the easiest way to incorporate it into a naturally lit photograph, but back lighting (or rim lighting) also works. In a studio, spot lighting can be used with this method.
In this photo taken on the Patuxent, the background always remains in shadow for quite a while after the sun rises, but there is a creek to the right that leads into a marsh, so the tree line is much further back, allowing sunlight to stream in across the water. The placid water reflections and the lit up boat were just too good an opportunity to ignore.

Shooting from the Hip

For those of us who grew up in the era when cowboy shows on TV were as common as reality shows today, this phrase is familiar.  It still has a modern counterpart, though, when we are talking about cameras. Shooting from the hip refers to not having the camera up to your eye, but taking photographs with the camera positioned somewhere else. It could be from your hip if you are standing or it could be from somewhere else, such as your knee while sitting.

It is a fun technique and you never know what you are going to get. You do need to adjust a few settings on your camera, focus, for example.  I usually activate all the focus points rather than just the central focus point to insure that something is in focus. In single shot mode, most cameras will beep when focus is acquired, so it is helpful to have that feedback from the camera.  Don't be too concerned about making sure the horizon is completely level.  Angles often give the images a dynamic look that would not be present if the camera were more carefully aligned and you may end up with an interesting angle you may never have consciously chosen with the camera up to your eye.

Your subject may or may not be aware of what you are doing. People who are hard of hearing may not even know you are taking pictures, but even those that do hear the shutter closing will quickly lose interest in what you are doing and will usually relax and be more natural. I love to use this technique because you never know what you are going to come up with.  There is usually a high rate of throw-aways, but the successes make it worth it.

I am using two photos of my daughter as an example of this technique. The first is one of my favorite photos of her. The eye should not (by general rule) be right on the edge of the image, but in this picture, it seems to work - at least for me.  My eye always goes directly to her eye and then inspects the rest of the picture. I'm not bothered that part of her head is out of the frame.

All the things that were wrong in the first image are "corrected" in the second.  Despite that, I still like the first one better.  Try it.  It can be a lot of fun!

If you were fortunate enough to survive Hurricane Sandy without damage, please consider making a donation (money that have easily been spent on repairs) as a "thank you" for being spared.  The North American Missions Board is feeding 450,000 hungry people a day.  Franklin Graham's Samaritan's Purse is also involved in relief efforts.  Both can be googled.

Blue and Gold Polarizer

I always enjoy coming across this simple photo of a horse farm in the Fall.  Actually, I think it was taken in January, but it looks Fallish.  I had just gotten a new polarizing filter and was simply looking for subjects to try it out on.  The filter enhances - what else - blues and yellows.  That is why the yellow grass pops, but it also enhanced the blue horse trailer in the background.  If you can find the right kinds of subjects, it is a wonderful enhancement to photographs.  It is one of the few filters that cannot be reproduced in post production, at least not very easily.

Even if there isn't a lot of yellow in the subject, it will still enhance that part of the color spectrum. This image always evokes a feeling of peace for me. There is a thin layer of ice forming on the water.

Here is another photo taken at the same pond where I overdid the reflection of the blue sky in the water. That is the sun reflected in the water. You can see where the yellows in the grasses have also been affected by the filter. It is not a inexpensive filter, but it can produce effects like no other.

Seasonal Behavior

I consider this image a success despite the bird facing slightly away from the camera. I had set the camera for 1 EV (exposure value) above the normal exposure.  This allows a slight bit more light into the exposure. You can get away with this if there is no direct sunlight on the bird.  By doing this, the blacks are opened up so that detail can be seen in the dark areas.  Notice how you can see good detail in the underside of the left wing. If there is sunlight on the bird - especially a bird with some white in it's feathers, it is better to only use +1/2 EV.  Otherwise the whites will be blown out and won't have any detail.  I also love the pastel colors in the water. You can also very clearly see the nail on the tip of it's beak.

I don't know that biologists would agree with me, but I see slight changes in behavior among cormorants over the seasons. Cormorants are colonial birds, meaning they nest in colonies, but over the summer they are usually only seen traveling as singles or pairs. Often, it is a parent and the young of the year as in this photo. The cormorant in the rear is a sub-adult following it's parent. You can see it is slightly smaller and the lighter grays on it's neck and underside mean it is a young bird.

Geese are not the only birds that will fly in a V formation. As Fall progresses, more and more you see cormorants flocking up. Can you imagine the abundance of fish it takes to feed each one of these birds on a daily basis?  Most will eat more than one fish a day.  I have watched a single cormorant eat several fish over a couple of hours.  And this is just one species in one location.  Multiply that times all the species that eat fish to survive and you begin to realize how many fish have to be present for birds to thrive.

Okay, so they aren't quite as proficient at flying in a V as geese. This same flock as shown in the last photo has completely lost it.  Too many chiefs and not enough Indians. Can I say that anymore? Or is it politically incorrect?...

Cicada Killer

I believe this hornet is called a European hornet or a cicada killer.  It was on one of the windows of our French door one fall.

Many years ago when we lived in another house, I went out into the yard to do something. I could hear a cicada constantly rattling, not their normal intermittent noise. I didn't look for it, but wondered why it was making noise like that. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something fall to the ground out of the tree I was underneath and approached it because I could hear it was the cicada. As I did, one of these giant hornets jumped up off of the cicada (which was at least twice the hornet's size) and hovered facing me at my eye level, as if to say, "You want a piece of this?"  I backed away and told it, "No, you can have it."

I had my grandson hold a quarter for comparison behind the glass in one photo.

On another occasion at that same house, we had one fly in through the back door and land on a curtain.  My wife  got some hornet spray while I kept an eye on it. Spraying it only seemed to make it mad and we both bolted for the screen door.  We got stuck shoulder to shoulder in the door way as the thing flew out the door over our heads and landed in a pine tree just over the fence in our neighbor's yard.  It was so big that even at that distance, it looked as big as a hummingbird sitting in the tree.

It is possible this is not a cicada killer because as big as it is, as I remember it, the two in the above instances were even quite a bit larger than this one.

Will they sting? I don't know. I have never been that curious. My guess is they do and it hurts like crazy. Let me know if you ever find out.