Week 18 – Down
This week’s reviewed image was from Karen DeNapoli Anderson for the theme Down.
Image Stats: Aperture – f/2.8
Shutter Speed 1/80
ISO 400
Click on the video below to check out my critique of this beautiful image.
If you would like to join our weekly photo challenge just click on this link to find out more.
Happy Snapping
Buying a DSLR ? Join me for a Free Training on how to Choose the Best one!
Cyber Monday is in full swing online with some amazing deals to be had since Friday. I did a little shopping myself this weekend all from the comfort of my laptop! Gotta LOVE the internet 🙂 If you’ve been on the hunt for a new camera for yourself or for someone else the array of choice out there can be mind boggling. I get emails every single day asking:
“Which camera should I buy?
Should I go with Canon or Nikon?
What’s this mirrorless all about?
What Lens should I buy?
How Many pixels is enough?
Do I really need a DSLR?”
All of theses questions and a lot more besides will be answered live by me on Thursday 12th December at 8pm Eastern. If you want me to send you the link of where it will be happening sign up here and I’ll let you know! (I’m toying with the idea of doing a google hangout so we’ll see how that goes!)
It’s going to be a lot of fun and a great opportunity to get any questions answered that you might have about new camera purchases or just to say Merry Christmas! And if your already having buyers remorse with something that you’ve purchased over the last few days let me know and I’ll give you my opinion on the 12th – still inside your return window!
Here’s the link to register your interest again: http://camerashycourses.com/best-camera-webinar/
Look forward to seeing you on the 12th
Ingrid’s Favorite Things: A Resource Guide for Beginner Photographers
Well it’s that time of year again where we try to be ever so nice so that San can see how good we’ve all been and bring us a nice treat in our stocking on Christmas Day. If you’d rather not take your chances and purchase a wee treat for yourself this year have I got a treat for YOU! In order to simplify your shopping experience for that new lens/camera/bag you NEED so badly I’ve put together a little resource guide listing my absolute favorite things! Hint: you can always forward it to Santa or whoever and let them know what you REALLY want this year 😉
Here’s the link to grab yours – Check it out!
Let me know if you have any questions about anything in there – I’d love to help you shop!
Ingrid
PicMonkey Halloween Competition
I LOVE Halloween! It’s always been one of my favorite holidays – who doesn’t love to dress up!
If you are looking to get into the Halloween spirit – pun very much intended – how about bringing a little spooky editing to your images? PicMonkey is a free online editing service which I also LOVE and they have a host of special effects, ghoulish edits and textures that you can apply easily to your photos to make them scary!
And to celebrate the season, PicMonkey are giving away 3 prizes of a year’s free subscription to their Royale premium service to the best edited photos in their Halloween Competition.
To enter :
Open your photo in PicMonkey, using the “Edit a photo” button at the top. Click on the Themes tab (the pumpkin icon at the bottom of the left column). Add all the overlays, textures, and effects you think will make your photo a winner!
When you’re finished with your masterpiece share it on one or more of the social sites below, and be sure you use #PicMonkeyBOO to tag your photo or post.
- Facebook*
- Tumblr
- Muzy
- WeHeartIt
- Flickr
- Google Plus
All photos must be created and shared before 11:59pm PST on October 22th, 2013. You must only use PicMonkey to edit your photo and use the hashtag #PicMonkeyBOO, so your entry will be seen!
Winners will be announced on October 28th, 2013.
What they are looking for:
The PicMonkey team are looking for the most creative Halloween pictures in three categories: scary,cute, and funny. There will be one winner in each category each winning a years free subscription to PicMonkey’s Royal features.
Hashtag your photos with #PicMonkeyBOO.
Here’s my entry!
Happy snapping!
Atlanta Photography Workshops
Don’t ya just LOVE FALL! I do – It’s hands-down my favorite time of the year. Maybe it’s because October is my birthday month, or maybe it’s because thankfully the weather is much cooler here in Georgia. Thoughts turn to apples and pumpkins and trips to the mountains. The photo opportunities are ENDLESS! So will you be ready to capture all those memories with your camera? If you are in the Atlanta area I invite you to join me for a wonderful morning workshop where you will discover how to get awesome photos from your DSLR camera.
The details:
When – Saturday November 2nd 9.30am – 12.30pm
Where: Smyrna Community Centre
How much: $99 per person attending
What you’ll learn:
How to get super sharp photos
When to use which lens
Taking photos in tricky light conditions
What all those modes and buttons do.
Lots more!
If you’ve always been meaning to read that camera manual, then don’t! Come to my workshop and all will become clear – I promise 🙂
Better Pictures with your Bridge Camera and Compact Camera
If you’ve been a reader here on the blog for a while you might know that I teach photography here online and in person in Atlanta. I’ve been doing this for quite sometime – 13 years in fact – right since the inception of digital photography. Back when I started teaching in 2000 I taught groups of “early adopters” all about their new fangled digital cameras. Looking back at my notes from those classes we talked about 4 MEGA byte cards and AA batteries and 2mega pixels sensors. People had no idea about these things which is hard to believe since we are now so used to taking photos with our phones and deal with GIGA bytes every day! I clearly remember trying to explain to several people that there was no door to open to put the film in – there was no film!
Anyways, as the years have progressed I’ve focused more and more on DSLR camera users as those cameras have become more popular, less expensive and have a steep learning curve. But I consistently get asked to do something for people with compact, superzoom and bridge cameras. These cameras have come a LONG way in the past 13 years but there is still a lot of confusion out there with people who want to know about all the functions their cameras offer and how they can improve their photography without having a lot of fancy equipment. Truth be told on some of the advanced compacts there are almost as many options as on the entry level DSLR cameras.
So, next Wednesday evening, at 8pm EST I’m holding a free mini-class on How to take Better Photos with your Compact or Bridge camera. This is going to be a fun interactive webinar where I’ll share the 3 most important things in photography and how, by learning about them, you can dramatically improve your photos.
http://camerashy.enterthemeeting.com/m/YHKM86TH
If you are at all interested in improving your photography without the need for a bulky DSLR, I’d love for you to join me .
Here’s the link to the sign up form and don’t forget to register right away as space is very limited!
See you on the webinar
Ingrid
P.S. Even if you can’t make it on Wednesday evening, be sure to go ahead and register and I will send you the replay. Here’s the link again: http://camerashy.enterthemeeting.com/m/YHKM86TH
Learning Photography? Master your DSLR Camera – starting now!
I’ve had a lot of questions lately from people learning photography and who are interested in doing my “Master your DSLR” course but weren’t clear on how it works so I thought I’d write a quick blog post to let them and anyone else who’d like to know what’s involved.
Who is it for?
Well, Master your DSLR is for anyone who wants to get the most from their DSLR camera. From those who have just bought a new DSLR camera and have shot only a few frames to those who might have had a DSLR for a wee while but just don’t really know how to use it to it’s potential – you’ll find lots of value in this course. I’ve been teaching in person for over 12 years and most recently here in Atlanta I’ve helped hundreds of newbie DSLR users get going with their cameras – figuring out the buttons, explaining the terminolgy and basics of photography in an easy to understand way. I love teaching one-on-one and seeing my students walk away from our sessions confident in their ability to now make the camera do what they want it to do. The feedback I’ve gotten from my online classes has been equally rewarding.
“Ingrid’s course is well thought out and organized, which my busy lifestyle appreciated. I found myself excited to practice each week and found the homework inspiring, growing more and more assured of my camera and its functions. Upon completion of Ingrid’s course I hold my camera with ease, knowing what each and every button is for and how to use them as well as noting a definite improvement in the photos I capture. I would recommend her course to anyone who owns a camera but especially those who desire to move out of that ominous Auto Mode and truly dive into the world of photography.” Melanie, Utah
Can I learn online?
My main concern however was; how was I going to retain that personal touch that I have in my in-person classes online. It’s very different teacing online than it is in person. It’s difficult to asess to see if the student is “getting” the material or if it’s over their head. To counteract this, I’ve tried to make this course as basic as possible. There is probably some stuff in there that you already know. If you’ve done any kind of research you’ll definately know some of the terminology but I promise you I’ll put it together for you in a way that will finally make sense.
How do I access the course?
The course material is in written form, with lots of explinatory photos and laid out a bit like a blog or website. You will recieve access to the course as soon as you sign up. Here is what it looks like on your dash board inside your course:
The basics of Photography aren’t a secret. Anyone can figure it out by reading Blogs (like this one!), books and just by trial and error shooting. But what I know from my students’ feedback is that you want all the information that’s relevant to you all accessable in the one place and laid out in an easy to follow way. This is why I have relaunched my Master your DSLR course on a new platform which is super easy to flow through. Here is a screenshot of some of the course content. You can see that each of the Modules are further broken down into easy to digest chunks (accessible from the sidebar.)
The course is also self-paced, which means you can take your own time working through the material. I figure it should take you about 5 weeks to adequetly go through the material, do the Action points and do the weekly assignments but if you haven’t much else going on, you could power through the material if you like. Conversely, if you’d like to take your time, or if your schedule is pretty full, you’ll have access to the course material for 6 months from the time of sign up.
What if I get stuck?
So what is the difference between doing my course and simply reading a book? Well, first off, you have me! Well, access to me at any rate. I’ll be here to answer course related questions within 48 hrs of reciving them Mon-Fri, and each month I am going to be doing a live Q and A call for all students. This will be your opportunity to chat to me about any difficulties you might be having and for me to give you a more in depth answer to your questions. (or just for us to hang out and chat!)
Secondly, you will have lots of Action Points so that you can be sure that you know how to put into pratice the things we are talking about.
Thirdly you’ll have assignments to do that will solidify your technical knowledge and stretch your creativity a little bit. These assignments will be critiqued by me, if you’d like.
You’ll also have the support of others that are doing the course in our Private Flickr Group. That’s been invaluble to past students and I love to see the friendships that have formed as a result of doing my classes. Makes me so happy 🙂
I truly want anyone who signs up for my course to go away knowing the basics of DLSR photography and to have a good understanding of how their camera works. It’s really not that complicated. Honestly!
Don’t let your camera get in the way of making a great photo. Learn how to use it! Become its Master and make it do what you want it to do!
Happy Snapping
P.S. If you are interested in Signing up for my Master your DSLR course I have reduced the price to $99 for a limited time so now is a great time to sign up and get started. You’ll also be well underway and armed with lots of questions for the live Q and A call with me on September the 27th.
Card corrupted – happens to the best of us…
As a photography instructor I try to be a good role model when it comes to things like photo organization, backing up my photos and taking care of my equipment. I do try – honest I do, but last night I lapsed. I am constantly telling students that they must properly eject their memory card from their card reader before pulling it out when they are downloading their pictures. If you are on a Mac this means “ejecting the disk” and if you are on a PC you need to “Safely Remove Hardware” the icon for which will most likely be found at the bottom menu bar depending on which operating system you are using.
Did you know you are supposed to do this? It is crucial that you do as there is a very good reason for it. If you remove your card without doing the above there is a chance that you can corrupt your card and loose your images on there. Late last night I was trying to upload my Easter pics as well as a bunch for my #Take 52 Challenge that I haven’t posted yet and in my sleep deprived blur I inadvertently pulled out the memory card from the reader without ejecting it first. I thought that I had inserted the wrong card so I was quickly about to change it over but midway I realized that it was in fact the correct card and a horrible sinking feeling was accompanied by an error message on my computer screen telling me that my card needed to be formatted. Ugh. Teacher FAIL – Rookie mistake!
So I spent a few hours this morning trying to recover the lost images by downloading various software and running recovery programs but alas no joy. I am totally bummed. Being Easter both my girls were looking as cute as could be in their Easter dresses and for once were cooperating on getting their picture taken. I also had a bunch taken of the whole family when we got together in the afternoon. All gone bar a few like the one of my niece above on the swing. I will just have to try and recreate and thankfully I can. I realize this happens to many of you when you can’t go back and do a do-over.
So folks – be warned! Do not pull out your memory card from your card reader without first ejecting it and while I’m at it, don’t take your card out of your camera without first turning it off either.
I will spend some more time trying to recover the card when I get a chance. If this has happened to you, there are some free card recovery programs avalable. Nothing there helped me unfortunately so it looks like we’ll all be getting dressed up again soon…
Has this ever happened to you? Please share in the comments below and make me feel a little better.
Ingrid
Music Time
This week’s Take 52 Challenge theme was Music. My two girls are always shaking or banging something which in their mind is making music so this week I had an easy task.
I’ve been playing around with my speedlite lately, trying to get better exposures inside my house. This shot was a combination of natural light coming in from the side and a bounced flash off of the ceiling above Mollie. I’m working on some blog posts about using your speedlite (external flash) so more details to follow.
Week 9’s Theme: Growing
Feel free to jump in on the Take 52 Challenge at any time. You’ll find us over at the Flickr Group and on Facebook too 🙂
Til next week
Ingrid
It’s ok to admit your failures…
Ok I have a confession…I’ve fallen behind. I’ve been so super busy over the last few weeks it’s been really challenging taking an image every week for the Take 52 Challenge (How on earth does anybody ever so the Project 365?) Anyways, all is not lost. The cool thing about this Challenge is that it’s mine so I give myself permission to keep on going! I have actually been taking the images just not having had the time to post them, so now you get to see a mini collection all at one time.
Week 5: Shadows
This week I finally got my 50mm lens replaced so I spent some time playing with it wide open. If you haven’t yet invested in a 50mm wide aperture lens then make it a point to do so soon. I LOVE mine and I especially love that it is so lightweight and compact. It makes a nice change from the heavy zoom lens that I usually have on my camera. It gives such an interesting field of view and of course renders beautiful creamy backgrounds. This shot is of Sam’s glasses and I love the way the shadows created by the glasses almost look like a reflection in the book.
Week 6: Shiny
I found Shiny a little tough – probably due to the lack of shiny surfaces in my house – I have 2 kids, a dog and a hubby who loves bringing the outside in you know! And as my mother says I’m NOT a natural housekeeper. So for SHINY I decided to photograph my newest Shiny object – the necklace hubby gave me for Christmas. I used the little bell (also shiny) as a backdrop as it is a favor from one of our wedding showers way back when…
Week 7: Love is…
Awh, this week was an easy one right? We were surrounded by love and lovely things all week so I used my iPhone to snap this shot of my brand new coffee tea travel mug from my hubby. I was seriously excited about this mug – I mean it – I never had one of my own before and I need my tea in the mornings while carrying out my chauffeur duties for the little ones 🙂 Love is tea I guess! (oh and not forgetting the heart shaped peppermint patties)
So I’m reinvigorated and planning to keep up from now on. The crowd in the Flickr group is amazing – you guys inspire me! It’s not too late for you to jump in – just get going this week and don’t even try to catch up.
Week 8:Theme: Music
Have fun 🙂
Ingrid