In balance

Someone had balanced this driftwood on top of each other and left it behind on the beach, which I considered a blessing as it give me something to use as a foreground in this shot.

It also made me think at the time that we all need to work at keeping our lives in balance.

Coming in for a landing

Being in the right place at the right time can have its rewards. Like turning to look behind me and seeing this.

I only had a second to snap a couple of quick pictures. This shot could have been a lot better if I'd known this person was going to land his kite on the beach. I would have moved a bit to separate the person sitting in the foreground from the rock behind him. I didn't have the time, so I had to make do, and try to get an interesting composition is the few seconds that I had.

Keeping you off my mind

It's not all that difficult to get the results you want if you practice (which goes for most things in life).

The more I learn about and use cameras, the more I realize that even the "modern" digital camera is nothing more than a simple machine. It's very limited in its capabilities.

The trick really is to know what those capabilities are, and to squeeze as much from them as possible.

That's where practice comes in, and lots of it. That's how you learn what every dial and setting will do, and all the permutations of these.

Your reward will be getting better and more consistent results. No more guessing... You'll be able to look at a scene and quickly decide on the settings you need to get the results you want.

You'll know when to trust what the camera tells you is a good exposure setting, and when to override what the camera is telling you.

You're in control.

That's the magic. It's not in the camera. They don't take great pictures. People take them.

Light's last refuge

A longer exposure lets you squeeze the most out of the last remaining traces of the day. It also softens the waves into a reflective surface like you see here.

Smile for the Camera

When you get some time in a studio, with controlled lighting, you can have lots of fun.

The reason this shot is cropped so close on the top is because you could see the roll of the seamless backdrop. Sure, I could have cloned it out with Photoshop.

This just shows that you always need to pay attention to your background. Indoors and out.

This is a friend and his daughter. Just a one off. I sent him the original file, and since he's a Photoshop person by trade it wasn't an issue. I think he really had some fun and added a completely different background.

If this was for a client, get the shot right in the camera (always the best option) or do the cloning...

Troubles to the wind

It would be so nice to be able to throw one's troubles to the wind and have them fly away.

Claws

The diversity of life is an amazing thing. Nature seems to be able to adapt in ways we could never imagine.