How do you take a good picture? A question than seems simple yet hard to answer. My simple response would be, take the subject from multiple angles. This is the good advice I was once given; start wide, move in close, move around the subject and look for different angles. If you have the time you can spend an hour on a subject and get some really interesting results.
I had an hour to spare between classes and headed to the park just to see what I could photograph. I saw an open conifer on the floor, I picked it up and started placing it here and there. I took pictures with different compositions moving around the conifer and then moved on to the next location and repeated.
Heading to the digital darkroom I tried to approach my editing in the same way, I was really surprised by some of the ideas I had.
Let me know in the comments what you think, which one is your favorite image or just say hi.
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My favorite is the last one. I love how the pine cone fills the frame and portrait mode seems to fit the subject well. It’s big and bold and very graphic in that image.
Thanks Mike, it is a nice portrait of the cone fits really nicely, I actually rotated this shot a bit when cropping to make it more portrait and I am glad I did.
Beautiful images, my favourite is the middle one with the golden tones and love the moss detail in the bottom two.
That was actually the last composition as the sun was dropping behind the trees. Lying on the grass was the only way to get the shot.
Thanks for commenting Karen.
Love them all, the yellow/golden one is my favorite.
Hi Mary, that one does have fantastic hues I really like it as well, a mixture of summer, autumn and spring mixed together.
Great photos, and I plan to use this approach more. I hope to visit a botanical garden next week, so will have the time to try this out. I really like the pine cone on the grass with the blades in front, as it looks natural and has a neat perspective.
Hi Karen, for this shot I threw the conifer in the air and photographed it where i lay. A simple approach but it works so well to get that natural look. Hope you have some good shits from the botanical gardens. Also thanks for taking the time to comment, really appreciated.
My favourite is no 5. I like the blurred background and the clarity of the cone, the moss and the rock that it is perched on.
Earl Of Bethel, that is a nice shot, I actually warmed the whole image to get the tones in the cone and then cooled the highlights to soften the blurred background. Due to the toning I think I have made the tree something line stone but the green moss was there.
As always your comments are very appreciated.
I really like them all but forced to pick a favourite I would plump for the final shot.
Hi Laura, that shot is a nice one, I also think it is the closest I got when taking the picture. I am glad you like them all as I do.
Thanks for taking the time to comment.
I think I like it precisely because it fills the frame. However I also love the one with the warm, brownish hue to it and the ones involving moss because I love moss.
2nd down on the left draws my eye the most – but always love ALL of your work! 🙂
That picture was a real experiment when editing. Will try it out a few more times before I share how to do it. I am glad you like the pictures Jodi.
Lovely compositions! I really like conifer7.
Hi Laura, that is a nice picture, kind of gets you ready for spring.
We are already springing here in California!
We have another few weeks of winter before we get to the first day of spring.
I like the one in the bottom corner best. The blue-ish sky in the background brings out both the cone and the limb and reminds me of Christmas.
I never thought of it as christmassy but i suppose it is in a way.
Thanks for your comment Josh.
What a great idea! You are just giving me lots of ideas for shots. I like the first one best 🙂
I am glad the post has inspired you and given you some ideas.
I have to say that the Conifer 7 with the golden tones is my favourite. I love the softness of the colour.
Hi Raewyn, It is a nice shot, it is kind of dreamy, isn’t it.
No.6 is my favorite. I adore it, PoV is splendid. Another favorit is no.7 with beautiful warm colors.
Hi Loré, I think 6 has a natural perspective, personally 7 was to be an ode to spring as I can’t wait for it to warm up and there to be sunny afternoons.
Same here, can’t wait for spring.
The last image is my favorite!
I think it is for a lot of people, possibly for the tighter crop and toning.
I think it’s #4 for me. Depth of field and focus on the object.
That is a great shot, I am glad you like it.
I like number 2…the cone fills the frame..but it does look like it is about to fall!!!
Yeah it does have the look of being a bit unstable, this is because of the crop and rotation. The original had a bit of a dutch angle about it and I rotated it slightly to make it more upright.
When you scroll through the gallery, there is no #4??? I like #1 because of the composition, the angles and the sharpness and #7 because it looks anthropomorphic – like your Lego shots.
Yeah #4 was pulled at the last minute because it was too similar to another picture, I wanted them all to have a different look and feel. I am really happy you think my lego shots are anthropomorphic, that is a really nice compliment and means a lot to me.
I like the all, but the last one stands out for me …
Thanks for you input Julie, it is a favorite for most people I think.