Week 52: 2020 in a Photo!
This years ornament on my Christmas Tree says it all.
Week 51: Black and White Minimalism!
Leaves of Long Ago
Flowers far away
A winter walk along the way.
They say the best camera is the one you have with you.
Shot in the back alley in the shade for a nice soft light;
get close, no closer still, now that is just what should be in the frame.
Week 50: Texture
Covid Crushes Christmas ”
We have all been feeling this, the oppression of Covid overshadowing our holidays.
I wanted to capture this feeling in an image.
The mask features prominently and overwhelming in the image obliterating a holiday token.
I placed coloured chalk inside the Christmas ornaments
so when they shattered the powder would fly into the air symbolizing
the aerosol of the virus contaminating the world.
Just the right light set up for a dark and ominous feeling leaves this photo with
just the statement I intended to convey.
Week 49: Choose a Color
“ Don’t feel so blue ”
Teaching photography to teenagers in a pandemic when they are all learning from home instead of the classroom provides some real challenges. How do you teach them virtually through a google meet? How do you get them to shoot worthwhile pictures without the classroom equipment being accessible? How do you engage them in it enough they will want to do the projects. I know... let them shoot pictures that are too messy to do in the classroom. This week I had my class do an assignment entitled, “Project Water”. I sent them off with the inspiration to play with water and create a mess. A lot of amazing ideas came forward from those crafty little minds. This was my demo shot for the lesson. A glass, some water, a little drop of food colouring and shoot fast.
Week 48: Nature
Found myself a friend on lovely afternoon winter walk.
A 400mm zoom allowed me to get a nice close up of this Eastern Grey Squirrel.
The composition is texture rich with the tree bark in contrast
to the soft winter coat of my friend.
A nice fast shutter speed let me freeze the action of this busy little guy.
Week 46: Mobile Phone
"But you should know when it gets too cold
You're not alone I'll melt the snow" - Shayne Ward
You're not alone I'll melt the snow" - Shayne Ward
It's easy to feel alone and isolated these days;
but then,
occasionally the sun shines;
the snow melts;
and we are not alone.
Week 45: Signs!
Weather Forecast
A sign of the weather to come as the blizzard blows in on the prairies.
Week 44: Abstract
2020 - 1 photos - Extra Credit Challenge: Impressionist Photography
Mmmmmove
As soon as I saw this weeks challenge I knew instantly the photo I wanted. I just needed to wait to dig in to the halloween candy. Using a zoom racking technique with these colourful candies I was excited to create an image that made the candies look like they were zooming right off the page.
Week 42: Food Photography
Extra Credit: Complementary Colors
Toast and Jam
The idea of backlight jelly inspired me to this photograph. Initially I wanted to shoot the toast straight on and capture the jelly on it glowing with the light from behind up close. I found some closeup filters in my photography drawer that I forgot I had and I wanted to test out how they worked. While I was working on the set up thought I was practicing with just the jelly jar. I really liked the results I was getting from it as well. I couldn't decide which I liked better so I decided to composite the two photos into one.
Week 41: Shoot Through
“ Sparkling Personality ”
I thought I would shoot through a sparkler to catch the reaction of my grandson.
Week 40: Blue!
Extra Credit: Use CTB Gel
Students running cross country is not something that would usually inspire me to take a blue photo, yet, here it is.
We had a turkey trot at my school this week and as the photography teacher yearbook photos fall in my portfolio.
I took the opportunity shooting all afternoon to do my weekly project at the same time.
So, while they were running a threw on my blue filter and got down real low.
I sure didn't have a preconception of what would happen.
It turned out to be lots of fun with some really distinctive photos as a result.
Week 39: Use a Tripod
Fun with Photography Class
My junior high photography students love light painting.
So I included them in the planning and execution of this weeks project.
They were so excited to get to help and they tried so many different plans to see how they would work.
In the end I guided them to a 30 second shot
where they began by sitting on the floor and shining their flashlights on their faces.
They love making coloured lights so they hold different colour papers
over their lights to see what colours they can make.
After sitting very still for about 15 seconds they all got up and ran around like mad
to create light trails and then ran off the stage.
Week 38: A Chair!
Extra Credit: Tell a Story
This beautiful chair was a gift from a former student.
He hand painted this chair for me in 2005
And it is one of the most thoughtful gifts I have ever received from a student.
To this day it has a place in my classroom by my desk.
Week 37: Single Focal Point!
I Want to Ride
... my bicycle, bicycle, bicycle
I want to ride my bicycle
I want to ride my bike
I want to ride my bicycle
I want to ride it where I like. (Queen)
I want to ride my bicycle
I want to ride my bike
I want to ride my bicycle
I want to ride it where I like. (Queen)
Something kids are doing more than ever before.
How to avoid catching Covid on the school bus;
ride your bike to school.
As a result there are a lot of bikes outside my classroom door for inspiration.
While I was teaching my class outdoor for social distancing I noticed this particular bike.
The student has straddled it overtop the bike rack so he could lock it up using the frame.
It gave the bike a great unique angle the really attracted my attention to the tire
and made it seem like the bike was ready to ride right off into the sky.
Week 36: Combine Three Challenges
Extra Credit: The Extra Credits
Extra Credit: The Extra Credits
Our Grandson is obsessed with video games and lego.
Who knew that lego could be so compatible with the world of Nintendo... not this Grandma.
This weeks photo combines 3 challenges from previous weeks and incorporates the extra credit.
Who knew that lego could be so compatible with the world of Nintendo... not this Grandma.
This weeks photo combines 3 challenges from previous weeks and incorporates the extra credit.
An intentional colour palette to create the character
and what better way to showcase lego than with a flatlay photo. (Week 7)
HDR'd to show the many details in bumpy lego that kills when you step on it. (Week 29)
White sections in the top of the mushroom take care of the rule of odds
while the yellow blocks frame the picture symmetrically. (Week 34)
And just for fun one extra a common object;
lego with a single light source;
a speedlight flash right at the top aimed toward the bottom
to create the drop shadow style used in the virtual world. (Week 35)
and what better way to showcase lego than with a flatlay photo. (Week 7)
HDR'd to show the many details in bumpy lego that kills when you step on it. (Week 29)
White sections in the top of the mushroom take care of the rule of odds
while the yellow blocks frame the picture symmetrically. (Week 34)
And just for fun one extra a common object;
lego with a single light source;
a speedlight flash right at the top aimed toward the bottom
to create the drop shadow style used in the virtual world. (Week 35)
Week 35: Common Object!
Extra Credit: One light source
Anyone who knows me and knows my life
Knows just how common this object is in my life. 😁
Accomplished with one light source from above and in front
as my husband out of camera view poured the coffee
and I hit the shutter...
then drank the coffee. 😁
Week 34: Rule of Odds
Macro is all about the details.
I love the texture of the water drop with air pockets on the leaf.
Week 33: Night Photography
“The eyes of gargoyles and angels are watching” - Izak Hannard (Eyes Of Gargoyles)
In this case so were the eyes of my mother....
What a tough week assignment for me this week. It gets dark pretty late and I put mom to bed pretty early. I can’t leave her unattended and live in the city so by the time she is in bed and it is dark I am stuck with what is in my yard. Even at that I “snuck” out after I put her to bed and she immediately peaked out the window and saw I was outside. She was worried I was leaving her alone in the night. 😢
In this case so were the eyes of my mother....
What a tough week assignment for me this week. It gets dark pretty late and I put mom to bed pretty early. I can’t leave her unattended and live in the city so by the time she is in bed and it is dark I am stuck with what is in my yard. Even at that I “snuck” out after I put her to bed and she immediately peaked out the window and saw I was outside. She was worried I was leaving her alone in the night. 😢
Week 32: A New Experience
Extra Credit: Bucket List
New paths walked and ridden; new photos taken; new edits completed.
Since Covid my bucket list has been rewritten to accommodate things I can accomplish much closer to home.
I have been attempting to take little day trips to places in my hometown I have never explored before.
On one of this weeks trips on a path never before taken I came upon this beauty.
For something new I tried to shoot him as a 3 stop HDR on my Canon.
Let me tell you a bird has to hold pretty still and you have to shoot those 3 photos pretty quick
in order to HDR a live bird.
Week 31: Water
The beautiful Lorette Ponds in Kananaskis, Alberta offered a beautiful photo for this weeks project.
Recipe for a gorgeous landscape photo...
One wonderfully warm day;
a sprinkling of brilliant sunshine;
just the right percentage of shadow;
add water so still that a bug skipping across the water caused ripples;
throw in a handful of cute kids of random parentage;
Shoot carefully;
just a touch of careful editing;
and serve for all to enjoy!
Week 30: Negative Space
Not A Cloud in the Sky
Such a beautiful day out for a walk, with the bluest skies.
I didn’t know which I wanted a picture of more; the pretty flower,
Or the blue sky.
Week 29: Details!
Extra Credit: HDR
Bugs Eye View
I pulled out all the macro fun for this weeks shot.
Shot with my 100mm macro lens and 5 stacked extension tubes (2x12mm, 2x20mm, 1x36mm)
and then slightly cropped in a bit; I got EXACTLY what I was after for a change.
Planned, set up, shot in 1 frame.
Finally HDR was accomplished through post-processing in Lightroom.
Week 28: Edited by Someone Else
Extra Credit: A New Technique
Fire Breathing Dragon - edited by the lovely and talented Tammie Maloney
I really wanted to challenge myself to a new technique this week.
Smoke is something I have never managed to shoot.
So I started the week shooting just smoke trails.
I got it; it worked.
But truthfully they weren’t very interesting pictures to give to a friend to edit;
So back to the camera I went.
Well it’s more interesting.
The smoke however did get lost in the light of the flames as I made the dragon breathe fire.
Week 27: Complementary Colors!
Finally things are beginning to bloom providing the perfect opportunity for some garden macro photography.
Welcome to my peony garden 😀
Week 26: Flashlight
Well it's the end of another school year which means teachers are cleaning their classrooms.
My friend the science teacher called me to her room to look at what she was throwing out.
Being the drama and photography teacher I tend to be the staff hoarder.
Jackpot... a flashlight that changes colours and shines many colours all at the same time.
Just in time for this weeks project I rushed back to my classroom with it and began to play.
I began experimenting with it and decided to backlight these white fabric roses with it.
Viola!
The kids are gonna have fun photographing things with this light next year...
if we are back in school and able to take photography class anyway.
Week 25: Make a Background
Back lanes are a surprising location to get many wonderful photos.
Fences make great backgrounds.
The sun reflecting off the gravel or pavement creates amazing lighting.
And sometimes you even find some beautiful things.
Week 24: Hands
Extra Credit: Make a Statement
Extra Credit: Make a Statement
“Helping hands are better than Praying Lips.” - Mother Teresa
My mother is in the more advanced stages of dementia.
Each week I do an art project with her.
As time has progressed she has gone from independently being able to complete the project with instructions;
To now needing me to guide her hands as she creates her works of art.
Week 23: Dancing!
The lyrics from the song, “I Hope You Dance”, By Lee Ann Womack
Suit perfectly my wish for all of you
“May you never take one single breath for granted
God forbid love ever leave you empty handed
I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
God forbid love ever leave you empty handed
I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance
I hope you dance!”
I hope you dance!”
My beautiful friend was kind enough to dance for me in our back alley
During a social distancing photoshoot I did for her one beautiful evening this week.
She is the kind of friend who reminds me regularly to DANCE!!
Week 22: 50 Feet from Home!
This week the challenge was to find photos in your own backyard so to speak....
well there weren't 50 feet ;
but there was one super cute
little pre-schooler foot
covered in sand.
Week 21: Symmetry
Extra Credit: Double Exposure
Extra Credit: Double Exposure
Light painting is always a solo indoor activity. This week on top of our global situation it decided to pour rain here so I was looking for something to occupy my time inside.
I headed down to my studio space and hung a flashlight from the ceiling. I found some different coloured gels to put onto the end and started swinging.
This photo is a triple exposure accomplished with photoshop, but, with much forethought as to the colours, patterns and sizes of the light patterns as I created them.
I headed down to my studio space and hung a flashlight from the ceiling. I found some different coloured gels to put onto the end and started swinging.
This photo is a triple exposure accomplished with photoshop, but, with much forethought as to the colours, patterns and sizes of the light patterns as I created them.
Week 20: Not What You See
I think my little yard gargoyles are adorable
But some people find them a little creepy.
They definitely aren’t your standard stone statue gargoyles Lol.
Week 19: Roll of Film
Seen as how we are all living in our own little bubbles
I decided to take the idea literally.
Some peoples bubbles are bigger;
Some are smaller;
Some are more colourful;
Some are less;
But if your bubble is lucky it won’t touch anyone else’s
Because if it does it might just burst.
#covidwarnings #covidlife #covidliving #bubblelife #livinginabubble
Week 18: Low Key (that's THIS week!)
Extra Credit: Portrait
Extra Credit: Portrait
I was inspired by a painting my grandmother did many years ago.
The painting is a low key portrait of a black collie where the silhouette of the dog
Is highlighted with varying shades of colour around the edge of the dog.
I have always adored that painting
And so I wanted to create a photo inspired by the look of it.
Week 17: Soft!
Extra Credit: High Key
Beautiful soft pink orchids shot high key against the sky.
Week 16: Fast Shutter Speed
Extra Credit: Drip Water Photography
Lots of time on my hands equalled lots of time to play with my Pluto!
(Like 6 hours straight experimenting with shooting.)
Shot at 1/5000sec with a speed light on high sync I found some success.
Week 15: A Different Angle
I was finding it difficult to find inspiration this week while social distancing and staying home. I reached for the bottle of wine to have a little pre-dinner glass when it struck me... what does the wine look like from underneath as it is poured into the decanter. So I decided to find out. I placed my iphone on the floor under a plexiglass shelf, put the wine decanter on the shelf, started to pour and hit burst shot on the phone. Viola! That’s what the wine looks like from below as it get’s poured into the decanter. 😁
Week 14: Curves
Extra Credit: The S-curve
Extra Credit: The S-curve
Trapped in our house like most of the rest of you looking for what makes an S-curve.
This is one of the favourite pass times at our house;
fondly referred to by our 5 year old grandson as "sliding cars".
A little guy who spends far too much time isolated in a hospital room
(thankfully not right now)
this is always what he asks childlike to bring to his room to play with.
Week 13: Line from a Song
“Be OK” by Ingrid Michaelson
“I just want to be okay, be okay, be okay
I just want to be okay today.”
I just want to be okay today.”
I wanted to create an image that reminded us all in this time of uncertainty;
That we need to remember, to internalize, and to emphasize that
We will BE OK!
Week 12: Books
Extra Credit: Tell a Story
In this very trying time for our world, through the pain, the fear, the unknown...
BOOKS!
“You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world,
but then you read. " James Baldwin
“Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist,
but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” – Neil Gaiman
“I do believe something very magical can happen when you read a book.” – J.K. Rowling
Extra Credit: Tell a Story
In this very trying time for our world, through the pain, the fear, the unknown...
BOOKS!
“You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world,
but then you read. " James Baldwin
“Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist,
but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” – Neil Gaiman
“I do believe something very magical can happen when you read a book.” – J.K. Rowling
Week 11: Triangular Composition
Extra Credit: Studio Setup
Extra Credit: Studio Setup
This week was a good excuse to work on splash photography.
Besides I had a very patient, persistent assistant;
My mother, who suffers from Alzheimer’s,
Was thrilled to spend an hour an a half dropping
Raspberries into this martini glass for me.
Week 10: Abandoned
“ Life abandoned ”
When you are so sick you can’t eat even French fries and abandon them but you don’t want to abandon your photo project or you will loose your standing. Like the leaders say sometimes you just need need to submit. “ Because life tends to move on.
So, stop with the overthinking.
Just go out and do that thing.
Because no one cares.”
So, stop with the overthinking.
Just go out and do that thing.
Because no one cares.”
Week 9: Exteme Contrast
Extra Credit: Studio Lighting
Extra Credit: Studio Lighting
Carnevale celebrations at school this week resulted in this wonderful opportunity to
photograph my student teacher in her makeup using studio lights in my photography classroom.
Week 8: Pairs
Extra Credit: Humans
This tiny little human has a pair of the most amazing eyes.
#miniframers #52frames_pairs #tinyhuman #eyes #pairofeyes
#52frames #toddlerphotography #portrait
Week 7: Intentional Color Palette
Extra Credit: Flatlay
Extra Credit: Flatlay
I wanted to attempt to use my computer screen as a background underneath a piece of glass
as a way of giving background and back lighting to my flat lay.
The photo still seemed like it needed a little something so I added some bubbles onto the glass layer.
#miniframers #52frames_intentionalcolor #color #miniframers #backlit
#flatlay #bubbles #flowers #pink #valentines
Week 6: The "Rule of Thirds"
When my school kiddos are finished their work they get to play in the, "boredom centre". It is a great motivator for time on task in class. In addition the items in it provide great inspiration for my photography students. I thought I would take some inspiration from them this week and shoot their games myself.
#52frames_ruleofthirds #miniframers
Week 5: Shoot from Above
I love shooting birds.
I always aim to catch them in flight and love to make sure part of the bird is in focus;
while part of the bird shows the movement through blur.
I loved the way the background in this photo complimented the colouring in the bird.
This bird was so close that it was shot with a 70mm lens and boy did I have to pan fast.
Week 4: Fill the Frame
Orange You Glad I Took This?
Wanted to experiment with thinly sliced fruit backlit to show the inside textures of the fruit.
Week 3: Wabi Sabi
Butcher? Baker? Candlestick maker? ”
No ... but in the Catholic faith he is the patron saint of them.
It is said that Wabi-sabi is an intuitive appreciation of a transient beauty
in the physical world that reflects the irreversible flow of life in the spiritual world.
What better reflection of that than a statue of a religious icon.
Week 2: Leading Lines
Extra Credit: 10 seconds or slower
It was much too cold to go outside for long exposure night time photography using traffic as leading lines;
so I had to think inside.
My students love light painting so I thought it might be good inspiration for some long exposures
with leading lines.
I teach drama and photography so I loved the symbolism of the mask with the lines leading to it.
#52frames_leadinglines#extracredit#longexposure#lightpainting#creepy#masks
Week 1: Self-Portrait
Through the fog...
This past year others have only seen a faint representation of me.
Having spent the year only vaguely visible,
I have been submersed in taking care of others.
Coming through the fog this year I want to find balance.
Just a bit more for me....
So here I go...
Off to start another year project that will challenge me to spend a bit more time on my photography.
Carving out just a bit of time to FOCUS on me.
#52frames_selfportrait
