Lighting and diagonality

Early morning. Two different locations. Two different lighting situations. And I like them both.

Up early and walking next to the water on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Very soft overcast light. A good time for a simple composition. Look how the dark-trunked tree in the center leads your eye leftward. So does the diagonal line of the tops of the trees. Nice feeling of movement as a result.

And then there is the early morning directional light on Martha's Vineyard. The lighting and the wide-angle lens make this a busier photo than the first, but shallow depth of field keeps the background out of focus yet enables it to add to the story. And look at the diagonal lines here, how the angle of the boat and the streak of sunlight in the sand move your eye into the frame.

Do we have to choose? The golden light of dawn on Martha's Vineyard versus the overcast skies of South Carolina? Both lighting situations can be excellent for photography.

What I really want to say is that it just doesn't matter. Get up, get out, take a look around. Work with what you're given. Keep it simple. But oh, please, do look at the light.

©Carol Leigh
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. 

When limitations can be freeing . . .

I went to Martha's Vineyard this year and I didn't take a tripod. It was an emotional, last-second decision (I'm taking too much stuff, it's taking up too much room in the suitcase, so screw it).

It was a mistake. I missed out on a lot of possibilities.

However, there's a part of me that enjoys limitations, seeing what I can do with what I have rather than bemoaning what I left behind. In fact I will often -- on purpose -- take just one lens to a location and see what I can do.

It's a freeing feeling in a way -- having limitations.

Instead of going to a photo location with a plan, a set of preconceptions, I relax. I let the photos come to me instead of trying to bend them to my will. I'm more open to what might happen. I'm more open to experimentation. And I often return with photos I might otherwise never have taken.

How did not having a tripod help me in Martha's Vineyard?

I figured that instead of looking at possible out-of-focus images as a detriment, I would try enhancing the out-of-focusness by creating photos that show movement.

A couple of little girls playing in the surf at the end of the day became expressions of childhood delight as I used long-ish exposures.

I played with long-exposure "sweeps," making the ocean or landscape into broad swaths of color. When I was lost in the woods, I made the most of low light by creating vertical tree "sweeps."

I was on vacation. I wasn't burdened with a tripod. Yes, I missed out on a number of photo ops, but I had fun!

I loved the freedom having no tripod gave me, the ability to walk long distances unencumbered. The ease with which I could duck into a shop or a coffee bar and not worry about bumping into things or finding a place to stow my stuff.

What's my point? Limitations, constraints that seemingly work against you, can actually become liberating agents, encouraging you to see things differently, to experiment, to play.

I blew it by not taking a tripod. But my resulting experience was just delightful -- spontaneous, unplanned, and freeing.

Lemons? Here's your lemonade.

Wishing you all a most happy, healthy, and serene 2014!

©Carol Leigh

Long exposures and the sea

Long exposures taken (1) from the Balboa Pier, (2) at Martha's Vineyard and (3) again at Martha's Vineyard. I'm loving the look! ©Carol Leigh

Quansoo Beach

While on Martha's Vineyard, Chris P. took us to a delightful location: Quansoo Beach. As the sun was going down, I tried shooting some "sweeps" of the beach. It was amazing to see the difference it made as I faced west versus east. Toward the west the colors were vibrant and golden while toward the east the colors of the sky, the water, and the sand were darker, more subtle. The resulting photographs really emphasize the difference 180 degrees can make! ©Carol Leigh