unsharpsaturday

Sharp Focus on Blur : 1

Posted by Ellie
 

Plus Post Week 1 Blurs and Unsharp Photography: Guided Play 2015

Focus on Blur? Oh yes! And you wouldn't guess how hard that can be. Hard as in hard to stop! I am having such a lot of fun in learning from +Alex Lapidus in this mentorship that is enabled by the +G+ Mentorship Program for Photographers team. There is a wonderful freedom in mastering the techniques that allow you to choose to take images that are out of focus, in whole or in part. Blurring the extraneous and distracting details can really focus in on what is important in the mood of an image.

Before learning the techniques we have discovered this week, if I ever put my camera into manual focus mode, it was to be sure to focus as sharply as I could on my subject. In some cases this is important. But sometimes the story you are trying to tell needs a different approach. And learning when to do that (and how to achieve the effect) is both refreshing and freeing. And fun! (Did I say that it is also a little addictive?)

We have a fabulantastic group of mentors who are sitting at their computers or devices 24/7 (or so it seems) ready to give encouragement or assistance where needed. The students are also crazy, fun and committed to enjoying this to the full and producing images according to their own unique visions. If you ever see this mentorship being offered, don't hesitate to sign up for it as I guarantee that it will change your focus and perspective in a wonderfully positive way. Thanks Alex and team and fellow mentees. On now to week 2! I wonder what Alex has in store for us?

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#unsharpsaturday +Unsharp Saturday v2.0 #intentionalblur #photoplay #camerafun

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Flight of Silken Flowers

Posted by Ellie
 

In setting up my photograph for this week's Black and White project, I had played with a silk print using various lighting and techniques. One of the effects that I particularly liked was this, taken with a slow shutter speed and intentional camera movement (blur). I was partly thinking of the mentorship that +Alex Lapidus​ is beginning soon, where he will be guiding the (fortunate) chosen participants to play with such techniques to produce just this kind of effect. The colours in this were way too lovely to desaturate them for a black and white image, so I am posting this as it is, in glorious colour. Abstract, but still obviously floral in design.

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#unsharpsaturday #intentionalblur #photoplay #camerafun #colorsonfriday +ColorsOnFriday​ by +Britta Rogge​ +Karsten Meyer​

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Joni Playing Ball

Posted by Ellie
 

I was using different settings on my camera this summer, experimenting with motion captures and Joni was an ideal subject for this blurred motion study. Border Collie playing ball. She doesn't stop for long, just long enough to will me to throw it again.

It's not so green on the ground now, but I had better get out and play ball with her anyway as her energy only seems to increase in the winter! Have a great weekend everyone!

For my friends on #unsharpsaturday #softfocussaturday +Unsharp Saturday v2.0 by +Alex Lapidus +Julianne Bockius +Jetski Jones +Patrice Christian +Nadia Pewinski

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#blur #motioncapture

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Zippy-But not much use for Purposes of ID

Posted by Ellie
 

The village has, with a lot of love and care, created a nature walk through woods that border our property. It has many little trails that twist and wind their way through the forest and along the edge of the fields. At one place, not too far from the school playground, there is an all weather fitness equipment area. (Take the 'all weather' bit with a pinch of salt, of course.) The purpose of this path is to encourage villagers to get outdoors and exercise themselves. There are projects for school children that are created around this path that include both exercise and learning experiences – today there were two groups of different ages, one using a GPS device, presumably to find their schoolmates we could just about hear in another part of the trail, the younger class children simply running along it.

From the outset this path was for those on non motorized forms of transport: feet, snowshoes, skis and even bicycles. Unfortunately there are no signs in place to indicate this restriction and the paths are being ruined by heavy fast two or four wheeled vehicles in winter and in summer. In the winter they form ruts that make it very difficult to walk along the trail. In the summer they can represent a hazard to walkers and their dogs. They also gradually are harming the roots of the trees that border the path. In time they will start to die back. The village has been unable to identify the infringers and have asked us to try to photograph them for identification. So here is one of them. 😀

Signs and a few strategically placed bollards would do a better job, I think.

Are you not able to comment on Google+ because you don't belong? Would you prefer to comment on my blog? It's right here with all my G+ posts on it: https://www.elliekennard.ca .

For:
#inmotionthursday +InMotion Thursday by +Scott Thomas
#hqspmotion +HQSP Motion +Melania Pierce and +Anja Wessels
and
#unsharpsaturday +Unsharp Saturday v2.0 +Alex Lapidus +Julianne Bockius +Jetski Jones +Patrice Christian and +Nadia Pewinski

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