For this second assignment, where we were asked to consider and take 12 photographs in a relatively small area - one acre - I chose to visit a location ('Las Salinas' - 'la sal' means 'salt' in Spanish)) where once salt was produced by the evaporation of sea water. This has now been turned into a 'natural park' of wetland, vegetation and leisure trails.
The park covers many acres but I confined myself to a small sector. The challenge of the assignment was to achieve variety in the 12 shots but the additional challenge I set myself was to do this in an area which, by its very nature, is flat and contains no trees. It remains to be seen whether I have succeeded!
I made several visits to the park, around dawn and during the afternoon, both to consider possible subjects and to take the photographs. Clearly the light was different at these times of the day with that around dawn being very soft and then much harsher in the afternoon.
An overall impression of Las Salinas can be seen in photograph number one which is a panoramic shot obtained by stitching together 6 different shots using the Photomerge tool in Elements 7.
Clearly, the park extends way into the distance but the area I chose is in the foreground, bounded by the water on the left and that on the right.
Photograph number 2 is an early morning shot with an old white workshop and its reflection in one of the pools. In the distance can be seen the old village of Sancti Petri where tuna used to be processed before this activity moved down the coast to Barbate. The light here is quite soft being about half an hour after sunrise and I have chosen to reduce the amount of sky in the shot because of the lack of cloud making it rather uninteresting.
Number 3 is a shot of some of the very colourful vegetation which has grown up since the salt extraction ceased. This was taken during the afternoon and, again, there was no cloud cover hence I have eliminated any sky.
Number 4 is probably my favourite photograph of this assignment. Conscious of comments made by my tutor after my first assignment, that I needed to vary the height of my shots, I set my tripod very low to the ground and used a wide-angle lens to get this view to include both a strong foreground and some very interesting cloud cover. Taken just after dawn, the lighting is very soft and warm.
Photograph number 6 is the first of two close-up shots showing part of the weed cover on the water. (Actually, it is a shot cropped from a photograph of a much larger area).The relief is quite strong as the sun was low in the sky, it being about 30 minutes after dawn when I took this shot. I like the interesting swirls made by the weed and the whole looks very abstract.
This photograph (number 7) of the white building and very strong refection was perfect for a square frame. It could have been cropped even tighter but, despite the lack of cloud, I wanted to retain some sky on this occasion, and its reflection in the water, as a frame for the building.
Taken from the waters edge, and again quite low down, this photograph (8) gives another view of the vegetation in this area. It was taken shortly after dawn, hence the soft light. There is some cloud so I kept this in and I composed the shot to have the water diagonally across the frame.
This photograph shows some dried branches in the afternoon sun. It would be difficult to tell from the photograph how large, or small, the branches were without the little green ferns at the top and left of the frame.
Some nice colours in photograph number 10 caused by a layer of scum on a muddy area between the water and the bank. I chose a portrait framing as it seemed to produce a better balanced shot. .
Like photograph 4, the penultimate shot (number 11) was taken almost at ground level in order to capture both a strong foreground and the interesting cloud cover. I chose this shot because of the old post sticking out of the mud and decided to place it to the left of the frame so that I could show the central muddy area stretching into the distance.
Finally, this second close-up shot was taken from above, looking down on a couple of footprints in the dusty landscape. The footprints and the pieces of vegetation are supposed to balance each other in the frame.
Technical stuff
2. White building/reflection - ISO 100, /f/22, shutter speed 1/13 secs using telephoto lens at 154mm.
3. Red ground cover - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/30 secs using telephoto lens at 84mm.
4. Low-down, building in distance - ISO 100, f/11, shutter speed 1/60 secs using wide-angle lens at 13mm.
5. Sunrise - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 0.50 secs using wide-angle lens at 11mm.
6. Slime - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 0.40 secs using telephoto lens at 46mm.
7. White building - square close-up - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/13 secs using telephoto lens at 218mm.
8. Shore - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/13 secs using wide angle lens at 11mm.
9. Small branches - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/30 secs using telephoto lens at 39mm.
10. Yellow mud - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/30 secs at 77mm using telephoto lens.
11. Wooden post - ISO 100, f/16, shutter speed 1/60 secs at 13mm using wide-angle lens.
12. Footprints - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/30 secs at 39mm using telephoto lens.
Final Comments
This has been a very interesting assignment in that it has made me think about taking unusual shots. I think that it would be a very good camera club assignment where people could be asked to take different shots in a very confined area over a period of an hour, say, and then compare them.
I have tried to vary the height of the shots although a higher perspective would have been nice but would have needed a ladder (although Charlie Waite (I think) does take one on his photo shoots!) as the ground was so flat.
Photograph number 2 is an early morning shot with an old white workshop and its reflection in one of the pools. In the distance can be seen the old village of Sancti Petri where tuna used to be processed before this activity moved down the coast to Barbate. The light here is quite soft being about half an hour after sunrise and I have chosen to reduce the amount of sky in the shot because of the lack of cloud making it rather uninteresting.
Number 3 is a shot of some of the very colourful vegetation which has grown up since the salt extraction ceased. This was taken during the afternoon and, again, there was no cloud cover hence I have eliminated any sky.
Number 4 is probably my favourite photograph of this assignment. Conscious of comments made by my tutor after my first assignment, that I needed to vary the height of my shots, I set my tripod very low to the ground and used a wide-angle lens to get this view to include both a strong foreground and some very interesting cloud cover. Taken just after dawn, the lighting is very soft and warm.
Number 5 is a dawn shot with the sun just creeping over the horizon. Yet again, I have left a narrow strip of sky with the emphasis on the warm colour reflected on the water and a strong foreground. The length of the shadows from the two poles would be much reduced later in the day, of course.
This photograph (number 7) of the white building and very strong refection was perfect for a square frame. It could have been cropped even tighter but, despite the lack of cloud, I wanted to retain some sky on this occasion, and its reflection in the water, as a frame for the building.
Taken from the waters edge, and again quite low down, this photograph (8) gives another view of the vegetation in this area. It was taken shortly after dawn, hence the soft light. There is some cloud so I kept this in and I composed the shot to have the water diagonally across the frame.
This photograph shows some dried branches in the afternoon sun. It would be difficult to tell from the photograph how large, or small, the branches were without the little green ferns at the top and left of the frame.
Some nice colours in photograph number 10 caused by a layer of scum on a muddy area between the water and the bank. I chose a portrait framing as it seemed to produce a better balanced shot. .
Like photograph 4, the penultimate shot (number 11) was taken almost at ground level in order to capture both a strong foreground and the interesting cloud cover. I chose this shot because of the old post sticking out of the mud and decided to place it to the left of the frame so that I could show the central muddy area stretching into the distance.
Finally, this second close-up shot was taken from above, looking down on a couple of footprints in the dusty landscape. The footprints and the pieces of vegetation are supposed to balance each other in the frame.
Technical stuff
All the photographs for this assignment were taken in RAW using a tripod and, as suggested, with the camera set to Manual. I used a hand-held light-meter throughout rather than TTL metering and this worked well (apart from the time when I forgot to set the ISO setting on the meter to 100 to match that on the camera - fortunately I was using RAW and exposure bracketing so this wasn't too much of a problem).
Also, I had the tripod set at various heights and I was very grateful for 'Live View' for some of the very low level shots.
I used one of two lenses - either the Tokina wide-angle or Tamron 18 - 270mm telephoto depending on the shot.
All photos were taken using insect repellent!!
Information on each of the twelve photographs is as follows.
1. Panorama - all component frames at ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/80 secs using telephoto lens at 42mm.
All photos were taken using insect repellent!!
Information on each of the twelve photographs is as follows.
1. Panorama - all component frames at ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/80 secs using telephoto lens at 42mm.
2. White building/reflection - ISO 100, /f/22, shutter speed 1/13 secs using telephoto lens at 154mm.
3. Red ground cover - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/30 secs using telephoto lens at 84mm.
4. Low-down, building in distance - ISO 100, f/11, shutter speed 1/60 secs using wide-angle lens at 13mm.
5. Sunrise - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 0.50 secs using wide-angle lens at 11mm.
6. Slime - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 0.40 secs using telephoto lens at 46mm.
7. White building - square close-up - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/13 secs using telephoto lens at 218mm.
8. Shore - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/13 secs using wide angle lens at 11mm.
9. Small branches - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/30 secs using telephoto lens at 39mm.
10. Yellow mud - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/30 secs at 77mm using telephoto lens.
11. Wooden post - ISO 100, f/16, shutter speed 1/60 secs at 13mm using wide-angle lens.
12. Footprints - ISO 100, f/22, shutter speed 1/30 secs at 39mm using telephoto lens.
Final Comments
This has been a very interesting assignment in that it has made me think about taking unusual shots. I think that it would be a very good camera club assignment where people could be asked to take different shots in a very confined area over a period of an hour, say, and then compare them.
I have tried to vary the height of the shots although a higher perspective would have been nice but would have needed a ladder (although Charlie Waite (I think) does take one on his photo shoots!) as the ground was so flat.
.
.
.
I like this series of shots - it sounds like a very challenging assignment. I think the white hut is particularly picturesque, especially with the reflections, and is composed well in both images. I also like the dawn shots - gorgeous colours & light.
ReplyDeleteThanks. Hopefully my tutor will agree!
ReplyDelete