Compostion 1 of 2, Rule of Thirds

"Great Photographs are created, not by following some recipe, but by careful process of thinking and planning." --Unknown.

This month and next month I want to discuss composition. This month I'm discussing rule of thirds. Next month will be lines. For everything we do in life there is a set of rules without rules there would be chaos. But also there is a time and a place 'break' the rules. In photography we have the 'rule of thirds.' Which states that an image should be broken into 9 equal parts spaced by 2 equal horizontal lines and 2 equal vertical lines. And important compositional elements should be placed where these lines intersect. This creates more tension, energy and interest in the composition then just centering it up. Now there is a time and a place to break this rule and that is if the image is a stronger image and you purposely broke the rule to enhance your composition and increase your creativity. Go ahead and break it. My bridge reflection here I purposely broke the rule to have an equal amount reflection and sky. My creek image I did place it off center to make the eye move along the stream. I feel one of the pitfalls that is easy for anyone to fall into is being 'bound' by the rules. Don't be afraid to break them in order to enhance your image.

Hope you enjoy

Nick

Hans Herr House

This afternoon on our way home from Longwood Gardens, my wife and I made a quick stop over at the Hans Herr house. With it being so close by I've never made it out to the site. But I really wanted to get over while there is some snow on the ground. Hans Herr is one of the original settlers to the Lancaster County area. This year is marking the 300th anniversary of there settlement. Due to the high winds and snow I underexposed for a fast shutter. Then I processed it as an HDR image and added Topaz Simplify for the paint.

Hope you enjoy

Nick

Falls

Another image from my trip down Tucquan Glen. I've worked on this composition during the summer time. But never really like the results, for some reason the final results never pleased me. Mostly because of the lack of color around the rocks. Nothing is wrong with the scene even during the summer. I do like this scene with the element of snow in the image. Hope you enjoy.

Nick

Tucquan Glen, revisited

I've tried making it down to Tucquan for the last couple of weeks. One of the problems has been parking another is that the snow is at least knee deep on the trails. With the snow melting a little bit I was able to park but had to spend 45 minutes to dig myself out. With hip waiter's on I trudged through the creek. It was definitely wroth the trip. I've got two season's of this scene and will be getting a spring and summer shot in time. Hope you enjoy

Nick

Red Reflections

With the temps about to climb back up into the 40s in the next couple of days. I made sure to take full advantage of last nights snowfall. I spent the morning in Lancaster County Park. With the snow on the trees and the calmness of the Conestoga River really enhanced my favorite covered bridge in the county.
Hope you enjoy
Nick

Light: Quantity & Quality

"Learning to capture Light will make

extraordinary images from ordinary subjects." -Ed Heaton

Hopefully Ed you don't mind me using your quote for my next little segment. This month it's all about lighting. This is subject that I'll admit that I'm no expert in, I take away when I should add and add when I should take away. To understand Light you have to understand that it falls into two categories: Quantity & Quality.

Quantity has to do with exposure, or intensity of illumination. We control that with aperture, (the amount we let in) and shutter the speed that we record the light. Quality is the mood of the light, warm or cool, harsh or soft.

We used to have to use a gray scale card to measure light. Some still use a hand held meter, but thanks to the digital age most of it is taken care of in camera. But a helpful hint, something I'm doing alittle more is to carry an 18%gray card with me to get a better reading. Because even with all of the camera technology they can still miss true light.

Quality is measured with the way the light comes in: Side lighting, Front lighting and Back ligthing. On a bright sunny afternoon it's a harsh light with no shadows, but morning and late afternoon there are long shadows and warmth. Cloudy days give a soft diffused light which is perfect for a long shutter. And just because the sun goes down doesn't mean you have to stop shooting. If you live in a city there are endless possibilities of night shots. The images above are images I used for side lighting with shadows. I like to keep the light on the side for the shadows. To me they add an extra dimension.

Hope you enjoy

Nick

Dramatic Sky

Over the last year I've taken a keen interest in clouds. Especially when a storm is moving in or clearing out. The lighting combined with the clouds for usually a brief moment can provide a spectacular scene. Last week we were socked in with rain. This scene lasted about two minutes then it was all blue sky's. And I was lucky enough to be outside.

Hope you enjoy

Nick