HHC Blog

Learning Photographing… Thoughts/Questions – Part 5

Bay-Water Sunset

I took a lot of pictures when I was in D.C.

1. Some photos (ok… a lot of them) when I zoomed in more than 25%, they look grainy. My first thought was that it was a typical hand shake problem. But since that was a problem I have been paying attention to, it is hard for me to believe that there are so many of them having this problem. I questioned.

• This is a problem with focusing, right? Most of them were taken with zoom lens, by the way.

• Hand-shaking, definitely, is something I have to continue working on. But… is it possible that I was so anxious to catch the moment, so I ended up clicking before the camera had time to focus? (Dalo had said something about being patient. Is this part of it? 😉

• The pictures look fine if I don’t zoom in. Does this mean I won’t have any problem if I print them in small size? maybe 1 by 1 😉

• What about lens stabilizer? Amy brought this up and that makes me thinking (Thanks, Amy.) If the camera has a built-in stabilizer, how important is lens stabilizer? Is it better to have both?

• My husband said it had something to do with the quality of the lens. “The lens you have is convenient to use (zoom lens), but you end up sacrificing some quality,” he said. I think he was trying to be nice.

• Well, one big lesson I have learned is that I have to take time (small amount of time) when I shoot. It’s better to miss some moments and have good quality photos, than to have many not-so-great ones even though I did catch the moment.

2. My husband takes family photos whenever we have a family gathering, which I am grateful. One day he set up the light, the background… etc. and suddenly he turned to me and said “It’s all yours.” I wasn’t thrilled. I find out (1) I enjoy catching a moment of someone’s daily life more than taking portraits (less pressure, maybe). (2) When taking portraits in this setting, I need time to mentally prepare for it. Without a proper mental preparation, I am lost. (3) The real conclusion is that I don’t know enough about taking portrait to enjoy it – I have to know something about what I am doing in order to enjoy it.

3. One day, my sister and I visited a small town nearby (an hour away). I thought it would be a good opportunity to do some street photographing. I find out that just because you are walking on the street, it doesn’t mean you would find something interesting to shoot. 😉 I probably only got one on that day.

4. It was on that day, I met a photographer, who has a shop in that town selling his photos. I am happy for him.

5. My favorite photos of the trip are the ones that my nephew and my great niece playing with water gun (pipe?), which I have posted. You know what? Because I had taken those photos, I am quite satisfied and happy. How easy to be satisfied if you are a beginner 😉

6. Almost forgot… I love sunset photos. But I seem to agree with someone that they all look somewhat similar: the color, the reflection in water, clouds (different but similar)… How do you make your sunset photo outstanding?

That’s all I have for now. I am sure as soon as I hit “publish” button, I will have several more – story of my life… Good thing I have wonderful friends like you!