Foto Friday: SPRING

I am the biggest Foto Friday LOSER this week. I was *THIS* close not to posting any photos of my own at all because I had NOTHING to offer (though I had GREAT plans!).

All but the bird photos were taken after lunch and before rest today, about an hour ago, hence this late posting. (SORRY!)

This post is photo heavy, but not because any are extraordinary....in fact, there isn't an extraordinary one in the bunch.

Oh well. You win some and you lose some. I *DID* promise to NOT post a single photo of plants beginning to grow so you can be sure I didn't even bother with that!!

Why I wasn't happy with this weeks' outcome?

*I wanted to photograph SPRINGS (literally) but never got to it. I was going to buy a slinky and see what I could do with that. Slinkies are springy and would have made a fun subject.

*I had several other ideas in mind: MARCH coming in like a LION which was rushed, April Showers which never even happened, and buying the letters S.P.R.I.N.G and using them in a photo including all the children which didn't happen either. poo.

*I wanted to photograph a robin (the epitome of spring, in my book) but I was hoping to catch one in the grass while I was lying in the grass in order to make a straight-on perspective (with grass and robin in focus and background blurred). Try getting up close to a robin though. You can't exactly lure them with seed. SHEESH. These were the best I could do....and I am shocked they were in focus....

I am in the mood to critique-so this is me, critiquing my own work....

(REMEMBER: a good critique contains both positive AND negative and is meant to BETTER yourself. I am not being too hard on myself, just trying to get better. Self-critiquing is a useful tool and should be used often. Try it sometime!)

Critique: I have learned that when photographing birds, the eye ought to be in focus. If you can get the eye, you can capture the essence of the creature. (Thanks, Els!) I was happy with the eye being in focus. I wish, however, I could have been closer to the subject. The concrete would have been nice to be blurred with the wood and the bird still sharp. I could do without the junk on the right.

Critique: I think it is miraculous that this photo is in focus. I might have put the bird just SLIGHTLY more toward the center, if I had been thinking of it. It might be TOO far over to the right side. I love how vibrant his breast is.

This is a cornfield that happens to be flooded, another sure sign of spring here in the North. I drove past this on my way to a get-together and was late because of it. (oops)

Critique: I had to turn around the car to come back to this scene because I wasn't swift enough on my feet to pull over. In doing so, I misjudged where the flock of geese was and had to travel a ways to get to them (on foot). Unfortunately, they saw me and got far from me ASAP. Had I climbed the ridge right where they were, I would have gotten up much closer to them which would have made the image much more powerful. You almost can't even SEE the geese in these photos, and certainly not the fact that it was a whole FLOCK (over 20). I do like how the corn stalks were in focus, my hope was to portray that it really was a cornfield and not just some random lake.

This scene was to represent the mantra MARCH COMES IN LIKE A LION AND OUT LIKE A LAMB.


It was rainy yesterday and bitter cold today so it wasn't pleasant being outside on the only days I had available to take some time to do this shot. And since I had to get this post up sometime this afternoon, I had to do it right smack dab at noon. None of these turned out as I had hoped.


Critique: I like the concept. A LOT. I like the subjects A LOT too! ;-) (How CUTE are their noses?!) I DO NOT like the crazy brightness/shadows that are produced outside in the middle of the day. I would have liked to do this shot about 4:30/5:00 when the sun is not so harsh but the lighting is still nice. This would have helped make the light consistent. I also would have liked to work more on the background, it's too cluttered in my opinion. Grass alone, perhaps? Ideally, it would certainly not contain a gnarly, naked appletree, power lines, and bits of snow all over the ground. I likely would have taken more time to get "what I wanted" if it wouldn't have been so COLD outside. brrrrrrrrr.

(Andrew was trying his VERY BEST to get a reaction from Adele' but she knows her brother and only laughed. It was pretty funny to watch, though!)

A FLOWER girl:

I bought these headbands with an awesome idea in mind including ALL the children (it WILL come, sometime) which never actually happened this week. I took a few of Corynn anyway, for kicks.

Critique: This girl is a hard one to get natural in front of the camera. She reminds me of myself. Any face that isn't weirdly contorted in some way is a successful shot. I like this shot. I can't think what I would do different.


Critique: can't really tell she is wearing a flowerpetal hat. Not sure how I could have done it different, though, given my limitations (not being outside, low light except near a window, a messy bed that I didn't want in the background...)

Critique: to me this photo portrays the yearning for good weather, but it not quite being there. I wish, overall, that it were lighter (the bed in the foreground and the walls). The molding out to have been centered too, framing the subject, instead of being cut off on one side. I like the sparkles her shirt made in the sunshine though...sorta magical. :-)

Alright. That was sorta fun, critiquing my work. Maybe sometime that will be a challenge! ;-)

Now, this post is already late enough. No more jibberjabber. Let's see what YOU did for SPRING:


In order to participate in these Foto Friday challenges, you must take a photo (or several) pertaining to the challenge WITHIN the challenge week and post it/them to your blog. When you do, please link back to this blog {you may use the button if you like} so that perhaps we can get lots of participants! (Because, you know, the more the merrier!) Then simply link to your Foto Friday post with Mr. McLinky here so that we all can visit you and compare notes...

Please do not post a link to your blog if you are not actually participating (this has happened!) It will be deleted, I check all the links.

For those of you new to this blog (or to Foto Friday's in general), each Friday we get a new photo challenge to work on for the week and we post our photos the next Friday and link back up here. Whatever your skill level, the goal is to get behind your camera and to begin, as you practice, to view subjects in a different light. To extend yourself and your concepts and ideas. To create ART instead of just snapping a picture. And to do it all while having FUN.

This week's challenge is EGGS. (We will get back to the colors theme soon. Promise)