Assignment Four

[gjtoth]

Looks like it's going to be put on hold until after the Christmas season. 1.- Too busy 2.- Too bluddy cold!! :eek:

[Snappers]

I've read through Assignment four but like you say, it will be on hold until after christmas. I need to re-read through it again and I want more practice at Assignment three before I move on. But yes, I agree with your 2nd point, it is too cold!!!!!:p

[jerryph]

So now it's after Christmas... how did you guys n gals handle this assignment?

I had to have a 2nd go at it as my first one I was not very careful with. This one can be done easily indoors with a fruit or small doll or almost anything. As long as we play with the different effects of having the same pic 2 times, once with a clear background and once with a nicely blurred background.

[dkippen]

Jerry -

After this weekend, I think I might have one or two to post, but I have to finish going through them.

[Snappers]

Jerry, I went out the other day to do this assignment but did not get the photograph I wanted, so I have to attempt it again. What lens were you using when you attempted the assignment.

[jerryph]

I must have shot 75 pics of different things in different ways, but in the end I chose the one that was the simplest and quickest to create and visually explain the effects of aperture.

If it's not against any rules, this is what I posted:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2379/2230616818_813c6220fc.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2089/2229823445_bb83fde52f.jpg

I did this using a lens that would most amplify bokeh (background blur), my Sigma 30mm F/1.4 lens, but I could jut as easily recreate this effect to lesser or greater levels with any of my lenses.

Topic #5 is kicking my hiney, though. I may open a new topic on that one to discuss there. :)

[dkippen]

I like it - Bugs is very clear. When I tried this last weekend, I tried to create this effect outside and it didn't work out very well. I have more time this weekend to give it a try.

[jerryph]

An easy way to do this in 5 minutes with the help of a parked car, if you want.

Place your camera close to the rear side panel and view along the side of the car. Take 2 pics, one at F16 and one at F3.5 and sight along the side of the car and see how far down you can see the car in focus at F16 vs the F3.5 settings. Exercise done!

At numerically low apertures it should get blurry pretty fast, kinda like this:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2411/2219839744_e5440a178e.jpg

See how clear the rear tire is and how it blurs fast as you move up to the front of the car?

Play with that and see what happens, I think you will like it. :) The only point to watch for is that you focus on the same spot all the time (the rear tire), for best effect. If you have no car to play with, a line of trees will work. No trees? 2 chairs inside the house placed far apart would work. No chairs, a fence will work. :)

[dkippen]

Jerry -

And you're taking this class with all us newbies because why:confused::confused:?

This is probably the best explanation I have seen. Thank you.

[jerryph]

Because I want to learn... lol

I am a fast learner and enjoy sharing with my fellow students. We're all here to learn and have fun, right? :D

[dkippen]

Thank you for sharing. And yes, we are learning and having fun.

[Zero]

Heres my attempt at Assignment 4. I found that the bigger the object, the bigger the background needed to be. If that makes sense! So it was easier to use a smaller object.
http://www.proudphotography.com/forum/gallery/files/9/6/5/assignment4_1_thumb.jpg (http://www.proudphotography.com/forum/gallery/showimage.php?i=104&c=3)

http://www.proudphotography.com/forum/gallery/files/9/6/5/assignment4_2_thumb.jpg (http://www.proudphotography.com/forum/gallery/showimage.php?i=105&c=3)

[dkippen]

Zero -

Very nice photos. This will be my project today (and assignment #3).

[jerryph]

I found that the bigger the object, the bigger the background needed to be. If that makes sense! So it was easier to use a smaller object.

Well, its not so much the size of the objects as the ratios of distance between your subject and the camera vs teh distance to your subject and the thing behind it you want blurred.

Scenario:
Let's take a theoretical situation. The distance between your subject and the camera is 4 feet. The distance between your subject and a tree behind it is 10 feet. You will get a certain level of blur.

To get more blur, you have to increase the ratio of distance between camera/subject and subject/tree.

You do this in one of three ways:

1 - Your subject doesn't move and you step closer to your subject

2 - you and your subject move further away from the tree but you still keep 4 feet away from your subject

3 - #1 and #2 together by increasing the distance between subject and tree and decreasing distance between subject and camera.

Obviously #3 will produce the greatest increase in bokeh.

There is actually a 4th way... and that is to use a fast lens or a lens with a very fast aperture, and that is the goal of this exercise... to show and explain to you the difference between pictures taken at F/16 or other small (numerically large) numbers vs the same picture taken at large aperture (numerically smaller) openings.

BTW, Florida is great! I dodged a huge storm in Montreal and am sitting in a place that is supposed to touch a balmy 80 degrees today! :)

[kimapali]

I'm thinking about Lesson 4 even though I'm technically on Lesson 5. I was outside in our sunny and 68 degree weather, and I wanted to take some closeups in my garden. I had a dilemma: the sunny 16 rule which says f/16, but also the idea that you need a lower f-stop when you want smaller DoF. So do I pick something in the middle?

[Snappers]

Dont forget too that if it is sunny the best time to take landscape pics is dawn or dusk.
(Someone will correct me If I am wrong there though)