Wendell's World
Wendell's Photography
A happy cow — This picture was taken at a cow milking demonstration right after the cow was milked. No wonder she is so happy!
There is a debate among photographers as to what photography is. Is it art, or is it realism? Perhaps it is both? One of the nagging questions Wendell has had to answer for himself is exactly what is his bent? What is he trying to portray? Does he want to tell a story as accurately as possible, or should his photos be like paintings, subject to an artistic whimsy?
To Wendell, the purpose of the photo should determine the answer to that question. While there is much room for creativity in photography, if the photo is not an accurate portrayal of an event, that should be stated. In other words, it is intellectually dishonest to Photoshop a picture with the intent of misleading or mis-characterizing an event. Cutting out one piece of a photo and pasting it into another should never be done on photographs intended to portray news or to lie about an event. On the other hand, landscape and nature photos leave some room for post-processing to increase artistic expression as long as they are labeled as such.
Bluebonnet — This is a close up of a bluebonnet flower taken with a Sigma 105mm macro lens.
Wendell loves taking pictures of the natural world. Creation simply has so much to offer to anyone willing to slow down and take notice. From flora and fauna, to birds and wildlife, there is so much to catch a photographer's eye.
There are a lot of tricks and rules to follow when taking any kind of picture, but some are especially important when it comes to taking pictures of nature. Probably the biggest is the importance of light. The best light of the day is the "Golden Hour" just before and after sunrise. The second best time is just before and after sunset. It is during these times that the light has that warm, golden glow that photographers love. Shadows, especially in the morning are more muted, which makes for a less contrasty photo. Cloudy days are also good for taking photos. The middle of the day is the absolute worst as the shadows are very stark. The bluebonnet picture shown here was taken on an overcast day, thus the light is pleasant and muted.
Another tip for nature photography, or any photography, is to move around. Get high, crouch low, move around your subject and get as many angles as possible. Don't depend on your telephoto lens to get you the best perspective. In fact, a good exercise is to use a prime (lens with a fixed focal length) which forces you to move in and out from your subject. It is amazing the different perspective you can get by simply moving a few feet.
Tell me a story — Two young girls taking part in Bryan Public Library Storytime.
Favorite Photography Links
Here are a few of Wendell's favorite photography hideouts on the web:
- Dyxum.com. This is an excellent site for the Sony DSLR and Minolta Alpha Mount camera lines. Check out the forums.
- Strobist.com An excellent resource for lighting with digital cameras. One of the techniques they teach is how to use your flash guns with inexpensive lighting stands for your lighting rather than buying expensive studio lights.
- The Mindful Eye This site is a general photography site that imparts information and provides help and critiques for photographers of varying skill levels.
- D P Review DP Review is an excellent site for camera and lens reviews for almost any brand of camera.
- Russell Brown Show Photoshop Tips and Techniques This is a great site for tutorials on using photoshop. Russell combines a unique style and online videos to show how to perform many creative functions in Photoshop.
- Photoshop TV Photoshop TV is a weekly production of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals and provides weekly Photoshop news and tips.