Need More, From OLD MOOR (images)

After looking through the images I have captured from Old Moor I have decided I will revisit the reserve one last time.  Looking at some of my images from the bird garden, although I manged to get some shots of the birds close up I was having to use an ISO of 400/800 and when looking at the quality of the images I'm just not happy with them.

I will be in Yorkshire this weekend as I have arranged to go dog walking with my partners mum and her dog for my second theme.  The weather is set to be good with some sunshine which I haven't had much off during my last few visits.  I am hoping there will be more light to work with in the bird garden and hopefully get some better shots using a lower ISO and a faster shutter speed.

I am hoping to capture some good close up images of the birds and intend to do these using the garden hide.  In this hide you are literally 1 metre away from the bird feeders, aslo around these areas are lots of ideal perching spots where the birds often sit for a moment before diving onto the feeders.  I am also hoping to capture some birds in flight to as I like movement of the birds wings whilst the body of the birds remain in focus.

As always when visiting Old Moor I will be taking my winter clothing, walking boots, camera and tripod, zoom lens, 2 memory cards, charged battery and the usual flask of tea.

Below is another example of the kind of images I don't like which I have a few of, as you can see its very dark and having used an ISO of 800 the more I crop this to get closer to the subject the quality of the image gets even worse. 

I dont think the picture has any real impact as it stands and cropping is just not possible due to the quality.  Another one for the recycle bin!!!

So, fingers crossed for Saturday!

Theme 2, Portraits, People and their Pets.

For my second theme I have chosen People and their Pets and specifically People and their Dogs.


I'd taken some photographs of my neice and nephew a few weeks back who at the time were playing with the familly dog.  One thing I noticed instantly was then when the dog was involved the whole process of taking a photograph became fun for the subjects.


Before having the dog in the shot I found that my neice and nephew were acting all shy and not wanting to smile or have their photo taken.  However, once the dog was in on the act they started to act all silly and laughing and appear to have completely forgotten that I was taking their pictures.


Having tried to photograph people in the past I found this quite a challenge.  As the subject is very aware that they are having their photograph taken I find they immediately start to pull funny faces, breathing in and pouting their lips.


With the above in mind I decided I would focus the theme on People and their dogs, I have a few friends that have dogs and would be more than happy for me to use them as subjects for my final portfolio.


I'm hoping in my final images that I will be able to capture the strong bond that my friends and family have with their pets along with the fun they have together.


I have arranged to go out walking with my partners Mum and her dog Bailey on Saturday (7th Jan) where we will go along the Penine Trail which we can get onto five minutes from where they live.  This is their usually walking place so it will be good to capture them in their usual surroundings. 

I have checked the weather (see below) which looks set to be dry with some sunshine which will be great as I intend to use a fast shutter in order to freeze the subject and avoid any blur in the movement.

Saturday 7th January 2011

9°C 48°F 4°C 39°F 21km/h 13mph West North Westerly

Humidity: 73%

Visibility: Very Good

Pressure: 1025 mb

Presentation Ideas

I've been thinking about presentation for both of my themes and have decided for my first theme I will be using an A4 Landscape, black leaf photo album.  My print sizes for this theme will be 7.5 x 5 and this is the aspect ratio used when cropping if needed.  I will be placing 1 image on the right hand side page only throught the book and these will be centered.

For my second theme I have been looking at using photo mounts at a size of 8 x 6 so again this will be the aspect ratio used if any cropping is required.  The mounts will be black with a silver trim and I am thinking of placing the final images (in the mounts) into a wooden box to present them in.

I was going to produce a book using Blurb for theme 2, however from using blurb quite a lot in the past I personally dont think the picture quailty is as good as a glossy print that you get from printing your images.

I will be using photobox for the printing of my final images.

Statement Of Intent, Theme 1, Old Moor

Pro forma for task 1a)                        Statement of intent

Candidate Name: Roger Bone       Theme: Nature

Title of the theme: Old Moor

Intentions/purpose of the photography to be undertaken

I have decided to select Nature as one of my two themes and will prepare a portfolio of images to submit at the end of my course.  I will need to select a minimum of 10 images for each portfolio that follow a theme which will be published on my internet blog.  I will also present hard copies of the images in a Black Leaf, landscape, photo album.My intention is to visit the reserve on a number of occasions and hopefully in my final image selection be able to show all aspects of the reserve. I hope that the images will tell a story about the reserve, capturing the scenery and birdlife as well as the people that visit Old Moor.

 

Reasons for selection of theme (including inspiration from the work of others)

I have chosen Nature as my first theme as I have a genuine interest in nature and being a keen ornithologist I am a member of the RSPB.  The RSPB have a number of nature reserves all over the UK and one that I visit on a regular basis is called OLD MOOR.  The reserve is located in South Yorkshire and was originally one of the 32 coal mines in the Yorkshire area , this particular mine (Wath Main Colliery) was closed on the 25th March 1988.

The reserve is a not only a great place to see a wide selection of birdlife and a lovely landscape but is also a great day out for people of all ages including families.  There are several footpaths at the reserve making it very easy to get around from each of the bird hides on the reserve which all offer great vantage points and perfect photo opportunities.

During my research into Wildlife Photography I came across a couple of people who's work I really liked, one of these being Pavel Zoharec.  Pavel has a collection of images where he has managed to capture some amazing birdlife, the images are really sharp and freeze the movement of the birds.  I think capturing birdlife is a very challenging form of photography as birds do not sit waiting to have their photo taken which means you do have to go out and look for them dedicating a lot of time to this.  It's clear from Pavel's pictures that he has done just this, he has manged to capture several birds of prey which are extremely difficult to get close to in the wild.   Pavel would have needed to research into these birds knowing their hunting grounds,  favourite roosting spots and breeding grounds.

Philip Price is another who's images are crsytal clear, sharp and freeze the movement brilliantly.  Philip is an award winning photographer with a range of awards and has also done a 3 part mini series for the BBC.  Looking at his images its clear that he has dedicated a lot of time in capturing these birds and from the images you can see that Philip likes to capture the birds during flight and does this brilliantly.

The photo imaging equipment and medium that will be used and why

I will be using my Sony A230 DSLR camera and will be shooting RAW files, some of these may be edited if needed using Lightroom and Photoshop CS5. 

I will be using an 18mm to 50mm lens which will be used when taking landscape shots of the reserve and also a telephoto 70mm to 300mm which will be used to get close up shots of the birds on the reserve.

In order to experiment with shutter speeds and aperture I will also use a tripod to avoid any blur where possible.

Techniques that will be used and how they will help convey the visual message

Whilst capturing images of the birds on the reserve I will be using a fast Shutter speed in order to freeze the movement of the birds.  I will be using various shutter speeds ranging from 1/200 upto 1/400 all pending on the light conditions at the time.  I will also use slight slower shutter speeds of approximately 1/60 to 1/80 to capture some of the movement in the birds wings.  I will be capturing the birds using a zoom lens in order to get as close as possible.

As well as capturing images of the birds I will also be taking pictures of the reserve in order to show all aspects of Old Moor.  I will do this by using a large aperture of approximately F/22 and a tripod to avoid any blur/shake.

I will be using photomerge in Photoshop CS5 to produce a panoramic view of the reserve.

How light quality can be used to help convey the visual message

I do not intend to add any additional flash lighting to my images using only natural light to convey a more realistic image.  I will need to be aware of the weather conditions and will need to adapt the camera settings to compliment these using ISO, Aperture and Shutter.

Safety considerations

I will ensure that the correct footwear and outdoor clothing are worn each time I visit the reserve along with a packed lunch and a flask of tea.  I will respect the surroundings and the wildlife that live on the reserve by walking only on the footpaths that have been created by the reserve staff and volunteers.

As the reserve can be quite busy with other visitors I will also ensure that the equipment I will be using does not cause any accidents.  Keeping this stored away when not in use and when in use ensuring I do not block any entrances or leave equipment or bags on the floor where people could trip and fall over these,

Miserable Day at Old Moor

Working on theme 1, I visited Old Moor again yesterday to try and improve on the images I took a couple of weeks ago.  Having practised some more with the shutter and light compensation I was sure I would come back with an improvement on the last set of images I'd taken.


The weather was miserable, dark, gloomy and non stop rain and I struggled to get good close up shots of the birdlife on the reserve.  Having to use an ISO of 800 and an increase to the Exposure Compensation this simply resulted in a lot of noise.  With the lighting being so dark it was impossible to use a shutter of around 1/400 which is what I would have liked to have used.  I had to keep the shutter at around 1/60, 1/80 with the ISO at 800 throughout most of the day.


Here are a couple of images taken yesterday, unfortunately the one's of the birds were no better than the first set I'd taken a couple of weeks ago.

ISO 800 (and a lot of noise)S 1/60

I have been back to Old Moor today and the weather has been much better than yesterday and with no rain at all I was able to get plenty more shots and being able to increase the shutter and reduce the ISO. 

I am planning to go to Old Moor one last time tomorrow so hopefully any shots that I dont yet have I will get tomorrow.  I have checked the weather for tomorrow and it looks set to be similar to today with the addition of some showers in the morning, the afternoon looks set to have some sunshine though.

After my last visit tomorrow I'll be able to start looking at my images and choose the final shots that will be used for my portfolio.

I'm hoping that the final images will give an overall look of Old Moor and hopefully give you a sense that you may have even been there.  Although the reserve is centered around the birdlife I have tried to capture the reserve as a whole including the people that visit, the areas, and other subjects on the reserve along with some of the birds.

Here are a couple of images I have taken today along with the weather report for tomorrow:

Forecast next 48 hours

Location for forecasts: Rotherham Sunday Monday Night Morning Afternoon Evening Night Morning Afternoon Weather: Description: Light rain. Mostly cloudy. Cool. Sprinkles. More sun than clouds. Cool. More clouds than sun. Cool. Mostly cloudy. Chilly. Passing clouds. Chilly. Mostly cloudy. Chilly. More sun than clouds. Chilly. Temperature: 10 °C 8 °C 9 °C 6 °C 3 °C 2 °C 4 °C Comfort Level: 6 °C 4 °C 5 °C 2 °C -2 °C -4 °C -1 °C

Research - Pavel Zahorec - Wildlife Photographer

Looking through some images in google I came across the following image which I think is amazing and just the sort of images I would love to be able to take.

The photographer is called Pavel Zahorec, aged 56 and from Bilina in the Czech Republic, however that is all the information I can find on him.  He does have a webpage with some information on but this is in Czech! 

I really like the way he shoots his subjects and I notice looking at some of his images that he doesnt always seem to be to concerned with filling the frame, rule of thirds etc.

I would assume from the above image that a fast shutter has been used to freeze the Owl and a good zoom lens which has allowed him to get closer to the Owl and has created the out of focus area in the background.

I personally find it really challenging to get really good images of birds as you really do have to be prepared, quick and ready, it also helps to know a liitle about the birds habits, favourite perching spots, hunting grounds etc.

Here are a few more of my favourites from his webpage;

Selective Focus, Zoom Lens effect

Over the last few weeks Dave has given us some top tips on camera techniques in order to achieve certain results on the final images.  I wanted to practise these and show my understanding of the techniques and hopefully the images below will reflect this.

Selective Focus:

This technique is really simple, by choosing one part of the image to be sharp and in focus whilst the rest of the image is kept out of focus.  This can be done in different ways depending on the Camera you have, my Camera has a spot focus function but this can be quite time consuming as you have to go into the menu settings each time you wish to change the area you want in focus.  Other Camera's will allow you to do this whilst shooting and is a lot easier.

As I generally keep the spot focus set to the centre another way for me to do this (without changing settings) is to focus on the subject I want sharp and then move the camera so that the subject is framed accordingly.

Another option is to use the Manual Focus, I find this really helpfull when shotting close to the subject, the following 4 images have all been taken using the manual focus;

The focus here is on the "S" in the foreground      

again but focussing on the background

Focus on the face/knee area

again, focussing on the on the shoelace.

The following images were taken in automatic focus, keeping the spot focus setting in the centre of the frame.  Onced focussed on the subject I moved the camera to the right and upwards so that the area in focus would be at the bottom left;

The next 2 images were simply taken in auto focus with the spot focus setting in the centre of the frame;

Zoom Lens Effect

This effect is achieved by using a camera with a long exposure and a manual zoom lens.  For the image below I had set the shutter to 13 seconds and whilst the image was being taken I zoomed the lens in and out.

S 13 SecondsISO 100, F/16