Bashakill Mallards

My trips to the Bashakill were not as good as I planned but they were fun.  Everyday there were plenty of waterfowl and other birds, but the fog in the morning and then bright sun in the afternoon made it a challenge.  I noticed that in my shots a lot of the water is overexposed but I still think they are good shots.  I decided I would post some of my mallard photographs because I got more of them than anything else.  Most of my photographs were of the female mallards but I did get a few shots of the male.  I had a hard time with the male because the green head for some reason was always real bright or discolored due to the bright sun.  Also because of the fog in the morning some of the pictures were very dull.  I was very happy that I got a shot of the female mallard flapping her wings.  I was surprised that I actually got the shot.  It could have been better if the male mallard was not cut off the edge of the photograph and the water was not overexposed but I like it a lot. 

Overall though I was very happy with my shots and I believe that the photographs show the true beauty of the female mallard, even though she lacks the color that the male has.  I will be looking over more of my photographs in the next few days and posting more of my photographs from my trips to the Bashakill.  Hopefully now that I am back at school I will be able to get out a little on weekends and try and do some type of photography.  Enjoy the photographs, and please comment or send me questions.

Last Week

I spent most of my week home at the Bashakill Wetlands.  It was pretty nice out but most mornings there was a fog that made it hard to photograph.  I still took thousands of photographs and I am narrowing it down to my best images now.  Within the next few days I will hopefully get a chance to post some of the photographs that I took.  Over the period of the week I saw many different duck species including, mergansers, mallards, and wood ducks.  Plus plenty of Canadian Geese.  I also saw some Swan's but was unable to get a photo.  Near the end of the week I saw a couple of Great Blue Heron's but was unable to get a good photograph.  Also I took many pictures of Red winged black birds and tree swallows.  Plus there was an abundance of turtles.  Also I saw my first snake of the year, which I believe was a ribbon snake.  Scared me when it brushed passed my feet.  Can't forget that I saw a couple eagles on my trips, but the number has drastically dropped since January.  I guess I was going to see a couple since there is a nest there, but I also saw a couple immature bald eagles that aren't nesting there.   It was a really odd sight to see some of these species so early, but it was extremely warm for this time of year. 

One more week!

I can't wait to go home.  I talked to my brother yesterday and he told me that there is an abundance of wildlife present at the Bashakill Wetlands which is only about a 20 minute drive from my house.  He believes that due to the abnormally warm weather that there are a lot of birds in the area that would normally not be there yet.  He told me that there are a lot of different duck species, tons of small birds, and even Great Blue Herons already.  So hopefully in my nine days at home I will be able to really spend some significant time out there and hopefully it will result in some amazing shots. 

Two Weeks Until Vacation

I cannot wait for two weeks from now.  I will finally be able to get away from the college and head home.  I plan on spending a lot of my time off trying to get some good photographs.  Hopefully the eagles will still be there when I get home.  I am worried though because it has been such a mild winter that most will probably be going north.  But I know of a few nests that will hopefully produce for me.  Sorry it has been so long since I have updated but I was sick and unable to post.  Now that I am feeling better I will hopefully get a chance to take some types of photographs. 

10 Tips to Improve Your Photo's Composition

Since I have not had a chance to get outside and do any photography this week I decided I would make a post about 10 specific things to improve your photographs composistion. So below I have listed ways to improve composistion in photographs to make them stand out to people viewing them.  I hope these tips help people with there photographs.

1) Look for new points of view

•  Eye-catching photographs are made when people see something that they don't see every day. 
•  Use wide angle lenses and telephoto lenses to alter perspctive and apparent points of view.
•  Lie on the ground, change height of the camera. 
•  Look at things in new ways, that you would not normally think about doing. 

2) Simplify

•  The most effective photographs only have a few elements.
•  Don't clutter the image because people won't even know what your subject is. 

3) Don't center your subject

•  The "Rule of Thirds"  important parts of a photograph should fall along imaginary lines tha divide the image into thirds both horizontally and vertically.
•  Horizons, natural lines, important points, and main subjects all will benifit from being put in the sections.
•  Crop photographs to encorerate rule of thirds and to draw out your main subject from the background.

4) Try to show depth

•  Photographs are 2-dimensional representations of 3-dimensional objects.
•  Selective Focus: out of focus forground or background items with your main subject sharp.  (wide aperture)
•  Converging lines:  try and show lines that converge and join in the distance.  (sunlight on water, tree trunks)
•  Boldly include foreground and distant objects. (small aperature)

5) Look for repeating patterns

•  Drawing attention to patters makes people see things they might not have noticed before .
•  Show a pattern and an interruption of it, then you can draw attention to the interruption in the pattern.

6) Try to include curves, diagonals, and triangles

•  These contrast against the overall shape of the photograph which is normally rectangular and level to the world.  This can get people to look twice at your photograph.

7) Show symmetry

•  Most people do not see nature as random, but letting them see that symmetry exists in nature can make your photograph more interesting. Good examples of symmetry can be seen in reflections and leaf patterns.

8) Frame your subject

•  Put your subject in its surroundings.
•  Choose other objects that lead the eye to the main subject.

9) Try to show motion

•  If you can show motion in a motionless form, then people are fasinated by it.
•  This is best shown by showing something the view knows is moving in sharp focus, with time seemingly suspended. 
•  Use motion blur either of the main subject or of the background.

10) Use contrast effectively

•  Show your light-toned subject on a dark background.
•  Show your dark subject on a light background.
•  Look at the well-lit and silhouetted sides of things, shadows and lighter spots are very important. 
•  Find contrast in color while keeping overall light/dark contrast low.
•  Show subject blending with their surrounding in terms of tone and use selective focus to make them stand out.