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Framing is a photography rule and technique that often relies on leading lines to work. As I mentioned in the February 6 blog, leading lines are lines used within an image to draw the viewer’s eye to a certain point (known as a focal point). In the case of framing, however, leading lines cannot be the subject of the photo. Instead they are used to surround your photo’s subject so that the subject stands out in a unique way.

Let’s Get Started

Most successful examples of framing have objects surrounding the photo’s subject on all sides; the subject is also often centered in the middle of the overall image. It is not required to have the elements of the frame make a square. In fact, frames can be shaped as any number of polygons including squares, triangles, circles, trapezoids, rhombuses, odd shapes, etc. as long as the frame elements properly surround the subject. While a little clipping is acceptable, frame elements should not block the central subject from view in any big way. Otherwise the photograph’s viewer may get confused about which object is meant to be the photo’s subject. The subject should also be the most in-focus part of the photo.

Sometimes you can simply surround the subject on just two sides; I refer to this technique as “flanking.” Unlike framing, the “flanking” technique usually does work best with fairly straight framing edges. As with framing though, flanking requires the subject to be in full focus and often differently colored than the objects surrounding it.

Many objects can be used as framing or flanking sides: roads, fencing, curtains, architecture, tree branches, wire, shadows, etc. The trick is to experiment until you find what works best.

Let’s Break It Down

For examples of framing see the following links:

“Colorful Perspective”
One of the best examples of framing in my repertoire, “Colorful Perspective” gets its power and dynamism because my dark clothed male subject is walking just below the center of the hot air balloon’s circular envelope. The fabric’s folds and seems frame the balloon pilot perfectly.

“Beauty Beyond the Bars”
“Beauty Beyond the Bars” uses a very traditional framing element of a jail cell window frame to draw attention to the photo’s lovely female subject.

“Through the Hoops”
The lit hoops at the top of a carnival ride frame the decorative wheel of a different ride.

“Ambiance”
“Ambiance” is actually a double-framed piece. The white curtains frame the pink lamp which frames the cross of light.

For examples of flanking see the following links:

“Floating Between Paths”
At first glance, this photo might look like an example of leading lines, but the roadway lines are actually flanking the hot air balloon in their midst rather than leading the eye to it.

“A Cleft with a View”
“A Cleft with a View” is a bit of a flanking rule-breaker because the blue rocks are not the only objects to flank the pale stalagmite formation behind them. The deep shadows above and below also flank the stalagmite and so this photo’s subject is highlighted from double flanking.

Homework

Shoot at least 10 images with either framing or flanking. Good items to try shooting: a person’s face as seen through a the hole in a box or tube, a colorful object surrounded by foliage, or an animal as seen through the interlaced branches of trees or shrubs a tree flanked by hills, or one piece of architecture surrounded by others. Have some fun with this one and be sure to keep your camera’s focus centered on the subject, not the framing elements.

Until we meet again, I wish all of you brilliant flashes of perspective!

[ O*] Alycia

Flashes of Perspective: Midland Community Theatre

I had a wonderful time at the Midland Community Theatre's "Meet the Artist" event on Saturday night! Thank you to everyone who came to the MCT to see me and enjoy the theatre's production of "Guys & Dolls". I really enjoyed talking with you all and hope to see each of you again. Also, a huge hug goes to those who bought my work on Saturday. Your money will help cover my equipment and travel costs as well as and help fund some of the MCT's future programs! For those of you who had to miss the event, don't worry. My artwork will be up and available for purchase in the theatre gallery (next to the box office) until February 20. For those who want more information, the MCT's website is http://www.mctmidland.org/.

For those of you new to my website, I hope you find the content interesting and engaging. I post blogs dealing with different aspects of photography every other week and send out regular newsletter announcements as new posts or artwork appear on the site. If any of you would like to be included in the newsletter list please send me an e-mail with "Subscribe" in the subject line and your full name and preferred e-mail address in the e-mail's body.

In other announcements, I'm working on an e-book tentatively called Pervading Peace which I hope to have edited and on the market by Easter (April 8) this year. I will post more details as they become available. Thank you!

Until we meet again, I wish all of you brilliant flashes of perspective!

[ O*] Alycia

Flashes of Perspective: Presenting Lovely Leading Lines (2-6-2012)

Welcome to the photography “rule” of leading lines. As I mentioned in the December 6th blog, photography presentation rules like leading lines are more like guidelines than actual rules. And, yes, I did mean to include the terrible pun. That being said, the leading lines idea is one of my favorite rules to use because they add so much depth to an image.

Let’s Get Started

Leading lines are lines used within an image to draw the viewer’s eye to a certain point (focal point), or occasionally, out of the image. Well-done leading lines make an image dynamic and powerful. They can add flow, structure, and/or visual interest to any photo’s subject. They can also be the subject of the photo. Fences, bridges, railing, even a shoreline can be a leading line. Anything can lead the eye with a definite line.

Let’s Break It Down

For examples of leading lines see the following links:

Wed in Red
In “Wed in Red” the curving line of the bride’s dress leads the viewer’s eye up to the image’s subject: the kissing couple.

Wistful
The subtle line of rock and wave leads the viewer’s eye to the image’s focal point of the tapir’s soft face.

Spike Curls
The odd pattern made by the curling lines of this cactus is the image’s subject.

Bleeding Purity
The angled sides of the steeple lead the viewer’s eye to the subject of the white cross.

Damsel Daintiness
The wavy line of the flower petal leads the viewer’s eye to the damsel fly clinging to its tip.

Four in a Row
The invisible line formed between the hovering balloons adds interest to this photo and highlights the similarity between the balloons, which is the image’s subject.

Homework

Shoot at least 10 images with leading lines. Try to turn the camera so that the lines make the image really interesting. Good items to try shooting: railroad tracks leading off into the distance or to a train, the shoreline of a lake or sea, roads, fence lines, rivers and streams, skyscraper lines, landscapes like lines of hills leading to distant mountains, tree branches, an arched bridge or other architectural piece.

Personal Note

I find that photographing leading lines so that they seem to grow out of the corners of the photo helps make the image more dynamic.

Until we meet again, I wish all of you brilliant flashes of perspective!

[ O*] Alycia

Flashes of Perspective: Illuminating a Camera’s ISO (2-3-2012)

Since I have been a bad girl and have yet to give you all a January photography lesson, this week I will post two blogs. One will cover the basics of your camera’s light sensitivity and the other will cover the photography rule of leading lines.

Let’s Get Started

A camera’s ISO setting controls its sensitivity to environmental light. ISO stands for International Organization for Standardization and is the standard measurement used to rate a camera image sensor’s responsiveness to available light.

ISO is a measurement left over the Dark Ages of film cameras. Before the versatile beauty that is digital photography, photographers had to plan in advance what how much light sensitivity they needed their film to have during on a shoot. Film was rated at ISO 100 for use during blaringly bright sunny days while ISO 800 was needed during low-light shooting. Basically a higher ISO number meant the film had more sensitivity to light and therefore could create an image using less light. There were higher ISO ratings available for specialized night photography, but those were a bit too expensive to sell in mass markets (and way too rare for a teenager like me to play around with). Nowadays, my shiny mid-priced Canon digital SLR (currently on the market for about $700) comes ready to shoot an ISO range of 100-3200. The ISO is easily adjusted with a single camera button. I’ve seen high-end camera systems with maximum ranges closer to 12800. Most modern cameras also feature an auto ISO mode.

There are key advantages to knowing how to handle your ISO setting, the foremost of these being able to understand ISO’s relationship with a good quality photograph. If the ISO is too high on a bright day, the produced photographs will have a “blown out” appearance (i.e. lighter colors such as whites and creams will seem to glow). If the ISO is too low, you may not see anything all because the photograph will be blacked out. There is also the risk of an image appearing grainy or noisy if the ISO tries to compensate for too much low light. A grainy image will look like it has green or red squares and is considered poor photography. To combat these problems, know your ISO ranges and understand their strengths and weaknesses.

Let’s Break it Down

ISO 100 and lower - Exceptional quality for brightly lit places, such as in bright sunlight. The setting allows for lots of detail and excellent image quality.

ISO 200 - Should be generally be used on dull days with overcast or cloudy skies. The setting adds a small amount of noise. (200 or 400 ISO often work well for dawn and dusk shots.)

ISO 400 - Works fairly well for indoor photography so long as the room is well-lit or you are using a decent flash; however, noise can be seen in your images.

ISO 800 and up - This setting is only effective with high quality digital SLR (Single Lens Reflex) cameras. If you use a small point-and-shoot compact camera, this setting will make your images look extremely noisy.

Homework

Grab your camera and practice shooting in different light levels switching back and forth between the ISO levels so that you can see the way your camera interprets light. Email me with any questions.

I will talk about how to control noise in another article, and also about the relationship between ISO, aperture and shutter speed.

Until we meet again, I wish all of you brilliant flashes of perspective!

[ O*] Alycia

Flashes of Perspective: Got Skills? Introduction of Light and Presentation (12-6-2011)

On this brisk sixth day of December, I am keeping my promise to begin my blog series dedicated to helping readers become better photographers. Whether you use advanced SLR systems with interchangeable lenses or a simple point-and-shoot, this series is designed to help spur your creativity and refine your techniques.

Let’s Get Started

The two most important and essential ingredients of a powerful photograph are light and presentation. Without these driving the interest to a photograph’s subject, your image is useless. So what do I mean when I say subject? A subject is the main focus of a particular image. It might be a person, an animal, an object, or even a pattern. Think of a subject as the main entrée at a meal. You don’t order the steakhouse special just to eat the potatoes, do you? Your subject is the main reason for the photo’s existence just as a rib-eye is the main reason for a steak plate’s existence.

To make sure viewers pay attention to the steak and not the side dishes, photographers use a variety of lighting techniques and presentation rules. The right combination of these elements is the essence of great shots. Keep in mind that these rules and techniques are — to paraphrase a quote from “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl” — more like guidelines than actual rules. They exist to help you understand why a photo looks great or falls flat and how you can improve your skills. They also exist so that you understand how to bend or break them to get unusual shots.

Homework

We will talk about each of these rules in depth later, but, for now, I ask that you do a little homework before the next lesson. I can hear the groans now, but, trust me, this is really important.

I want you to dig through your files until you find your camera’s instruction manual. Read it, memorize it, and keep it and your camera handy anytime you read this blog. I am a good photographer partly because I understand the strengths and limits of my equipment. While I may know my own camera system, I will not necessarily understand yours. Every camera is a little different, so the more you understand about your own gear, the easier you’ll find each lesson.

On a side note, I am offering a special Holiday Happiness discount code to all of my loyal customers. From now until Christmas Day all shoppers will receive an extra 10% off their purchases when they enter the code XFJAYD at my website's checkout cart. It's my way of showing my appreciation for all of the support you have given me this year. Thank you so much!

Until we meet again, I wish all of you brilliant flashes of perspective!

[ O*] Alycia

Flashes of Perspective: Happy Halloween from one Tired-out Texan (10-31-2011)

Life in West Texas has been busy and sickly of late. The beginning of October saw the arrival of the 67th Annual Reeves County Fall Fair & Livestock Show and my first attempt at running a photography and art sale booth. My work showed beautifully and attracted a lot of interest. I’m hoping to build upon the experience with an even better booth during the Alpine Artwalk November 18 and 19.

I have also been hard at work editing a fantasy novel that I wrote a couple of years ago and the rewriting process in combination several rounds of stomach bugs and sinus infections have left me little time to shoot or process new photos for the website. I’ve finally begun to upload the Alpine and Big Bend Balloon Bash shots today and expect to finish the project by Wednesday. I also hope to capture some good wildlife photos on my upcoming trip to the Texas panhandle. This is the time of year that flocks of Canada geese invade the Texas panhandle. I cannot wait to capture their precise flight patterns!

By the way, when I “process” digital photos, I take the best shots from a photo shoot and correct the light levels and size of each photo. I save my photos at high resolution in both .TIFF and .JPG formats so they can be printed clearly. Each photo receives a special artwork title so that customers and place orders more easily. Occasionally I will do additional corrections to my photography such as cropping or color enhancements. Most of the time; however, I prefer to leave my photos as natural as possible.

Since it is Halloween, I will leave you with this spooky image (2869) taken in March of this year. The cloud covering the moon reminds me of a lioness, hence the title “Lioness’s Moon.” I hope you enjoy it. I’m off to finish my processing. You can find all of this week’s uploaded photos in the “Objects”, “Scapes”, or “Human Nature” galleries. If you want more information about my fiction, please visit the website www.alyciaccooke.com. Thanks!

Until we meet again, I wish all of you brilliant flashes of perspective!

[ O*] Alycia

Flashes of Perspective: The Big Bend Balloon Bash in Alpine, Texas 9/3-5/11

I have discovered a secret about myself. I love shooting hot air balloons! You might think the idea of a photographer loving to shoot a subject—any subject—would be redundant. After all why would I bother staring through a camera lens, if I don’t love what I do? But here is the secret I’ve discovered: loving what I do and loving what I shoot are two very different things.

I’ve loved hot air balloons ever since I was a toddler, but I had never been able to ride one until my husband’s and my Colorado vacation this year. It was an amazing experience punctuated by the feeling of watching the world pass around me in slow motion. Our balloon’s landing in a cactus field did nothing to curb my enthusiasm and the addiction was sealed when I finally viewed my beautiful photos from the flight.

Those balloon photos are still some of the most popular photos I’ve ever circulated so when the 2011 Big Bend Balloon Bash (BBBB) was announced for Labor Day Weekend in Alpine, Texas, I knew I had to go. Instead of two hot air balloons for my camera to play with, there would be 18! The event was a small pleasure event rather than a full-scale competition which meant the entire atmosphere at the Alpine-Casparis Municipal Airport was refreshing and relaxing: perfect ingredients for gorgeous photography. I contacted the BBBB coordinators to see if they needed an event photographer and was enthusiastically invited to participate.

Saturday’s weather was perfect balloon flying weather. The National Anthem was played and pilots began unrolling their envelopes* at 7:30AM. AT 8:05AM, the first balloon “Too Much Fun” lifted into the air. Several other balloons followed suit and the pale morning sky soon began to fill with color.

By 8:20AM, my assigned chase crew was yelling for me to hurry inside the van and then we were off to track down our flying balloon across the Texas countryside. I shot as many photos as I could while we bounced over the country roads during the next hour’s chase of our balloon. When our balloon finally landed in a pasture several miles from the airport, it took all six of the chase crew, passengers, and pilot to gather up the envelope and stow it with the basket, cables, propane tanks, and burners inside the van. I thought we would surely blow out a tire on the rough terrain as we made our way over stone pastureland and dirt roads back to the main highway. Fortunately, I was proved wrong.

By 10:00AM our van arrived still intact at the airport and I shot photos of four first time balloon flyers being initiated during the traditional champagne toast. The toast proved a bit different than my own initiation in July. Whereas I had merely toasted my pilot and crew with a flute of expensive bubbly, the four initiates that I watched through my camera lens had to drink their alcohol without the use of hands while their balloon pilot poured cold beverage down their backs. Still their initiation was mild compared to the ceremony of a first time certified pilot. He had to kneel and slurp his champagne from a cup amidst the deluge of two beers, three sodas, a bottle of champagne, and a 30 gallon ice chest. Saturday’s festivities were finished off with an old-fashioned cookout and lots of good gossip.

While Saturday dawned to perfect weather, Sunday and Monday proved too windy for safe flying. Even though my possible photos of the event were whittled down to one day, I still shot some amazing photos and even managed to deepen my addiction of hot air balloons.

Hopefully I can release my photos to the general public for purchase within the month. Right now my gracious event hosts have first dibs. I have all of the event photos listed in the password-protected “Clients Only” Gallery for now, but I promise to send out an announcement once I do release the BBBB photos for general purchase. Until that time, I will be busy uploading several wonderful carnival photos to the “Objects” and “Human Nature” Galleries. Enjoy and please visit the official website at www.bigbendballoonbash.com for more information about this event.

Until we meet again, I wish all of you brilliant flashes of perspective!

[ O*] Alycia