Start as you mean to carry on ...

I 'might' have mentioned that I have a passion for taking photos - I hesitate to call myself a photographer because I think of photographers as the iconic Steve McCurry with his unforgettable Afghan Girl image.

When I visited Lord Lichfield's home at Shugborough & saw his photographs & cameras,  I knew that was the work of a photographer, a professional person, an artist.

In my mind, photographers  are people who elevate photography to an amazing level - who create  something quite unforgettable, the iconic images that we can't forget!

Like millions of others, I share my photos on my flickr photo stream,  always looking at the stats at night to see which images were viewed, appreciating the comments people have taken the trouble to leave & then I always return the visits to my contacts - garnering inspiration from their images.

It is widely accepted that most people's flickr stream is only viewed by themselves & a sometimes they get lucky & get lots of hits ...

Like a blog, it is hard work to get a community of contacts out there who will stop by regularly & offer advice & support.

Flickr explore is the showcase of photos - randomly selected best photos that are 'explored' for the day out of the hundreds of thousands that are added to flickr.

I have had several such moments when you login & see your stats are really high, then checking explore & finding your photo there ...

Today was such a day - my HFF - Happy Fence Friday  made 10 000 amazing hits today & I am over the moon that so many viewed it, over 100 people favourited it & many took the time to leave comments - a very good feeling.

What is lovely for me is that the photo was taken with a camera I have just got  - a Canon 5D Mk11, with a 135 prime (fixed lens) that I have not really used.

I took the photo while out at Lake Vyrnwy in Wales & I unashamedly love fences so I am always on the look out for an interesting fence to photograph for the Fenced Friday groups. It sounds easy but it really is not so I take it as a challenge & am pleased when it works out well ....

My flickr photostream now has in excess of an amazing 542 000 views - humbling to think that my photos are so widely viewed ...

My motivation to work constantly at my photos are because this year, I have been asked to take the wedding photos of the Tipsy Tart's daughters wedding. I  don't just want to take the photos - I want them to be special, to be the best they can be so I have to focus & get it right ...

That is my challenge so I am starting my photography as I mean to carry on this year ...

What is your challenge this year? How are you going to meet it?

Thanks for stopping by, your comments are always a joy to read,
Dee ~

Street photos in Ludlow

As many of you know, I am seldom without my compact Sony handbag camera or my large Canon 40D with my 24-105 lens.

I love nothing more than to wander about taking photos of towns & places I visit.  My visit to the pretty south Shropshire town of Ludlow with friends was no exception. These are some scenes I captured around town ...

I love the beautiful colours of these bottles

I am always striving to improve my food photography

Autumn colours on the market

Hot chocolate time ...

Fabulous Tudor buildings

 

 

My photography bugbear - street clutter - signs, boards, vans, scaffolding ... not good for photos ...

 

 

Do you have a particular subject you enjoy photographing? Animals, like my friends cats, are hard because they just don't pose long enough.  Do you take photos of places you visit?

 

Thanks for stopping by, I always enjoy your feedback

Dee ~♥~

An illuminating time ....

I have taken photos for ever, or so it seems & I am always challenging myself to try something new or do something better. Sometimes we are our own worst critics because I know when something is not as good as I would like it to be.

Are you like that?

We are a family that are seldom seen without a camera of sorts as we take photos wherever we are ....

I am a keen food / place setting / outdoor photographer & I know that I get those photos right most of the time.







However, I know my limitations & one of them is flash photography so belonging to a local facebook photograhy group is useful as there is a wealth of knowledge & experience.

They arranged a meet in an abandoned aircraft hanger which seemed a very good place to learn about lighting.

We all arrived bright & early to get the most out of it

While all the lighting was being set-up, it was a perfect time to explore the site - down a dark corridor towards the light

Godson silhouetted in a doorway

 Godson - a keen photographer at just 9, posing

My off-camera light efforts

and a product photography photo

More my confort zone - outdoor photo's ….

And youngest on the right & her friend ...

All in all a very interesting time but I realise that I need:
* lots of work on flash settings
* lots of work to fully understand the manual settings on my camera that I   don't use too often
* lots more time to go exploring in interesting abandoned places as time ran out for us ...

Do you know your strengths & your weaknesses?
Thanks for stopping by, leave a comment so I can return the visit
Dee ~♥~