This is Peter’s second contribution and you can read more about him here and on facebook. Peter is a customer of the Eastmon Tamworth store.

Sometimes, fortune takes over from planning and a shot just appears before you. At times like these, you hope all of the workshops and courses and advice from others has sunk in and the choices you make are good ones.
Photography is about moments held in your viewfinder so that others can wish they were there and a bit like fishing, we can all talk of the one that got away. To land more of the big moments, you have to spend long hours learning and rehearsing the skills you need and then be prepared to be critical of your work.
Next, put yourself into places, positions and events so that you can hone those skills and experiment with pre-compositing, as opposed to post-composing photos on digital manipulation programs on the PC. Nothing provides more satisfaction than nailing the shot on offer.

These two shots offer the case in point.

"The Red Leaf" was shot with a Canon EOS 50D, shutter at 1/8sec at f5.6, 100 ISO and a focal length of 200mm mounted on a Slik Ant Pro500DX tripod

“The Red Leaf” was taken in my backyard in the first hour of sunlight after a night of rain. I was wandering about with the Canon on tripod, when I noticed the caterpillar manoeuvring about to depart his dinner table. With the camera already stable and set up for macro, it was just a matter of position, focus and click. Of course, I had to think on how much of the leaf I needed to establish the subject, so I cropped in close, leaving the retreating caterpillar in the top third of the frame. A short depth of field kept any background past the stem out of focus. I also angled the camera to keep the bottom of the leaf closer so focus on the shot would gradually get sharper as the eye approached the caterpillar. The water on the leaf added a lot more interest and life to the shot.

"The Constant Guide" was shot with a Canon EOS 50D, shutter at 32sec at f5.6, 100 ISO and a focal length of 24mm and with auto focus switched off mounted on a Slik Ant Pro500DX tripod

“The Constant Guide” was the by-product of night shoot, practicing in preparation for a TAFE assignment. After working around a bowling club, taking shots of abandoned greens and seats, I glanced up to check on the weather which I hoped would be clearing. There was the Southern Cross, wafting in and out of lightening clouds, showing me the way home. I positioned my tripod under a Silky Oak tree to just catch a branch tip for perspective. The timing of the rolling clouds gave the star constellation the perfect framing and the wispy effect  of the clouds achieved by thirty plus second exposure made the constancy of the stars more emphatic. My only problem came with the lens collapsing as it had its unteloscopic way with itself, so I snapped a rubber band in place as a collar. I set the timer release for 2 sec so there was no bumping, as I don’t have an electronic release.

Lango’s Bio

I’m a writer essentially, who loves to take photos. Poetry is my favourite form of written expression and I see a strong parallel with photography – both are about using economy in expressing a moment.
My wife and I have traveled to most parts of Australia to gather experiences we can’t find at work or the shops or the local pub. In the process we found what we left behind but with different geography as a backdrop.
I’ve been a teacher, a cricketer, a family man and a mate – with many other side tracks along the way – but people remain my fascination.

Related posts:

1. Shooting Great Pictures at Home
2. How to Photograph a Lightning Strike
3. Silhouette Photography made easy