Wandering Camera – December Linky Party

Camera And Photo Linky Party | Whims And Fancies 

Welcome to the month of December Wandering Camera linky party.  We are reaching the end, the next one will be the last one.  Thank you so much for visiting, for your lovely comments and for sharing your photos.

Unfortunately, November was not an easy month for me for various reasons.   Add that to working around the clock for a couple of weeks, I was more than ready for the Thanksgiving holidays by the time they came around.  Until then, I did what I always do – I went for walks.  We went to a trail that we haven’t visited since last spring.  So much had changed!  Dry and yellow changed to wet ground and dark greens.  Days are also getting shorter, so it’s a lot darker in the woods.  Most of the time I didn’t make it outside before the light started fading so I took the opportunity and practised low light photography.

Here are my photos from the month of November –

 

Photo Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

 

 1.  Surprised to find wildflowers blooming

2.  Always reminds me of Something Wicked This Way Comes

3.  Exotic glasswork

4.  Luscious red

  

Photo Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

 

5.  Golden Gate Bridge shrouded in fog

6.  Fairytale streetlights

7. Sit and rest a while

8. Hitting the trail again

 

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9. A cluster of water beads, as brilliant as diamonds

10. Yosemite in watercolour

11. Charlie is always confused

12. Golden Gate strait

 

Photo Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

 

13. Glass pumpkins

14.  Reminiscent of Victorian London

15.  Golden tree line seen from my window

16.  Red berries everywhere

 

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17. Magnolia fruit

18.  Started holiday shopping with purchasing food for donation

19.  A rainy day on our favourite drive

20. Found a building with architectural details

 

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21. A pixie and a mandrake = mayhem

22.  Happy to be home after being at the doctor for half a day

23. Seeds emerging from the Magnolia fruit

24.  Happy Thanksgiving

 

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25.  Spooky trees, my take on Black Friday

26.  Another rainy day overlooking a vineyard

27.  Peaceful

28.  Creeks are starting to flow with rainwater

 

Photo Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

 

29.  You never know what you will come across in the woodlands

30.  New beginnings

     
Harry Potter Fabric

 

Just a little note – remember, the Harry Potter giveaway is still going on, in case you missed the post about it.  I am going to take a break next week, so the giveaway will be open until the 11th of December.  Here’s your chance to make a gift with out-of-print Harry Potter fabric.

 

My Camera Bag

As you have noticed, I am out and about photographing in all kinds of settings and weather.  Over the years, I have learned to keep a few things as staple items in my camera bag.  I thought I’d share a little about that.

 

Plastic bags/Ziplock bags

You may laugh at this one, but having this has saved my shooting plenty of times.  I always keep plastic bags and Ziplock bags handy to keep my gear dry.  On rainy days, if I am caught outside without an umbrella, I can wrap a plastic bag around the camera and still continue to take photos.  I also keep a couple of ziplock bags handy to keep my cards and lens cloth dry.

 

Lint Free Cloth

I keep a couple of lint-free cloths for wiping lenses and filters.  If I am not carrying my bag, I put one in my pocket.  Not only is it great to wipe away smudges, I can also wipe away the water droplets from the lens easily when it’s raining or I am shooting a waterfall.

 

Lens Cleaning Kit

This is an absolute must to keep in my bag, specially when I am travelling.  It consists of lens cleaning solution and wipes.  You don’t want to use glass cleaner on your lens, it’s much too harsh.

 

USB Cable

 I keep a dedicated USB cable in my bag for connecting my camera to my computer.  That way it’s one less thing I have to remember to pack when I am travelling.  Recently I also purchased an adapter to connect the camera to my iPad, that stays in my camera bag too.

 

Camera Manual

My Canon camera manual is of a compact size and stays in my bag.  I have a tendency of going to places without internet connection.  On very rare occasions, when I have had to look something up, I have been glad to have had the manual on me.

 

Camera-related Material

Other than lenses and the camera, I also make sure that I have this set of things in my bag.  Some of these are only needed for cameras with interchangeable lenses.

  • Battery Charger
  • Extra batteries
  • Camera base for the stand
  • Extra storage cards
  • Filters
  • Lens hoods
  • Remote shutter release for low light or night photography

I hope you find this list helpful.  Other than the list under “Camera-related Material”,  the rest of the items are good to have on you regardless of the type of camera you use.

 

Now it’s your turn to share your photo posts. I always look forward to seeing them.

 

Badge to share on your post and website

Camera And Photography Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

 

You can add any number of links to your posts from the previous month. The posts should have photos in them, with a story or anecdote. Your project photos (quilting, sewing, painting, knitting, etc.) are most welcome. You can also write a new post to link up. Please do not link up posts that are older than the previous month, they will be removed.

Please make sure to include the badge or a text link back to this site on each post that you link up. You can also add the badge to your blog. I am happy either way as long as you link back :-)

Spread a little encouragement amongst each other.

Wandering Camera is a monthly event that will run on the first Thursday of every month. If you follow me via email, bloglovin or facebook, you will get a reminder.

Have fun!!

 



I am also linking up on Life Thru The Lens, Through My Lens, Our World TuesdayWednesday Around The World, Photo Friday, and Friday Photo Journal along with with other linky parties on my Events And Links page.

 

 

Leave a comment

 

Wandering Camera – November Linky Party

Camera And Photo Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

Welcome to November’s Wandering Camera linky party.  Thank you again for visiting, for your lovely comments and for sharing your photos.  I love seeing your photos and reading about them.

Just like the changing Autumn wind, October came to us with a myriad changes of weather.  There were hot days with extremely low humidity.  Then we had gusty storms which brought on colder winds and consecutive rainy days.  Beautiful skies, leaves and flowers, warm colours and walks filled my days.  The month ended with a weekend visit to beautiful Yosemite.  I can’t even begin to tell you how much fun I had with the camera.  This month’s photos are a bit biased toward the outdoors.

I need your help with identifying a few flowers and seed pods.  I put an asterisk beside the number.  If you know what they are and let me know, I will be really grateful.

Here are my photos from the month of October –

 

Photo Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

 

1. Trail through the woods

2. Raindrops on rose-leaves

3. Autumnal dryness, but with the promise of rain

**4. Beautiful white strands

(I think it’s Common Sow Thistle seed puff, please let me know if I am wrong)

 

Photo Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

 

5. Mums in our garden

6. Dry but still brilliant red

7. Bow and arrow of sun rays

8. Amber leaves

 

Photo Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

 

9. Lake at the end of a hike

**10. A little star on the ground

**11. White blossoms

12. Backlit Ochre and Crimson

 

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13. Setting Sun peeking through a tree

14. Storm clouds

15. Post-storm sky

16. Downpour in the park

 

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17. Grey sky, framed by bare branches

18. Leaves turning into golden flowers

19. Red and orange stripes

**20. Yellow sparks

 

Photo Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

 

21.  Outlet of a mountain stream

**22. Softness

23. Green Pumpkins

24. Rain outside, fire inside

 

Photo Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

 

25. Droplets

26. Hermione

27. Happiness

28. Cadmium Lemon on Indigo Blue

 

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29. Autumn gold at Yosemite

30. A rainy day in the Yosemite Valley

31. Majestic El Capitan

 

 

As you can tell, I loved being out and about in October.  I was playing around with composing photos with wide-angle shots as well as with zoomed-in subjects.  On that note, I thought I’d talk a little about composition today.

 

Composition

Until today I mostly showed you different camera settings and how they affect your photos.  While that is shared knowledge, composition is something extremely personal.  Everyone sees and feels differently, and composition captures that experience.  Here are a few basic tips that might make it a little easier for you at the beginning.

 

Close-up vs. wide-angle

 

This is the first thing you want to define when you are taking a photo.  Sometimes, wide-angle shots end up adding a lot of noise without focus.  If you find yourself in that situation, change to a few selective close-up detail shots.  If the focused subject gets lost in the background noise, zoom in more.

 

Offset

 

Sometimes, offsetting the subject to one side of the picture instead of keeping it in the centre gives a sense of movement and provides interest.

 

Symmetry

 

For symmetrical subjects such as doors and windows however, keeping the focal point at the centre creates a balanced composition.

 

Symmetry In Landscape

 

I am going to keep this one real simple.  Define if you want the photo to be cut in 1/2-s or 1/3-s.

For example – If you are taking a photo of the sea and the sky, you will want the horizon to go through the middle. So, you will be cutting the composition into 1/2-s.

If you add a set of mountains in between the sea and the sky, you want the picture to be cut into 1/3-s, with the sky taking 1/3, the mountains 1/3 and the sea 1/3.

These are guidelines.  Change them around depending on what you want to emphasize.  In photo No. 9 above, I decided to cut the photo into 1/2-s because the mid-day sky was very dull and I decided to focus more on the mountains and the water.

 

Anchor

 

For landscape photography, have a focal or anchor point in the foreground.  It can be a rock, a tree, a house, anything.  Since photography is two-dimensional, this also provides depth.

 

Contrast

 

Try to avoid extreme dark and light areas in the same photo unless you are doing that by design.

 

Remember that these are just suggestions, they are not cut in stone.  All of these tips are the result of my experimentation.   Depending on the situation I quite often may not even follow them myself.  I also often hear “what can you possibly see in there??”  I have always strongly urged you to experiment with your own photography.  See for yourself!

 

Now it’s your turn to share your photo posts. I always look forward to seeing them.

 

Badge to share on your post and website

Camera And Photography Linky Party | Whims And Fancies

You can add any number of links to your posts from the previous month. The posts should have photos in them, with a story or anecdote. Your project photos (quilting, sewing, painting, knitting, etc.) are most welcome. You can also write a new post to link up. Please do not link up posts that are older than the previous month, they will be removed.

Please make sure to include the badge or a text link back to this site on each post that you link up. You can also add the badge to your blog. I am happy either way as long as you link back :-)

Spread a little encouragement amongst each other.

Wandering Camera is a monthly event that will run on the first Thursday of every month. If you follow me via email, bloglovin or facebook, you will get a reminder.

Have fun!!



I am also linking up on Life Thru The Lens, Through My Lens, Our World TuesdayWednesday Around The World, Photo Friday, and Friday Photo Journal along with with other linky parties on my Events And Links page.

 

 

Leave a comment

 

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