Tag Archives: night

Weekly Photo Challenge: Night

Leave a reply

Night is a challenge for me as a photographer.  I have a tendency not to be out taking pictures at night…and when I am, I realize the challenges that night photography poses.  Last night, on a flight to Tucson I had the opportunity to sit in a window seat.  I realize that I often fly during the day, so once I was seated my eye was drawn to the lights against the dark of the night sky.  And as I snapped photos of San Diego from the air, I noticed the moon, nearly full, casting a glow on the water below.

img_2907

And every time I try to take night photos, I realize how slowly the shutter closes in low light.  And the slowness means that it’s easy to create blurs, even with the slightest of movement.  So from a plane, blurs become quite prominent.  I love the fun abstraction of this image taken as we landed in Tucson.

img_2916

So of course, when I saw this one, I had to try another as we taxied toward our gate.

img_2917

Before that, up in the air, I was treated to an amazing light show.  I watched an electric storm light up the clouds like fireworks in the distance.  Since I wasn’t able to get a photograph because of the darkness, I decided to try my hand at some video.  And while it isn’t perfect, you do get to see the beauty of the lightening lighting up the sky.  I know I should figure out how to strip the sound of the aircraft and add some music or something…maybe one of you can give me suggestions for how to best do that!

Once we flew away from the storm, the lights of the city began to appear in the distance.  And as we got closer and began to fly lower, my picture was less blurry and abstract.  I also suspect that the plane’s light, that seems to come on at a certain altitude, helped give more light to my lens to make the shutter speed a bit faster.

img_2896

After renting a car and heading out of the airport, I just had to take a photo of the iconic saguaro cacti, especially when I noticed the full moon behind them.  My husband was nice enough to pull over so I could get out to take a few pictures of these magnificent plants.

snapseed

So, try out a little night photography this week.  What happens when the light is low?  What light will you capture when the sky is dark?  You don’t need an airplane for this exploration, you can try looking out the window of your house…or maybe even standing outside looking in!

You can post your photo alone or along with some words: commentary, a story, a poem…maybe even a song! I love to study the photographs that others’ take and think about how I can use a technique, an angle, or their inspiration to try something new in my own photography. (I love a great mentor text…or mentor photo, in this case!) I share my photography and writing on social media. You can find me on Instagram and Twitter using @kd0602. If you share your photos and writing on social media too, please let me know so I can follow and see what you are doing. To help our Weekly Photo community find each other, use the hashtag #night for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

So head out into the dark of night with your camera (or phone) in your hand.  What will you find with night as your lens?  I can’t wait to see what you find!

 

Weekly Photo Challenge: Night

Leave a reply

When the sun goes down it seems that my camera does too.  Night photography is a challenge. How do I capture the lights without lighting up the frame and making it look like daytime? So I’ve been practicing.  And what better place to practice than in Chicago, a city that lights up the night–at least during the summer. There is something beautiful about the way that lights reflect on water at night.  Here’s a view of the city from Navy Pier. IMG_6266 And what a treat to be in a city that offers fireworks twice each week during the summer.  And what better place to try my hand at some night photography (or fireworks photography)…definitely not easy to get a good shot! IMG_6267 I live in a place where the sun sets in the evening over the water, making it easy to know where west is located.  And I found myself wanted to look out over Lake Michigan to watch the sun set here in Chicago too.  But that isn’t where west is…so I had to follow the sun.  And as luck would have it, we happened into the Signature Lounge of the John Hancock building just after the sun had set but was still in all its colorful glory lighting up the sky.  And even better, we were seated right at the west-looking windows on the 96th floor to enjoy our pricey cocktails (that were well worth the cost for the view alone!). IMG_6312 IMG_6310 As I noticed the Sears Tower (AKA Willis Tower), I also saw that the sunset was reflected in the windows in my image.  The app Painteresque helped me make that reflection even more beautiful. IMG_6321 Last night I was back down at Millennium Park, along with thousands and thousands of other people (I heard the number 20,000 thrown out) to try to catch a glimpse of the taping of the NPR show, Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me.  And after watching for a while and then stopping for some dinner, we returned to the park for a nighttime view. IMG_6332 Looking into My Dreams, Awilda lights up the night, her glow offering a sense of serenity as you enter the park.  And over her shoulder last night, the blue moon came into view.  I wanted to capture the softness and glow…so used Waterlogue to soften the edges and create my own version of art from this sculpture. Preset Style = Vibrant Format = 6

So explore the night.  You might try your hand at capturing the lights of night against the dark sky…or maybe for you night will be an image that expresses what happens indoors once the sun goes down. You can post your photo alone or along with some words: commentary, a story, a poem…maybe even a song! I love to study the photographs that others’ take and think about how I can use a technique, an angle, or their inspiration to try something new in my own photography. (I love a great mentor text…or mentor photo, in this case!) I share my photography and writing on social media. You can find me on Instagram and Twitter using @kd0602. If you share your photos and writing on social media too, please let me know so I can follow and see what you are doing. To help our Weekly Photo community find each other, use the hashtag #night for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

As we head out of July into August, what does night look like where you are?  Look indoors or outdoors, at nature, at your place, in your home…capture an image of night for us all to see!  I’m looking forward to seeing night through your lens!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Growing

Leave a reply

Even though January is deep into winter, I always think of it as a time of growth and growing. This is the time when my students flourish and they begin to display their independence and initiative  as learners.  And if you look closely, you can see evidence of growing all around.

Having spent time in the temperate rain forests outside of Seattle last weekend, I saw many evidences of growing all around.  I’m still thinking about these tree that seem to be covered with fur, as the mosses gather and grow.

moss covered trees 2

And I learned about the ways that even dead trees contribute to the growing process of the rain forest.  This tall tree in the center is actually dead…and yet is hosts fungi, mosses, lichens and more, contributing to the life cycle of the forest.  And when it finally falls down it will likely become the fertile nursery for tree seedlings to take root as new trees begin to grow.

even dead trees contribute

And there are also many kinds of mushrooms sprouting all around.  These particular mushroom grow very large and some are quite high on the tree trunks.  (You can catch a glimpse of some others in other posts about the rainforest, here and here and here.)

fungus on tall trunksEven as I moved away from the forest, nearer to the beach where plants seemed dormant, when I looked closely, I could see that they were still growing.

winter plants

And in addition to noticing plants growing, I am also working to grow my own skills.  I played around a bit with night photography on my trip, trying to figure out how to capture the glow of light in the background of dark…and the rainy weather added some reflective interest and challenge.

This shot was my attempt to capture the shine of the wet streets and the way the light reflected on them.

the glow of wet streets

It was hard to get a picture of this tanker ship, so I was trying to shoot through the chain link fence.  I like the effect of the edges of the fence framing the ship.

tanker through the fence

As I was getting back in the car, the gas station caught my eye.  I was reminded of Edward Hopper’s paintings of buildings and tried to capture the emptiness and the light in this space.

gas station at nightSo this week’s challenge is all about growing…what you notice growing or ways your are growing yourself and your skills.  Take some shots of what growing means to you right now.

You can post your photo alone or along with some words: commentary, a story, a poem…maybe even a song! I love to study the photographs that others’ take and think about how I can use a technique, an angle, or their inspiration to try something new in my own photography. (I love a great mentor text…or mentor photo, in this case!)

I share my photography and writing on social media. You can find me on Instagram and Twitter using @kd0602. If you share your photos and writing on social media too, please let me know so I can follow and see what you are doing. To help our Weekly Photo community find each other, use the hashtag #growing for this week and include @nwpianthology in your post.

What is growing in your life right now?  How can you document it through your lens?  I look forward to seeing what is growing through your lens!