Free Advice Day at Cameraworld

I'm running another Free Photography Advice Day at Cameraworld, Chelmsford, on Saturday 13th October 2012.  You can drop in at any time to ask me anything about techniques, equipment, composition, or even porridge.

The day runs from 9.30am until 5.30pm, and you can find out more here.

Photo Friday - Week 36

It's getting to that time of year again, when we can find toadstools and other fungi throughout our local woodlands, and they're great subjects, especially if you've got a macro lens.

I'd normally advise using a tripod, as it allows you to ignore the shutter speed and just concentrate on getting the depth of field as you want it, at the lowest ISO for the best image quality, however, this first shot was a snap looking straight down on a parasol toadstool, and I've cropped it down quite heavily to this composition.


Pentax K10D, Pentax FA50mm f/1.4 lens @ f/3.5, 1/180s, ISO400, handheld.

This is my more normal way of shooting fungi - a tripod, polarising filter and reflector all help to control the lighting and composition, and I would have used a remote release and the mirror lock-up mode to ensure a crisp, shake-free image.


Pentax K10D, Sigma EX 105mm f/2.8 macro lens @ f/16, 1.5s, ISO100, tripod, polariser, reflector.

Just go for a walk in your local woods, and keep your eyes peeled, especially if there are log-piles around, as these are excellent for fungi.  If you're wanting to find the red and white spotted Fly Agaric toadstools, look out for Silver Birch trees, as these are closely associated with these classic fungi.

Photo Friday - Week 35

A day late I know, but I was out with the camera in the morning, then busy all afternoon and evening, so here's a shot from yesterday, at Essex Wildlife Trust's Lower Raypits reserve near Canewdon.  I'd been commissioned to go along and get some photos of the landscaping work going on there at the moment, which is mostly being done by digger and bulldozer.


Pentax K-5, Pentax DA16-45mm f/4 lens @ f/6.7, 1/500s, +1.0EV, ISO200, handheld.

Photo Friday - Week 34

Some shots taken during my last Macro workshop at Hanningfield Reservoir in August, when we found a particularly helpful Grasshopper, which seemed intent on posing for us.


Pentax K-5, Sigma EX 105mm f/2.8 macro lens @ f/6.7, 1/60s, +0.5EV, ISO400, handheld.


Pentax K-5, Sigma EX 105mm f/2.8 macro lens @ f/6.7, 1/180s, +1.0EV, ISO400, handheld.

And just to show how settled it was, here's three of the workshop participants shooting it at once!


Pentax K-5, Sigma EX 105mm f/2.8 macro lens @ f/6.7, 1/250s, +0.5EV, ISO400, handheld.

Photo Friday - Week 33

So it's technically Saturday now, but I've not gone to bed yet, so it's still Friday as far as I'm concerned...

A couple of shots taken during the 'Beyond The Basics' photography workshop at Bedfords Park last Saturday, both down by the lake, where we found this lovely little bistort (I think) flower, which was very popular with the hoverflies, and a Long-winged Conehead cricket.


Pentax K-5, Pentax DA*300mm f/4 lens @ f/8, 1/350s, ISO400, tripod.

I'd already spoken about how much I love my 300mm lens for this type of shot, and when the opportunity presented itself to show why, I couldn't help it.  Using the tripod allowed me to set the composition up, then wait for insects to come and feed.


Pentax K-5, Pentax DA*300mm f/4 lens @ f/4, 1/1000s, ISO400, tripod.

Although the 300mm lens doesn't allow anywhere near as high magnification as a macro lens, with a subject like this, with its super-long antenna, leaving some space around the subject is often a bonus.

Right, now I'm going to bed, off to Hanningfield Reservoir in the morning for a 'Know The Basics' workshop!