Planning the Angle

I enjoyed taking photos during the Barnsley Lifeguard Competition.  I also was able to plan some photos.  I made these photos by working the bulkhead at the other end of the pool.  While I captured the action, it is relatively boring.  A better shot would have been much closer to the swimmers, but on the side of the pool.  Head-on, there is very little to see of the entry.  If I was at the side, I would have gotten some great profiles while diving.

Posing Golfers

These two photos were taken moments apart.   The second one is nice;however, the first one has some nicer expressions.  Telling people when a photo is being taken changes their expressions.  I usually take a few before the official photo to make sure I get the great expressions.  

Another thought to making good photos is to interact with the environment.  The second image has the golfers crossing their clubs.  While this is posed, it is also a neat effect.

Following Directions

I give credit to Shelagh Lim for this image.  This was a made image.  There is a story behind the image though.  We were given permission to walk the golf cart path in Jasper.

That is me with the farmer hat.

Some photographs are made to tell a story.  This one depicts a story but I know the real one behind it.

Capturing a story

This is a fun photo that was taken to capture a fun event.  Shelagh has many fun stories from this trip.  

Part of taking photos this way is always having a camera with you.  A delicate part of this is to not take so many as to be annoying.  (Most people just know that I have a camera with me now.)

Water Skeeter

Making photographers through water is particularly challenging.  Cameras have difficulty auto focusing through water, and I have difficulty with manual focus through water.

Both my wife and I remember playing in streams and 'capturing and releasing' these insects.

It is challenging to capture them as the move unexpectedly.  

The solution for me in this case was to zoom out, focus where I thought it should be in the frame and then crop the final image.  I tried about 6 different shots to make this one.

Moving Targets

With my previous photograph bringing up the 20 lb brick, the guard came straight up.  With this shot, the guard swam sideways.  It is not unusual to do this but making a photograph when this happens requires a changing plan.

Helping the camera deal with a subject moving (and moving out of the frame,) you move the camera at the same speed of your subject.  If this is new to you, you can also make sure you are zoomed out more so that you can capture the event.  In post production, you can crop out excess space to compose the photograph better.

Being Playful

Being a photographer for any event is a challenge to 'capture' the event.  If you ever leave one spot, you may miss the action there, but by being different, you have other opportunities to capture the essence of the event.

When you start taking photos, those that are natural comedians will often 'act out.'  The nice thing is that you can capture these moments with our new technologies.

While this shot was not framed, or arranged, I planned on getting images like this.  So.... this is another way of making photographs.