A few weeks ago, I placed a challenge upon myself to try to use music as an inspiration for my photos.  I thought it was a great idea and tried to accomplish a lot.  Perhaps a bit too much.  The bad news is that it didn’t work out.  In the weeks that followed, I spent time trying to find songs that would inspire my photograph.  I quickly learned that I have not yet matured as a photographer capable of finding inspiration in such abstract sources.

If you’re interested, I go into more detail below the cut.

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Macro Photography of my keyboard.  The Depth of field is incredibly small (millimeters small), which made keeping it all in focus difficult.

Over the course of the last few years, I have finally created enough images that I am proud of to create my very first feature calendar for the 2009 calendar year. The calendar features 13 of my own works.  Featured images were created both with film and digital formats.

This year’s topic is Landscapes and Structures.  The back cover illustrating all of the included images (except for the cover) is to the right.

To view preview images of each photo featured in my calendar, or to order your own copy, visit the sales page at my DeviantArt shop:  My 2009 Calendar

To view more of my prints, visit My Storefront

Slightly off-topic post today, but it is somewhat related. I was forwarded a few videos the other day from a conspiracy theorist on YouTube who has been posting videos that are allegedly proof that the government is conducting weather control experiments that could negatively affect the human race. Before I go on, please realize that I think this woman is absolutely nuts. I’ve watched at least half her videos now and there is no real science behind any of it. She just sounds crazy.

Take, for example, the video below. She claims that this is not a moire effect that it wouldn’t show up on wood (again, her words).  Anyone who knows their way around any sort of camera knows that this is obviously a moire effect.  And then she talks about how moire effect doesn’t move or show directionality in more than one direction.  What?  On a video camera that is obviously not still, it would move.  And a moire effect will almost always have a curvature to it, sometimes in multiple directions or at least different arcs with varying radii. This is obviously a case of a camera with poor focal qualities.

As you are all educated, especially in the world of optics, I don’t really need to get into proving my case.  You can take a look at the video for yourself and get a chuckle.  The lady is obviously completely ignorant.

So my lesson for the day is simple:  Don’t try to be an expert on a topic you know nothing about.  Your ignorance will become very apparent to most of your audience.

Our friends over at Digital Photography School has written a simple article that basically describes important factors of a great photographic composition. This is an often misunderstood topic that I cannot personally explain in simple terms. So I will let the intro to their article explain it:

Good Composition is a key element of good photographs yet is something that is hard to define.

Instead of looking at composition as a set of ‘rules’ to follow - I tend to view it more as a set of ingredients that can be taken out of the pantry at any point and used to make a great ‘meal’ (photograph)….

The key is to remember that in the same way as a chef rarely uses all the ingredients at their disposal in any dish - that a photographer rarely uses all of the ingredients of composition in the making of an image.

As I mentioned, it’s a great article that explains things in simple terms. It includes some example photographs that help to clarify the fuzzy topic of composition.

Read the full article: 5 Elements of Composition in Photography