Nap Time Rocks!

When stooping to one’s level is a good thing

This is an article for Photo Nuts, found at Litratong Pinoy‘s monthly tips and tricks section.

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You might have heard that stooping to one’s level is never advisable. In conflicts, sure. But in photography, doing exactly that may just make all the difference between a normal photo and a good one.

Take for example when taking a picture of a toddler. I noticed that most of the members of Litratong Pinoy are parents. In fact, most of the time our subject are our kids!

So how do you take interesting photos that capture the nature of kids? How do you avoid making your picture look ordinary? I actually have 3 cardinal rules that I try to follow when taking photos, especially of children.

Rule #1: Stoop to their level

No, don’t scream and throw tantrums when they won’t pose for you. Get down on your knees, elbows, or tummy if need be, and then shoot away. You may be pleasantly surprised that a perspective at this level can turn out a good photo.

Take a look at photo #3. I initially took this one:

And then I realized it was really uninteresting, it was too long a shot (meaning it was too zoomed out), and the background (scaffolding) didn’t really work into the picture.

Rule #2: Move it!

Or rather, let them move. If the child is camera-shy, the best way to capture fun (and ‘innocent’) moments would be to let them do their thing. Make sure you’re prepared and then shoot away (sample photo #2). Saka na mag-delete ng pictures, pag na-upload na! You wouldn’t want to miss anything, so kuha lang ng kuha. Thank goodness for digital cameras, huh?

Also, don’t be afraid to run after them. That’s the fun part, isn’t it?

Rule #3: Messy and all

Details, details, details. The hair in the face, the ice cream on the nose, the icky soil and dirt on the hands. Minsan lang tayo maging bata, sabi nga. Zoom in, extreme close up (see sample photo #1). And this way too, you’ll get good depth of field (i.e., blurred background; make sure lang that the background is far enough).

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I’d love to share more, but I think this is getting too long. If you still have questions about this article/tips though, the whole of Team LP will be experts in that field Super thanks team LP for letting me be part of Photo Nuts!

Photo accessories

… for point and shoot cameras. man i want that tripod! what do you call that anyway?

there’s a lot pretty useful tips in there too, so for those not too keen on sporting DSLRs there are easy-to-do camera tricks to take good photos too for point-and-shoot cameras.

I am yours, and you… [LP]

…ang part 2 next week na

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Litratong Pinoy theme ngayong linggo: Sayo (Yours)
1/640sec | F7.1 | ISO 800 | 50mm | No flash
122509 | Bulacan | Canon EOS 400D Rebel Xti

More experiments [LP]

a new year sunset in Morong | 1/40sec | F4 | ISO 400 | no flash | unprocessed

i’ve decided. Facebook stifles my creativity! hehe. mashado kasing nagugugol sa harap ng laptop imbis na sa hobby.

kailangan pag punta ko sa KL sa February, makakuha ako ng maraming litrato gamit ang mga tips na nababasa ko sa mga photography groups/digest. kailangan may mai-produce akong kakaiba, labas sa usual kong kinukuha.

kailangan may photo project na ako ngayong taon.

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Litratong Pinoy this week: Balak

01012010 | Morong, Bataan | Canon EOS 400D Rebel Xti

the mini project

i’ve already promised to start a photo project this year. and inspired by the Lego man and Ickle & Lardee (go look up the sidebar for must sees), i must use whatever’s available.

like for example the unfinished miniature house my cousins and i made, one boring long break, that was supposed to be a gift to Mia. i say unfinished because with her ripping skills the cute little chairs that once stood are now all over the living room. the large LCD flat screen tv too, has been knocked off its base.

i really don’t mind since arts and crafts have always been my favorite subject. not that we had one in school. or did we?

anyway.

the view from not-above | used a 50mm prime lens

do let me know if you have ideas for this one.

Ito naman, manipis [LP]

ito naman, i’m sure alam mo na kung ano

katulad nung isang linggo, hindi yung subject ang gumalaw para lumabas ang ganitong effect. so, sure ka nang alam mo kung ano to?

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Canon EOS400D Rebel Xti | 010110 | Bataan

Ito, makapal [LP]

na-figure out mo na kung ano to?

ang kasunod sa susunod na linggo na theme

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Dec 31 09 | Bataan

nov 1

i always look forward to family get togethers. there’s none quirkier than my relatives, none more dysfunctional. lovably dysfunctional, that is.

and they’re never shy. grown up,

or not.

i feel so amateur looking at my photos and then looking at random Interesting Flickr photos. grabe, when will I be that good?

anyway, still practicing for now. be my model? =)

Please do not…

leave your things unattended:

kuha namin ni P, isang film collaboration kung saan ginamit niya ang film at pagkatapos ay ako naman ang nag-load nito sa kamera. ang result? double exposure. =)

ito namang litrato sa taas ay kuha nung New Year 2008 sa isang gas station papuntang Subic. hindi namin malaman kung saan dapat mag-cr ang mga babae kasi mali naman yung tinuturo nung karatula. kaya tawa kami ng tawa. labo =)

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sa wakas nakasali ulit ako ng LP!

photo projects to jumpstart your creativity

with my and P‘s photo project indefinitely on hold, i’ve been trying to think of photo challenges to keep me occupied. (as if naman i’m not busy already )

i came across this article from a DPS newsletter (which has lots of other great photography tips too by the way): 7 Photography Projects to Jumpstart Your Creativity

i really like the articles they post there. very practical and easy tips too. since i can’t do the daily photo challenge, I might just opt for a weekly one. or twice a month. or monthly. haha. what do you think?

momarazzi

n. pl. mom-a-raz-zi – A mom who doggedly pursues her children to take photos

Much like the paparazzi who have become notorious in Hollywood for stalking celebrities and making their lives miserable, I must confess that I belong to the growing community of parents who pursue, nay, stalk their children day in, day out, to take photographs. The thought of a single day, field trip or activity going undocumented simply does not bode well for me.

Photos of children are so vastly different from other types of photography.
Read more: http://digital-photography-school.com/8-tips-for-mom-a-raz-zo-photographers#ixzz0PaQckRJF

i love this article perfect for the stage mom in me! haha.

iris vs patty preview

fun, love, happy!

happiness mo, aksyunan mo!

haha. (this is the slogan of the enervon billboard i pass by at EDSA almost everyday. what can i do, it’s stuck in my head like bad LSS :p ).

so i printed some of them already.

and i get to hang them on the wall with these!

found them at Fully Booked Gateway, priced at P65-P75 per set. wish they had more ‘serious looking’ kinds of clothespins. these are all kikay! pano na yung monk shot ko?

i must say, Pating, the idea is really good. hehe. bakit di ko naisip yun dati? pero eventually i want some to be framed, para naman malagay ko sa baba.

6 photos down. nylon string nalang.

will post the finished wall soon! so there, my happiness, i finally did something about it. what have you done about yours?

Frame me up

now that i have some of my prints, i’m ready to get framed up thanks P for these nice ideas!
Ribba Frame from Ikea online Wooden clothespins

which just gave me a great idea…

i can hang my photos up on a nylon string and clip them on with wooden clothespins like these (which you can actually buy at Fully Booked, not the exact designs though, but there are lots of other designs):

yun nga lang, pag exposed, madali madumihan. hehe. oh well, kesa naman hindi nakalabas mas sayang.

excited nako!

Photo stocks

uh-huh. didn’t want to let my photos go to waste, so I joined. learned about it from a photographer friend too.

try it. click on the photo or this link.