New Work: Early Fall in NH

I typically don't like shooting landscape photography, because it's hard to find an unusual focal point and the resultant pix usually end up looking just like everyone else's (and not in a good way). What I do really like, however, are reflections and sappy movies like "The Notebook" and "What Dreams May Come." I also have a soft spot for pictures containing details I didn't notice at the time I shot them. (See last photo on page.) Below are some images I shot while my husband and I enjoyed an impromptu drive up Route 132 in Sanbornton and Bristol, New Hampshire earlier today.

Above: This reflection reminded me of a woven tapestry.

Above: Can't you just see Noah rowing Allie around in a little boat up here?

Above: Something a little more representational: reeds in the water.

Above: This reflection looks almost "smocked" (or alternatively, like squished-up paint).

Above: More reflections. Did I tell you I also love white birch trees?

Above: I was surprised this image (shot at 1/4 sec.) came out, because I didn't have a tripod with me and instead was leaning the camera against a railing.

Above: The fetus-shaped leaf at the bottom of this image fascinates me.

New Work: Springfield, VT Steampunk Festival

This personal project was particularly difficult to shoot because it rained for half the weekend, many of the activities were held a cement hall, and I was in full costume the whole time. (See last photo.) The resultant pictures were very underwhelming straight from the camera. Fortunately, Photoshop and selective use of an online tutorial on making photos look vintage saved the day. Below are a few of my favorite images:

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Here's a selfie of the photographer and her husband/assistant on the way to the event, without any Photoshop wizardry. (Yes, the dreadlocks are fake. Yes, they're heavy. Yes, they gave me a headache after 14 hours of wear.)

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TAKE-AWAY POINTS: Accept that some shoots simply won't come out the way you hoped. Edit ruthlessly BEFORE you Photoshop. Teach yourself new techniques. Be willing to experiment. And finally, don't spend so much time trying to document the perfect moment that you forget to have fun and enjoy the experience.

New Work: Hopkinton (NH) State Fair

The Hopkinton State Fair is a Labor Day Weekend classic up here in the Granite State. This year, the four-day event celebrates its 100th anniversary. My day at the fairgrounds in Contoocook involved carnival rides, lots of "so bad, it's good" food, new friends, 4H displays, and of course some picture-taking.

When I photograph an event, I always take a photo of the sign. This helps me remember and identify at a later date where the rest of the images in the same folder were taken:

Below are some of my favorite images so far:

I've also been playing around with composition recently. The following two images are very atypical for me, but it's the type of work I'm seeing more and more on photo blogs and photography magazines:

(The Spiderman picture is my favorite image from the whole day. I love how tough the young subject is trying to act. I also think the background photo of the little girl with the ladybug face paint looks a lot like a young "Dayanara Diaz" from "Orange is the New Black.")

How are you spending your long weekend?

Tips for Taking Outstanding Fall Foliage Photographs (2025 update)

(This article was origially written in 2012 and stored on a free web hosting site no longer available. It will be recreated once backup files are located.)

Q. Why do trees change color in the autumn?

As the days get shorter, trees slow their production of chlorophyll. When this happens, the dominant green color that we usually see in leaves breaks down and other colors that were actually there all along- such as red, gold, and yellow - are revealed.

This process takes only a few short weeks each year. But while it’s going on, it offers an abundance of “photo ops” for professional photographers, amateurs, and hobbyists alike.

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Q. Whenever I take fall foliage pictures, they never seem to look the way they did in "real life." How can I make them better?

The best images - regardless of their subject matter -- are superior both artistically and technically.

Artistic Considerations:

Here's where concepts like composition and creativity come into play. These are pretty broad terms, so here are some factors to keep in mind:

• color (bright, muted, complementary; saturation)
• contrast
• scale
• texture (hard, soft, rough, smooth)
• angle
• perspective
• lighting
• simplicity v. complexity
• detail (or lack thereof)
• distance from your subject
• minimizing visual clutter/background
• "through the lens" cropping
• motion (of your subject,of the camera)
• exposure time
• communication (what mood, message do you want to show/tell your viewer?);
  and one consideration you'll likely not read elsewhere:
  
• honoring your subject.

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Tips for Photographing Alcatraz

Before venturing out to shoot "the Rock," I Googled how to best shoot it in a sea of tourists. I then "test-drove" the ideas I found and am sharing the best:

• Buy your tickets ahead of time, from the NPS's authorized vendor: Don't show up a the dock and expect to get on the next boat to Alcatraz. Tickets sell out days, if not weeks ahead of time.

• Skip the night tour: At this time of year, Alcatraz is in full-bloom. There is a lot of beauty mixed in with the decay, which you won't see as well at night.
  
• Take the first boat out in the day, preferably on a weekday: Get of the boat, skip the park ranger overview and run (yes, run) up the equivalent of 13 flights of stairs to get to the main cellhouse. Then skip the headset queue and go straight upstairs. You'll then have a few minutes to take photos in relative privacy before the crowds descend. You can always read online just about anything in the audio tour.
  
  
  (For instance, did you know that the water tower is so large because drinking water had to be shipped in from the mainland?)
  
• Yes, you can skip the tripod, if... your camera allows you to adjust ISO for a high setting. The graininess -- in some cases I shot at 6400 ISO! -- adds a vintage feel that works well for the inside shots. Outdoors, ISO 100 or 200 works fine. (Or just use full automatic. But if you don't, then don't forget to change your setting back from the high ISO.)

• The viewfinder is your friend: Look at the info in your viewfinder. Is your shutter speed slow than 1/60 sec. (1/30 sec. if you're ***very*** steady-handed)? Anything longer than that and your images may be blurry. Do your pictures look too light or too dark? Bracket the exposures: take the shot at the setting you think works well, then underexpose a step or two and overexpose a step or two.

• The specialty modes are your friend, too: Taking lots of distance shots? Landscape mode works great. Try out the close-up and portrait modes where appropriate, too.
  
• Who cares if your pictures don't look like postcards?: Postcards are meant to appeal to the widest audience possible. You can always buy postcards in the Alcatraz gift shop for just 50 cents (or less). Instead, spend your time taking the shots that represent your own experience.
  
  
• You're not a reporter, so if you see photos that are evocative of the prison experience, but not period-accurate, shoot anyways. Below is a photo of two contemporary workers in the kitchen area, but they still look like inmates.
  
• Bring a zoom lens and close-up lens: Possible subjects are surprisingly varied, from distant birds to rusty keyholes. You can also experiment with using a wide-angle up close:
  
• Don't forget the iPhone: Selfies are lot easier to shoot and post. My iPhone has also taken decent shots in situations where my DSLR was balking.

• It's OK to delete (but work with copies only): You may want to save your whole unedited shoot on a SanDisk card or thumb drive, but edit only the best shots.

• Turn around and look back! Most people attempt to photograph Alcatraz as the ferry approaches "the Rock". Instead, shoot from the back of the ferry as you depart. It'll be a lot less crowded... and you'll be a lot closer.
  
  

What tips have worked for you? Share them below.

San Francisco: Flowers at Alcatraz

When I went to Alcatraz to shoot some stark, "architectural decay" type of photos, I didn't expect to see this much beauty:

New Work: San Francisco, Photos of Chinatown

Chinatown is one of San Francisco's most popular tourist destinations. I didn't even try to shoot the Dragon Gate at the entrance of Grant St., because the midday lighting was too harsh (and frankly, it was easier just to buy a postcard). Below are a few locales and details, including other people's art, which caught my interest while sightseeing.