Oregon - Kat Eye Studio

August 6, 2011 by Kat

Wide Open Spaces

Southwestern Utah

We’ve done the drive between Oregon and Colorado many, many times, and it always reminds me is how big and sparsely populated the United States really is. We have so much open space, especially in the western states.

Eastern Oregon

I have made a number of observations on space, after living in Italy.

You expand to fill the space available to you. You know when you first move from a small apartment into a house or larger apartment, and you wonder how you will fill the space? Then, after a few years, if you move again you realize that you have filled the space, without even thinking about it.

This is true for homes, and for countries too. I think this is why everything is bigger in the US – cars, roads, houses… We have the space, so we fill it. You don’t have to conserve space, be efficient with it, if you have a lot of it. Cities spread out, people move to the country, the car becomes required to get anywhere. The spreading out, the using of space, gets perpetuated.

Our personal space, the “bubble” of space we want around our bodies, is much larger in the US than in Europe too. You really notice it when you need to ride an elevator in Italy. A bit too close for American comfort.

Utah, near Colorado border

But for the proponents of denser housing and public transit, I have bad news. There is a lot of space left in the US. We are not even close to using up the space available to us. And until the space is at a premium and the prices go sky high, I don’t think behaviors are going to change.

There’s your thought to ponder for today! See you on Monday, back in Oregon, after 24 hours of driving through a lot of wide open space.

February 24, 2011 by Kat

Exploring with a Camera: Capture the Sky

Welcome to Exploring with a Camera! Today I’m going to talk about capturing the sky. The sky is a subject that I’ve been fascinated with over the last few months, and I wanted to share what I’ve learned through observation. This post has a lot of information, and at the bottom you will find a link tool where you can link in your sky images to share too. I hope you will include any tips or personal observations you have, and increase the knowledge through the power of a community.

What is it about the sky that is so fascinating to me? I think because it is always changing, it is always interesting. The sky is never the same. The weather and clouds, the change in light from the time of day and season, and where you are located all have a dramatic impact on how the sky looks. Not only that, compositional choices, camera settings for exposure and post processing can have a big impact on the final appearance of the sky.

Here are a few things I’ve noticed…

Big Sky

The image leading this post off is an example of what I call a “big sky” image. Captured on the Oregon Coast in 2008, this wonderful sky has stuck in my mind. Why does the sky feel so big in this image? First, the photo was taken with a wide angle (short focal length), which enables the capture of a lot of space. Second, the horizon is positioned low in the image, so the the sky is dominant. Finally, you can’t ignore the effect of the cloud formation. The formation itself leads you into the distance and gives more depth. I want to mention that I did boost the color in this image, to emphasize the blue of the sky.

Here’s another big sky image, from the Amalfi Coast of Italy. This image is similar to the Oregon Coast image, not only in subject, but in the focal length, placement of horizon, and interesting cloud formations.

Big sky images don’t have to be of nature, they don’t even have to have blue sky in them. This image of London is a great example of a big sky in an urban environment. The same elements, wide angle and low horizon, apply to this image as well.

You don’t have to have clouds to capture a big sky, that just seems to be what I am drawn to when I capture the sky. I hope some of you will share some cloudless skies in the link tool to provide examples.

Orientation

How you choose to compose your image, horizontal (landscape) or vertical (portrait) orientation, has an impact on the feel of the sky. The image below, of the sky above Mt. Vesuvius in the Bay of Pompeii, emphasizes the height of the sky, rather than the width or expanse as seen in the previous images. The vertical format compresses the depth of the clouds coming toward the viewer to create height.

Here is another vertical example, above the Swiss Alps. I find it interesting how both of these images make the sky and the clouds seem so large compared to the massive mountains. Note that both also use a low horizon, to emphasize the sky.

Contrast

When capturing the sky, I like to have something to provide contrast to the sky itself, something to ground the image and provide a frame of reference. I find I ground my images with a piece of something real, even if I don’t include the horizon. The tree in this image of sky from Madrid grounds the image, giving a little bit of context without changing the focal point.

And if you can have an interesting object help ground your sky, why not? This ancient Greek temple in Paestum, on the Amalfi Coast south of Naples, both grounds and provides a point of interest to the fabulous sky on this day.

Contrast that with a slightly wider angle crop, below, and you can see the difference in the focal point of sky versus temple. The sky is still an important feature, but the temple becomes the primary focal point.

Slice of Sky

You don’t always have the luxury of having a broad view of the sky to capture. You can create equally interesting sky images by catching a slice of the sky. These images are trickier for exposure, since you have a bright sky behind often significantly darker surroundings. My camera light meter will always choose an exposure in this situation that results in an overexposed sky, so I deliberately underexpose. This will make the foreground darker, but the correct exposure on the sky will make it the focal point.

Here is an image from an early morning walk in Parco di Monza. The slice of sky is the dominant feature in the image, but there is context in the foreground.

The image below comes from an especially frustrating evening walk in Lisbon. I could tell the sky was gorgeous with the clouds and golden light, but I couldn’t get anywhere I could capture the broad vista I wanted. There were buildings all around, everywhere I walked. Instead of the big sky, I focused on a slice of sky. I like this image for the subtle details of the city in contrast with that gorgeous sky.

This slice of sky, the view when exiting from a Paris Metro station, gives me an interesting feeling of emerging. The looking-up perspective and escalator provide the context that changes the image from a standard sky shot to something more unique.

Reflections

The sky in reflection is gorgeous. Water reflections are a great tool to expand the impact of the sky in an image. In this image of the Venetian Lagoon, the reflected rays of light and colors of the sky continue the effect of the sky through more of the image.

Using selective color processing on a reflection of the sky can completely change an image. In this image of my son from 2007, I loved how revealing only the sky in color gave me a feeling of springtime hope and moved the focal point to the sky in reflection.

I like this sky reflection from a modern Vespa for a couple of reasons. First, you can see that it has just rained from the drops on the mirror but the sky is reflected blue – things are clearing up. Second, a modern silver Vespa, while unique if you are from the US, is not all that interesting on its own. This sky reflection provides significantly more interest to the photo.

Backdrop

Finally, I want to explore the sky as a backdrop. Sometimes an image just doesn’t work without the backdrop of the sky. It may not be the focal point, but an interesting sky in concert with other elements make a great image. This Parco di Monza sunset image needs both the sky and the tree in silhouette to work.

The focal point in this image is the life boat on the Ferry from Italy to Croatia, but the light in the sky is what makes it interesting. Can you imagine this without that light? I can, and it’s not anything special in my mind’s eye.

I have taken lots of images of church steeples and domes and monuments, and I can tell you this: the sky makes or breaks the shot. This evening sky in Split, Croatia makes all the difference between a ho-hum church steeple and a marvelous evening shot.

So, what skies attract you? Is it cloudless skies of blue? Stormy, threatening skies? I would love to see your images. Let’s see how you capture the sky.

You can link in your images below, link will stay open until March 9. All images, recent or archive, are welcome. If you viewing this post in a reader, click here to come to the blog to see the link tool. I would love it if you would include an Exploring with a Camera button with your image, you copy and paste the button code from here.

December 24, 2010 by Kat

Paws-ing to Remember

“The stockings were hung by the chimney with care…”

I’ve never hung stockings by a chimney; I’ve never had one in my house. Not only that, but this year no Christmas stockings are hung because they are all in storage, back in the US. We decided to live without our Christmas decorations for a couple of years during our time in Italy. Maybe it was the picture chosen for today’s 9 Muses Musing prompt of STOCKING, but I couldn’t help think of those stockings in storage, and of the stocking that would be empty this year, for our sweet dog Tasha. She passed away this summer, at nearly 14 years old.

Since Brandon’s birth, we’ve always hung four stockings with care – one each for Patrick, Brandon and me, plus one “paw” stocking for Tasha. I dug in my archives to find a picture of it, this was the best I could do from Christmas 2006. You can see the paw stocking there, balancing out the odd three for the humans in the family to an even four.

We would always put a couple of Christmas morning treats in there for Tasha – maybe pig’s ears or a new toy. We had to be careful not to fill the stocking too early, or the smell of the treats hanging there would drive her crazy. Being the good dog she was though, she never tried to get at them. She would just sit there and stare at the stocking, like a kid stares at all of the presents under the tree. When Christmas morning arrived, Tasha would happily dig in to her treats as we opened our gifts. A Christmas tradition in our house.

So this year, the STOCKING prompt made me pause, remembering our sweet dog Tasha and Christmas stockings past. Give your furry family members a little extra hug for me, and maybe a treat on Christmas morning, in memory of Tasha.

Tomorrow’s 9 Muses Musing prompt is ORNAMENT. Tomorrow is my day to muse again, and I have a fabulous giveaway for you, from one of my favorite places in all of Italy. I know it’s Christmas Day tomorrow, but don’t forget to stop by Mortal Muses to enter.

And by the way, I’m feeling much, much better today – back to normal. Thanks for all of the well wishes yesterday. Enjoy your Christmas Eve!

November 2, 2010 by Kat

Portland Photowalk: The Report

Our photowalk in Portland on October 10 was presented with two major obstacles: The Portland Marathon, and rain. Now, you would think in a place that is known for it’s rain, that would not deter anyone. This was before my Exploring with a Camera: Rain post though! Life, traffic and rain got in the way and we had quite a few cancellations.

So it was down to three of us: me, my sister Laurie (in town visiting me for the weekend), and Jenny of Sugarsnap who had helped me plan the walk. We met at a Starbucks in NW Portland and then, juggling umbrellas and cameras, we went to see what we could see. It was a beautiful neighborhood, with fall just starting to show it’s colors. I enjoyed capturing the beauty found in the rain, and chatting with Jenny and Laurie as we walked around. And falling in love with Jenny’s lens – a 50mm compact macro.

Here are a few of my photos from our little walk around the neighborhood. You’ve also seen some of the photos from this outing in the Exploring with a Camera: Rain, Curly Fence and Share Your View: Rain posts. Stop by Jenny’s blog to see her photos too!

Laurie (left) and Jenny (right)

Beautiful trees, just starting to change.

Flowers were still blooming! (Happy Purple Tuesday!)

A bit of color for the season to come…

This poor little tree seemed confused about the season.

My only pumpkin shot of 2010!

Time to head home…

It was great to meet Jenny, and to find another person who loves photography as much as I do! It is fantastic to have been able to bring another online friendship into real life. A big thank you goes out to Jenny, for planning the details and braving the rain! I look forward to seeing more of her, when we move back to Oregon next year. And hopefully a few more people, if we plan a photowalk sometime when the weather is nicer. Until then… ciao!

Jenny (left) and me (right) – Fast Photo Friends!

October 22, 2010 by Kat

Curly Fence

Yesterday I started to look through my photos from the Portland Photowalk, and here is one of my early favorites, of a beautifully curly fence. I still need to finish reviewing photos and write up a post on the Photowalk, it was so much fun!

I am feeling so behind this week… even though I got back home a week ago, we went to Venice for the weekend and had house guests here for most of the week. There are piles everywhere in my life – on my desk, on my bedroom floor (suitcase is still not unpacked!), on my “to do” list, in my email inbox, in my google reader… everywhere. I don’t like this feeling, to be honest. This weekend I hope to get things under control. Anyone have suggestions for me?

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