Thursday 11 August 2011

Prime lenses and other loves.

One of the wonderful things about being a photographer is finding out how others have learned, and the things have been important to them in their transition between being a person with a camera to a photographer. I was thinking about this today and all of the things I have learned thanks to the wonderful resource that is the internet. Generosity is a wonderful thing people.

When I was camping I was running out of my ideas and I thought, 'you know what, I'll just take a picture of some grass'. So I got on my belly with my new favourite lens (Canon 85mm 1.8) and took a picture. Several people looked at me with horror then relief as they realised that no, I hadn't fallen over and I was just lying in the mud on purpose.

I thought that I hadn't made much of an effort that day (story of my life that week) and I wasn't feeling too great about that picture. I walked back to the tent and I showed a friend. He said 'How did you make it look like that?!' and I realised something. There are things that I have learned, that I totally take for granted but at the end of the day, they matter.

The reason that boring old grass can look kind of pretty is because I'm shooting with a prime lens wide open. I discovered prime lenses because I spent hours looking at beautiful photographs and some of those artists were kind enough to share some of their secrets. I have a really nice 17-50mm 2.8 because my husband did his research before we bought our first camera. These things were a gift to me. These people didn't have to share their successes and their failures, they didn't have to spend hours on the internet looking for the right lens. But they did, and I'm grateful.

I don't know a lot, but I know something. So if you're reading this and you've just picked up a camera or you've seen anything in my pictures that you like then get in touch! I'd love to hear from you!

Here's to pretty grass.


Much Love, R. x

4 comments:

  1. This is an absolutely amazing blog post and I am in 100% agreement with everything you said. Every single piece of knowledge that we have about photography matters, even though we feel like it's nothing compared to everyone else :) Beautifully written!

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  2. Im still a girl with a camera, but I aspire to be more. I love taking pictures but even more, I love reflecting on them later. Although I have no intentions on making money, I want to learn whatever I can to take great pictures for myself. This post makes me feel amazing, because I feel many people dont care to share their tricks and tips, and its the only way we can learn. Thank you for caring, and remembering about the beginners!!

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  3. Fantastic post. Prime lenses really help me to take pictures that people love aswell. My current favourite lenses are Carl Zeiss 85mm f1.4, Sony 35mm f1.8 and I'm never far from my Lensbabies :)

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