About Me

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Delta, British Columbia, Canada
I took very early retirement from teaching in '06 and did some traveling in Europe and the UK before settling down to do some private tutoring. As a voracious reader, I have many books waiting in line for me to read. Tell me I shouldn't read something, and I will. I'm a happy, optimistic person and I love to travel and through that believe that life can be a continuous learning experience. I'm looking forward to traveling more some day. I enjoy walking, cycling, water aerobics & and sports like tennis, volleyball, and fastpitch/baseball. I'm just getting into photography as a hobby and I'm enjoying learning all the bits and bobs of my digital camera. My family is everything to me and I'm delighted to be the mother of two girls and the Gramma of a boy and a girl. I may be a Gramma, but I'm at heart just a girl who wants to have fun.

Thursday, January 19, 2012

B is for BACKGROUND

As I look back on the photos I've taken over the past few years, I notice that I'm getting better and better shots. Why is this? Before really getting into photography as a hobby, I simply looked at something and took the shot. I did not consider the background at all. Even now, I sometimes get so excited about something that I forget that taking the background into consideration can make the difference between a photo and work of art. So what do we look for when we factor in the background?

The first thing to do is scan the background of your shot and check for colours and lines that might clash with your subject. Next, if your camera has the capability, throw the background out of focus by using depth of field. This is best done with a manual digital single lens reflex camera. Mine is not a manual, but I do have the capability of choosing some aperture settings. Also, you could either move the subject or move yourself to get a better angle (see previous post). One of the most effective ways to deal with background is to fill the frame with your subject. I love using my macro and super macro settings and will discuss this when it's M week. In addition, you could go out to take photos with your own background. For example, take coloured sheets of card stock with you or a variety of coloured fabrics to act as background. Finally, there are lots of different photo editing software available. I use Photoshop Elements and really enjoy fooling around with its capabilities. Not that I do all these things every time, but I can sharpen the focus, adjust the contrast, lighten or darken shadows, and play with colours by changing the hue, temperature, and saturation of a photo. Also, I can crop and resize the image.

In the following photo, I took a shot from the boat as we were cruising past Steveston Village. I recognized the location as one where L and I frequently go and sit in our sun chairs to relax, read and watch the boats go by. Pajos Restaurant is there, too, where we'll buy fish and chips to nibble during those long, lazy summer afternoons. Looking at it now, I see so much more than what I wanted to shoot. There is not only the tree, beside which we sit just above the rocks, and the restaurant, but also in the shot there are cars, a condo, telephone poles, the mountains, and an airplane taking off. I never noticed these things at the time.

In this next shot, I had quickly pulled over to the side of the road because the field was so bright and beautiful. However, I was worried about all the cars passing and took a quick shot, not taking into account anything except the little girl dragging her pumpkin away. You will notice (and I think this is a bit amusing) two men standing around chatting with cameras around their necks, one lady walking away, and another little girl lagging behind her. Also, if you look beyond the field, you will see a bit of the city past the treeline and mountains in the far distance. I actually like this because you are able to see just how close my neighbourhood is to Vancouver. We live in a semi-rural area, but with city conveniences near at hand.

I took this shot over 5 years ago when I was travelling in Sicily. We were at the Valley of the Temples where you'll find the remains of eight Greek temples. I took several shots of this particular one (the Temple of Castor and Pollux) and finally got up as close as I could to block out the background of the city of Agrigento behind. However, I do like this shot as it shows the incongruity of the ancient ruins and the modern city so near to each other.

And one more shot, this time of me standing in front of a sign in Cardiff that reads, "Wales The Happy Country." It was pouring rain and my friend said to go stand by the sign and he'd take my photo. Now when I look at it, I see the dragon (symbol of Wales) plus the shop windows that we didn't stop to look at while there. Next time I'm in Cardiff, I will try to find that shop again and go in to look around. In this case, I'm glad the background is there, even if it hadn't originally meant to be.

Thanks to Denise Nesbitt, our bold buccaneer, for creating ABC Wednesdays and for keeping it going for nigh on 5 years! It has become international and more and more people are contributing each week. Mrs. Nesbitt's bright and beautiful assistants take turns producing each week's beginning post and will take a break in their day to visit all the other posts. So do consider bonding with us by clicking here to see each week's contributors.

32 comments:

Kay L. Davies said...

This is one of the main differences between a snapshot and a photograph, isn't it? Click-click-clicking can preserve memories of a holiday, but will seldom produce photos worth reproducing.
Very interesting post for the letter B, Leslie.
K

nancygrayce said...

My husband just asked me today wen I was going to sign up for a photography class. Soon, honey, soon! You're doing great at your photos!

Jane and Chris said...

I'll never make a photgrapher!
Jane x

Meryl said...

I love the pumpkin patch photo! I love the colors and composition. HEy you can use it next week too!

Carver said...

Great look back at your photography. I love the pumpkin patch shot as well as the others. Carver, ABC Wednesday team member

Roger Owen Green said...

You are the BEST at improving yourself.

ROG, ABC Wednesday team

photowannabe said...

Leslie, you are so right about the background making or breaking a photo.
I have seen so many people taking a picture right in front of a garbage can or something that detracts from the main subject. What they will have is a snapshot not a photograph.
I like your theme for ABC Wednesday. Its going to be fun.
( I have to admit that I miss your wonderful poems from last time though.)

jill said...

Lovely photos Leslie.Love Jill xx

Reader Wil said...

Important post for would- be photographers who are still struggling with the basic rules. I like your photos.
Thank you for your comment and how you got your name. Leslie is a great name. Have a great week!
Wil,ABC Wednesday team.

Tina´s PicStory said...

great B shots :)

Mrs.D said...

wow! great composition!

Dhemz said...

I love the photos...very colorful! thanks for sharing!

Lisa said...

It sounds like you are learning a lot about photography. Good for you! It's a fantastic hobby and can consume entire days if you're not careful! :-) Love the vibrant color of the punkin' patch shot! The Valley of the Temples is a wonderful shot.

Gigi Ann said...

I like the action filled first photo. Maybe some would think it to busy, but for some reason it caught my eye. Airplane taking off, people milling around and visiting, Love it.

Thanks for the visit today.

Paula Scott Molokai Girl Studio said...

Here, here to our bold buccaneer! And, yes I agree-paying attention to the background makes for a world of a difference!

Gemma Wiseman said...

Gorgeous photo of your smiling face in front of the colourful shop! The rain pours and still you smile! Brilliant! And love the ongoing highlight of "b" words throughout your post! Well done!

Carol said...

This is good info and photos. Love the pumpkin patch and the shot of you smiling in the rain is lovely.

Barbara said...

You are right about taking notice of the background before taking the photo, sometimes for fun I get my son to stand so that a lampost is coming out of his head! A classic mistake easily made.

Joy said...

I like the mountains in the background of the first shot. A field of pumpkins is a photographers joy no wonder they are gathering. Wonderful colour.

Penelope Notes said...

That last photo of you under an umbrella beside the “happy” sign is a perfect serendipitous moment in photography. Usually the unexpected things seen in pictures are poles sticking out of people’s heads, etc. Great post about a topic that involves every blogger here.

say cheese said...

nice photos with great memories! thanks for the visit.

Chubskulit Rose said...

I am grateful that you are sharing tips about photography Leslie. I too, love taking photos as a hobby, wish I could take lessons for it someday.

Rose, ABC Wednesday Team

Gayle said...

I always realize how to take a better picture AFTER I've taken the shot. Love the pumpking pic!

Luna Miranda said...

thanks for the photography tips. most of the time, i just point and shoot. but over time, i learned a thing or two from fellow bloggers/photo enthusiasts.

Annie said...

Thank you for this very informative and helpful post. I will remember this the next time I'm out pointing and shooting!

Vicki said...

Your words are very true ... as we start perfecting our photography, we tend to look more at what we are trying to capture in that photo.
I can look at photo's on my camera and know that someone else has taken them just by the background.
Your photos are wonderful! You may have been focused on a single object, but you are also showing the life that goes on around.

Gattina said...

I also see a big difference between the pictures I took 6 years ago when I started with photography and now !
Gattina
ABC Team

Zyzzyz said...

Very useful advice.

Wanda said...

Thank you so much for all the excellent information on background and photos. That Pumpkin Patch shot is a winner!!

Tumblewords: said...

A very useful post, to be sure!

The Poet said...

Hello Leslie.
Give me a camera & I haven't got a clue. If I do manage to take a shot, you can guarantee it's either blurry or someone's head has been cut off! Now put a pen in my hand & that's an entirely different matter. As a poet, I see beauty where others might see none. Beauty is all around...we just have to open our eyes a little wider to see it.
Wonderful post & great photos.
Thanks for sharing & visiting.

Breath Of My Poems

Welshcakes Limoncello said...

How lovely to come to your blog and see a photo of my favourite city, Agrigento and one of my home town, Cardiff!