Assignment #1

I'm a complete nervous wreck.  Our assignment for the class was to take 4 pictures using full manual, shooting in jpeg only with a 50mm lens.  One was to be outside, using window light, inside (low light) and location of your choice.

I started taking photos in RAW format a few months ago, so this assignment has really been hard because I want to take them into LR and brighten them up or tweak the white balance.

I have to admit......I'm not so sure why I was so scared of manual.......for years.  Maybe it was being forced to do an assignment, but something just "clicked" excuse the pun while doing this exercise.  I have to say.......the instructor had a few short audio clips to listen to while setting up your shots.  WOW!!  It made me evaluate my surroundings and really help me make the connection between the exposure triangle.  Something that has eluded me for a long time.

Another thing I'm excited about is focus.......My images appear sharper than I recall in a long time.  I'm sure part of that has to do with working with a prime lens, but let me tell you I've been so discouraged with soft images for a long time.

So without more rambling here are my photos with their settings.  I'm anxious to receive feedback from the instructors and classmates.  I have purposely only looked at one person's work, and it was awesome.....didn't look like a beginner at all......so I was afraid if I looked at others I would never get the nerve to post!!!

1. Outside: Full sun, 50 mm lens, ISO 100, f2.0, 1/4000

This shot is also going to serve as my photo for the theme "UP" for the CM 52 week challenge.

2.  Window Light: 50 mm lens, ISO 2500, f1.8, 1/160

3.  Inside Light (low light):  50 mm lens, ISO 1000, f1.8, 1/2000

I really struggled with this one.  All of my inside shots looked really yellow or grey, so I'm anxious to learn more about white balance in the upcoming week.

4.  Location of choice: Outside late afternoon, Lens 50mm, ISO 400, f1.8, 1/1000

Caleb is playing basketball with little dribbler's for the first time this year.  This is so "him" right now. He is so into basketball wearing his absolute favorite sweatshirt from our summer Nebraska mission trip.  I'm loving that I was able to get him in sharp focus with the blurred background, but now that I've loaded it I'm not real happy with the shadows across his face.  So much to learn!!