I Clone My Self

ICLoneMySelf_PnS_3082, originally uploaded by preyingjaws.

I went back to Temple Square with a personal assignment. After the previous evening's goals being more to socialize and to have fun I knew I couldn't let the warm evenings pass me by without a challenge.

I tend to shoot a little different when I challenge myself with the gear. Having unlimited gear is great but, it's like being hungry in the grocery store, so many choices and no focus. I've actually walked out of the grocery store hungrier then when I went in for a cheap bite to eat. So by limiting my gear I force myself into making decisions. For instance putting on the 50mm lens makes one make critical decisions about composition to get certain elements into the frame. Other times it could be limiting to one aperture stop say f/8 or f/1.8. These two apertures present different focusing challenges with the depth of field aspects.

This challenge, I joked with other photographers is about the point and shoots. Yeah, today's point and shoots even my PS A-590 is far more advanced then my PS S-20. So what? I want to generalize that so many times we who shoot with Digital SLRs forget about thinking about our images. Our dSLRs are so advance they can almost see in the dark. I wouldn't be surprised if one image shows up in the Photo Walking Group with stars behind the Temple and everything in close enough to perfect exposure. The dSLRs are getting close to being that sensitive and advanced.

So the challenge I took upon myself forced me to think differently. The point and shoots, even as advanced as they are getting, do have limitations. The sensors are about finger nail in size. The optics tend to be about the size of a small marble. The max aperture is about the size of a pencil. This all translates to limited light gathering capabilities. Light for photographers is graphite to a pencil artist. light or the lack of it is everything.

I took my Canon Power Shot A-590 out with a bean bag. Next time I'll use the mini-tripod I picked up for backpacking. The bean bag proved to be just a bit tricky to get settled in for a steady shot. The tripod once set all it needs to be for those slick surfaces, like icy bin tops, is held at the base.

This shot is from one of those icy bin top shots. I'd like to know how this young lady managed to be in my frame in nearly the same position during this long exposure. May be it's luck of the draw, either way it works for me.

I posted 17 images from Dec 18. Some are creative blurs, some are static images. If you shoot point and shoots don't think you are limited just remember you are alternatively creative. My previous night turned up a few more then say, 6 that work.

A bit o my history, I maxed out my S-20, then it died. I got into digital SLRs shortly after because of how useful and ultimately more powerful the dSLRs are. Through a variety of circumstances, aka I didn't want to tote the D beast everywhere, I returned to the cheap point and shoots. With the PnS I am not afraid of it being bounced around, broken or even stolen. Because I am more likely to have it with me I find myself using it more. More shooting should mean more improvements, so far my answer is yes.

Later
B