Say Cheese!!!

Looking through my travel photos for my post fieldtrip inspiration: I wanna do that too! I started to think what an amazing time I had on the road. I went to the USA 3 times on 4 different road trips with 4 different groups. Being in those groups during the road tripd was amazing. Yes, we didn't see eye to eye every time and there where times of tension and ups and downs. However I can honestly say I miss every single person on those trips. You share memories, inside jokes and pranks. You share conversations, tears and laughter. You share places and photos. Photos of the places, each other and of the whole group. Those group photos are worth a million dollars or euros in my eyes. Some are serious and some are fun. In group photos you can see the dynamic of the group but also the place you share. They make me smile even when I look terrible in them. I love them.

My roadtrips I did with Intrepid and Trekamerica . Because of them I had the opportunity to meet people from all over the world. I traveled with people from the USA (mostly the group leaders), the UK, Denmark, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, South - Korea and Australia. I always was the only Belgian. Totally random. In some groups I was stuck between the English and the Germans, just like Belgium does. However the different nationalities allowed us to get to know each others culture. That wasn't always easy but it was always interesting and you learn a lot from other cultures. But all that miscommunication and misunderstanding didn't matter standing on a spectacular site. Looking into each others eyes we got what the other one was feeling. You felt the same way.

A good group photo is hard to make. The easiest and quickest thing is a line-up, when the background is beautiful the photo doesn't need more. On a photo like a group picture it's sometimes fun to change it up. High and low, funny faces and climbing up rocks and so on, give the photo something extra. An other thing with group photos is who is going to take it. Your group leader, yes sometimes, but is fun to have them in the photo too. Maybe ask someone else, a stranger. Then of course the quality is in there hands and it can take a while for somebody to say 'Yes, I'll take your picture'. And one time you get lucky and a guy comes up and tells you that he took your group photo because his kids found your group inspirational.

So here they are my group photos. I'm not going to credit them, some are shared on facebook and I didn't take any of them. Please have respect, they are private and I want to show you that's all. 

First group in Pfeiffer Beach

Monument Valley

Canyon Lands

Redwood NP.

Second group don't remember with lake this was

 

In a hostel in Chicago

Third group Redwood NP

Campsite nearby MT St. Helens

Van shot before a Wallmart

Fourth and last group, Hostel Miami

New Orleans

The lucky one at Grand Canyon

Arches NP

Arches NP

 

 

 

Enjoy Photography

Caroline

 

 

P.S.: Photos of my trip to London are coming next!

Light in the dark

The sun got up this morning at around 8:38pm and will set tonight at around 16:37am. That means we will see sunlight for 8 hours today, and one precious minute to be exact. That sunlight will be dull and gray. We won't see the sun today, no bright blue sky and no golden ball hanging in it. I hope we get some days like that. Maybe freezing cold but still we'll get some sunlight then. But today we won't feel awake. So until that freezing cold day with steal blue sky comes up. Or until the days get longer and we will get more sunlight. We need to get our light somewhere else. We need a light in the dark. A light that reminds us that we are alive. A light that will bring the light back into our hearts, warms us up and makes us smile. So I'm going to try to give you that light in my photos.

I saved myself from being a cough potato again. I went out with my camera and tripod in Antwerp, in and around central station again. I didn't go to the China Lights festival but I have some photos of the little teasers. I wanted to see if I could make photos at night without my tripod. Weird right, a brought my tripod to test that I won't need it. Well I didn't want to ruin my night if it didn't work. But it worked, so me happy. Now I don't need to take my tripod on my trip to London (leaving tomorrow, yeah). With that I did make myself a liar in my post stars and city lights. Woops! It's not that what I said is not true, it is. There are just more ways to make photos in the dark. 

Now most of my photos are taken with a high ISO of 1600. To eliminate the risk of image noise the closing time needs to be shorter. That is why I could take photos freehand so without a tripod. From closing times longer then 1/20s you need a tripod. Some photographers will disagree and say that 1/20s is already to long for free hand. But I say it's poetic freedom for photography. The last thing I did was playing with my diaphragm. Higher ISO means a smaller diaphragm number, so a larger diaphragm opening. With all those numbers I need to think about if I want to over or under light my photo and what mood I want to set. So during taking the photos I play with the numbers a lot. I do that too because I'm still learning, just being honest. So here they are my photos to brighten and lighten up your day!

ISO 1600  F/8  1/125s

ISO 1600  F/5,6  1/20s

ISO 1600  F/4,5  1/160s



ISO 1600  F/5,6  1/200s

ISO 1600  F/5,6  1/125s



ISO 100  F/16  10s

ISO 100  F/14  1/8s

ISO 1600  F/6,3  1/80s

ISO 1600  F/8  1/160s

 

ISO 400   F/8  1/125s

ISO 400  F/8  1/125s

ISO 400   F/8  1/30s

ISO 1600   F/5,6  1/80s

ISO 1600  F/5,6  1/20s

ISO 1600   F/5,6  1/200s






Enjoy Photography
Caroline

Fieldtrip inspiration: I wanna do that too!

When you go on a fieldtrip it's to learn but also to get inspired. Seeing what other photographers do and how they do it makes me want  to do the same things. I know I'm not there yet, far from it. But dreaming inspirers me to work hard on my photography. However... Reality can hit hard too when you're dreaming. The cameras, the lenses and all the accessories make me salivate Homer Simpson style, no joke. The trips, the place and the experiences the photographers have makes my travel virus envois and jealous. In day to day live I'm neither.

Next to the fact that I wanna do that too is that I wanna have that too. I dream of those cameras, lenses and accessories. But I do know it will be a long term thing to have everything that I want and I'm ok with that. I long for the trips, the places and the once in a lifetime experiences. However doing a project like that is hard work, years of planning and looking for funding. The trick is knowing people that know people. That's the trick of life I guess. But dreaming and getting inspired is a life trick too, and that I can and I am.

So in my inspired dreams I went to look for photos that I made during my travels, daytrips and  workshops. Photos that I can place in the eight categories of the contest European wildlife photographer of the year. I interpreted the categories in my own way, that's why its called inspiration. The wildlife is shot in the wild except for the underwater category. I don't have an underwater camera. My travels and daytrips where accompanied with a small digital camera. And no not that little red thing I showed you. I started travelling in 2009 and since then I had 2 digital cameras before that little red thing. Only the workshops were with that red camera.

I forgot to mention that the photo's I saw during my fieldtrip are photo's that are altered with Photoshop and Lightroom.  They were also displayed with lighting from the back and glass before the photo. This way the colors where extra bright and the photo got something extra. I enhanced  the colors of my photos too, just to make them stronger. I cropped some photos also so the composition is better. I hope you like them.

                                    1. Underwater

Photo made in the Antwerp zoo during the zoo workshop. I love the shark
swimming by together with the background.

Also made in the Antwerp zoo during the same workshop. With this one
you question who is looking at who. Yes, that fish was eyeballing me.

Made in Perth WA. Claire the lovely lady I staid with brought me to the aquariums.
Beautiful fish, it looks like they are talking.


2. Plants and fungus

In Yellowstone NP. The yellow, orange and brown colors are caused by
thermophiles - heat loving microorganisms.

Ostend beach Belgium. The pillars are full with seaweed, clams and moss.

Also in Yellowstone NP. A meadow flower in the sun. It was such a beautiful day.


3. Animals
Al shot in Yellowstone NP, what can I say. One of my favorite NP.

 After a day looking for black bears and one dear's ass
hilariously  mistaken for a black bear we actually saw one.
We were mesmerized.

A moose. Even more elusive then the black bear. We were in Yellowstone
for 4 days and 3 nights we saw this one in our last hour there.

The chipmunks, a typical site in the USA, but so cute.  

 4. Birds

 An other one for Yellowstone NP.
An eagle, the Royal of my birds.

Made during my trip to WA. We were at the Donnelly river on a small
chalet holiday park. These parrots were everywhere.
So beautifully sitting in his tree overlooking the site.    

 

Ostend beach Belgium. A seagull ready for lift of.


5. Other animals
Creepy crawlers

A butterfly on a pink flower. You can see the movement of the
wings on the photo.

Not my favorite creepy crawler. Still in his own environment
it sort of beautiful

A furry bumblebee on a yellow flower. Made during my workshop in the
botanic garden of Antwerp. If you watch carefully you can see the
lining on the wings

  6. Landscapes 

Yellowstone NP. The waterfall gives the photo a sense of depth.  

Last one of Yellowstone NP. A smaller geyser
erupting. The sky and the smoke gives
the photo drama.
 

Red Canyon NP. No words necessary.

7. Humans and Nature
I think this one cruel to nature and animals some of the times
and other times this combo helps nature and animals.
So no abuse only love, please.

San Diego SeaWorld. It's fun and the audience loves it. At least they treat
there animals right.

San Diego SeaWorld. A killer wale doing his tricks. Liked the show,
the trainers give good info en educate the people. I feel sorry for the killer wale.

Monument Valley, The Navajo's showing there home to us. And what
a home it is...

8. Nature's studio

Arches NP during a sunset. Nature carved the arch out of a rock.
A true sculptor.

 

The roots of a fallen tree. It's a masterpiece by nature itself.

 During my botanic garden workshop in Antwerp. Playing with my camera.



Enjoy Photography
Caroline