Wednesday, March 22, 2017

Tea... and Photography Tips???






This post combines some photography tips with my enjoyment of tea. Hmmm.... sounds strange, doesn't it?

I think it will work though.









I was at the library, waiting for my son who ran in to pick up books and videos being held for the family...  and I saw a glimpse of pink flowers on a tree.

 I was unable to leave my vehicle to get closer because of where I was waiting, but as usual, I had been looking  around for what was interesting. I carry a camera with me most of the time because I never know when I will see something I want to photograph.  I was looking or wouldn't have noticed this tree since it was across the parking lot from me. It was also a cloudy dreary day and the light was not in a good spot at all.

I wish I would have thought to photograph what my view, from the car, actually looked like... there was nothing inspiring about it. That's the reason I didn't take a picture, but it would have helped make my point in this post. 



Another picture... just blah...   some pink, but not great at all.  I did zoom in to get this much, as the view from where I was didn't show this much color.  Both pictures are boring though.














 There was a tree, with new little green leaves, beside and in front of the pink tree and I liked the combination of the pink and the green together, but as you can see, it was still not wonderful. It was better... but still...... rather boring. 


I continued taking pictures... a little green on the side, lots of pink.... some half and half... just various combinations of those two colors. They were better... but still needed something.


 It was frustrating to me, because I love macro photography and I knew if I could get closer to the tree, I could get some amazing photos... even with the lighting conditions. Since there were no parking places and I couldn't leave the vehicle, I played around with taking the pictures I could take from where I was sitting.

Since we can't always wait for the perfect lighting conditions... or to be able to get as close to the subject as we want, we can use other ways to get better pictures.




Taking one of the "blah" pictures, I tweaked it a bit.  I darkened the shadows a little which really helped show the richer colors. Then I did a slight highlight to the colors also. This picture looks much more appealing than the other ones did. It actually looks more like it would when the light hits it better. 

If you are new to photography and find your pictures uninspiring... don't despair as there are so many ways to improve a less than wonderful picture.  

I take many pictures that are "perfect" and I do nothing to them.  Others get cropped... maybe even cropped again... and again until I find what I really like best. Sometimes colors get enhanced... sometimes the pictures sit in a file on my computer as I think maybe I can do something with them someday. Sometimes I do... sometimes I don't. I have taken many thousands of pictures and am still taking them.

By the way, maybe you feel a bit intimidated by other's fancy photography equipment...  it's easy to feel that your camera isn't good enough... but as you continue to learn, it is amazing what wonderful pictures can be taken on a simple little camera. If you get a better camera, great... but if you don't, just keep learning and taking pictures... and have fun!  :) 

So..... what to do with these pictures.... hmmm.... I like tea and wanted to make a quote picture and so created one.

 By the way, I really do enjoy tea and drink it at various times during the day....  not every day, but most days.  So the sentiment expressed on the picture really does fit me. 

There really is just nothing like a cup of tea!  :)  










Shared on:



Saturday Sparks
Dishing It and Digging It
Vintage Charm
Beautifully Creative Inspired Link Party
Scraptastic Saturdays
Home and Garden Thursday
Oh My Heartsie Girls
Tuesday Cuppa Tea
image-in-ing
Make It Pretty Monday
Art of Homemaking Monday
Modest Mom Monday
Home Matters Linky Party
Friday at the Fire Station
Foodie Friday and Everything Else
Home Sweet Home
Counting Our Blessings
Share Your Cup
Wise Woman
Friends Sharing Tea











28 comments:

  1. What pretty photography and helpful tips! Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Thank you.... and thank you for your blog party.. I always enjoy visiting. :)

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  2. I enjoyed your tips. I don't always get the best shots. I do like taking macro shots now and then too. Photography and tea, sounds good to me! :) Thanks for sharing with SYC.
    hugs,
    Jann

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    1. I think the two can fit together nicely also. :) Macro shots are so fun... though I like other types of photography also. Thanks for visiting and for your great party.... always a pleasure to visit there.

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  3. Thanks for the tips. I don't often get to take photos of anything but food, but I really must make an effort to get outdoors with my camera and capture some spring shots. AND I love tea, every day, about 8 times! The caffeine in tea doesn't bother me a bit, so a cup at bedtime is wonderful.

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    1. Wow... 8 times a day for tea! I have done that, but not that many times on a regular basis.... I used to handle the caffeine well, but now I rarely use caffeine due to adrenal issues. Sometimes I miss it, but I love my homemade teas, so that works. :) Thank you for visiting... nice to hear from you. :)

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  4. What pretty pictures and tips, too! Yes, the sentiment at the end of your post says it all.

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    1. Thank you... actually a cup of tea sounds good right now also... cloudy rainy day. :) Thank you for visiting.

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  5. I have a hard time getting pictures with the camera I purchased because it doesn't have auto focus and my hands tend to be shaky. So for me better equipment didn't mean better pictures!

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    1. Oh, I am sorry to hear that... there are lenses that are called IS Lens- stands for image stabilization and that can help. Another thing that could be helpful is to buy a tripod and put the camera on that, then just click the shutter after you have the picture lined up. Then the tripod keeps it still for you. Thank you for writing.

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  6. Thanks for the interesting photography tips, Joy. I use a basic point-and-shoot camera for my photos. My photo editing rarely extends beyond cropping on my photos.

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    1. It can be fun to try a little tweaking... not a lot, since it can easily look overdone, but a little can really make a picture stand out. Cropping is amazing too... I have had pictures that are "blah" as a whole, but cropping a portion of it made it so much better. Thank you for visiting.

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  7. Ah-ha! I loved your remark about the combo of tea and photography tips! It's just what I was looking for, and yes....seems such a strange combo that I was shocked when I saw your title on the Art of Homemaking linkup. I'm trying to take photos, of tea in a cup, for recent tea cup blog swap from the Enchanted Rose blog. This was perfect! Blessings...Lisa

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    1. How fun to read your comment! It is nice to learn from others and to be stretched a bit. Thank you for writing. :)

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  8. I agree that a bit of editing can really turn a so-so photo, into a much better one. It is hard to be there when the light is just right. I liked how your final picture ended with the quote :) Tea and flowers are a lovely combination, indeed! You could print off some card fronts with that lovely picture now!

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    1. What a good idea... I have considered doing that with some of my pictures... I take a LOT of them, as you have probably noticed. It is hard to get the perfect light... it happens, but not too often, it seems. :) Thank you for visiting.

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  9. Great post to encourage a'budding' wannabe photographer like me!
    I do enjoy editing some of my photos as you are right that time & weather etc are not always on our side!
    Do please come again!
    Christineandhercamera.blogspot.com

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    1. Thank you... it was so nice to hear from you and I loved your comment. :)

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  10. I tend to take a lot of pictures too, then I can discard the ones not at their best. Composition is such a big part of that. Even a little point and shoot camera can do wonderful things. Putting it in portrait mode will blur the background a bit and really make the subject stand out too.

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    1. It is fun to "play" with the settings and learn in a trial and error sort of way. I used to discard the photos I wasn't as pleased with, but now tend to hang on to many of them and sometimes they are what I need at a different time, even ones that are a bit blurred and it is easier to "play" with those since I don't really care. Sometimes I find a winner. :) Thank you for visiting.

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  11. Joy, what a beautiful quote picture. Thanks for your helpful tips, I am still learning!

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    1. Thank you... and you are welcome. I plan to share more tips and maybe some of what I have learned will help you and others. Thank you for visiting.... and learning. I love to keep learning new things. :)

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  12. Love your tea quote graphic...just lovely!
    Ruth

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  13. I enjoyed this post hearing your thoughts about photographing the beautiful tree you saw and photographed. It is amazing how many shots you can take trying for that perfect shot. I am learning to crop more and how to edit the light. Thanks for the encouragement to persevere and keep trying. It is easy to give up. I'll tell you a funny story - I was making a picture and someone asked me if I were a professional. I had to laugh but there was a professional present. I was having a problem with my camera and now realize it was set for a moon shot. Someone else offered to give me advise and changed all my settings on my camera. I will not allow that to happen again. It is going to take me a long time to get it back to normal as I am still such a novice with a camera with so many bells and whistles.

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    1. Oh, those "bells and whistles" can be fun... and also a BIG challenge. I understand about not letting someone adjust that for you. :) I learn best by doing and as I look back through old pictures, I have had an "eye" for good composition for a long time( it is getting better though), but my technical ability is also growing. With digital cameras, it is so nice to be able to "play" around with images... taking lots of pictures, trying new things and lighting. So different from my first cameras when every shot was going to cost money for the film, developing and printing and had to count. Thank you for visiting.... it was nice to hear from you. I hope you really enjoy your photography. :)

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  14. I take plenty of uninspiring pictures, so I love the idea of putting another image over top and having the less than perfect picture as a background. I'll have to figure out how to do this in PicMonkey. Thank you Joy.

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    1. I'm glad this idea was a help. :) I like to figure out ways to use pictures and make them better than I originally thought they would be. Thank you for visiting.

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