This month's Photo Challenge is all about controlling shutter speed to capture a sense of movement in a photo. This is all very new and very intriguing to me, so after pouring over Donna's suggested reading I found my camera's Shutter Priority setting and took my favorite moving target to the beach.
Experiment #1: Freeze Motion.
She's just learned to jump and was more than willing to practice in front of the camera. Here she is in mid-air. It was a bright day and the picture is overexposed, but the alternative would have been to adjust the exposure compensation and lose that lovely smile to the shadows. I've been contending with that little conundrum all summer and seeing faces always seems to win.
Shutter: 1/640 Aperture: 4.5 ISO: 100
Experiment #2: Blurred Motion.
It takes 20 minutes walking along a forest trail to access this particular beach. It's a beautiful walk and a lovely beach -- well worth the effort -- but a certain amount of prioritizing is necessary. On this day, towels, snacks, bucket and shovel won out over the tripod. I took this picture by steadying the camera atop a backpack frame. The objective here was to use a slower shutter speed to blur the waves a little to create a softer image. I included a bit of bare sand in the foreground for contrast. When I compare this shot to others taken at the same time at faster shutter speeds, I'm not sure it made much of a difference. I'm sure a tripod would have helped. It was also a very still day. Maybe the effect would work better with more wave action.
Shutter: 1/60 Aperture: 16 ISO: 100
Experiment #3: Panning.
Minimal success here too. I think lack of practice is the main issue and I know what to do about that. Looking at this picture, I also wonder if the background is too simple -- too horizontal -- to blur properly. Thoughts, anyone? At very least, I had a good time directing Little Miss's energies. Though this picture doesn't look how I hoped it would (with a blurred background streaking past a crisp little girl) it certainly gives a sense of motion. She's running like the wind.
Shutter: 1/80 Aperture: 16 ISO: 100
finally, A Word of Explanation
This is my first post in quite a while. I stepped back in an effort to do one thing well rather than many things half way. It's working too. My Etsy shop is thriving. But I miss a few things about this blog, so I'm back in a sort-of-kind-of way. I'll post when I feel like it and you might see a little more about my shop. At very least, I'll do this Photo Challenge because I enjoy it so much.
