Ruby always looked good…only question here is which one made her look better.
Color or Black-and-White…which do you prefer?
Favorite lens?
A post on Instagram made me think about simplicity. I was thinking about how much I enjoyed shooting with my 35 mm Nikons, especially with a 50 mm 1.4 lens. I still think of it as the idea.
You had to move in close.
It was very fast.
It was sharp.
Yes, I miss it.
What do closets, drawers, and shoe boxes have in common?
Closets, drawers, and shoe boxes can and do hold many old photos. What do you have hidden away?
Find the best photos and digitize them so that future generations will have them to admire.
Preserve your old memories…before it is too late.
How to ID a plant…with your iPhone…
My wife is an avid gardener. She loves cactus and succulent plants. Sometimes, there are no identifying tags that come with plants. Many, at least to me, look alike. To identify a plant she recently got, we used an iPhone app. I took this photo of it.
The PlantSnap app idenifitied it like this.
That’s it … Aloe pratensis. Nifty app for gardeners.
According to the manual…
While looking through a camera manual I came across something interesting. With today’s digital cameras and smartphones we look for ways to manipulate the dials and buttons. The manual I’m looking at is a bit different. It was written in 1888. Yes, that’s 1888. It’s the manual for the original Kodak Camera.
That camera was loading with enough film to take 100 photos. It was meant to be returned to Kodak to be unloaded, developed, and returned to the owner. Yes, unloaded. They wanted you to send the whole camera back.
If you didn’t want to actually return the camera, they provided what was needed to develop the film yourself. 
Next time you complain about how difficult it is to print a picture think about how easy it is to get bromide potassium, hyposulphite soda, and Eastman’s collodion.
It’s OK to look a little dopey if…
I don’t mind looking a little dopey for this Fathers Day photo. The family came through with some gifts I really appreciated. The photo shows some of them. During the pandemic, my favorite hand soap was appreciated.
Looking a little dopey was fine with me because…it shows me looking at the camera (actually iPhone). Years from now, it will mean more. Although there were some photos of me looking down at the gifts, I think this one will be the best because it shows me.
Make sure you get photos with the subject looking straight into the camera. You’ll want to remember what the people looked like…more than anything else…in my silly opinion.
It also is important to make sure the metadata explains the photo. We don’t usually write on the back of photos as we did in the past. The metadata helps tell the details. Here’s what I wrote on the metadata for this digital image.
Make sure the “backs” of your family memories are carefully written!
In just a few clicks…using DeluxeFX
Although I usually don’t often use photo apps, I do like to experiment. Today, I was determined to use a popular app, DeluxeFX, on a photo I took last night. Here’s the way it came out of my iPhone XR…
And with a few clicks inside DeluxeFX I had this version…
Although I prefer the original, I can certainly see how some people might like the altered version.
Most photo apps are free or very inexpensive.
Experiment!!!!
The P.J. Photo Workshop
- Move in closer.
- Center the main subject.
- Try to get the eyes in focus.
- Use a helper if possible.
- Shade is better than sun.
- Having a cute subject helps. [P.J. asked me to put that one in.]
- Polaroids have a unique look. [And you can still get the film for old Polaroid cameras and there are new Polaroid cameras too. Check at polaroid.com for latest details.]
- Preserve your old photos. Make prints. Copy and store digital images in more than one place.
Profiles make interesting portraits…even if the subject doesn’t have a nose!
The people in your household are a good captive audience now. And…so are your pets.
This portrait was taken with my little buddy sitting on my lap. I was able to click the shutter fast enough to take a few frames. Here’s the one I like the best.
Backyard photo tip…
As the weather gets warmer the backyard is showing its true colors. Plants and flowers are coming up all over. While out with the dog I noticed some flowers. They were about ten feet away. So, of course, I started taking pictures. This was the first photo…
I moved a little closer and took this one.
And then I moved a couple of steps closer.
And finally I moved very close, bent down, and took this photo.
I guess this tip all boils down to MOVE IN CLOSER! 🙂