Focus - It is of Utmost Importance!
Of course! Anybody who has ever held any kind of a camera knows how important it is to FOCUS! on the subject. Without good focus, the photo is really pretty much worthless. OK, there are some photos that I have in old shoeboxes that were totally out of focus, but members of my family who have passed on are in the photos. Even without the focus, these photos do become treasures that we can't bear to part with. Although, the photo of my father that I had enlarged and is hanging on my wall is totally in focus and is one of the most treasured of all those little treasures in the old shoe box.
And, some of you may ask, "What the heck is that photo of?" Good question! It's just an old dead twig. The interesting thing about it is that it was curiously suspended by a couple of invisible spider webs in a deserted park. I was taking photos of the park when I came upon this thing and just had to work at getting it in focus as it slowly twirled and bobbed in the breeze. Had this twig not been somewhat in focus, it would have been a total reject. With it being in focus, it seems to be at least an object of conversation. It is rather unique.
This is not just some rambling on my part. There is a real point to this "Focus" post:
A passion for photography has brought me to this goal of 10,000 hours of practice in order to obtain at least some semblance of excellence. Here, on day 2, a realization has hit that I must focus on ONE THING AT A TIME. Just one thing, until I get it right and can move on to another focus point, or add another focus point. Ah, the dilemma! So much fun and exciting things to learn - HDR (High Dynamic Range), Painting With Light, Long Exposure, Macro (insects and such), Wide Angle (landscapes), portraits, animals, capturing motion, etc... oh, and then there's all that fun with Photoshop! and Lightroom, not to mention the myriad of other programs available!! Try a little of one and a little of the other. Sure, that can burn up the hours. Is it going to bring me anywhere close to excellence? Duh, nope! And that's just what I've been doing over the past couple of years. Watch a tutorial, go out, give it a go, and produce some mediocre stuff, and a couple of lucky shots. That's just not getting me anywhere close to excellence. There's a lot of basic work that needs done here.
So what IS the focus? Where is the starting point? Let's assess. What is my knowledge about the basics right now? Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO is understood, and I know how to operate each with my camera. So that is not a study point. Getting them all in sync to produce a good or great photo? Now that's another story. So, I think I'll work on a quick study of each. There are tutorials on-line and classes as well. And work toward bringing all three to work together. That will most surely be a good focus point for the next several days, or even few weeks. So, travel with me, as I focus on these basics, work at bringing the three together to produce something that is good, and to utilize them in different environments. I suppose it's time to get to work on this beginning project!
Oh! Before I head off to the camera, there's a little tidbit that I'd like to share with you:
My grandson is but 3.5 years old, and quite wise for his age. As I've been rather obsessive about the camera for as long as he has been aware of the world around him, he's become quite used to seeing Grandma with this big black thing stuck to her face most of the time we're together. One day he'd really had quite enough, turned directly to me and stated in no uncertain terms, "Grandma! NO MORE CHEESE!" I got the hint. Sometimes, precious time needs to be spent with the camera kept in it's case, and my face free to receive kisses from my precious grandchildren.
Time for the daily count:
Behind the Camera: 1 hour In Study and Post-Process Mode: 1/2 hour
Totals: 9 hours 7.5 hours
Back to the Drawing Board! See you all tomorrow!
©CynthiaG Photography
CynthiaGPix@gmail.com
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