When the light is right…

…that’s when you have a camera.

Yesterday, just before sunset, I was driving to my class at Sheridan college and I saw a dark sky, with a wonderful golden sunlit lower area. The kind of light and colour we get a lot here when there’s storms brewing in the autumn. So I shot a few shots while driving (of course I would not do this if I were personally driving, as this would be illegal, right?) – and anyway: this is why you always carry your camera.

Even the local supermarket can be a thing of beauty, when the light is right:

Technique: 800 ISO, f/8, 1/250th second.

I set f/8 because I had a tilt-shift lens on the camera, and I had no time to focus.  That was my first need. Then, f/8 and focus on “infinity minus a little” it was. At 800 ISO (experience speaking) this gave me 1/250th second: perfect for handholding an SLR while not looking through its viewfinder.

Another shot from the same drive, a moment later: a local retirement home, where old people spend their golden years:

If my grandparents were in that place I’d want that photo.

The moral:

  1. look for great light – light distinguishes the pros from snapshooters.
  2. Always carry a camera.
  3. Know the exposure basics.

Do those and you’re golden, as they say.

___

Footnote: the local Currys’ store manager came around today and very kindly gave me a $25 gift certificate. Much more importantly, she explained how she had used my post yesterday as a learning opportunity for her staff – customer service being everything. Nice, and apology accepted.

 

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