After they change. Before they fall.
London, ON, October 2008 [Click all images to embiggen]
How to freak the other parents out at end-of-day-pickup from school in 8 easy steps.
- Get there a few minutes early. Park close enough for waiting parents to see you, but far enough to force you to walk for a bit. Go on, the exercise is always a good thing.
- Exit vehicle and make sure your camera is visible to all.
- Fiddle with said camera as you walk. Make it look like you're really into it.
- Walk up to the most colorful tree you can find and stare at it. For added effect, walk to a couple of different vantage points before you initiate your little one-sided staring contest
- Reconfirm camera settings - best bet is to flip it into manual, drop the ISO as low as you can, use a small aperture and the slowest shutter speed you can get away with. (I used f/32 and 1/8 sec and ISO 100 for this shot.)
- Hold camera up nice and high in front of you, well away from your body. Wave it diagonally up and down as you repeatedly trip the shutter. Bonus style points if you get a crazed look in your eyes and/or gyrate like an imbalanced gyroscope. Don't forget to put the strap around your neck, as a flying camera would be a Very Bad Thing.
- Back up. Repeat.
- Step forward. Repeat. (Alternatively, change your zoom settings between each set. If your camera has a continuous-shoot feature, use it.)
ed my munchkins. I think they may have been afraid.For the record, here's what the tree looked like without the slow-mo shenanigans. Neat, isn't it?
Your turn: Have you ever freaked people - strangers or folks you know, whatever - out while taking pictures? Do tell!
Why the blur? My weekly optical challenge/extravaganza known as Thematic Photographic is zooming in on blurry pictures all week long. If you haven't yet shared something, please proceed here to get started. You've always wanted an excuse to share blurry photos. Now's your chance!
One more thing: I've got a Flickr page (I know, please contain yourselves.) Because this is the season of color, I've saved a set known as "Color" (creative, eh?) You can find it by pointing your browser to http://www.flickr.com/photos/writteninc/. Hope you enjoy 'em!
ROFLMAO! Your description made it very easy to visualize your antics! Observers may have thought you were a bit bonkers, but they should see the results! Very nice, indeed. Your fall colors are so vivid. We are beginning to see the changes and I'm hoping for more brilliant hues here than we saw last year.
ReplyDeleteGreat Scott! The man has lost it! Your post made me laugh Carmi. If you were spotted doing that here, there would be one of two responses to your antics.....either
ReplyDelete"fill yer boots, buddy...."
or
"are you a friend of dana's?"
this afternoon, I was parked on a street just up from mine.....I was on my way home a bit early and spotted a gorgeous stay of trees in resplendent yellow....the light filtering through like some heavenly glow. So, I pulled over and began clicking away...while standing in a gulch. My son's school bus drove by at that point. I can hear his buddies saying to him....."Max, isn't that your mom standing down in the gulley taking pictures of trees again?"
I also take many photos at the local market.....one fav is the legs of a vendor who are always wrapped in creative leggings. My daughter won't hang with me at the market for fear of being embarrassed. I overheard her tell her friend last weekend...."yeah, my mom likes to take pics of people's legs. It's kind of stalking."
btw the vendor with the creative art on her legs? she asked me to send her the photos! :)
Nice shot! THe colors are peaking here. And, I freak people out all the time :)
ReplyDeleteThat's hilarious, Carmi! I can just picture all of the parents watching you and saying "What the...?"
ReplyDeleteDefinitely worth the effort. That shot really is awesome! I love that you included what it looked like without all the movement, too. Makes it even more profound.
I love that!...That's how I would paint it in watercolours!
ReplyDeleteOnce again a magnificent job!
Oh! I forgot to add...
ReplyDeleteYou freak us out all the time :D!
We're just use to it!
Great colors - no matter HOW you got it!
ReplyDeleteGreat colors. I only dream about seeing colors like that. We go from green to brown.
ReplyDeleteOne day I was sitting at a restaurant and we were by the window. I looked out and noticed this nice family getting out. The woman had a very nice expensive looking camera with her. She proceeded to get down on her belly in the parking lot. She took several pictures of something. I have no idea what. When I went out I tried to figure it out but whatever it was didn't catch my eye lol.
Absolutely love the blur and your explaination of your crazy antics. Too funny.
ReplyDeleteTook a look at your new Flicker album. Great stuff and you really have some Baby Blues.
Page 8 #1664 shows you on the beach with the ocean and pier in the background. Well that's my old stomping grounds of Pacifica. I have taken a gazillion shots of that pier and its various stages of decay and all the wild maverick waves that come in. Lots of fun to see "home". Only been gone from there for 15 months after 41 years in the same house...thanks for the memories.
cool, this works with colored light strands as well
ReplyDeleteat my kids school they call me the camera lady. at first i was like "ew" but now it's okay i dont mind.
ReplyDeletei take pics of everything at first my family was like "wtheck mom!" but now they just sorta roll with it and let me do what i gotta do.
I love it! I had fun Thursday night taking lots of blurry pics. The other parents did not get it at all.
ReplyDeleteNeat photo.
I haven't posted in a couple of weeks, but here is my contribution to this weeks theme...http://swile67.blogspot.com/2008/10/make-poverty-history-balls-and-prime.html
ReplyDeleteI "freaked out" an usher at Alanis Morissette concert...I was trying to capture this woman dancing..it was beautiful, honest and free. I was trying to adjust my settings to take the pic as it was not turning out. An usher came over to tell me to stop videotaping..she was almost going to take my camera away. I was yelling over the music saying I am not videotaping! The ironic thing is during Alanis' "ironic " song, my friend was videotaping and no usher came over to her to tell her to stop:)
Great post! What a fun thing to do! And I enjoyed your flickr site so much. You have a great family.
ReplyDelete