top right drawer

by Kay

Some of what I have learned about photography:

Light is tricky. I think I have enough but when I look at photos later on the computer, they can still seem dull.
My lens works better when not at full zoom. When the lens is way out there, photos are not crisp.
Some of the best photos with this lens are shot at f 8.0 or so, rather than at the extreme stops. I don’t know why. Could be user error.
My time as a photographer: 30% reading how-to blogs, watching instructional videos online, and reading the manual; 30% arranging stuff and lights; 30% messing with photos in Lightroom; 2% taking photos; and 8% making Tom come look at the photos I’ve taken. He’s wonderful. He always finds something nice to say.

Here’s stuff in the top right drawer of my daughters’ dresser:

The Alice in Wonderland-decorated cigar box was a gift from Sarah to Katie. Katie played Alice that year in Metcalf's school play.

The jingle bell is from Miss Dee. Her reading of The Polar Express created Christmas magic neither daughter will soon forget.

Sarah's letter from Oxford. Happily, the floor in the apartment had been replaced by the time we visited so we didn't have to teeter across joists.

Beaufort Bear doesn't live in the top right drawer. He sits with a couple of friends on a chair in the upstairs hallway.

When Sarah was 3 or 4, Dad would take her to the coffee shop where they'd hang out with his old farmer buddies. They made up some game involving arithmetic. All I know is that Sarah often came home with quite a bit of the farmers' change.

7 Comments to “top right drawer”

notquiteold says:

February 17, 2012 at 8:44 pm

Very nice. If I could fit in another hobby, I think photography would be a great choice. At work, we have a photographer on staff. I think she has the best job in the company.

- Kay says:
  
  February 23, 2012 at 12:18 pm
  
  I’m at a point in my photography that I can’t even call it photography. I just take pictures. I’ve been to one class and I’m taking a second class in March. Learning is hard work.
  
oldgirlnewtricks says:

February 18, 2012 at 6:49 am

How long have you been interested in photography? I don’t seem to have the patience for it, but I enjoy your photos. – Maureen

- Kay says:
  
  February 23, 2012 at 12:19 pm
  
  My wonderful family gave me a camera for my birthday last October. I love taking photos but find that I like the post-production work in Lightroom quite a bit, too. Thank you for reading my blog. I’m humbled.
  
Still Learning says:

February 19, 2012 at 10:44 am

Love seeing the handwritten letters… sort of lost art these days. There is just something about reading a note in a person’s own hand that makes more of statement and harkens back to another time. The act of writing a note/ letter by hand seems to breathe life to the words on the paper.

- Kay says:
  
  February 23, 2012 at 12:20 pm
  
  Ah, yes. Letters. Not emails, not texts, not voicemails. Letters. I remember those.
  
Sarah (@simplycooked) says:

March 11, 2012 at 4:39 am

I was on a photography course (3.5 days) last year during my holiday and I learned that most lenses (especially cheaper, non-professional ones) function best at f8.0. So my instructor said to start with your lens on f8.0 and adjust it if you want or need to for the look you are seeking. I have two cheap lenses (18-55 mm kit lens and f1.8 50 mm) and one pro one (100 mm macro) and the pro one is a hugely different story. But it was really expensive. Anthony (my husband) bought it and I’m glad I didn’t find out how much it was worth until almost a year later – about $1000. What possessed him to buy it???? But it takes amazing photos!!