I've had two photography posts since the beginning of 2011. Aside from that, I've pretty much been AWOL. I just haven't been inspired to get behind the lens. About a month ago in Florida, I was asked by friends to take some obligatory ocean side portraits. Veritable CF. Foggy lenses. Dirty lenses. Fading light. Rechargeable batteries that had forgotten how to hold a charge. Panic. Total fumble.
That whole fiasco experience kinda pissed me off. A few years ago, I was working hard to develop my skills and a knowledge base. You probably remember the little sign in the dentist's office when you were a kid: "Ignore your teeth and they will go away." Same thing with photography. If you don't practice, the little nuances (hell, the big nuances, too) of running that little box-sized supercomputer will overcome you. What to do? Go shoot. Anywhere. Anything. Push the button.
So I decided to challenge myself and do something I've always thought about doing--a one lens challenge. Actually, to make the challenge more exacting, it needs to be limited to one focal length. Manual mode only. So on the way to the Bentonville Farmers Market last Saturday morning, I grabbed my camera and stuck on my 50mm 1.8. Sharp lens. Fixed focal length. Foot zoom. With wife, daughter and dog in tow, shooting was not exactly convenient (and crepes--can't forget those). But I got a great shot of my daughter with a dragonfly balloon, and got a few shots of 3 of the 4 members of a little high school group called Farmer & The Markets (they kinda reminded me of a Walk Off The Earth video). I got a down the line shot with a shutter speed fast enough to freeze faces but slow enough that hands conveyed a send of motion. It's one thing to know your camera and what all the buttons and dials do, but you should challenge yourself to tell a story, convey some motion, or have some direction and so I was pleased to pull off that shot (it took a few times to get the shutter speed right). But I also got one of those all-purpose stock shots, imploring you to support your local musicians, and I like it because it conveys a sense of waiting and wanting. Of course, as I sit here writing this, it occurs to me that had I shifted about 2 feet to the right, I could have included the open guitar case where people were tossing tip money for the guys. That really would have been the prop to finish the shot. Just because you have a bunch of nice pots doesn't mean you can cook. They'll be back and I'll try again.
50mm, 1/320 at f/2.8, ISO 100. Conversion to B/W in Lightroom.
My Lightroom skills these days are about as poor as my camera skills. I'm fairly pleased with the overall conversion, but need to get some of the blacks out of the music stand.
I've seen some versions of this challenge talk about shooting an entire week or month with one lens. Even as simple as it is, the 50 1.8 can be a little hard to get your head around when shooting on the fly, so while I don't know if an entire month is realistic, it's a good way to learn about perspective and composition.
Go support your local farmers markets and musicians. Take your camera.
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