28/365 - Paint Your Own Colours Into The World

28/365 - Paint Your Own Colours Into The World, a photo by nattalieee__ on Flickr.

Okay, so this blogpost won't make any sense if you're not familiar with flickr, but I'm guessing everyone is so I'll just get on with it.

This photo has completely transformed flickr for me. Currently it's #15 in explore for that day, which is absolutely INSANE, I really can't believe it. It's been added to 3 galleries. THREE! It's been posted on tumblr by someone (I don't know who), and that post has over 60 notes of people liking or reblogging it, which is just ridiculous.

Since I posted this photo 4 days ago, I've had over 1,000 views each day, which I just can't believe. Before I posted this, I was ecstatic when I got 200 views in one day (I still am), but over 1,000 4 days in a row? WOW.

The photo itself is nearly at 1,000 views. My second most viewed photo is at about 300, so it's absolutely mind-blowing.

I just wanted to make this post to try and express how I'm feeling about this, because I think I'm still in shock.

Thank you, everyone. You're all so, so amazing.

31/365

Todays 365 photo:

I had quite a few shots that I like from this shoot, so I decided to post them here, since I've been neglecting my blog for a while.

This reminds me of the monsters from the 'Life On Mars' Doctor Who episode.

1/365

1/365, a photo by nattalieee__ on Flickr.

Yeah, I've decided to start a 365 project again since I bought a tripod and remote today.

The first 25 photos will all be inspired by Frank Turner lyrics.

This is inspired by 'Worse Things Happen At Sea'.

:D

28 Days of Photoshop

I don't have Photoshop. And I can't afford to buy it. I downloaded the 30 day trial version 2 days ago and proceeded to neglect it for a while. But now it's time to change. It's pointless downloading the trial if I'm not going to make use of it. Which is where this project comes in.

I've decided to do a 28 days of photoshop project, hence the title of this post. It will consist of 28 photos (if I have the time and patience– and enough ideas). However, I won't be doing a photo every single day because I have plans for three of these days, from the 6th til the 8th, but I will try to make up for this by doing more t

han one on certain days.

Short post, I know but I don't really have all that much to say on the subject since I've only just started the project.

But here is day 1:

Macro Photos Minus the Massive Price

A few posts ago I mentioned the act of freelensing and said I'd post more examples in due course. Since then, I've really gotten into freelensing and, in particular, reversing the camera lens and using it as a macro lens. This is a much cheaper option than forking out £100+ for an actual macro lens but takes much more skill and patience than just finding a bug or a flower or whatever and snapping away.

I thought I'd use this space to display some freelensing shots that I haven't uploaded to flickr, plus a couple of my personal favourites. So, here you go:

Apologies & General Change

Yes, I realise that in my last post I said that I would update my blog more frequently and Flickr less so but recently I've been neglecting both. I just wanted to formally apologise for being generally rubbish. So, sorry about that.

Second thing I wanted to talk about was me starting a second blog on this site. I like to think this blog is purely for photography-type topics but unfortunately it's a topic that I usually have very little to speak about, leading this blog to be updated very rarely compared to most blogs I've seen on this site. However, I really like the idea of having a blog, like a diary that doesn't require a working pen (which is something of a rarity in my house). But, having this acting as a purely photography based blog, I'm unable to update and post as much as I'd like to.

All of this is leading me to start a new blog containing snippets of my life, like extracts from an unwritten autobiography. I'll going to try and keep the blogs separate but there probably will be some crossover, with some posts on the general blog having a vague mention of photography at some point.

I'm guessing that my new blog will most likely be about college, exams, university and friends- the typical teenage topics. But I'll try to make it witty. Emphasis on 'try', I may not/probably won't get it right.

So, for general insights into my life you could follow this blog, which will be updated gradually within the next few days, then hopefully more frequently thereafter.

The Abandoning of Project 365

So, for those of you who have read my blog before (or, indeed, if you're my contact on Flickr) you'll probably be aware that I started Project 365 about a month ago and, as you can probably guess from the title of this post, today is the day that I'm announcing my quitting of said project.

I decided that, rather than writing a lengthy description on a photo on Flickr explaining why I'm quitting the project, I should write a blog post explaining the situation that I could just post a link to, which would save time and effort in the long run.

The main reason for quitting my 365 is actually the same reason I was doubting starting it in the first place: I ended up taking photos because I had to rather than because I had an idea and wanted to take a photo. The second- and arguably more important- reason is college. I have a total of 12 days before all of my artwork has to be completed and the art exhibition goes up. I also have 19 days until my first exam. I desperately need to do well in my exams to secure my place at Winchester university and, although in maths I'm pretty much guaranteed to get an A, grades in my other subjects are much less concrete. Especially since my confidence in my English grade has been knocked after finding out that I didn't do so well in my coursework.

Anyway, pretty conventional reasons for people to quit their 365 projects. Sorry I couldn't be more original.

On another note, I've decided to try and update this blog more frequently and my Flickr less frequently, reserving my longer photo descriptions for this blog. Which basically means that, rather than boring my Flickr contacts all the time, I'll be boring my blog followers instead. But only 4 people follow my blog (including myself) so it isn't a big deal. :)

Project 365

I realise that I've been neglecting my blog lately and it's mainly to do with not having anything to talk about, but I'll apologise anyway. Sorry.

If you're my contact on flickr (and you probably are) you'll already know that I'm nearly two weeks into project 365 (where you take a photo everyday for 365 days).

If you've been a contact of mine on flickr for a while, you may also recall me saying on several occasions that I wouldn't ever start this project. It appears to be a sort of right-of-passage on flickr and everyone who's anyone has done, or is currently doing, this project. So I conformed. Not for this reason. I'll explain.

Recently, life has become a bit mundane and, I'll admit, I've just lost interest in the world full stop. I just don't seem to care as much anymore. Everything is routine and nothing occupies my mind as much as things used to. Even my day-dreams have become a bit half-arsed. Some of my dreams even stop half way through and refuse to continue. However, I know that this year I will be going through the most changes I'll ever experience. I start university in september. I'll be moving away from home for the first time ever. I'll be 300+ miles away from home. I'll have to make friends from scratch. I'll have to learn how to budget. I'll have to learn how to cook properly. I'll have to get a job. Lot's of changes and adjustments.

I'd like to document these changes and I think starting the project now will give me enough time to get into the routine of taking a photo everyday before my world is pretty much turned upside down. I can't wait. :D

The reason I didn't want to start this project in the first place was because I knew that I wouldn't put the effort in, and my flickr page would just be overrun with photos that I don't even like. And, to be honest, that's how the project started out. But in these past couple of days, I think I've got the hang of it and am starting to take (and edit) photos that I'm really proud of.

I just thought I'd write a post about this and let you know what was going on with me, photography-wise.

Oh, and here is today's 365 photo, in case you're interested:

Freelensing

Okay, so I realised that in my post a week ago I mentioned the term 'freelensing' but never actually explained what it was or showed my experimentation with it. I might've- well, definitely- exaggerated about my 'obsession' with it. It's not an obsession. And I haven't really tried it out on a proper shoot or anything... mainly due to lack of willing models.

But I thought I ought to at least explain what it is, in case anyone doesn't know. It is pretty self-explanatary but I'm hoping that me writing this down will help absorb this into my memory and I'll remember to try it out again at a later date (hopefully tomorrow).

Freelensing is the name that someone- I don't know who- gave to, basically, taking photos without a lens. Okay, without a lens isn't strictly true. Taking photos with a detached lens is perhaps more accurate. The idea is to hold the detached lens in front of your camera and depending on the angle you're holding it at and how far away from the body it is (and other factors like this) you get a different effect.

A disadvantage to this is that you have to learn how to keep your hands steady- especially if, like me, you don't have a tripod. There's also the balancing act of adjusting the zoom and focus with one hand (as autofocus obviously won't work with this process).

Another major disadvantage is that the sensor in the body could get dirty or dusty and, apparently, it's extremely difficult to clean. And everyone likes to avoid cleaning if they can help it. It's human nature.

However, freelensing can be magnificent if, like myself, you are a fan of macro shots. What this process allows you to do is turns the lens 180 degrees so it's the opposite way to what it would be normally, and this acts as some sort of magnifying glass which lets you take some ridiculously close-up shots. Also, changing the zoom on the lens will change the magnification, with the smaller the zoom, the greater the magnification. Obviously, this has the same problem of steadying the image because you can't use the stabiliser and it's hard to balance the two components of the camera.

This was one of my first attempts at freelensing (I had the lens backwards in this):

I wish I had more examples of this process but I only have one more, which demonstrates perfectly that the only way to become good at this process is to practice, practice, practice (this time I held the lens the right way round):

Like I said earlier, hopefully I should have more examples of freelensing tomorrow as I'm doing a photoshoot- well, several photoshoots- with my best friend for my media coursework. And if I do, then I shall edit this and post them below.

Scanography

Recently, I discovered the, seemingly little-known, art of scanography. It basically involves scanning your face. In fact, I don't even think you need to scan your face but I'm not sure, I don't really know the specifics of it yet.

Anyway, I've only been trying it out for two days and I'm already addicted to it. I find myself discovering new ways of photography and things related to photography recently and becoming a little bit obsessed with them. First it was freelensing and now this. Who knows what next?

This is perhaps my favourite scanography shot I've taken(?) so far:

And now I have the topic question for my new art project at college, I can actually incorporate scanography into it. The topic is 'collections of everyday objects', which is very broad, I know. But, well, they always are in art. That's one of the best (and sometimes worst) things about it.

Here are a few other shots I took to link to my art project:

And I'm hoping for plenty more great shots to come. Better shots, fingers crossed.

Instant Inspiration

So, I know that people find inspiration from all kinds of weird and wonderful things, everything from books and films to a specific location or pet. But there are certain things that spark people's imaginations every time when it comes to photography. Or so I believe. It may not be the case, but there a some things that reoccur in people's photos, ideas that people are constantly re-working, re-using and re-imagining.

For me it's sunsets. I have 30 photos of sunrises and sunsets on flickr and mainly it's because they're easy to access and so many people just let life go by and don't pay the slightest bit of attention to the beauty they can see every day. This offends me.

The possibility of seeing the sun set is the one thing I most look forward to after finishing college (that, and sleeping) and I find it insulting that people can just wander idly by and not even notice the magnificence of nature. And I'm sure other people feel this way about whatever inspires them the most.

Sorry, this post sounds really angry and I don't mean it to. I'm just passionate about what I'm talking about.

On a lighter note, here is yesterday's sunset:

Photo Editing

This is regarding the editing for this photo (because someone on Flickr asked):

Okay. First I took the photo of me 'sleeping' using the self-timer.

The camera needs to be in exactly the same place for all of the photos. It would be extremely helpful if you owned a tripod. I do not. I had to balance my camera on an easel.

Then I sat on a stool on top of my bed and took this part of the photo:

Then stood up and took the rest of them.

I use a free editing software called GIMP to edit my photos. I put the 'sleeping' photo as my base image. Then I put the first of the other images of me on top of it. Then I used the eraser tool at 100% opacity to erase the stool and my legs and most of the background so you can see the base image of me as well. Once I'd done that and the photos looked like just one photo, I used the eraser tool again, but at about 50% opacity and went over the top photo of me.

After that you can anchor the layer down and do the same with each of the photos separately.

After that, I used the equalise tool to adjust the colours and brightness and things.

Taa-daah!

Inspiration vs. A Good Photo

About 3 months ago I got my first DSLR (he's called Gregory) and have been using him almost every day since then. But I was wondering if there's a strong positive correlation (yeah, I do A-level Statistics) between a photographer's inspiration and the quality of the resulting photo.

Up until recently I didn't get inspired by anything, I just took photos of things I thought looked nice, and my photos were consistently average. Case in point:

But now I've actually got inspiration (which seemed to be the moment I started doing self portraits), my photos appear to be consistently below average. Such as:

However, when I look at other people's photos on Flickr, the photos that were inspired by something or someone- whether that be a friend, a film, a song or just a line of text- tend to be the most interesting shots of theirs.

Is there just a fault in brain that's constantly giving me bad ideas? Or am I just terrible at executing ideas- so bad that I actually execute them? I think I may be the murderer of good ideas.