The Biology Building @ the U of S

 Last week at my class, our prof had a few stations set up in class so that we could play with lighting, etc., but the building that our class is in is connected to the Biology Building on the U of S campus and I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to photograph the subjects down there. It was evening, so there were nice shadows to work with. Here are some of  my results.

I LOVE waterfalls! Even teeny-weenie ones. :) I didn't have my tripod with me, so for this shot, I leaned up against a pillar and stayed as still as possible with my shutter open for 1sec. I will try it again with a tripod, but all-in-all, nit bad for a handheld shot.

I like the looks of the bones, but to give them some artistic edge, in Picasa, I added the "Cinamascope" effect. Makes them look even older than they are (and yellows the pic a bit).

 

The most fun part of this evening was playing with perspectives. Taking pictures from different angles, or focusing on something that may not have been considered the focal point of an object was my goal.

Playing with a 1second shutter speed, I zoomed back after pressing the shutter which left these cool light lines.

Blooming Tea

Mmmmm.... I love tea. I am especially fond of David's Tea at the moment. With the unique flavors that they offer (such as Root Beer Float, Birthday Cake, my absolute favorite - Midsummer Night's Dream), there is a taste for everyone. The last time I was in there, I noticed that they have blooming tea, and (more for the photo op!) I just had to try it. The tea itself was quite tasty, but I would say that the pictures (for me) were more enjoyable. ;)

This is the bloom before infusing it.

 The whole blooming/infusing process only took about 2 minutes. The next time I do this (and I will do it again - there is a peach and strawberry flavor as well), I will manually focus more in the bloom - it is not as sharp as I would like it to be - and of course, will play more with lighting. Learning experience.

New lens, new fun!

I love, love, love photomacrography! Taking pics up close (and getting a great shot) can be SO much fun. It can also be very frustrating if you just cannot get the shot you are looking for! I have taken MANY close ups on my camera with my stock lens and have had good results, but have always wanted to play with an actual macro lens. That being said, I cannot afford a dedicated macro lens (a good one can run anywhere from $500-????), so I thought I would try this one:

Neewer Wide Angle Macro lens

For a whooping $17.25, I am able to get in closer and get more detail than I had expected from this lens. AND, it is also a wide angle lens. It cuts the corners a bit if you are zoomed all the way back, but the results speak for themselves.

I also got an IR remote for the camera shutter (off of ebay for $1.43!). And it works like a charm - helps to get rid of that pesky camera shake when taking macros or long exposures.

Regular lens:

  

Wide angle attachment:

Using the wide angle attachment, if you are zoomed all the way back, you can see that the corners get snipped, but it's not too bad - either way, pretty good results (as far as I am concerned).

More close ups (and yes, I LOVE this beautiful orchid!):

I love this perspective! It makes my hands look like they belong to a 70 year old!

These teeny flowers photographed very well with the macro attachment. 

Thanks for checking in! :)

--Photo Jules

Ahh.... Summer..... Well, not quite.

It is a lovely day today - about -4, so we spent some time outside this afternoon. My hubby took the kids sledding and I went out to bask in the sun. Too bad it is snow instead of sand!

*Note about photos: there was no post-production editing done. On the Tulips in the Snow pictures, I had increased my color saturation in camera.

Welcome....

Welcome to my photo blog. My name is Julie - I live in a small town outside of a medium sized city on the prairies of Saskatchewan, Canada. I have been interested in photography since I can remember and snap A LOT of pictures, whether it be of nature, my kids, interesting objects around home, you name it - I shoot it. :)

I have a Canon Rebel XSi and love to experiment with the manual settings. For many years, I have wanted to take a photography class simply to learn more about my camera and to be able to take great pictures in any setting. I always said "I should...", and never did, so this January, my "I should..." turned into an "I'm going to..." and I am. I am taking a course through the University of Saskatchewan and though we are only 3 weeks in (and haven't really touched our cameras much yet), I have learned a lot so far. I am excited to play with my camera and shoot everything that I can find (and in this frigid cold, minus 30 degree weather, I have stuck with mostly indoor subjects). I do venture out for quick photo shoots outdoors, however the snow, snow and more snow generally keep me inside. Either way, indoors or out, I have found some interesting subjects so far and this is where I am going to share them with you.

Each week, we have different assignments to work on, so I will be posting my highlights (when I remember) and my other faves from the week. I'd love your feedback and comments on my work. Thanks for looking!

Galllery