52 weeks: Week 5 wrapup

© 2010 Simon Hucko

Judging from the number of submissions this week, seems like people are having a harder time finding things to shoot every week. It's a difficult time of year for photography, especially if you do most of your shooting outside. Cold, snowy weather can make for some great images, but finding time to get out while there's still light and forcing yourself to freeze for a shot is not the easiest thing in the world. If you're having trouble, I suggest experimenting with some different types of photography. A desk lamp and a few sheets of paper can make a quick table-top studio. Browse Craigslist or take a trip to a thrift shop and see if you can find an old film camera to experiment with. Try borrowing or renting a new lens (check out lensrentals.com or borrowlenses.com). Take an old photo school exercise - lock yourself in a room (classically the bathroom) and take 100 shots. Meet up with other photographers in your area and go for a photo walk. Shoot with your camera phone and document things you see during the day. Ask a friend or family member if you can take their portrait. If you have any other suggestions, please comment here or on the flickr group with them.

My photo this week is actually a re-make of a photo I took about a year ago. That may seem like cheating, but I wasn't 100% happy with how the first one turned out (even though I really liked the concept). Sometimes it's good to re-visit old photos and see if you can improve on them. There is less distortion with this one, and the framing is a lot better than last time. I also added in some grain and a heavier vignette, and topped it off by boosting the contrast a bit. A 16x9 crop happened to line up perfectly with the lines in the photo, and fits into my recent cinematic mood. I'm much happier with the results this time around.

This week's winner is themanilow with "5.52"


© themanilow

Plenty of interesting lines and textures here. I like how the branches cut a diagonal across the frame, too (in fact, I might have highlighted that by cropping to 8x10 and cutting out that little triangle at the top right). Great wintery abstract shot :)

Keep up the good work everyone. You can do it!

~S

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