Last December, as a Christmas present to ourselves, the boy and I finally got a DSLR camera. We had been interested in photography for a while and we were both very eager to learn. I promised myself that I would read the whole manual (haven't done it yet) and that I would play around with those settings and try to understand light. Well... shame on me, 10 months later I was still shooting everything on automatic (regardless of the tutorials and theory I had read here and there, never mind the tips of my dad or the fact that the boy continuously encouraged me to just turn the knob to M already and start experimenting).
So when Michelle (from the lovely blog MY Creative) announced that she was bringing her Eat & Snap Photo walks from London to Paris (if only for once), I totally wanted in. I have been reading her blog for a while now and I find her very inspiring, and her photography beautiful. And a weekend in Paris is something I am always up for. So, on Saturday morning we left home at 5:30 in the morning and by 10:00 we were strolling around, people watching and eating an éclaire.
I met Michelle (and the other participants) at Gare du Nord at 11:15 and we took it from there. Over hot chocolate and lattes Michelle explained us the basics of ISO, aperture, shutter speed as well as a few tips on composition, white-balance... It was really nice to meet other girls who are in similar places, that is, wanting to learn but not really knowing where to start and feeling kind of lost and clueless with all the technical terms. After patiently answering to our questions we headed to the streets and wandered around, walking through cafés and markets trying to capture the little details that make every city special.
The day went by very fast, and I left feeling happy, inspired and proud of myself that I was finally able to lose the fear of the M button and just play. Michelle is about to fulfill her dream of moving to Italy, so hopefully she will be organizing some workshops over there as well.
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| I love the French expression: "N'importe quoi" |
That's such a fun learning experience. Where do you hear about all these adventures that you go on?
ReplyDeleteWell, I had been reading Michelle's blog and twitter, so when she suggested it, knowing we can make it for a weekend I convinced Mark it was a good idea :) (And he loves road trips too)
DeleteWhat a lovely weekend and beautiful photos! I too am interested in learning about 'real' photography, but for now I'm too poor/broke to buy the real camera.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much! Yes I know, it really took us a while before we decided to get the camera, but we are so happy with it.And really, there is so much to learn. It took a lot of thought as we really do analyse before we get anything (Mark does not love having the house full of stuff, so this applies to everything)
DeleteHe sounds just like my husband! Which is fortunate for me, since I'm generally too lazy to do the necessary research...I know he'll always find the best model and deal for whatever we're looking for. Happy snapping...methinks you'll be using that camera a LOT in...what, like 18 more weeks? ;)
DeleteYeah, 18 more weeks... it is crazy and surreal (and oh I have to get all kinds of things done... up til now, you guessed it, it has been mostly research). Exciting times.
DeleteHey, those photos are really good! I recently went on a photo hike to learn about my photography and mine are quite crappy actually.
ReplyDeleteWe got a dslr a couple of years ago and I'm just now starting to learn the functions. Reading the manual is a good tip though, not sure that would have occurred to me. My problem with trial and error is that when I upload my photos I can't remember which setting was what.
You can see the setting in programs like picasa, lightroom or photoshop. It's part of the metadata.
DeleteThanks :) I know, when you read about photography it all sounds very intimidating, but I guess it is a matter of just going with it, no matter how many mistakes you make (Some pictures I made 6 to 10 times before getting the settings pseudo-right)
DeleteQué divertido fin de semana! Ir con un grupo de gente que también está aprendiendo. Y tantas cosas bonitas que fotografiar por ahí.
ReplyDeleteLo que he hecho para perderle el miedo poco a poco al modo Manual es poner la cámara en modo Av, así tu eliges la apertura y la cámara se encarga de la velocidad. Puedes ir practicando con distintas aperturas y es un buen comienzo para no estresarte con todo a la vez :)
Gracias ! Sí, algo me dijo Mark de ese modo (y creo que otros) en los que sólo cambias 1 de las variables cada vez, así entiendes mejor lo que hace cada función.
DeleteY sí, me encantó la idea, sobretodo porque soy más de preguntar y hablar con gente al aprender. Hay mucha información en línea, pero es más difícil de estudiar o requiere más dedicación, creo que estar en persona hace la diferencia, y si es una salida divertida aun mejor.
Photography is something I would like to understand someday as well. When I was a little girl, my mom was really into photography and even developed her own photographs. I have been wondering if having a kid may get me more into it...so many parents take such gorgeous pictures of their children.
ReplyDeleteAnyhow, I'm proud of you for diving in. Keep it up!! I especially love the fish picture for some reason. It's like capturing a scene.
That is so amazing that your mom developed her own photographs. I had an uncle that did the same and he would sometimes take us to the dark room and show us how it was done, definitely exciting.
DeleteAnd yes, I think documenting the lives of the little ones is a great motivation.
I don't normally eat fish, but I thought the display was in a way beautiful... or it made me think of old days. (maybe going to the market with my mom)
Well done! Once you hit the M button you'll never go back!
ReplyDeleteAnd you know my best advice: Jackie's atelier!
Thanks!! I am still saving for that one :) I know everybody loves her classes, so that says a lot!
DeleteGreat pictures Amanda - I recognise all those locations ; ) I was out last weekend with my camera, this time firmly set on M the whole time, and I'm happy to say I can still do it, it wasn't just a Paris moment!! Isn't it wonderful when you feel you've finally 'cracked' something that you found so confusing before?!
ReplyDeleteThanks! I have been trying to take some pictures inside as well (of food and such) and I find it a bit harder, but practice is what we need.
DeleteAnd yes, that feeling of understanding something is the best !