PicklesTravel

2012 Goals to finish out December strongly

December 22 to 31

22. Volunteer my time and talents more.

I would like to start this goal by volunteering at a nursing home or assisted living home. There are so many people out there with amazing lives and stories and with no one to listen to them – I want to be that person, to share with them and to learn from them.

23. Take more night shots.

I haven’t taken as many night shots as I would like (and should) A big piece of that is my tripod . I love my tripod and use it… when I have it. What I need to do is make more of a conscience effort to have it with me more frequently. Another big piece is that I need to have a control for my camera, so that I’m not touching it at all for night shots (and creating blur)

24. Take more self-portraits.

I love being the person behind the camera and capturing moments and stories, but sometimes I forget to grab a shot of me when I’m doing cool things. I need to make more of a point of capturing not only my stories from behind the lens, but also of me in front of the lens- becoming a part of the picture!

Merry Christmas! 25. Always be me – Be true to myself!

Shockingly, I have struggled with this, especially in 2010 and 2011, so 2012 is the year of new beginnings and of making sure I am true to me. This is one of the reasons that I’ve decided to pursue photography on a full time basis- it is what I love, my passion, and who I am.

26. Blog more about the little things.

Everyone can go to a big city and be a tourist, but not many people make it to the small, hole in the wall Chorrillana “restaurant” in Chile or the little church in the town of 80 in Minnesota – these are the stories I need to tell more often.

27. Take more risks.

Nothing ever happens and no one ever gets ahead without risk. I don’t mean dangerous-to-my-health risk, but rather risk of the unknown. Seeing and embracing my fear of that unknown, and then moving forward in spite of it (or because of it).

28. Put at least one ad on my blog.

So many blogs have ads these days, that I don’t think that having a few will detract from the blog. Through my MatadorU courses I am learning about creating a media kit and the like, so that will help me step out into that unknown realm of life.

29. Get a paid photography assignment.

In order to do this I will need to get into a completely different mind-set and start talking with editors with different publications and pitching some ideas.

30. Travel somewhere completely unexpected.

I think this one will be more in line with a small town far from anywhere I’ve ever gone, but I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. I will definitely blog about it for you, though!

31. Enjoy photography every minute of every day!

I get a lot of joy and feel a lot of freedom with photography. Sometimes business and work stresses can get in the way of that joy. I will always enjoy it, if I make sure to make time for photography that I do just for me and keep in mind what it fundamentally means to me.

Goals week 1, week 2, week 3

Goals made for 2012 starting December 15 to 21

15. Blog more photo essays.

I’ll admit- my weakness is writing, finding the words is what holds me back from posting more frequently… Which really is no excuse, what I really need to do is just post more photo essays. Tell a story with my photos, then my words won’t matter- plus a completely new challenge- tell a story without words!

16. Re-visit my photo archives.

I have so many photos just sitting in boxes that carry memories and stories. I need to/would like to scan them all and get them on my computer. This will help remind me of how far I’ve come with my photography as well as remind me of good times/ideas that I can share with all of you!

17. Back up computer(s) daily!

Along with that I need to have more than one back-up copy. As a photographer it is very important that I not loose any data or photos – that would be the end of the end. Two months ago I broke my computer and hadn’t backed up for a week’s time so I lost a few fun shots that I had taken. It could have been worse- way worse, but it just proved how important a daily back-up is!

St. Paul, MN- Mears Park Christmas Decorations

18. Experiment with my pickling recipes.

If there’s one thing I love more than photography it’s pickles- and by pickles I mean anything with lots of vinegar! This year I want to spend more time in the garden growing veggies and then I want to make them into pickles! I want to experiment with different recipes and methods- maybe doing a brine for several days first. I also want to try out different veggies (I’ve done asparagus, cucumbers, and peppers- time to broaden my horizons!) And the very best part of this goal- TASTE TEST them all!!

19. Go with the flow.

The best moments in life and the best photos are always the unplanned, unexpected ones. If I make a point of going with the flow I will never miss those moments because I’m worrying about how I hadn’t planned for whatever is happening!

20. Be organized.

While the best moments are the unexpected ones, I won’t be there to capture them if I’m not organized about the small things; things like keeping my camera and lenses clean, packing exactly what I need and no more, in order to be quick on my feet, and studying about a destination before I get there, to make sure I make the most of it!

21. Have patience.

I am naturally impatient, but as I posted here patience is the key to a good photo. Waiting for the light, waiting for the right splash of color on the right person, waiting for any person, waiting for all the people to clear out… you get the picture.

Saint Paul, MN- Winter Carnival Ice Carvings – Alice in Wonderland

December 1-7 Goals

December 8-14 Goals

ISO 100, 100mm, f/3.5, 1/2000 sec. Monarchs on Lake Phalen, St. Paul, Minnesota

Patience is key
Any kind of wildlife or nature photography requires a huge amount of patience. You have to wait for the light to be right, or for the animal to do something interesting.

ISO 320, 210mm, f/6.3, 1/125 sec. A rather un-interesting picture of a lizard in Antigua

It’s the action of the animal that makes it intriguing. I always consider that to mean anything that is natural to them, but difficult to capture with a camera and/or rarely seen (flight, capturing dinner, spending time with young, etc.)

ISO 320, 210mm, f/8 1/200 sec The lizard becomes more interesting by showing his dewlap (now if he had only been eating too…)

This lizard was blending in nicely to it’s environment, which I found intriguing and as I sat there and watched him he decided to show his true colors – I believe it’s called a dewlap. He was probably sensing my presence and not too happy about it, but it made for a very happy photographer – me.

Difficulties with Wildlife Photography
ISO 200, 300mm, f/7.1, 1/800 sec. American Bald Eagle

One of the tough things about photographing animals in their natural environment is that they tend to be hidden, from us, their prey and any possible predator they may have. I post the photo above to show what my typical bald eagle picture looks like- full of distractions. To get a good image you have to work around the distractions- either by anticipating the wildlife’s next move, or by integrating them into the photo.

Wildlife in Motion
ISO 160, 200mm, f/4.3, 1/400 sec. Ruby-Throated Hummingbird in Minnesota

I captured this guy at 1/400 sec shutter speed, which is a pretty slow shutter, considering how quickly these guys move. He must have been hovering. Though there is barely a hint of his wings at that speed (At 55 beats per second it would be pretty much impossible to capture the wings not in motion!) Usually I would have my shutter speed cranked up to 1/1000 or higher for these fast moving guys (which means higher ISO).

When I take photos of hummingbirds I do like to keep my aperture a bit smaller and use manual focus- as they flit in and out of the camera frame so quickly that it’s hard to get a good fix on them otherwise.

Macro
ISO 320, 100mm, f/6.3, 1/1000 sec. Natural light scorpion (?) in St. Mary’s, Georgia

I post this image to show a difficulty I have with macro photography. The complications with macro photography is that if you don’t have either an incredibly bright sun/light or a flash of some sort, it’s hard to get every part of the insect/spider/animal in focus (unless you stand further away…)

This mini scorpion photo was taken with natural light and I think an ISO higher than 320 would have rendered him blurry with noise. The problem I find is that the front of him is in focus, but the back is not. He was moving too fast to really want to lower the shutter speed any, and obviously I needed a wider aperture, so… apparently I need a flash. I know some macro photographers will take multiple images with the focus changing as they go and then combine to create one awesome shot, but I would love to know if there’s a better way.

ISO 200, 135mm, f/11, 1/125 sec
A good education at Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul, South Korea

In travel photography candid shots of the people often tell much more of the story than the photos of buildings and sites. Like the shot above of school children filling in their sheets about what they “learned” while on their field trip to one of the most famous palaces in Seoul, Gyeongbokgung. It shows that not only are students the same everywhere (gotta get the answers from somewhere), but it gives a nice sense of what it truly felt like to be at this palace in the middle of the day. There were so many groups of school children visiting that their presence became more the “tourist attraction” for me and my companions than the actual palace (as palaces do seem to blend together after you’ve seen a few).

Portrait-Style Street Photography
It can be a challenge though to get good shots. You want it to be candid, but eye contact really makes the photo and draws the viewer into the moment, as in the two images below.

ISO 200, 210mm, f/7.1, 1/100 sec
ISO 200, 135mm, f/11, 1/125 sec.

Sometimes though, the story is more about what the subject is doing, and not about them specifically, as in this image:
ISO 200, 120mm, f/7.1, 1/500 sec.

Street (Chaos) Photography
Another type of street photography is that where you’re actually capturing the chaos of the moment and not a portrait at all:
ISO 800, 35mm, f/7.1, 1/50 sec. at the Fish Market in Seoul, South Korea
As a critique of this photo: I do wish I could have waited for the man in the suit to come a bit closer (and be a bigger part of this photo). I really liked having him as a part of the composition because he looked completely out of place in the smelly, wet, dirty fish market in his very well kept, professional-looking suit. The bright, blown out sky in the background is also a bit distracting.

ISO 200, 35mm, f/7.1, 1/800 sec. in St. John’s, Antigua
Girls waiting after school, in school uniform, supposedly to pick up new ones.

SONY a300, ISO 3200 28mm, f/4, 1/10 sec
At an ISO of 3200 I was able to let in more light and take a semi-hand-held shot (while supporting my elbows on a flat surface) of the Mill City Museum in Minneapolis, MN. The problem with increasing the ISO all the way up to 3200 is the amount of grain (though on a snowy night this might be perfect- see below)

SONY a300, ISO 800, 28mm, f/5, 1/4 sec
At ISO 800 I was able to move my aperture to f/5 which gave way to more detail, though with the a300 there is still a considerable amount of grain in the photo. I could probably diminish quite a bit of the noise in Lightroom. Because the shutter speed is down to 1/4 sec I did set my camera down on a flat surface and only had contact with the shutter release button.

SONY a850, ISO 1000, 35mm fixed, f/1.4, 1/250 sec. Best Pizza in Saint Paul, Minnesota
This shot was taken on a snowy day, so the grain actually accentuates the affect, rather than detracting from the image. I had my 35mm fixed lens with me and could open the aperture up to 1.4, while keeping the shutter speed higher (as I didn’t want to capture too much motion with the snow)

As a continuation of my post here, these are my goals from the week of December 8 to 14.

8. Win a Photo Competition

This year I had the pickle photo below selected as a semi-finalist in the Smithsonian Aerial America Photo Contest, which was a huge step in the right direction! Now I just have to keep at it!

9. Complete Matador U’s Travel Photography program.

I started at MatadorU early this year (March 2011) and have taken many hiatuses from the class as my life has gotten busier. It’s an amazing course with tons of information from how to use your camera all the way to specifics on growing your blog readership and direction on how to apply for (and get!) paying travel photography jobs.

10. Use social media more regularly.

I am on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, StumbleUpon and 43Things but don’t use them nearly as much as I should. I find that I use them in spurts- a few days at a time, and then forget about them for a week or two and I need to make a point of being consistent. I think that coming up with some sort of planned out posting schedule or something along those lines could really help!

11. Walk, bike, or take public transportation whenever possible.

I love to walk! Up until a few years ago I didn’t even own a car and didn’t have a choice otherwise. It’s actually harder to have a car when living in the city in Latin America, but life without a car is a very difficult thing to accomplish when living in Rural America. I understand the need for that, but do find it a bit ridiculous to drive from store to store when they’re all within a block of one another, so I’m going to make a bigger point of parking in one central spot and doing my walking from there- and if I’m not grocery shopping; a bike ride into town would be even better!

12. Become a better writer.

Trial and error is my goal on this one. I’ll just keep on writing and plugging away. The hope is that slowly but surely I’ll improve :c)

13. Have a photo published.

This one might actually go hand-in-hand with Goal 8, or it might not. I need to start putting myself out there and offering my photo stories…

14. Post to blog more frequently.

I have been pretty bad about consistently posting and I really hope to improve in 2012. I would like to be posting on here at least 3 times a week!

Winter begins in Saint Paul, Minnesota
Taken with SONY a850 with a 35mm fixed lens: ISO 250, f/10, 1/80 sec.

Everyone’s preparing for 2012!

Goals are very important, so instead of a New Year’s Resolution I have decided to make December all about my goals for 2012

Goals for December 1 to 7.

1. Always carry my camera with me.

It’s hard to capture that once in a lifetime image if I don’t have my camera! There so many cool things throughout the day and I find that carrying my camera helps me slow down to enjoy the small things.

2. Go on a photography oriented “Road Trip”.

I see so many beautiful things when I’m out driving around and rarely allot myself time to stop and document the moment and/or the place. What I need to do is make more purposeful trips that are purely for stopping and taking those photos!

3. Create a photo diary – 366 (leap year!) days of photos, telling my story!

This goes hand in hand with the Dec. 1 goal- if I have my camera I’m more likely to take photos! I’m going to be posting my progress on my Flickr site, so feel free to follow along or send me a comment!

4. (Sunday’s are for my personal goals) Do (or visit) something new and different every week.

I love trying new things, though I’m not always so good and motivating myself to get out and be “adventurous”. Having a goal to do so should help with that!

5. Learn and Use Twitter better.

I have a Twitter account (follow @PicklesTravel) but I’m so bad about using it to its full potential. I haven’t yet learned some of the tricks, which is holding me back- I’m open to help and suggestions!

6. Always be learning! Ask questions.

I’m a very hands-on learner and am always learning, from everyone and everything. There are so many amazing places out there, it’s just about learning about them from the locals!

7. Enter at least one photo contest per month

I can’t win if I don’t enter :c) Plus this is great practice for doing assignments for editors, when they need a specific idea captured!