Feeling Crabby

All the hermit crabs came out to play when we sprayed them down:

They are really a lot more interesting than I would have guessed.  The big one is always trying to escape the cage.  He made it out once and jumped to the floor and craked his shell.  Didn’t seem to bother him at all.  He didn’t even switch to an uncracked one.

Photo Course – Lesson Three

Lesson three of Jodi Coston’s free photography course is about lenses.  I only have two: the one that came with my D40 kit and a zoom I bought later to get pictures of the kids when they don’t know it and therefore can’t make weird faces or run away.  They are:

AF-S DX Zoom-NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G ED II
AF-S DX VR Zoom- NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G IF-ED

At some point I knew what all those letters meant.  Now if I could just remember what the IF-ED and ED II meant….Just at the Nikon site: An ED (Extra-low Dispersion) glass element minimizes chromatic aberration, contributing to superior optical performance. The IF is possibly Internal Focusing?  I would love to get a macro lens.  Wish I could get one before the praying mantises (how do you pluralize that?) hatch in the next few weeks.

The lesson also talks about tripods.  I don’t use one much.  Most of my photos are of the kids and/or nature stuff (including the pets).  Usually when we’re out at a park or in the yard.  But if I do still life or buildings I try to remember the tripod (and the timer if I have to use slow shutter speed).

The two assignments are:

Assignment 1: Set your camera up on its tripod or other sturdy object. Take a photograph using your widest angle lens possible and another using your longest lens possible. Compose them both so they are as interesting as possible.

I don’t have a wide angle, so I didn’t do this one.

Assignment 2: Again, set your camera up and take two photographs – this time they should be exactly the same, but use your aperture to make your subject the only thing in focus in one of them and then to make everything in the picture in focus in the other one. Have fun and be creative!

I tried this one, but not too sure how successful I was.  Depth of field is one of those things that I understand in theory, but not practice.  If I purposely try to manipulate the depth it never works.  But I have some wonderful accidents where I LOVE the way the DoF makes the shot.  Here are today’s examples:

My favorite DoF shot, completely an accident:

Not Much Creativity Going On….

It must be this time of year– I just look up this post from February 2008– Searching– about losing my creativity.  But there’s also so much going on right now and the first things I usually shove away when I’m stressed are probably the things I need the most.  I haven’t taken any photos other than the obligatory holiday snaps of the kids (and even those are pretty bad!).  I only picked up my knitting because it was an inexpensive way to make presents.

And I haven’t written any fiction– In fact I’ve barely kept up with my books reviews at BellaOnline.  Come to think of it, that is probably because my reading has declined.  Usually I always have a book in hand (or purse!) for those spare moments that I can delve in, but even that had become too much effort.

I think I’m about to get back in the swing of it all, but it feels odd to get back in.  Why is that?  Has it become outside my comfort zone in just a few months?  Or is it a fear that all of this “creativity” is frivolous?  I think that’s more it for me.  I wish I could silence that little voice (the one that doubles as my internal editor– my word he’s busy!) that guilts me into leaving all my hobbies.  “He” wonders how I can waste my time fooling around with the camera or liquid binder when we’re struggling to make ends meet?  Sure wish I could get him to shut up!  Anyone have a good way to get through this kind of stuff?