OK...now that I've uploaded this, I see my subject is about impossible to see! My daughter, Heather, and I bought these while I was in Chicago...my first effort here (emphasis on "effort"!) Any suggestions as to how to use it will be greatly appreciated!
I was trying to capture the image of the horse (Duke)-drawn carriage going past... I photograph it every year so I was looking for a new way of seeing it... well...a few more months to get it right...or give this away!
http://365project.org/Weezilou/365/2011-09-21 "Charlie" in front of the same house about 3 years ago... Had to chuckle at some of the comments...since then we actually have met several "365 participants" up here! It's fun to have this diary of photos & "autographs"!
I'm a novice photographer Louise and my fascination is with light and how it enhances an image. It seems to me that maybe the light is too strong here. It seems to be catching the front of the crystal ball. But I'm probably wrong so wait for those more experienced to comment! I keep looking at shots using balls and wondering if I should maybe give it a go but there's so much to learn I think I'll stay where I am at the moment!
@ceilidh Thanks for the though you gave this Margaret! Of course the sun was setting behind me...might do to look at what others have done to see what's working! Like you, I never considered getting this until I was in a shop with my daughter http://365project.org/chicago_heather/365 and she thought we "needed" these! It's a novelty item for sure! Might not wait until so late in the day to "hope for" something to photograph!
Did you try rotating the globe? I am finding that the lighting makes a big difference, but if you are in the sun you have to be careful not to catch something on fire!
I did not have to buy one as I have had a crystal ball for a long time, but until I joined here I never thought to use it for photographs!
@golftragic We only paid about $7 for them (with a little stand) but they' have air bubbles... Not the fancy stuff, but just right for a few photos and a little fun!
Maybe from a different angle...little to the left or little to the right, a little higher a little lower!! I have seen a lot of these reflection balls and thought about getting myself one. I still think it's a great photo!!! Maybe a different colored one? LOL
Good attempt. I agree with the other members regarding light reflection .Definitely next time you are going to give us a visual treat.I did try a few shots with crystal ball and try to post one of these days. Thanks for sharing.Keep going
Never have had on. But if I did I`ll take some time and do many pic.`s on several circumstances and choose the best . I think you did not bad with this one. Better, I like it very much , as it looks very much an impression painting . Well done.
No problems with any critics as it is well intended and constructive.
@pyrrhula Thanks, Ferry. I think the overall photo is "pretty...like looking at a passing soap bubble. I may try some more images in the future...it's a fun fad item to play with...
@ceilidh@rangerxenos@cashew@drsridhar@pyrrhula Thank you all for the constructive critique, and the good suggestions! I'll keep looking for a variety of situations..and some different lighting...and see what I can capture... I've seen it used effectively...we'll see if I can master it @digitalrn as Rick thinks I possibly can! Thanks, friends!
Fun shot! This crystal ball seems ultra reflective, or maybe it was the light, but I also suspect that you were too close to it. When I first got mine it took me a while to get the hang of it. At first, I thought that I should be at a large aperture like f5.6 or larger to get the blurry background effect. Unfortunately, what that did was that it made most things in the ball blurry because of the proximity and the focus point. I have now found that an f8 aperture works great, and you get the blur regardless because of how close you are to the crystal ball vs the background. For my beach shot from yesterday I used f22 because I wanted the sun flare, and I still got a blurry background and a crystal clear shot in the ball. Have fun with it!
I did not have to buy one as I have had a crystal ball for a long time, but until I joined here I never thought to use it for photographs!
No problems with any critics as it is well intended and constructive.