HAVE FUN!!!

Some morning soon, take your camera, walk around your neighborhood and shoot whatever

LARRY ELKINS FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY

YOU CAN VIEW MY PHOTOGRAPHY AT elkinsphotos.com. ENJOY. LARRY ELKINS

DYNAMIC DIAGONALS

Today, I'm going to cover a basic photographic rule of composition that is often overlooked. That is the rule of diagonals. Diagonal elements in your composition will tend to impart a dynamic quality to your images. Diagonals in landscapes, for instance, will lead your eye through the scene. Horizontal and vertical elements usually lack this quality. I took a photo of railroad tracks several years ago in which the tracks led the eye from the lower left corner of the image to the upper right corner. To add to the feeling of depth, I composed the photo so that the tracks almost met at a vanishing point in the distance. As you view the image, you have the feeling that you could literally walk through the photograph and arrive at the vanishing point. Whether it be a road, a stream or the shoreline of a beach scene, a strong diagonal element will add punch to your image.

WHERE HAS ALL THE FILM GONE - PART 2

The late Herbert Keppler, a man renowned for his extensive knowledge of all things photography, stated in his column in the Sept. 2007 issue of Popular Photography & Imaging that film was in no danger of disappearing. As he put it, "...(there's no danger that) we duffers are going to fade away...clutching the last rolls of Kodachrome to our breasts". And yet, a scant two years later, Kodachrome is as extinct as the dodo bird. In June of 2009, Kodak ceased production of Kodachrome. The truth is, film is on its way to becoming an alternative photographic process. That probably won't happen tomorrow, but it well might in the next decade. As they say, "Life moves on".

THE GOLDEN HOUR

In photography, the term the golden hour refers to the hour following sunrise and the hour preceding sunset. These two times of each day are considered to be quite special by many photographers. One of the two major effects of the golden hour relates to the angle at which light hits objects as well as the angle at which the light strikes the earth itself. During the golden hour, light travels almost horizontally across the lanscape. This creates pronounced shadows. The effect can be quite advantageous, particularly when shooting landscapes. The second major effect of the golden hour is the warm color temperature that exists at this particular time of day. It is from this warm, richly hued palette that the term golden hour is derived. Shoot during the golden hour and you will be rewarded with a singular beauty that is worth waiting for. It is also worth getting up early for, though you might not think so as you're listening to your alarm clock's shrill wail at 4:30 in the morning. Visit the ;Journey Through Ecuador gallery page on my website http://www.elkinsphotos,com and take a look at my photo of an Ecuadoran boy playing kickball on the beach just as the sun is setting over the Pacific. Imagine how different this shot would be had it been taken at high noon.