A Walkabout with a Camera

There are certain expressions from other countries, I being from Canada, that I just enjoy. The Australians have many unique words and one of these is “a walkabout” which just suits perfectly as a photographic creative technique.

Trying to expand your photographic style or shooting modes can be challenging at times. It is only when I enter the unknown that both my technical and compositional skills will improve. I may not always be able to capture stunning shots, but I do learn from these endeavours.

Taking a walkabout either in city neighbourhood or within a specific landscape locale, with the specific goal of shooting at least dozen shots no matter what you encounter, is just plain good for the creative soul.

These image are from the downtown area of Ottawa and a little towards the canal where homes can be found.

I just love the graphic lines created by this building. In the full size image it is easier to make out the brick details on the dark sides.









Since this was early afternoon and with a bright sky it was difficult to capture the full tonal range in one image I therefore used a High Dynamic Range (HDR) technique to blend 2 shots together to create the final image. One for the highlights and the other to bring out the shadows. This was actually done in RAW mode where I adjusted the exposure for each as I was able to recover these extreme end ranges.



Below is the mask used to blend images together.







Below is a detailed crop of the brick work, with the blue of the sky refelcted on some bricks. The detail shows up in the print (15x10") but it is hard to see on web sized image.



















The image below, as with a lot of large cities now, shows an older church being engulfed by the tall skyscrapers.

I decided to create a fall scene by use of selective colour changes. Not really sure which image I like better.


















The door image is from a store just as you are entering the Chinese section of town. It is great to people who are not afraid of bold colours as this gives you interesting photo opportunities.


















Along the walkabout I came across a vine covered wall with a small window. What caught my eye, was the varied reflections in the diagonal window panes and the slight tonal shifts in the green of the ivy.


















When looking at the next shot it is hard to believe that this is in the heart of a 1 million person city as it seems to convey a tranquil rural setting where you can sit on the porch with your pets and peruse the country side.




















Niels Henriksen



A Photographer's Adage


There is no art which affords less opportunity to execute expression than photography. Everything is concentrated in a few seconds, when after perhaps an hours seeking, waiting, and hesitation, the photographer sees the realization of his inward vision, and in that moment he has one advantage over most arts - his medium is swift enough to record his momentary inspiration. Right at the start I must confess that I have never met such a spontaneity of judgment in a man, who was a competent character reader, artist, and photographer in one person. -Sadakichi Hartmann

Reversing a 50mm lens for Macro work

I have a special fondness for the abstract and sometimes subtle tones created by macro photographs. Good macro lens can be expensive and if you have a good quality 50mm lens then by purchasing a reversing ring the lens can be used for macro photography by connecting the lens on backwards.


A reversing ring connects to the front of the lens were the filter normally goes and the other end of the ring has the appropriate adapter connection for the specific camera model.


In the photo below I like how the collection of petals creates an effect of waves crashing on a shore. I reduced the contrast to keep the image soft and flowing.





A reversed 50mm lens provides greater than 1:1 magnification but also requires you to be very close to the subject about ½ an inch. These types of macros are best suited to a studio type setup where you have better control of the environment than in the field.


This is a photo of Queens Anne Lace, a common weed, that I had placed in front of some red flowers to complement the green in the stalks.






It is very difficult because the very narrow DOF to either move the camera on a tripod or the subject for focus and I recommend that a focusing rail be used, which provides a dial to finely tune the focus distance.


These are the flower heads that were used for the background in the Queens Anne Lace image above.













A reversed lens does not provide any coupling information to camera and therefore you must manually adjust the f-stop ring for depth of Field and use the ev scale to adjust for proper exposure. The use of the histogram also helps to fine tune the tonal range.


These are the same flowers as above but are a slight variant and they both produce colourful dense flower head late summer and into fall.













The self-timer is also recommended to reduce any camera shake.


This is a tiny rose bud about an inch high just opening up.



















Niels Henriksen

A Photographer’s Adage

The second, third and fourth time you photograph something will produce more refined composition than the first time. These may or not be better photographs. You will never know, however, unless you make the second, third and fourth photographs. (Lens Work Issue #50 - anonymous)

Experimenting at the Experimental Farm

Normally my photography, when it comes to flowers, tends to be close-ups and macro shots. I like being able to isolate singular elements and with a shallow DOF I can get beautiful soft a colourful mosaic background patterns to complement the photo element.

The Experimental Farm in Ottawa has some very lovely flower gardens that provide unique and changing opportunities thought out the seasons to capture some of nature’s best without having you having to toil in the garden.

This time I wanted to change my approach somewhat and see if I could find lager areas that would lend then selves to some interesting compositions and also to try different approaches to composition.

In this first photo I wanted to capture the exquisite sea of yellow and at the same time have some visual anchors for interest.












I used the 2 main flower groups to give focus and provide for eye movement as you go up one side and down the other. When shooting bright saturated colours with digital cameras even when the histogram (luminous channel) shows no blown highlights there is still a tendency to clip one of the RGB channels. I always underexpose by 1/3 to ½ stop to make sure I have all the detail.

Even without the reduction in exposure these almost monochromic saturated colours tend to appear a little dark on the screen and not as vivid and bright as I remember. I apply a generous curve enhancement to lighten the mid-tones to give the image more visual punch, as with these image, high contrast is not a critical element.










I used the 2 main flower groups to give focus and provide for eye movement as you go up one side and down the other. When shooting bright saturated colours with digital cameras even when the histogram (luminous channel) shows no blown highlights there is still a tendency to clip one of the RGB channels. I always underexpose by 1/3 to ½ stop to make sure I have all the detail.

Even without the reduction in exposure these almost monochromic saturated colours tend to appear a little dark on the screen and not as vivid and bright as I remember. I apply a generous curve enhancement to lighten the mid-tones to give the image more visual punch, as with these image, high contrast is not a critical element.


















With the ornamental grasses I was trying to convey movement, which can be hard for a still photo. If everything is blurred because of movement and slower shutter speeds it becomes hard to find interesting focal elements. With fast speeds all become pin sharp but movement harder to detect.

In the above photo I used a shallower DOF to give the back grasses some blur and the appearance of movement and waited for the front grasses to be bent over to help support perception of wind.















But as always I cannot resist reverting sometime back to the close-up elements when you are surrounded but all the wonderful background colours.



Niels Henriksen



A Photographer’s Adage

The ongoing lengthily discussions between, which lenses, digital or film cameras, digital sensors, camera models or any kind of technology is almost a complete misuse of time. The perception that better technology will make better photographs is akin to saying bigger and faster cars make better drivers. Better photographers make better photographs. Technology and equipment is not the solution to producing great works of art, but with skill and vision, may assist with these goals. (Niels Henriksen)

Hogs Back Fall - Ottawa

Photography, while visually documenting the landscape or action in front of you, does provide you with many opportunities to creatively interpret this scene.













The use of different shutter speeds has the ability to change the perception and the emotions of an event.

The use of faster shutter speeds (1/60s) above, captures some of the high action and drama of waterfalls.

A longer shutter speed (1/20s below) can change the same location to a place of contemplation and introspection.














Hogs Back Falls is part of a small gorge along the Rideau River within the city of Ottawa. There is public access with fencing to both sides of gorge. There is also a set of locks nearby for boaters to bypass these falls.
This looking south, towards the sluice gates that re visual in the far background.

















In the Spring, when the Ottawa River is higher, this area is a raging torrent of water as the sluice gates are opened up to control rising water levels.
This photo is looking down the river towards downtown Ottawa.















With any place where there is water and pubic access, there is also the likelihood of finding people fishing.




















Niels Henriksen

Blue Hydrangea in Clay Bowl

While visiting friends, particularly those who enjoy plants, it can become an opportunity to capture some different shots of common plants in different settings and occasionally new types you might never have seen before. This is one of the reasons why I always pack my camera and tripod in the car when I head out.

The people I was visiting out in the country always have a great garden with lots of flowers and I was looking forward to some great shots. The lady of the house had picked a blue hydrangea and lay the flowers in a handmade clay bowl and set on the patio table. Since these were in the shade it gave me perfect lighting conditions in the afternoon sun.

I took several shots and while I like the image above I am not sure that it will be the final definitive shot. The final selection and any reworking normally happens months later when I go back and review the set as I may have different approaches to bring out detail elements.

As I turned around I noticed a collection of other plants that provided interesting compositional material. There was a flower with this brilliant orange petal and a black center. The orange colour was almost too bright to look at, as it seemed to glow. With the camera I could not catch the surreal orange vividness. Therefore in this shot I opted to bring out the details a little more. I noticed that when I converted to sRGB from aRGB that some of the orange was lost and I had increase the saturation a little as well as moving the hue a little to the red as the conversion had brought out more yellow.

There was this other interesting purple flower in a pot that with use of a shallow DOF I could bring out the soft patterns in the background.


















When you visit friends especially those who enjoy plants don’t forget to bring your camera and tripod.

Niels Henriksen