My Kitty...

fadingaway1986 · Feb 27, 2004

Well, I got my second roll of photos developed from my SLR (actually - i did it myself, at work) and i am quite impressed by the improvement after that first roll... heres a couple of photos I took of my cat when I discovered how to change the aperture.

Let me know what you think - and tell me if theres anything I could have done better. (Keep in mind I was sitting in the garden)

Does anyone know how I can make him less shinny? I hate using flash on him, but it was an overcast day

Dew · Feb 29, 2004

the cat doesnt look to happy about being photographed :lol:

many photographers will tell you that an overcast day is ideal for shooting ... kinda like nature's "softbox" (artificial photographic lighting)

seem's like you photographed a "headshot" of your cat ... perhaps a "portrait" of him would set the mood in a more interesting way .... photograph him in more of his environment .. shoot some of the flowerbeds with the cat ... a different angle, than front and center ... dont be afraid to kneel on the ground to experiment more with the surrounding area ... perhaps try to get the full cat in the frame ... and try to avoid flash at all cost (unless its an external flash source)

the cat looks shiny because u used flash .. im not sure what time of day it was and what your lighting was like, but it appears to me that flash wasnt necessary (especially since it was a cloudy day and u didnt have to worry about fill-in flash)

keep working at it .. think portraits of your cat (surrounding mood/environment also) .. cat playing with a ball of yarn .. in the moment, undisturbed, watching a fish tank :lol:

.. getting in the neighbor's trash ... that "kodak" moment

cute kitty btw

fadingaway1986 · Feb 29, 2004

Hey. Thanks for that.

Unfortunately, my parents aren't 'flower people'... so we don't have any flower beds... and my cat isn't a 'ball of wool' cat... The flash was necessary, I took a few other photos on the same day and they came out not looking the greatest. It was a real shame they didn't turn out, because they were great shots. I found that those ones look a little bit better in black and white...

My mum actually commented on how he felt about being photographed... See, when I go out on the grass, he comes running up - no matter where he has been - the minute he realises you're there, he joins you... So this day I had my camera (with all intentions of taking photos of him) and I went down to one end and was going to take a photo... But I was too busy trying to focus it and he got really close... So I moved further away, and he sat down and looked at me... And the minute i put my camera down, he came the rest of the way to me. When I put my camera down, I realised my mum was watching, and she said "that was just amazing - he looked like he was posing for you!"

Point being:- I'm not sure if he wasn't happy about the situation, or if he heard something (likely birds - there are lots of trees around here).

Anyhow - thanks for the comments... I'll try and keep them in mind when i get a chance to get him outside.... By the way - would you say morning or afternoon is best for taking photos?

Thanks (I have to get going because I have to be up early to go to work).

See ya later,
Alecia

Dew · Feb 29, 2004

best time for shooting is about one after sunrise and one hour before sunset .. the "magic hour"

... however, you can photograph any time of the day when u get more comfortable ... even at night

perhaps u can try shooting him indoors? .... i envisioned the cat in the window, looking out ... window in full frame about 30 mins before sunset ... its almost getting dark outside, a little light coming in ... his back is towards you .... just to give u some ideas

... if you're really into it, stalk the cat for a while (about 30 mins or longer) to see what the cat is up too ... if he stands to watch u, hide the camera, most likly he's curious about it ... pretend like you're not paying attention :lol: