Shutter Sisters

the magic of macro

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Isn’t that sweet? These bug friends are giving each other piggy back rides! Er…wait…a…second…

If I ever find myself in a photography rut, or need a break from shooting portraits I can always find inspiration by taking some macro shots. It’s a nice change to focus on the tiny details in life whether they are beautiful, funny or strange (or a combination of all three!). Macro photography allows me to slow down and pay attention to my camera settings or composition a little more. 

Today, show us how you get up close and personal in your images. Express yourself!

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And in the spirit of self-expression, we’re giving away another copy of our new book Expressive Photography: a Shutter Sisters Guide to Shooting from the Heart. Just leave your comment here between now and Sunday at midnight EST for your chance to win!

Updated to add: YAY Cindy! You won the book! Woot!

a girl’s best friend

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There’s something special about the bond between friends. Whether it’s between people or animals, a rare friendship is something to remember. I felt privileged to witness this moment between a girl and her horse recently. The love between them is obvious and there is a mutual respect that we can all learn from.

If you have a photo that reflects the closeness of a unique friendship like this, please share them with us today.

happy accidents

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As photographers, we often don’t have control over our subject matter. Moving targets, such as children and animals don’t always give us the liberty to stop and compose an image exactly how we imagine. This sort of unpredictability lends itself to happy accidents. It’s always fun to download your images and find that one surprise image that makes you gasp with delight.

This shot of a busy farm cat was one of my recent happy accidents. I love the way he matches that gray and white gravel. Not to mention the few sprigs of grass that coordinate with his bright green eyes. I couldn’t have planned it better myself!

Please share your happy accidents with us.

nature lover

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Watching someone else (or in this case my cat) enjoy nature is often a big draw for me. I have taken pictures of my dad hiking, or my husband looking at wildflowers. It’s great to see others in their element. And it was no different the other day when our cat was allowed the rare opportunity to spend some time outside, soaking up the sun. We recently created a raised garden and added an area of flowers and grasses. The bees were buzzing around her and the scent of it all was enough to send her over the edge of happiness. I’m glad I was there to capture her moment of bliss.

Do you have a photo to share today of someone else enjoying the great outdoors?

All that glitters

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Sparkly things catch my eye. I don’t care whether it’s diamonds, shimmering water or broken glass. If it shines and glimmers, I am easily distracted and instantly intrigued. I’m not sure if this is due to gender or genetics, but it is certainly a trait that has been passed down to me by my mother (although her preference is for diamonds and rhinestones). Just try to get us through a department store without touching all the sparkly scarves while oohing and aahing over blinged out t-shirts. The more bedazzled the better.

So one recent summery morning I was immediately fascinated by these water droplets laced between the blades of grass in my lawn. All night long, spiders had been working on intricate webs in the grass. And then the morning dew came along and tiny drops of condensation formed in the nooks and crannies of their creations. The sun was shining at just the right height to light up the drops of water. Perfection. I grabbed my camera and macro lens and spent several minutes on my hands and knees in the wet grass. Now I have a photograph to check back on anytime I need a quick sparkle fix.

Please share your photos with us of anything that shines, sparkles, glimmers or shimmers. I know I’ll be oohing and aahing over here.

photo as art medium

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Lately I have been intrigued by the idea of using photographs as an art medium. Sometimes I get the undeniable itch to create something with my hands, something tangible and 3 dimentional. That spark is often ignited by a simple material or found item that begs to be used. But the truth is that I am most comfortable with photography these days. I’ve been out of practice in every other art medium for so long, and photography is currently my biggest inspiration. So rather than deny that fact, I recently asked myself: “how can I integrate photography into a painting or drawing?”

The result was messy and experimental. The end product was an accident and nothing like I had imagined. But I loved the process and surprisingly the piece itself. It all started with a thick piece of chipboard that came off the back of a little notebook. I had been eyeing it for days, wondering how I could use it. So I painted it while I thought about my options. Then I found a photograph from my archives of a grassy field under a blue sky filled with white puffy clouds. After digging through my bins of paper, I found a piece of semi transparent vellum and printed the photo on the paper. Next, on a seperated piece of vellum, I sketched a rickety barn (modeled after another of my photos) and layered it underneath the photo. Last I glued the two pieces onto the board and covered it with Mod Podge. I didn’t realize how the glue would warp the paper, but I kept going. The photo above doesn’t show how wrinkled and worn the paper looks. Somehow it just seems to fit with the subject matter and comliments the foggy imagery. If nothing else, the process was refreshing and allowed me to think about my photos in a different way.

I would encourage all of you to think of ways to experiment with your photographs as an art medium. Print them on unusual materials, cut them up, rip them and glue them. Hold them in your hands and let them speak to you. I think you will agree that the experience will awaken a part of you that may have been hiding.

father’s day photo card

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Each June, I head down the greeting card aisle and look for a Father’s Day card for my dad. But I rarely find one that “fits” him. He doesn’t love sports and lawn mowers. He’s not obsessed with tools and grilling (although he is handy and a great cook). And the funny cards don’t always fit his sense of humor. In the end, I often end up leaving the card aisle and going home to create my own hand made card for my dad. He always appreciates receiving something I created and it allows me to personalize it to his taste.

As photographers, we have art at our fingertips that easily allows us to make personalized greeting cards.  This year I created the above photo card for my dad and I’d love to share the Photoshop template with the entire Shutter Sisters community. The template allows you to insert your own photo, and I hope the design is basic enough that it will fit any dad.

Click HERE to download the card file.

new growth

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There’s nothing better than the color of new blades of grass in the spring. After months of a dry, brown yard, new grass growth can instantly change my mood. It evokes such a feeling of starting over and new life. Combine that with beautiful evening light and some bokeh and I’m in heaven. I love being able to capture a small part of that feeling in a photo. Photography has increased my sense of awareness in many aspects of life. But the details of a new season are always at the top of my list.

Do you have any uplifting spring photos to share?

elements of style

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If you ever watch TLC’s What Not to Wear, then you’ve heard Stacy and Clinton tell countless women to look for “color, texture, pattern and shine” to create stylish outfits. And although creating a trendy look is different than taking an interesting photo, some of the same principles apply. It’s about mixing contrasting colors and textures to draw attention to your subject. Not only can we be on the lookout for interesting textures, colors and patterns but unique perspectives and compositions. And when these elements are used sparingly, the results can be pretty eye-catching.

Do you have any examples of a photo that includes all or some of these elements of style (color, texture, pattern and shine)?

The flower button

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There are times when I’d rather not lug around my dSLR camera (most recently a weekend trip to Kansas City). On these occasions I just don’t want to be weighed down with a bulky camera but still want the option of capturing memories or interesting scenery. And that’s where my trusty point and shoot comes in handy. I have learned a few tricks along the way to help these photos seem like higher quality photos than they truly are. Of course, composition plays a large role in a successful photo, no matter how fancy your camera is. And learning to find the best lighting can take any photo to another level. But often, my favorite tool is the “flower button”. On my camera, this button is a small flower icon on the back of my camera right next to a mountain icon. I would imagine my camera’s manual would tell me the precise name for this function, but I prefer to call it the “flower button”. Its job is to act as sort of a macro lens by focusing on something in the foreground while providing a very shallow depth of field. It’s great for flowers, but I have also used it for portraits or architectural details, such as an iron fence. Most newer model point and shoot cameras will have a similar function, but it may have a different icon or be called “macro”. I am always surprised at how quickly that nice shallow depth of field can instantly transform a boring snapshot into a more striking image.

Do you have any tricks for having more control over the quality of your point and shoot photos? I’d love to add to my bag of tricks.