Sepia tones, beautiful ideas for prints on your walls

Sepia tones, beautiful ideas for prints on your walls

Birds on wires

Sepia tones are warm, comforting and add an old vintage feel to the image. Personally I really like them and have a few around my house. I have found an interesting site that looks into the history of the sepia image. Read here

It’s quite an extensive, informative article well worth reading if you have a spare moment or two.

I was at IKEA last week and their decorating style can be quite charming. I noticed quite a few sepia prints on their walls and it got my mind buzzing. So I dashed home and created these images below. 

I use Silver Effex for my editing. They have a a few sepia presets which I try and then chose the one that best suits the image. A sepia preset is often the best way to get that actual tone. Snapseed and Lightroom have a few sepia presets. However I have tried achieving it manually in Lightroom using the colour slider and adding yellow then desaturating the image a bit….but was not happy with the result.

I prefer a soft outline so do not go overboard with the structure tool.

Some of the prints below you can purchase on my Bluethumb shop. Just click the icon at the bottom of this page and you can browse through my photographic prints for sale. 

I hope you enjoy the images.

 

Gallery

5 Great photo ideas using the colour pink

5 Great photo ideas using the colour pink

Pink snow and sunset

 Pink

is a combination of red and white, and sometimes soft hues of orange. Red is one of the primary colours and very bright and stimulating, hence the addition of white produces a soft and warm shade which appeals to our feminine side. However even men have a feminine side and can appreciate the beauty of pink!!

Pink is calm and soft and warm. A predominant shade when the sun sets and when the sun rises, pink is often spell binding in its ability to lighten and soften our thought patterns.

Here are some ideas on how to get the best out of your photography incorporating the colour pink.

 

1. Sunset. I regularly see people gather in various locations to view a sunset. Why because of its beauty and no doubt its tendency to calm and soothe us. A sunset is a great opportunity to visit your favorite photography locations and experiment with settings as the sun goes down. I have learnt to slow my shutter speed as the sun gets lower in the sky.

2. Sunrise is not so frequented by the crowds, perhaps because they are still sleeping. A sunrise has a sharper and crisper element to it, whereas a sunset is more musky and muted. Sunrise does require you to get up early but when I visit the mountains I am never disappointed. So get up early and take a stroll to a good spot to sit and watch the morning light. I am not good at using a tripod, but I do for early morning shots.

3. Pink is often associated with babies, children, girls and clothing and rooms. watch out for shades of pink in homes, and clothing.  And as I said before don’t exclude men, Rick Stein a TV food presenter very often wears a pink shirt and it looks great!

4. Most times in a setting sun I will actually not photograph the sun but will turn in the exact opposite direction and photograph from this angle. In fact most of my shots below are of this type of shot. The pinks are vivid and and slowly turn to a purply blue shade. Timing is critical so be in your location at least an hour to 30 mins before the sun sets.

5. Try slowing your camera shutter speed down to create an even softer effect. Practise and practise again. I constantly check my shots in the view finder and then make any alterations to my camera settings.

 

CHECK THIS OUT a great article by Lisa Michelle Burns on how to achieve those pastel shades in your landscape photography.

Enjoy the evening hues when you next view the heavens as the sun is setting.

Girl on a pink sandy hill
5 ways to photograph fog.

5 ways to photograph fog.

Fog on the jetty

Fog…a moment in time when one cannot see what’s right in front of you.

Fog adds a dimension of ethereal beauty to our world. What was so obvious the day before is now enshrouded in mystery. For a photographer it is a wonderful opportunity to gaze upon a landscape that is out of focus, magical and vaporous.

One particular morning last week I got up early and photographed the fog lingering along the shoreline. As the sun rose the colours turned from dark grey to pink, then to orange then back to pink, then a purple blue. 

Minimal imagery, which I love, is ideally suited to foggy days.The fog limits any background objects and adds a hazy, watery feel to the picture.

A few quotes about fog:

 

Fog stimulates your imagination into places where it may be afraid to go.

The fog always lifts.

You may not see clearly in the fog, but rest assured peace can be found simply enjoying its beauty. 

Sometimes when you lose your way in the fog, you end up in a beautiful place.Dont be afraid of getting lost. (Author, Mehetmet Ildan)

Points on how to take a good photograph on a foggy day.

1. If you dont want just one big haze you must put a relatively close and clearer object in the foreground. In the image below I placed the begining of the jetty in my foreground.

Birds on the jetty

2. Chose a brighter object in the middle of the fog.  

This can really make the fog stand out. In the image below the sun started to rise and made a perfect scene.

Foggy morning
Sunrise on a foggy morning

3. Chose a darker object that is standing out in the fog.

Seagull on a foggy morning
Two sea birds in the fog
Trees in the fog

4. Find a point of interest to include in your image.

This yacht (below) just caught the morning sun and looked beautiful in the quiet of the morning.

Yacht in the fog.

5. Be patient and walk as far and wide as you can.

The fog changes very quickly as it moves and then is absorbed by the sun. You can get some very interesting images. In my images below I watched and took photos of a fishing boat departing.

Fishing boat in the fog
Fishing boat in the fog
Misty morning
Tree top in fog
Sea bird flying in fog

Minimal is probably the concept that comes to mind when photographing fog.  

Remember to adjust your settings to gather in a bit more light.

Lower shutter speed for darker scenes and a higher iso.

But you may need a tripod for those early morning shots. 

For more information on fog photography CHECK THIS OUT

6 great photo ideas using the colour yellow

6 great photo ideas using the colour yellow

tree in yellow canola field

Yellow the brightest colour in the spectrum.

Fun, stimulating and picturesque, not really the colour one would paint a whole house in. But touches here and there add a vibrant and happy feel to a home. Here are a few thoughts on what to photograph and how to photograph the colour yellow.

1. It’s a magnificent sight to drive along a country road and behold an enormous yellow field. Nothing quite like it! If you live in the country or near some farmland, do take the opportunity to drive and photograph some fields. I don’t put myself into a farmers canola field any more for a selfie, I prefer to be on the edge of the field. I have learnt they work hard and dont need people tramping through their fields.

2. I usually photograph canola fields on a cloudy day. This is just my preference because I prefer the combination of yellow and grey to yellow and sky blue. So chose your weather conditions depending on what you would like to photograph.

3. Yellow cars or scooters are great to photograph, make sure you have your camera with you when navigating the city or when you take a drive on the beach. Use a fast shutter speed if you do not wish to capture any movement.

4. I like a touch of yellow in my home, my yellow linen duvet cover is lovely to photograph… and lovely to sleep in.

5. I do find yellow, maybe a car, maybe a church spire. maybe a yellow dress a very inspirational colour. However too much and it is a little blinding and over powering, as they say..”Everything in moderation.”

6. Yellow is not a common colour in our landscape so in some of my images I have edited them to show a more vibrant yellow colour.

Have fun.

Gallery

Setting sun over Kaikoura mountains
Black and white images of our coastline

Black and white images of our coastline

 

Black and white images stand out as being simple and yet bold.

Two basic colours at the end of the spectrum provide room for our imaginations. Two extremes of light and dark with many shades of grey in between. It’s perhaps the shades of grey that provide the connections between the black and white. This makes it easier for our eye to roam around the image, appreciating the variations.

I have been experimenting and making some of my black and whites lighter. Not so much contrast. I enjoy doing this type of editing although I think it may not be so good for framed images on your wall. It could look a bit bland and monotone.

 

pink sunset and a distant lighthouse
pink sunset and a distant lighthouse
Big waves and distant lighthouse
black-and-white -simplicity
Seagulls resting
sailing boat and waves
Seabird flying over seaweed
Two yachts
Moon over ocean in black and white
Lighthouse in black and white
Girl fishing in black and white

Me fishing off the back of our boat. Gotta love a striped T shirt in black and white photos.

Black and white is timeless, unique and helps the viewer focus on tones, patterns, lines and texture instead of colour. Black and white is always a favorite of mine.

 

Beach House

The beach house, a dream coming true.

In the last few years we have found ourselves on an endless quest in search of a place to live, a place that belongs to our heart and gives us peace, happiness and quiet.   We believe we may have found this perfect spot, a place beside the ocean, a place with...

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|Jul 22, 2022

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Yellow canola

Canola fields are here again

The canola fields of South Australia are quite spectacular. Yellow being the brightest visible colour in the spectrum make these fields an eye catching sight. The colour yellow is uplifting and joyous, but is also calming and relaxing. I find these farmers fields...

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|Sep 28, 2022

Photographing surfing, (what not to do.)

Photographing surfing, (what not to do.)

Surfer in a wave

We have a beach house at the bottom end of Yorke Peninsula and as I have mentioned in my other blogs, we have been frequenting these beaches in this area for many years.

It’s always been all about the surfing. Right from the beginning when my children were little we had to choose a holiday destination that had waves. At the tip of Yorke Peninsula, the various beaches around the peninsula are known for their great surfing waves. Consequently over the years we grew to love all these spots.

My love for photography also grew over the years and one of the most challenging aspects, was the capturing of fast moving bodies on a wave. However as was my custom, time and time again while waiting for one of them to catch a wave, my thoughts and the direction of my camera would drift off to survey the sights. A bird, a yacht, a beautiful cloud, some sun bathers, what ever it was, inevitably I would miss the golden shot.

That evening while viewing the photographs of the day, I would be reprimanded… “Oh my goodness, she’s done it again, photographed a bird instead of my tube!!”

 

I have learnt to focus my entire attention on endlessly watching the waves and the surfers. It can give you a bit of eye strain keeping focused on distant objects on a bright sunny day, However, good sunnies and a sunhat go a long way in saving the day. And when you catch that magic shot it is well worth the wait.

 

Huge waves to surf
Orange surf board
Waves and surfer
Surfer and green ocean wave
Huge wave
Surfers
Surfer and jet ski
Surfer and jet ski
Surfing with a jet ski
Surfer
Seaweed and surfer
Yacht
Seagull in sepia
Surfer
Surfer walking