Apr 11 - I for ISO #AtoZChallenger

I for ISO. ISO is one of the elements of exposure triangle. ISO stands of International Standards Organization, which sets the sensitivity of sensors on digital camera. Sensitivity of the image sensor depends on the ISO number and smaller the number, less sensitive the sensor is. The lowest number is 100 and it could go up as high as infinity. The highest ISO on a camera varies from camera to camera.

The rule of thumb is to keep the ISO low but in low light conditions, in indoor sporting events and in low light conditions when the photo is taken with out a tripod, ISO comes to recuse to well expose the photo. Also, ISO is used when freezing time/motion because the shutter is fast, resulting in less light going into camera. In such cases wider aperture and/or ISO are adjusted to well expose the photo. The drawback of high ISO is that the photo gets noisy as the ISO increases. One must have noticed, often times night pictures usually tend to have a grainy finish. That is the noise due to high ISO.

Today's photo was in a subway station where lighting was low. I didn't have a tripod and had to use a fast shutter to avoid a shake. ISO came to my rescue. Settings of the photo - ISO 12800 (very high ISO number), Shutter Speed - 1/100sec, Aperture - f/2.8. Here are high ISO pictures from the archives.

Camera: Sony Mark 3 RX100
Picture of the day in 2013: Flowers
Picture of the day in 2012: Hallway
Picture of the day in 2011: Cherry blossoms

Apr 8 - G for Ghost #AtoZChallenge

G for ghosts. I am not a ghost and I can not see ghosts nor do I have any supernatural powers to capture ghosts in my camera! People in the picture are real. It is a camera trick to capture blurred images of walking people to get the ghost effect. The technique is to use a slow shutter speed and I would recommend trying this trick in the evening or in low light settings to get a better effect. I assumed lighting on a cloudy day should give me a decent blur without overexposing the scene. I was restricted by my camera's capabilities. I used shutter speed 1.3 seconds and chose the narrowest lens opening the camera let me, yet the photo was bright and slightly over exposed. I shot in manual mode with shutter speed - 1.3 seconds, aperture - f/16 and ISO 100.

Camera: Nikon 5100
Picture of the day in 2013: Flowers
Picture of the day in 2012: What would you open
Picture of the day in 2011: Irresistible indulgences

Apr 4 - C for Candid #AtoZChallenge

C for candid photography. Candid photography is taking unposed photos of people. These are informal photos where the subject is unaware they are being photographed. Candid photos capture some amazing emotions and expressions of people, as they are natural.

Some tips when taking candid photographs are keeping the camera at hip level. This doesn't alert the subject resulting in natural poses and second, this angle gives some interesting photos. Always keep the camera ready to shoot and wait for the that special moment to capture it. Always take multiple images or shoot in burst mode. Recommended lens is telephoto lens or zoom in if using a point and shoot camera.

I am very uncomfortable taking candid photos of strangers and that too posting on a blog. The best subjects for this photography are family and friends as they would not mind you taking there candid shots. Candid photography is quite popular during weddings and special events. Some people hire two sets of photographers; one for formal photos and other for informal or candid photos.

Camera: Sony Mark 3 RX 100
Picture of the day in 2013: Bridges
Picture of the day in 2012: Industrial
Picture of the day in 2011: Random click: flowers

May 12 - Candid Photo

This is a candid photo taken yesterday evening in Central Park. Whoever these three people are, thank you for unknowingly being my models.
Camera: Sony RX 100 iii
Picture of the day in 2015: Flora
Picture of the day in 2012: From the hip
Picture of the day in 2011: Shopping cart
Picture of the day in 2010: Foggy & rainy day

Apr 29 - Day 119 - Street Photography: Snack Time

Camera: Sony RX 100
Picture of the day in 2012: Speed
Picture of the day in 2011: Tandoor oven
Picture of the day in 2010: Train ride

Week # 33 / 3 - Portrait

Camera: Nikon D5100
Picture of the day in 2012: Catch up day - Brown
Picture of the day in 2011: H for handbag
Picture of the day in 2010: On my way to Hyderabad

Week # 33 / 2 - Portrait

This is Lachi, Kondayya's wife.
Camera: iPhone
Picture of the day in 2012: Catch up day - Orange
Picture of the day in 2011: G for Gloomy Weather
Picture of the day in 2010: Flower

Week # 33 / 1 - Portrait

This is Kondayya, one of my late maternal grandfather's loyal employees in the village. He came to see us when he came to know we were in the village.
Camera: Nikon D5100
Picture of the day in 2012: Catch up day - Orange
Picture of the day in 2011: G for Gloomy Weather
Picture of the day in 2010: Flower

Week # 20 / 2 - People

This week's theme is quite challenging for me. The theme is people and I am a not comfortable taking pictures of strangers. This is a good theme to come out of my comfort zone and take pictures of strangers. Today I went to the park and walked around to take some pictures.  I wasn't doing good at all.  After almost 30 minutes in the park, I did not approach any stranger for a photo.  Then this young man came up to me and asked if I would take a few pictures of his. I did and then I asked him if he I could take his picture for my photo blog.  He agreed.    Thanks to him, this is my first non-candid picture of a stranger!
Location: Central Park
Picture of the day in 2012: Ring
Picture of the day in 2011: Another cloudy foggy day
Picture of the day in 2010: Bee & flowers

Week # 20 / 1 - People

Location: Central Park
Picture of the day in 2012: Ring
Picture of the day in 2011: Another cloudy foggy day
Picture of the day in 2010: Bee & flowers