Making Tea - A Quick Slideshow

I was looking for something to photograph this evening, and decided to try out the new Teavana tea infuser that I got for Christmas. I set up a black cloth background, put the Nikon Df on iso 200 with my 28mm f2.8 lens and 3-stop ND filter. With this setup, at f16, I could leave the shutter open for minutes at a time without ambient light showing up in the pictures. I then proceeded to "paint" my subjects with a small flashlight, making images at various points in the tea making process.

 

Here's how it turned out:

 

Relaxing Holiday Tea, by Reed A. George

 

Just a little diversion for an afternoon. I learned a few things from this. First, I needed to be more careful about spots on the glass infuser. Second, I needed to pay close attention to the flashlight being directly reflected from the ceramic and glass surfaces. But, it's definitely something I could perfect in a second shooting, if I decided to. I see now why product photography is painstaking and difficult. But, it's actually pretty fun.

 

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In Photography as in Hunting, Sometimes it's Best to Stay Put

I know that there are a lot of similarities between photography and hunting. Take, for example, that both result in "shooting" your subject. I don't mean to carry that analogy further, but believe it's appropriate in this case. In working to photograph a particular subject, as in hunting, the photographer can choose to cover as much ground as possible, photographing what he/she sees along the way, or they can find a likely spot (not just any spot), and wait for the story or subject to come to them.

 

I've written about this picture before. (Click Here) to see my original post in the context of the project I was working on.

 

Goodbye My Friend, by Reed A. George

 

I shot this picture while attending the Magnum Days workshop in Provincetown, Massachussetts. (Click Here) to see the whole series of posts from the workshop.

 

I was hoping to photograph the end of summer in Ptown in a broad sense. I was struggling for how to do that more specifically. I found this summer bicycle rental shop, which was clearly wrapping up its season, and decided to stop and hang out. I met this very nice young man from Bulgaria, and just stayed around talking to him. I found out that he would leave for home the next day. Finally, after nearly moving on from there a couple of times, and getting hints from him that leaving would probably make him more comfortable as well, this nice lady from the neighborhood came over to say goodbye to him. There was my shot.

 

I just read an article on the NY Times' blog, Lens, about the same technique. (Click Here) to read how Fred Conrad used this technique, sitting on the roof of a building in Kosovo, to get his story.

 

This idea of finding a good location and waiting for a story is not new. In fact, I've read and heard it many times. But, like all good lessons for me, until I'm using it regularly and successfully, it's okay to be reminded of it. It's so easy to grab my camera and just start walking around, shooting what I see. Sometimes that's not the most productive approach.

 

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Going Up

Going Up, by Reed A. George

Leica IIIG, Summicron 50mm f2 Collapsible

 

I'm about to start making regular posts again.

 

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Sikh Pride, NYC

Sikh Pride, NYC, by Reed A. George

Leica IIIG, Summicron 50mm f2 Collapsible

 

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Street Photograph, NYC

Street Photograph, NYC, by Reed A. George

Leica IIIG, Summicron 50mm f2 Collapsible

 

I just really like all that's going on in this image. The pointing pair on the right, the paired smiles of the kid in the advertisement and the guy in glasses, the flag reflected in the glass.

 

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Happy New Year!

 

Happy New Year!

Holiday Trimmings, NYC, by Reed A. George

Leica IIIG, Summicron 50mm f2 Collapsible

 

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