[Zephos]

Okay, I was out playing with my new DA35 this morning and I couldn't go far from my front door because my toddler was sleeping inside. I had a hard time finding subject matter that was truly interesting. I took some photos from different perspectives and tried a few things but my subjects were all things I've photographed a million times like bark on a tree, leaves, grass, snow, more leaves, more grass, etc etc.

I once encountered a fellow photog at a park who carried around a mason jar as a subject for her photos. I am thinking about doing something similar and thought it would be fun to ask for suggestions and see what other people carry/ bring with them for such things.

Feel free to share pics!

[bertwert]

I am thinking about doing something similar and thought it would be fun to ask for suggestions and see what other people carry/ bring with them for such things.

My cat... I don't even need to carry it - it walks!

[Zephos]

Nice. I don't have a cat, but doesn't your portfolio fill up with nothing but cat pictures lol! I take a lot of pictures of my daughter but I want to have some variety haha

[bertwert]

If you have a Macro lens, you can find subjects anywhere...

[robgski]

I can appreciate the sentiment, especially if you are housebound. The good news is, desperation can lead to inspiration! If you get over the idea of a perfect subject and a perfect shot, you might be willing to try anything, just to satisfy getting at least one picture a day, or in every location, etc.

For props, I have a few glass objects, like clear and colored bottles, prismatic crystals from an old chandelier, and a hummingbird feeder made of green and red glass. When I'm stuck for ideas, I try and think of a new way to capture one of them.


Look out your window, walk around your house, or your neighborhood. Does anything catch your eye? Think about why it does, try to capture that. You have a toddler, they find everything interesting, it's all new to them. Try looking at things with that mindset. Photography is great because it allows us to capture what we see, but also what we don't see. Put your camera by the sink with a high shutterspeed, try to catch water from that dripping faucet. Do people pass by your windows, or cars? Try a long exposure, or multiple exposure to capture them, or blur them. Does light shine through your windows and change position and intensity over the course of the day? put down a bottle, or an opaque object and like at the shadows, light, reflections, etc.

Throw some birdseed or bread crumbs out, birds are always fun subjects, especially when you try different shutterspeeds.

If you are interested: I have many pictures in my Pentax Forum robgski's Albums - PentaxForums.com

I just signed up for Flickr in Nvemeber, so I have a few recurring props, if you would like to take a look:

[Aaron28]

mason jar as a subject for her photos

I have seen some neat stuff with reflections through water of vases........can't find an example but whatever the 'scene' was captured in the water of the vase

[TinaS]

I have the same issue with having already taken pictures of everything around my house a million times. I'm thinking of using toys as props. I think I'll have a doll as my go to model, but maybe use a toy truck or dinosaur for some situations. I'll probably be doing some of that this weekend. If you have a toddler, I bet you can find some props in the toy box.

[Aaron28]

an example
reflections through vases - Bing images

[TinaS]

an example
reflections through vases - Bing images

Oh, that's a good idea.

[Zephos]

If you have a Macro lens, you can find subjects anywhere...

Yeah... I love macro photography but the only methods available to me don't produce quality results. Still drooling over the 100mm macro but I think I will get some auto-extension tubes eventually.

---------- Post added 01-15-16 at 04:55 PM ----------

an example
reflections through vases - Bing images

That's cool. I think I'll try it.

[robgski]

Example of My favorite Prop:
[IMG][/IMG]

[murrelet]

Overused, I know, but I still like action figures or Lego minifigs

[Zephos]

Example of My favorite Prop:
[/url][/IMG]

Looks cool, but what is it exactly?

[robgski]

Looks cool, but what is it exactly?

It's a glass hummingbird feeder, on a glass table, lit from below. I did more processing on it than usual to try and boost the contrast.

[BigMackCam]

Okay, I was out playing with my new DA35 this morning and I couldn't go far from my front door because my toddler was sleeping inside. I had a hard time finding subject matter that was truly interesting. I took some photos from different perspectives and tried a few things but my subjects were all things I've photographed a million times like bark on a tree, leaves, grass, snow, more leaves, more grass, etc etc.

I once encountered a fellow photog at a park who carried around a mason jar as a subject for her photos. I am thinking about doing something similar and thought it would be fun to ask for suggestions and see what other people carry/ bring with them for such things.

Feel free to share pics!

All of the following shots were taken for the "Single in December" challenge. Mostly, I shoot with my K3 & K5, but on this occasion I used my Q7 with a cheap 35mm CCTV lens (frankly, a dreadful bit of glass if ever there was one!!). All of these shots were taken indoors, at the end of my kitchen dining area, as the weather here was terrible during December. My point is that you only need to look around for some nearby objects, or anything else you have to hand (such as yourself!) and think how you can exploit these things to give new and novel images. I don't pretend that any of these is a great photo, and they may not be your kind of thing, but they're all fun and gave me something to photograph. If I'd been using my K3 and a decent lens such as the DA35 you mention, I'd have come up with equally interesting compositions and better overall quality

Prop: My hand


Prop: My head


Prop: A flashlight against black card


Prop: My face


Prop: An (UNLOADED) air pistol and my Mum's hand!


Prop: A replica horse-riding spur


Prop: A razor blade


Prop: My Manfrotto LED hotshoe lamp


Prop: A Christmas-tree ornament, rendered in shadow using the same flashlight as mentioned earlier, against white card


Prop: A prescription pill against black card


Prop: An acoustic guitar


Prop: A £5 British bank note