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**OrangeKx** · 06-19-2013, 11:42 AM

This post is dedicated to all of us who may have hinted at our lack of confidence or not measuring up in experience or gear to get "the shot" we're looking for. Well to all of those folks (myself included some times) let me say this... sometimes you just throw caution to the wind, fool around and see what happens. Digital film is free, who cares.

I was at my nieces high school graduation a week ago and when it was all over I held up my K-x (like the crazy people do at the end of a football game when everyone's crowding onto the field) and I got this. Let me tell you why this is such a great and very lucky shot. I wasn't even trying for a reflection pic, I was just going to take a picture of my son and didn't care what I got. Really I was just fooling around. I took it into my son's face and in his glasses you can see everyone who was there to see the graduation.. me, my parents, my bro-in-law and his mom, my sister and the Graduate (in the white framed sunglasses).

So just go for it... worked for me.

(BTW, did only very light adjustments in post with LR4: exposure, sharpening and cropped his mouth out.)

Pentax K-x with Tamron 28-105, 1/80 @ f/8.0, 43mm, ISO 100

Attached Images

scratchpaddy · 06-19-2013, 11:59 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by OrangeKx

sometimes you just throw caution to the wind, fool around and see what happens. Digital film is free, who cares.

I think this is some really good advice. While composition is important, it's also important not to get too tied up in the details. Maybe you have a technique that works really well, but what are you doing? You're taking the same picture over and over again. Sure, it's a good picture, but it's nothing new. Where's the excitement? Try something new!

I actually did a thread a few days ago that kind of relates to this. It started at the dog park. There's another guy that comes there and sometimes brings his Nikon (a D3, I think. A really nice one). One day, he tried just haphazardly holding the camera down low and shooting in burst, not even worrying about rotation, framing, or focus. He'd just put the focus a few meters away and shoot in burst mode while his dog ran towards him. He had a lot of fun, and the pictures were awesome!

I was inspired to try the same, though I admit I did try to keep the camera level with the ground. This is what I got:

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/post-your-photos/228277-pets-shot-foot.html

I know this isn't exactly what you're getting at. These pictures weren't exactly accidents, but I did have a lot of fun "throwing caution to the wind," as you say.

"Accidentally Awesome" is a great idea for a photo thread!

Nice shirt, by the way.

**Just1MoreDave** · 06-19-2013, 12:15 PM - **1 Like**

My dad taught us to hold the camera above our heads in crowds, BD (before digital). My older brother used to work as a photographer in TV news and amaze people with the same technique. He's 6'3" so it worked well.

stevebrot · 06-19-2013, 01:29 PM

Originally posted by OrangeKx

"Goofing Around" & "Lucky" as Techniques

Works for me...

Dave...I have used the camera-over-head technique before too. It is a little easier if you hold the camera upside down and work the shutter with the thumb.

Steve

**Kerrowdown** · 06-19-2013, 03:00 PM

Originally posted by OrangeKx

"Goofing Around" & "Lucky" as Techniques

Aye go for it, photography is supposed to be fun.

EarlVonTapia · 06-20-2013, 12:04 PM - **1 Like**

My two best shots were accidents. They were basically supposed to be test shots. It was only when I looked at them in Lightroom that I saw some potential.

One of them is now a 20" x 30" print.

"creative accidents" I call them.

**OrangeKx** · 07-16-2013, 05:58 PM

(I'll let you find it on your own)

But... another happy accident. We were at Glacier National Park (in Montana) driving up the Road To The Sun and near the top spotted a mountain goat just off the road. It was quite crowded with cars but my wife stopped the car briefly and I started shooting out the open window. I shot about 4-6 pics while the mt. goat moved from left to right. I didn't know what I had till I got home and found this surprise while running my pictures through LR4. I love it when luck happens (and it only happened once out of the 4-6 pics).

Attached Images

**Kerrowdown** · 07-17-2013, 01:44 PM - **1 Like**

There were playing hide and seek and you got lucky.

Paleo Pete · 07-18-2013, 07:19 AM

I had a friend in Louisiana who would put his Nikon on a monopod, hold it as high as he could and trigger it with a remote. He seemed to get some interesting shots that way, I've never tried it. I guess 2 or 12 second timer would work too...

RoxnDox · 07-18-2013, 02:17 PM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by Paleo Pete

I had a friend in Louisiana who would put his Nikon on a monopod, hold it as high as he could and trigger it with a remote. He seemed to get some interesting shots that way, I've never tried it. I guess 2 or 12 second timer would work too...

Works well, actually. Here is one from my K100D, 12 sec timer, stuck out over the edge of a cliff in Wisconsin on the end om my monopod. Just make sure you have good secure footing at the edge of the cliff first.

Jim

**JimJohnson** · 07-20-2013, 06:44 PM

Originally posted by Paleo Pete

I had a friend in Louisiana who would put his Nikon on a monopod, hold it as high as he could and trigger it with a remote. He seemed to get some interesting shots that way, I've never tried it. I guess 2 or 12 second timer would work too...

I did this not with my still camera, but with my video camera. I titled the foldout LCD panel down so I could see it, hit 'Record' and planted the monopod foot in my belt buckle. We were in a crowded public performance of a tango band in South America. The technique worked great - so great that I noticed a few locals joined me in watching the LCD monitor rather than try to fight through the crowd to a better viewing position.

EarlVonTapia · 07-22-2013, 04:41 PM

Originally posted by Paleo Pete

I had a friend in Louisiana who would put his Nikon on a monopod, hold it as high as he could and trigger it with a remote. He seemed to get some interesting shots that way, I've never tried it. I guess 2 or 12 second timer would work too...

The Q was basically made for that. Check out some of this guy's photography:

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-q/226360-kayak-aerial-photography-...-pentax-q.html

The intervalometer works great for that kind of purpose.

It doesn't have to be with a fisheye lens either. A normal lens held high can help correct some of the distortion when shooting at something like a house. Real estate photographers are apparently fond of this technique to get better pictures for their listings.

06-19-2013, 11:42 AM	#1
OrangeKx Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Vancouver, WA Photos: Gallery Posts: 817	"Goofing Around" & "Lucky" as Techniques This post is dedicated to all of us who may have hinted at our lack of confidence or not measuring up in experience or gear to get "the shot" we're looking for. Well to all of those folks (myself included some times) let me say this... sometimes you just throw caution to the wind, fool around and see what happens. Digital film is free, who cares. I was at my nieces high school graduation a week ago and when it was all over I held up my K-x (like the crazy people do at the end of a football game when everyone's crowding onto the field) and I got this. Let me tell you why this is such a great and very lucky shot. I wasn't even trying for a reflection pic, I was just going to take a picture of my son and didn't care what I got. Really I was just fooling around. I took it into my son's face and in his glasses you can see everyone who was there to see the graduation.. me, my parents, my bro-in-law and his mom, my sister and the Graduate (in the white framed sunglasses). So just go for it... worked for me. (BTW, did only very light adjustments in post with LR4: exposure, sharpening and cropped his mouth out.) Pentax K-x with Tamron 28-105, 1/80 @ f/8.0, 43mm, ISO 100 Attached Images

07-18-2013, 02:17 PM - 1 Like	#10
RoxnDox Pentaxian Join Date: May 2007 Location: Gig Harbor, Washington, USA, Terra Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 4,494	Originally posted by Paleo Pete I had a friend in Louisiana who would put his Nikon on a monopod, hold it as high as he could and trigger it with a remote. He seemed to get some interesting shots that way, I've never tried it. I guess 2 or 12 second timer would work too... Works well, actually. Here is one from my K100D, 12 sec timer, stuck out over the edge of a cliff in Wisconsin on the end om my monopod. Just make sure you have good secure footing at the edge of the cliff first. Jim Last edited by RoxnDox; 09-10-2013 at 06:06 PM.

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06-19-2013, 11:59 AM - 1 Like	#2
scratchpaddy Pentaxian Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Phoenix Posts: 3,361	Originally posted by OrangeKx sometimes you just throw caution to the wind, fool around and see what happens. Digital film is free, who cares. I think this is some really good advice. While composition is important, it's also important not to get too tied up in the details. Maybe you have a technique that works really well, but what are you doing? You're taking the same picture over and over again. Sure, it's a good picture, but it's nothing new. Where's the excitement? Try something new! I actually did a thread a few days ago that kind of relates to this. It started at the dog park. There's another guy that comes there and sometimes brings his Nikon (a D3, I think. A really nice one). One day, he tried just haphazardly holding the camera down low and shooting in burst, not even worrying about rotation, framing, or focus. He'd just put the focus a few meters away and shoot in burst mode while his dog ran towards him. He had a lot of fun, and the pictures were awesome! I was inspired to try the same, though I admit I did try to keep the camera level with the ground. This is what I got: https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/post-your-photos/228277-pets-shot-foot.html I know this isn't exactly what you're getting at. These pictures weren't exactly accidents, but I did have a lot of fun "throwing caution to the wind," as you say. "Accidentally Awesome" is a great idea for a photo thread! Nice shirt, by the way.

06-19-2013, 12:15 PM - 1 Like	#3
Just1MoreDave Site Supporter Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Aurora, CO Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,340	My dad taught us to hold the camera above our heads in crowds, BD (before digital). My older brother used to work as a photographer in TV news and amaze people with the same technique. He's 6'3" so it worked well.

06-19-2013, 01:29 PM	#4
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Originally posted by OrangeKx "Goofing Around" & "Lucky" as Techniques Works for me... Dave...I have used the camera-over-head technique before too. It is a little easier if you hold the camera upside down and work the shutter with the thumb. Steve

06-19-2013, 03:00 PM	#5
Kerrowdown PEG Moderator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Highlands of Scotland... "Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand" - William Blake Photos: Gallery Posts: 57,867	Originally posted by OrangeKx "Goofing Around" & "Lucky" as Techniques Aye go for it, photography is supposed to be fun.

06-20-2013, 12:04 PM - 1 Like	#6
EarlVonTapia Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Vancouver Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,207	My two best shots were accidents. They were basically supposed to be test shots. It was only when I looked at them in Lightroom that I saw some potential. One of them is now a 20" x 30" print. "creative accidents" I call them.

07-16-2013, 05:58 PM	#7
OrangeKx Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Vancouver, WA Photos: Gallery Posts: 817 Original Poster	(I'll let you find it on your own) But... another happy accident. We were at Glacier National Park (in Montana) driving up the Road To The Sun and near the top spotted a mountain goat just off the road. It was quite crowded with cars but my wife stopped the car briefly and I started shooting out the open window. I shot about 4-6 pics while the mt. goat moved from left to right. I didn't know what I had till I got home and found this surprise while running my pictures through LR4. I love it when luck happens (and it only happened once out of the 4-6 pics). Attached Images

07-17-2013, 01:44 PM - 1 Like	#8
Kerrowdown PEG Moderator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Highlands of Scotland... "Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand" - William Blake Photos: Gallery Posts: 57,867	There were playing hide and seek and you got lucky.

07-18-2013, 07:19 AM	#9
Paleo Pete Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Texas Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,880	I had a friend in Louisiana who would put his Nikon on a monopod, hold it as high as he could and trigger it with a remote. He seemed to get some interesting shots that way, I've never tried it. I guess 2 or 12 second timer would work too...

07-20-2013, 06:44 PM	#11
JimJohnson Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Summer:Lake Superior - Michigan Winter:Texas Hill Country Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,774	Originally posted by Paleo Pete I had a friend in Louisiana who would put his Nikon on a monopod, hold it as high as he could and trigger it with a remote. He seemed to get some interesting shots that way, I've never tried it. I guess 2 or 12 second timer would work too... I did this not with my still camera, but with my video camera. I titled the foldout LCD panel down so I could see it, hit 'Record' and planted the monopod foot in my belt buckle. We were in a crowded public performance of a tango band in South America. The technique worked great - so great that I noticed a few locals joined me in watching the LCD monitor rather than try to fight through the crowd to a better viewing position.

07-22-2013, 04:41 PM	#12
EarlVonTapia Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Vancouver Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,207	Originally posted by Paleo Pete I had a friend in Louisiana who would put his Nikon on a monopod, hold it as high as he could and trigger it with a remote. He seemed to get some interesting shots that way, I've never tried it. I guess 2 or 12 second timer would work too... The Q was basically made for that. Check out some of this guy's photography: https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-q/226360-kayak-aerial-photography-...-pentax-q.html The intervalometer works great for that kind of purpose. It doesn't have to be with a fisheye lens either. A normal lens held high can help correct some of the distortion when shooting at something like a house. Real estate photographers are apparently fond of this technique to get better pictures for their listings.