The Van Wert County Courthouse

Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024

Hold that pose, Mr. Eggplant

By Rex Dolby

The Wassenberg Camera Club will be meeting Thursday, August 8 at 7 p.m. at the Wassenberg Art Center, 643 S. Washington St, Van Wert. “Vegetables” will be the competition theme in prints and slides that evening.

You might ask, “How do I go about photographing vegetables?” Some good places to find ideas are in a cookbook, seed catalog, or possibly on a menu. Basically, it is a still life photo with vegetables being the subject matter.

You’ll want to select fresh pieces for vibrant color. A spritz of water or a wipe of lemon juice may help the color to last longer. Use a color chart, if needed, to select vegetables that look good together, but don’t possibly suggest a season. (Red and green peppers only for example)

Try to use natural light, such as that by a window, reducing glare on the surfaces. A flash unit may wash them out from too much light. Since the amount of light coming in a window is not as bright, you’ll need a slower shutter speed to gather the most light and smaller lens opening to increase the depth of field. The choice of lens and opening will depend on the size of the grouping to be photographed. Remember, as you move from a wide-angle lens, to normal, to telephoto, the field of view and depth of field decreases. A tripod becomes necessary when attempting to capture maximum depth of field in low light. Using the self-timer will reduce the chances of camera shake. Try different ways to arrange the pieces as well as angles to shoot the setup. This will help to provide the best final results.

One good thing, after all that hard work, you may have some of the ingredients for a good dish or maybe a snack later.

POSTED: 07/31/13 at 12:43 pm. FILED UNDER: Camera Club News