Okay, folks, Week 6 – Backlighting at Night! This was a difficult week and it being cold here was NO help. (Yeah, I know, SC does not get cold, really – but understand me. I dislike anything below 75. And I can get chills even then.) So it was in the mid 40s today, windy, and drizzling to boot. Perfect weather for catching cold. But I don’t want to give up on this challenge over cold weather! Actually, I tried to do the backlit photos indoors. My husband and I took them last night. Maybe I’m just not any good at editing this type of photo, or maybe I’m just not good at taking this type of photo. Whatever it is, I still had fun TRYING to accomplish, well, the challenge for this week.
I decided to go to a Christmas Tree lot to do the photos with the kids. I was astonished at the rates I saw for the trees. In fact, I don’t recall seeing a tree priced above the $50 range (and based on what I have seen other lots charge, they could have sold their trees for much more)! We got one while we were there….a full, 6′ to 6.5′ tall fir for only $35!!! We met three of the workers who are down from NC and one of them actually is a Smith from my husband’s home town! If you are in the NE Columbia area and still haven’t got yourself a Christmas Tree, you need to swing by Sugar Mountain Christmas Trees, located at Clemson University Sandhill Research and Education Center across from Village at Sandhill on Clemson Rd. and tell them LemonShine Photography sent ya’ (not that it would get you a discount but just to let them know I appreciate the use of their beautiful tree lot for the pictures).
It took longer than I anticipated figuring out the correct settings for the image and getting an image that made me happy enough to try a different shot. Getting the focus properly set was difficult to do in the dark. It was wet and windy. And the backlight often created hotspots. I’m SO grateful my husband was willing to come along. I would never have got an image that made me smile if he hadn’t been there to help. He is a self taught videographer and I’m always amazed by the videos he puts out. His work in this area has been an invaluable resource to me and served me well tonight. Not to mention his sense of humor. He can make me laugh in ANY circumstance! Sort of like he did here:
We took lots of pictures and everyone was cold. But my favorite shot came after I thought I’d got what I was gonna use for the challenge. My husband and I had been flirting with each other for most of the day and through the shoot. So when the shoot was done, we decided to get in front of the camera, too. This is what we came up with:
None of the images are exactly what I would have liked to get. I wanted something like what Dina Haggerty Photography got for the challenge. But I can’t compare my work with what others, who probably have more experience, have achieved – that would just get me down; Dina’s images are an example for me to attain to until I accomplish that goal – I guess I’ll just have to keep practicing! LOL 😀
Here are a few more pictures I got tonight:
Let me know if you’re in my area and get a tree from Sugar Mountain Christmas Trees!
~Katie