photography Archives - Page 11 of 18

Published March 18, 2019 by avardw

Rediscovering the Nifty Fifty

Newport, Nova Scotia, 2019, 50 mm lens, nifty fifty, — Newport, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Recently I have been using only my 50 mm lens and it has brought about a significant change in how I take photos. Yes, I’m loving my nifty fifty! Two weeks ago when my trusty zoom lens bit the dust, I put on my seldom used 50 mm lens. It’s the only other lens I own, so the decision was out of necessity. See the blog post: Getting back to the 50 mm lens.

I was expecting it to be a compromise–I would use the lens for a few days, then buy another zoom lens. But the more I used the nifty fifty, the more I grew to love it. At first everything seemed too tight (I’m more used to the range of vision of a 35mm lens). I was presented with a narrower view and had to make the best with how to frame it. Then it became a challenge. I got used to how far I had to be away from a subject or scene to get optimal framing. It started to feel natural. Also, the lens is sharper than the zoom.

As there is no zoom to contend with, I can take photos more quickly and efficiently. In short, it’s a liberating experience. I notice different things and see the world in a new way. It takes me back to my days in Toronto doing street photography with a Rollei 35–a tiny camera with a fixed 40 mm lens. One camera, one lens. There’s something to be said for simplicity.

If you have a 50 mm lens that you never use, I urge you to give it a try. You may be surprised at the results. Here are some recent photos taken with the nifty fifty.

Halifax, Nova Scotia, 2019, 50 mm lens, nifty fifty, — Halifax, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Bedford, Nova Scotia, 2019, winter, snow, — Bedford, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Halifax, Nova Scotia, 2019, — Halifax, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Halifax, Nova Scotia, 2019, nifty fifty — Halifax, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Newport, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Newport, Nova Scotia, 2019, winter, snow, — Newport, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Blogging Photography Techniques

50 mm lens nifty fifty photography

Published March 10, 2019 by avardw

Toronto’s High Park in the 1980s

Grenadier Pond, High Park, Toronto, 1983, — Grenadier Pond, High Park, Toronto, 1983 – © Avard Woolaver

During my twenty years living in Toronto, I twice had an apartment near High Park. For a guy like me who grew up on a farm in Nova Scotia, the park was like an oasis–a refuge from the traffic and concrete of the city.

The area of the park is 400 acres, about a third of which is oak savannah – lightly forested grassland where oaks are the dominant trees. The photo below shows the savannah area in the fall.

I enjoyed High Park year round–jogging, cycling, skating, cross country skiing, baseball practice. And often I would carry a camera and take some photos. It was always fun to check out the animals at the little zoo, of have a meal at the Grenadier Restaurant. Some of my best memories were of watching plays in the summer. A highlight was John Gray’s Rock and Roll featuring the incomparable Frank MacKay. (MacKay died this past week–a much loved singer and actor in Nova Scotia.)

Here are a few photos of my wanderings in High Park in the 1980s.

High Park, Toronto, 1983, — High Park, Toronto, 1983 – © Avard Woolaver

High Park, Toronto, 1984, — High Park, Toronto, 1984 – © Avard Woolaver

High Park, Toronto, 1985, — High Park, Toronto, 1985 – © Avard Woolaver

High Park, Toronto, 1981 – © Avard Woolaver

High Park, Toronto, 1982, — High Park, Toronto, 1982 – © Avard Woolaver

Blogging Photography Toronto

film photography High Park photography Toronto

Published March 7, 2019 by avardw

Toronto streets in the 1980s

Dundas and Victoria, Toronto, 1982, Toronto streets, — Dundas and Victoria, Toronto, 1982 – © Avard Woolaver

I enjoyed capturing the Toronto streets in the 1980s. It was liberating to walk around with a camera and find that special moment when time and place come together. The time when the yellow van is stopped near the yellow hydrant, or when the boy is crossing Lake Devo on his BMX bike. The rhythm of the city was something I could feel, it was like listening to an urban symphony.

I was in my twenties then with few commitments or responsibilities. Life is much different now at 60, with a family, and living in rural Nova Scotia. I may never again have the opportunity to roam the Toronto streets with a camera like I did in the 1980s. It reminds me that life is short, and helps me remember, You only get to do this once. We have to take time and see it, as clearly as we can.

Photos in this post are from the book Toronto Days – available through Blurb Books and Amazon.

Lake Devo, Toronto, 1981, Toronto streets, — Lake Devo, Toronto, 1981 – © Avard Woolaver

Eastern Avenue, Toronto, 1983, Toronto streets, — Eastern Avenue, Toronto, 1983 – © Avard Woolaver

Dundas and Keele, Toronto, 1983, Toronto streets, — Dundas West and Keele, Toronto, 1983 – © Avard Woolaver

Yonge Street, Toronto, 1981 – © Avard Woolaver, Toronto streets, — Yonge Street, Toronto, 1985 – © Avard Woolaver

Queen and Bathurst, Toronto, 1983, Toronto streets, — Queen and Bathurst, Toronto, 1983 – © Avard Woolaver

Blogging Photography Toronto

1980s photography street photography Toronto Toronto streets

Published March 5, 2019 by avardw

Changing colour into black and white

Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, 2019, black and white, — Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Although I’m not a big fan of digital manipulation and do almost none to my images, I make an exception when I convert colour images to black and white. To my eye, some scenes just look better in monochrome.

I have always thought of black and white photography as an abstract medium and colour photography as a psychological medium. American photographer Elliott Erwitt said, “With colour you describe; with black and white you interpret.” So, there is more left to the imagination and perhaps more attention paid to graphic details.

When I first heard the version of Kodachrome on Simon and Garfunkel’s The Concert in Central Park, I realized that the lyrics had been changed from the original. According to Songfacts Simon sometimes sings the line “Everything looks worse in black and white” as “Everything looks better in black and white.” He changes it a lot, and claims he can’t remember which way he wrote it.” Neither is better, just a different view of the world.

I used to shoot my digital monochrome images using the b&w mode on my camera until I saw a documentary on Japanese photographer Daido Moriyama. He was going over images on the computer with his assistant and telling him which ones he wanted to be converted to black and white. I started shooting everything in colour and doing the conversions later–it leaves more options. If it’s good enough for Daido Moriyama, it’s good enough for me!

Here are some recent photos that I have converted.

Wentworth Creek, Nova Scotia, 2019, black and white, — Wentworth Creek, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Windsor, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Newport, Nova Scotia, 2019, black and white, — Newport, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Black and White Photography

black and white conversion monochrome photography

Published March 2, 2019 by avardw

Getting back to the 50 mm lens

Windsor, Nova Scotia, 2019, habit, 50 mm lens, — Windsor, Nova Scotia, 2019 – © Avard Woolaver

Photographers can be creatures of habit–returning to the same locations again and again, seeking out the same golden light, and even habitually using the same gear. But sometimes it’s good to change it up.

Yesterday my trusty kit zoom broke down. It’s practically the only lens I’ve used for the past several years. Its range is roughly 28mm – 85mm–convenient and versatile. I was forced to bring out my 50 mm lens that I use as a back up. It took me back to my early days doing street photography in Toronto using a Rollei 35S. That camera has a fixed 40mm lens.

The 50mm lens was the lens that came with SLR film cameras. Boomers will remember this well. Many people who didn’t get into photography seriously never used another lens. It is said to cover the visual range that the eye normally sees. Apparently it was the lens that Cartier-Bresson used for his pioneering street photographs.

Rather than being limiting, I found the 50mm lens to be unexpectedly liberating. It made me view scenes in a different way, and take photos in a different way. A welcome change for an old-timer like me.