Week 3 - Elusive Fire

Week 3 and I have to admit that I'm struggling to take photos every week. I've been too 'busy' to take photos. Busy camping, riding quads, and working. But I miss the creative piece of life that I get with photography. I love the quiet centering of having a camera in my hand. For landscapes and set shots, it is a time to simply appreciate the beauty around me. For sports photography, I can focus completely on capturing the moment of athletic greatness. Time stops when a camera is in my hand - and I need more of that in my life. Maybe that was why I committed to 52 photos this year - To force myself into the time warp.

This week was a bit of a missed opportunity for me. We spent last weekend at the sand dunes at the Oregon coast. I could have captured the incredible sunset over the dunes, fading into the sea. I could have captured the highly skilled riders soaring off of a jump. Or maybe taken some night photos as the full moon illuminated the dunes. But instead, I worked with an illusive subject for me - the campfire.

Fires are tough. First, you don't always get to compose your shot. After all, you want a roaring fire. Second, the brightness of a fire presents a challenge. and Finally, the flames in a fire are dynamic - sometimes showing very yellow, sometimes very orange. Photos taken with the same settings only moments apart have totally different composition. I was without a tripod, so I was limited to very high ISO. Luckily my camera is awesome, so I could get away with it. :)

Of my fire photos, this is the one that I liked best. I like the sense of quiet calm that I get from this photo. I think of the time right before bed. The kids have gone and I can listen to the quiet crackle of the fire. Composition wise, I remembered to use the rule of thirds on this photo, but I clipped the corner of the fire. I like the angles provided by the logs on the fire, but it might have been better from a lower angle.

I was intrigued by the glowing embers, but could never get a composition that I liked. Here is the best of the batch...