Lilahpops » Photography Projects http://www.lilahpops.com Plunging into Photography Tue, 09 Nov 2010 22:26:45 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 93 photographers share their best photos of 2008 http://www.lilahpops.com/93-photographers-share-their-best-photos-of-2008/ http://www.lilahpops.com/93-photographers-share-their-best-photos-of-2008/#comments Tue, 13 Jan 2009 21:45:34 +0000 Anthea http://www.lilahpops.com/?p=165 This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

93 photographers share their best photos of 2008

]]> All the project entries for Your Best Photos from 2008

Once again 2008 proved to be an incredibly productive year for the many photographers who read the JMG-Galleries blog. The results of this “Best Photos From 2008″ blog project puts a twist to the normal “Best of Photo” list by aggregating links to the work of 93 photographers from around the globe who are passionate and dedicated to their craft.

The results from “Best Photos From 2007″ by JMG-Galleries Blog Reader’s were impressive, but this year not only did the number of participants exceed expectation the quality and vision of those who submitted were exceptional. This year participants ran the gamut of experience from enthusiasts to professionals.

Enjoy and good luck picking out your favorite from these great submissions

This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

93 photographers share their best photos of 2008

Also of interest

]]> http://www.lilahpops.com/93-photographers-share-their-best-photos-of-2008/feed/ 0 Project: My Best Photos From 2008 http://www.lilahpops.com/project-my-best-photos-from-2008/ http://www.lilahpops.com/project-my-best-photos-from-2008/#comments Thu, 08 Jan 2009 23:42:42 +0000 Anthea http://www.lilahpops.com/?p=153 This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Project: My Best Photos From 2008

]]> This is my entry in Jim M. Goldstein’s project Your Best Photos From 2008.

Whilst the project specifications don’t limit the number of best photos you can enter, I decided to stay with a Top 10 theme. I didn’t taken gazillions of photos during the past year but I still found it difficult to select just a small number of them.

Mosaic of my Top 10 images

These links take you to the images on Flickr.

1. Skies are blue and white, 2. Droplets, 3. Black cat through the fence, 4. Tulip, 5. Run run run!, 6. Blue and Gold Sunset, 7. Buzzing around the rosemary, 8. Old books, 9. Blue rust, 10. Horsin’ around

I’m happy with this set. I note that two of the images are from the April 2008 Challenge – Entropy which should be incentive enough for me to participate in more projects and challenges this year.

How did you fare in choosing your best photos? If you have a Top 10 list of your from 2008 pop a link to them in the comments below.

This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Project: My Best Photos From 2008

Also of interest

]]> http://www.lilahpops.com/project-my-best-photos-from-2008/feed/ 21 A clip of inspiration http://www.lilahpops.com/a-clip-of-inspiration/ http://www.lilahpops.com/a-clip-of-inspiration/#comments Sun, 14 Dec 2008 23:46:35 +0000 Anthea http://www.lilahpops.com/?p=149 This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

A clip of inspiration

]]> Looking for some photography ideas? Pop over to Neil Creek’s blog and submit an entry for his latest Iron Chef Photography Challenge. The theme? A paperclip.

One paperclip or many, it doesn’t matter; as long as the main subject of your photo is a paperclip.

… Funnily enough, I took a photo of a paperclip for the Entropy Challenge back in April. Time to get the brain into gear for a new idea. Any suggestions?

Rusty paperclip

This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

A clip of inspiration

Most Commented Posts

]]> http://www.lilahpops.com/a-clip-of-inspiration/feed/ 0 Voigtlander Vito BL – the verdict http://www.lilahpops.com/voigtlander-vito-bl-the-verdict/ http://www.lilahpops.com/voigtlander-vito-bl-the-verdict/#comments Thu, 26 Jun 2008 09:51:57 +0000 Anthea http://www.lilahpops.com/?p=276 This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Voigtlander Vito BL – the verdict

]]> This may become a two-parter if I receive more entries

Whilst I would dearly love to have had all the entries here there have been delays with some and I have been keen to post those that have were submitted on time (it’s been just over a month since the end of the project date). So there are a couple more people still waiting in the wings with their entries but due to other business have not yet submitted. I hope they do, and if so, you’ll see an update.

Project recap

To answer four questions and submit some photos taken with the Voigtlander Vito BL.

  • 1. What attracted you to the Voigtlander?
  • 2. Do you like using the Voigtlander?
  • 3. How does it compare to other vintage cameras you have used?
  • 4. Do you prefer modern day digital cameras to older film and vintage models?

The idea came about as I’ve had quite a few requests for a scanned copy of the Vito BL manual and it got me thinking as to what these photographers think of its performance and operation.

The Vito BL camera

Perhaps if I extended the project to include other models or to vintage cameras in general I may have had more responses. But that is something I have learned for any future project I may host.

So without further ado:

Photos and verdict by Anthea Brown (me)

aka lilahpops on Flickr

Click on the corresponding link below to see the larger version at Flickr.
1. Green Door in Wall, 2. A statue watering the garden, 3. Lines and lines and lines, 4. In the garden, 5. Another sunny Sunday, 6. Afternoon at the bay

My camera belonged to my father who bought it second-hand in 1959. It’s a solid piece of equipment, totally manual and doesn’t even use batteries. He passed it on to me as my interest in photography grew – it was my first real ‘plunge’ into photography.

It’s fun to use. All the actions are manual, there are no shortcuts. You need to read the lightmeter to set the aperture, to set the shutter speed and then set the distance. Lucky for me, my father also had the rangefinder accessory which helps as it’s easy to make the wrong guess-timation without one.

For me, the most difficult action is interpreting the lightmeter although I recently discovered it doesn’t work as well as it should. I’m having better luck following the Sunny 16 rule.

Do I prefer vintage to digital? It’s a tough call and I still can’t decide. I do love my little digital point-and-shoot camera and aim to buy a DSLR in the near future. I found the Vito BL was a great introduction to learning the basics of photography and move away from automatic settings. I definitely need to improve in recording the various settings I try out as I have usually forgotten these by the time I get the film developed.

Photos and verdict by Zafer Yurtseven

Click on the images below to view a large version.
January 2008 near Eskisehir A night photo taken using a tripod from my living room window Wrong range estimation A bit underexposed A good one - taken in February 2008 in Eskisehir, Turkey
Zafer is from Turkey and here is his experience using the Vito BL:

I found the Vito BL on a local e-auction site like eBay. I am a film camera lover and although I had heard about Voigtlander cameras I had not used one. As it was cheap, I wanted to give it a try. The camera is very well built, very cute and comfortable to handle. But it lacks one major thing, a coupled rangefinder. A lightmeter can be arranged easily but not the rangefinder. If it had one, it would be my favourite camera…

I normally use two film cameras, a Leica M2 and a basic Nikon film camera FM10…

I don’t own a digital SLR as I don’t enjoy digital photography. So as my Leica is nearly 50 years old, Vito BL is not “very vintage” for me. I will keep my Vito BL in my collection but I probably won’t use it much because of the rangefinder problem. Anyway, using a Vito BL was a great experience and thank you very much for your kind help and interest

Photos and verdict by Torfinn Rosfjord

aka xTorfinnx on Flickr
Photographs courtesy of Torfinn Rosfjord aka xTorfinnx

Click on the corresponding link below to see the larger version at Flickr.

1. Tetris 4, 2. Tetris 3, 3. Jæren, 4. Tetris2, 5. Tetris1, 6. Old DDR

Torfinn is from Norway. Here is his response to using the Vito BL:

My grandfather bought it in 1957 when he was in the Norwegian navy and took many pictures from around the world. He gave me this camera when I told him that I was in an 2nd hand store looking for an vintage camera. So that was fun!

All the parts are in original boxes with the receipt :) My grandfather said “I cant understand why you want this old junk when you got all those new cameras that you can just push a button,” but he smiled when I told him that I liked to keep up the tradition, as he did … and when I eventually do a coast to coast roadtrip in the USA I can now use his camera. In a way history repeats itself…

I like this camera and that you don’t really know how the pictures are turning out before you get them processed … I like the vintage look and that I’m getting an experience into how they did it in the “old days” … I have used a Zenite E and a Nikon fm2 before, but I don’t need a rangefinder with those. So is a little more work with the Voigtlander…

I prefer vintage cameras over the modern ones because with digital cameras, almost all you do is press a button and you get a picture … but with vintage cameras it’s a longer process, so you care more about what you take picture of. So I use vintage cameras because it gets a warmer feeling in the pictures. But I do use a small digital camera to preserve some memories as well.

Photos and verdict by Mark Wilson

aka ihageefanatic on Flickr

Click on the corresponding link below to see the larger version at Flickr.
1. Lonely Wait, 2. Shadow Show, 3. Horton Hears a Who, 4. Reflection, 5. Early Morning Commute

Mark says:

I borrowed one [Voigtlander Vito BL] after having disposed of a Vito B. I’m attracted to these [cameras] because of the beautiful warm colours one gets from the Color Skopar lens …

It is slightly different than other cameras of the era. The one I used had a transport problem. I gave up on the light meter. The linkage between the aperture and the shutter setting that maintains constant exposure is a real pain. The bright finder promises beautifully aligned horizontals and doesn’t deliver. The eccentric film counter is great when I remember its odd operation. This camera is very small. And heavy. I like it.

Digital camera? What’s that? One which is manipulated by one’s fingers? The Vito BL is a modern camera compared to the other ones I carry.

Mark’s hints for using the rigid front Vito B and BL:

  • It is scale focus (“blind focus”), so you have to set the distance to the subject. It gives one a 3-dimensional sense of the picture space, and there is a depth of field scale to help out.
  • If you change the shutter speed, the aperture adjusts in the opposite direction. To set it independently, press 2 tabs on the lens mount.
  • The shutter release doesn’t fire unless a film is advanced, turning the sprocket and cocking the shutter.
  • With 400 ASA film on a partially cloudy day, try 1/300 shutter speed with aperture at f11 to get very crisp negatives.
  • Voigtlander filters and supplementary close-up lenses are often found and are of very high quality. You can thus use the Vito BL to do interesting close-up work, infrared photography, and special effects.

A big thank you to everyone who particpated!

If you have more tips for using the Vito BL that you think may help other photographers please add them in the comments.

This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Voigtlander Vito BL – the verdict

Also of interest

]]> http://www.lilahpops.com/voigtlander-vito-bl-the-verdict/feed/ 5 Where are you from? http://www.lilahpops.com/where-are-you-from/ http://www.lilahpops.com/where-are-you-from/#comments Tue, 27 May 2008 10:15:54 +0000 Anthea http://www.lilahpops.com/?p=86 This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Where are you from?

]]> This is my entry in the third and final installment of the Blog Statistics Project

Tibor over at photonovice.net has announced the final chapter of his project. So far he has asked What are the search terms used to reach your website? and What are your most popular articles? The last question is Where are you from?

So it’s back to Google Analytics for the answer – I have to say this has been a most useful tool for all three stages of the project.

Let me know in the comments where you are from and how you found Lilahpops :: Plunging into Photography – it will be interesting to compare this with the stats I’m about to list below.

Around the world

Here is the Map Overlay from Google Analytics showing my visitors for the last 12 months – yes, Lilahpops is now one year old. The darker the green the more visitors are from that country.

I was impressed to see that visits have come from 92 countries!

To break it down further I’ve listed the Top 5 countries and the percentage of traffic coming from each one:

  • United States – 51.4%
  • Australia – 14.2%
  • United Kingdom – 8.9%
  • Canada – 5.7%
  • Germany – 1.8%

According to the stats 83.44% of total visitors are new to the site and the average length of each visit is 2min 34sec which isn’t too bad considering the ‘surfing’ nature of the web.

How do you get here?

The pie chart below shows that most visitors have reached Lilahpops via referral sites and searches.

We can break it down a bit further:

  • Google/Search – 41.8%
  • Stumbleupon – 27%
  • Direct – 10%
  • Photography Voter – 3.3%
  • Flickr – 2.5%

RSS subscribers are slowly growing too. This may be because it also includes my Flickr photos.

Do you fit the bill?

Does this sound like you? Are you from the United States or Australia? Did you do a Google search or or stumble across a post? Or perhaps you are a subscriber?

Let me know – I’d love to see if the stats translate into real life!

This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Where are you from?

Also of interest

]]> http://www.lilahpops.com/where-are-you-from/feed/ 3 Fruit in 3D http://www.lilahpops.com/fruit-in-3d/ http://www.lilahpops.com/fruit-in-3d/#comments Sat, 24 May 2008 04:36:35 +0000 Anthea http://www.lilahpops.com/?p=84 This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Fruit in 3D

]]> This is my entry in Neil Creek’s 3D photography Project

Fruit in 3D
Click on the image to view a larger version at Flickr

What a challenge!

I found this a particularly challenging project. It was either me or the software making it so, because Neil’s instructions were very concise and easy to understand (including how to take a 3D image using his cha-cha method).

I took quite a few photos before I was happy with one that had 3D potential and used AnaBuilder for Mac to produce the 3D effect. The software wasn’t very user-friendly. Yes, it is free-ware and so I shouldn’t really complain, but I found it hard to use all the same. The preview option didn’t work so I had to rely on my very unsteady crossed-eyed technique to get the final result. Here’s hoping it’s vaguely 3D!

Challenging but a good learning experience.

Make sure you check out the submissions Neil has had so far, there are some excellent 3D examples in the mix.

This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Fruit in 3D

Also of interest

]]> http://www.lilahpops.com/fruit-in-3d/feed/ 1 Update on the blog statistics project – part two http://www.lilahpops.com/update-on-the-blog-statistics-project-part-two/ http://www.lilahpops.com/update-on-the-blog-statistics-project-part-two/#comments Tue, 20 May 2008 06:19:39 +0000 Anthea http://www.lilahpops.com/?p=82 This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Update on the blog statistics project – part two

]]> The results are in for the second part of the Blog Statistics Project being run by Tibor Radványi at photonovice.net. He has had a great response to this section and it is most interesting to see the diversity and variety of photography topics across the websites. Photography is certainly a broad and popular field!

If you find the results below of interest make sure to check out the third and final installment of Tibor’s epic Blog Statistics Project in which he asks “Where are you from?”
Submitter: Luis Cruz
Blog: Lighchasers
Article: Project: Site Statistics
Most popular: 4 Reasons to Never Delete Images From Your Camera
Submitter: Anthea Brown
Blog: Lilahpops
Article: My blog statistics show which posts are popular
Most popular: Add special effects to your images with iPhoto
How to resize an image in iPhoto
8 simple steps to add your Flickr photos to your blog feed
Submitter: Tony Roof
Blog: Tony’s Alaska Photo Blog
Article: Statistics for my photo blog
Submitter: Tibor Radványi
Blog: Photonovice.net
Article: Most Popular Posts
Most popular: 5 Traps of Professional Photography Equipment
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom vs. Nikon Capture NX
Qtpfsgui – The Open Source HDR Solution
Submitter: Brian Auer
Blog: Epic Edits Weblog
Article: 16 Month Statistics for Epic Edits
Most popular: 16 Inspirational Portrait Photography Techniques

87 Great Photography Blogs and Feeds
28 Ways To Interpret A Photo
Submitter: Ramin Miraftabi
Blog: Randomfire
Article: Photoblog statistics
Most popular: Image of 08.10.2007
The very first post of the blog
Submitter: Vlad Georgescu
Blog: Organize Pictures
Article: A look at 21 months of statistics
Most popular: Organize your pictures in 5 easy steps…no kidding!
5 steps to create precise keywords for tagging your pictures
Tags vs. Folders – the great debate
Submitter: Neil Creek
Blog: Neil Creek’s Blog
Article: Photonovice project: Most Popular
Most popular: About macro extension tubes
Fossil shrimp macro super panorama
How to see 3D photos
Submitter: David Ziser
Blog: Digital ProTalk
Article: Top Posts and Top Videos For DigitalProTalk
Most popular: Carrot Cake Lighting
New Canon 7D – everybody likes a rumor
Ziser Sets New Off Camera Flash Record

This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Update on the blog statistics project – part two

Also of interest

]]> http://www.lilahpops.com/update-on-the-blog-statistics-project-part-two/feed/ 0 Vito BL project update http://www.lilahpops.com/vito-bl-project-update/ http://www.lilahpops.com/vito-bl-project-update/#comments Mon, 12 May 2008 12:00:56 +0000 admin http://www.lilahpops.com/?p=77 This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Vito BL project update

]]> Just under two weeks to get your submissions in for the Vito BL Project.

We have a few participants so far and a couple more potentials are on their way; it all depends on whether or not the ol’ camera will co-operate.

I’ve been fascinated by the quality of the photos taken with the Vito BL. Not simply that a 50-odd year old camera still functions and takes great photos, but that the photographers of these vintage cameras are taking top-quality images. That by using equipment that doesn’t have the auto- buttons/focus/settings/speeds etc the users of these cameras really have to think about the photo – it’s not a simple point-and-shoot process.

So far, it seems that often, like myself, the Vito BL has been passed down the family line, mostly from fathers and grandfathers. My Voigtlander was passed on to me from my father, who bought it c.1959. I was impressed to find out, however, with one submission, that the Vito BL isn’t even considered a vintage camera. It is one of the newer cameras in that particular collection! Of course, eBay also play its part.

What’s this project about?

A quick recap on the project details is to submit photos taken with the Voigtlander Vito BL (if you have a Flickr/Zooomr etc account even better!) and answer four quick questions.

Submissions end Friday 23 May 2008.

Here are a few samples taken with my Voigtlander Vito BL:

After a couple of rolls of film I realised that my light meter doesn’t quite work and here I am going with the tried and tested “Sunny 16″ rule.

Taken with the Voigtlander Vito BL

Building in York Street, Sydney

Building on York street, sydney

And from a B&W film

This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Vito BL project update

Also of interest

]]> http://www.lilahpops.com/vito-bl-project-update/feed/ 0 My entries in the April Challenge http://www.lilahpops.com/my-entries-in-the-april-challenge/ http://www.lilahpops.com/my-entries-in-the-april-challenge/#comments Wed, 07 May 2008 09:53:28 +0000 Anthea http://www.lilahpops.com/my-entries-in-the-april-challenge/ This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

My entries in the April Challenge

]]> Well, it’s all over now. I had loads of fun participating in the April Challenge and learned quite a lot about macro photography in the process. I’m still in entropy mode and finding many things to photograph – I’ll have to do a series of ‘the ones that didn’t make it to the challenge.’

Here are my 30 entries: I created this image using Mosaic Maker. The links underneath the image take you to the individual images on Flickr or you can view them here at my Photo Gallery.

I hope you enjoy viewing them as much as I did photographing them.

April Challenge 2008 - my entries

1. A brick taking a bath in a field, 2. Old leather, 3. Boarded window, 4. Worn through, 5. Armless beauty, 6. Rusted latch, 7. Blue rust, 8. A cracking driveway, 9. Unwired, 10. Undelivered, 11. End of the life cycle, 12. Just a bit crooked, 13. Peeling paint, 14. Rusty paperclip, 15. Rusted latch, 16. Clips of old, 17. Old books, 18. More rust, 19. Mixed entropy, 20. Entropy in the cemetery, 21. Entropic barbed wire, 22. Old maps, 23. Old wood, 24. End of the road, 25. Rusted fence, 26. Dappled, 27. You’ve got mail, 28. A flawed floor, 29. Colourful copper, 30. Last of the old leather

This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

My entries in the April Challenge

Also of interest

]]> http://www.lilahpops.com/my-entries-in-the-april-challenge/feed/ 0 Are you a Voigtlander Vito BL user and can you help others use it? http://www.lilahpops.com/are-you-a-voigtlander-vito-bl-user-and-can-you-help-others-use-it/ http://www.lilahpops.com/are-you-a-voigtlander-vito-bl-user-and-can-you-help-others-use-it/#comments Mon, 28 Apr 2008 08:55:06 +0000 Anthea http://www.lilahpops.com/are-you-a-voigtlander-vito-bl-user-and-can-you-help-others-use-it/ This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Are you a Voigtlander Vito BL user and can you help others use it?

]]> Contribute to this project and help out other Vito BL photographers

I’m running a mini photography project here at Lilahpops for photographers using the vintage camera Voigtlander Vito BL. I’ve been using this camera on and off for the last 9 months or so and find that not only is it a refreshing change from using digital, it’s also a wonderful and challenging way to learn photography. The Vito BL is totally manual, no batteries necessary, an odd feeling after digital.

I’ve had several requests for a copy of the camera’s manual and it got me thinking as to other ways users of the Vito BL might find help in using this camera. Who better to help than others in a similar situation?

You don’t need to be a professional user of the Vito BL to contribute to this project.

Would you like to participate?

I’m inviting people who use the Voigtlander Vito BL. I find it fascinating that vintage cameras are still alive and kicking and that there are so many photographers out there who love film photography – and more specifically vintage camera photography. The Vito BL is my introduction to vintage photography so this is the focus of the project. I know there are far more experienced Vito BL users than me – I’m still learning. I get back developed film rolls with good photos, bad photos, blurry, sharp, you name it.

There are just two things you need to do to participate (well, three if you include using the contact form to let me know you are interested):

1. Upload some photos taken with the Voigtlander Vito BL

After using the contact form, I’ll be in touch. You can email photos to be included in the project results, your best and worse ones, if you like. Or, better yet, if you have posted any of your Voigtlander shots to your Flickr/Zoomr etc account I’ll link to them instead. I’ll just to let you know here that I’ll probably use a thumbnail image of your photos as the link and I’ll attribute each of your photos with your name or Flickr/Zoomr etc id with something along the lines of “Photograph courtesy of …”

2. Answer our simple questions

For a general overview of what it’s like to use the Voigtlander, I ask you to consider these questions (and any other thoughts/advice you may have). You don’t need to write anything at length, unless you wish to.

a. What attracted you to the Voigtlander?

For instance, is it because you have a general interest in vintage cameras, was it a cheap buy on eBay, did someone give you the camera, or did you have to learn how to use a vintage camera for an assignment or course?

For me: the Voigtlander was my father’s first camera and he passed it on to me to experiment with as my interest in photography grew.

b. Do you like using the Voigtlander?

For instance, is it easy/difficult to use, fun or complicated, a learning experience?

For me: I find it a great introduction to the basics of photography as everything has to be set manually on the camera to take a photo. Sometimes I am way off with estimating the distance!

c. How does it compare to other vintage cameras you have used?

For me: I haven’t used other cameras this old but I am getting a taste for vintage.

d. Do you prefer modern day digital cameras to older film and vintage models?

For me: I do love digital – love digital – but I’m glad to have an older film camera at hand.

What’s the deadline?

Just over three weeks from now – submissions end Friday 23 May 2008

There are no winners, no prizes. That being said, you will feel a general, fuzzy sense of well-being after having helped out a fellow Voigtlander Vito BL photographer or two.

This is an article by Anthea Brown of Lilahpops::Plunging into Photography

Are you a Voigtlander Vito BL user and can you help others use it?

Also of interest

]]> http://www.lilahpops.com/are-you-a-voigtlander-vito-bl-user-and-can-you-help-others-use-it/feed/ 14