get out [black and white] photoplay: feeding time

Written by Dan King

Christ-follower. husband. father. author of the unlikely missionary: from pew-warmer to poverty-fighter. co-author of activist faith: from him and for him. director of family ministry at st. edward's episcopal church. president of fistbump media, llc.

December 14, 2010

I was supposed to go out into a well populated area, but it wasn’t people that I found myself surrounded with when getting this photo.

I always look hard for the right ‘photo moment’ when The High Calling‘s photoplay prompt comes up. And this one was no different. If there’s anything I struggle with in photography, it’s capturing the right moment.

This week’s prompt challenged us to:

  • Find a place where there is a lot of activity.
  • Fade into the scene by finding a comfortable place to sit or stand.
  • Identify an object or person you would like to capture.
  • Capture your subject in relation to the whole setting.
  • Covert to black and white or use the black and white function on your camera.

When I was at my father-in-law’s ranch during feeding time for the cows, I found myself in one of those moments wondering if I could capture a cool image.

So I snapped a bunch of photos (on my DROID), converted a few to black and white (using the Android Photoshop app), and picked one that I thought turned out pretty cool.

I think that I’m starting to develop my eye for good photo moments, but it’s taking a great deal of patience. But finding a good shot is really exciting…

…so I’m more than willing to wait.

14 Comments

  1. S Etole

    cows can provide some very interesting fodder …

    Reply
    • @bibledude

      I’m still trying to get over the idea that I took a picture of a cow for a photography project… but it came out pretty cool (at least I think)… they are pretty interesting though…

      Reply
  2. SandraHeskaKing

    LOVE this! And look, Claire–it’s not *birds.*

    Reply
    • @bibledude

      Birds are for girl-photography. I wanted to get a picture of something manly, like a bear. But a cow was all I could find.

      Thanks for the encouragement Sandra! I’m still not very confident in my photography skills, but I’m getting there. Encouragement like yours really helps me know that I’m on the right track!

      Reply
      • SandraHeskaKing

        So we’re going to assume that one of these is a manly bull.

        I’m beginning to fear I won’t make the deadline. I was going to hang out in the mall today, but I’ve had my grandbaby because her sister is ill. I may not get out now until Thursday.

        Reply
  3. Laura Boggess

    This is the man-li-est photo I’ve ever seen, Dan :). Awesome. I think you are developing an eye too. Love it!

    Reply
    • @bibledude

      I feel like taking more manly pictures of things like power tools, or meat cooking on an open fire… I’m glad that my eye for photography is developing, but the best part is that I’m having fun doing it, and I’m exercising my creativity… and THAT’s paying off in my writing…

      Thanks for the feedback and encouragement Laura!

      Reply
  4. cherylsmith

    It is a great shot. I like the fact that you allowed yourself to look for a different kind of crowd. Well done!

    Reply
    • @bibledude

      Looking for a little different kind of crowd is right up my alley… I just never expected that it would lead me to hang out with a bunch of cows. But it was really cool and out of the norm, which is good for me and my photographic eye.

      Thanks Cheryl!

      Reply
  5. Claire Burge

    oi! we stole each other’s pictures.

    i took of the cows too. i am cooped at home in the middle of a blizzard!

    the cows were all i could get to.

    “all i have to do is wait”

    this is the art that makes photography happen.

    Reply
    • @bibledude

      The waiting isn’t really the hardest part for me. Finding a good subject is where I tend to struggle the most when photographing. Once I’ve identified the subject of the photo, then waiting is easy. And the cool thing with digital (and hence mobile) photography is that I can snap a hundred shots while waiting, searching for that ‘perfect’ shot…

      This was a fun exercise Claire! Thanks for the prompt!

      Reply
  6. A Simple Country Girl

    I love the expressions! I can just hear them talking:

    Cow with cud (likely the “husband”)…munch, munch, munch; slobber, munch, munch, munch

    Onlooking cow (likely the “wife”)…this is what I get for marrying a guy born & raised in a barn

    Anyway, this was a fun prompt and there is just something about the gastrointestinal delights only bovines can bring to the party 😉

    Blessings.

    Reply
    • @bibledude

      LOL! This is probably the single funniest comment that I’ve gotten on my blog in a long time…

      Reply

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get out [black and white] photoplay: feeding time

by Dan King time to read: 1 min
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