52Frames

 In late December last year I became aware of the web site 52Frames.com. A photographic assignment is provided every week for a year. The assignments make up a wide variety of subject matter. A few examples include; macro, depth of field, blurred action, self portrait, etc. One photo is uploaded, once a week. There is no cost to register and the only pressure is that which you put on yourself to get the shot and upload it. Thousands of photographers, professional and amateur alike, from all over the world, participate each year. After reading a bit about the site, I took the plunge and registered. Today I uploaded my ninth consecutive assignment - "macro" (image below).

Generally, I am not a joiner. However, I truly wish to become a more accomplished photographer. Reviewing past year's assignments, and more importantly, the many submissions against those assignments, I became convinced that 52Frames could provide me an assist both creatively and technically. Having now just completed my Week 9 assignment, I can state confidently that I know more now than I did nine weeks ago. 

My primary shooter is a Leica M10R. It is a mirrorless, manual focus (and aperture), rangefinder camera with a 40MP full frame digital sensor. I love many aspects of this camera, one of which is that "M-mount" lenses made as early as the 1950s work as well on the camera as lenses made yesterday. I also very much love the tactile, manual operation of the camera. It forces me to slow down and to think just a few moments longer before I release the shutter. That said, it does have modern digital camera features. One of those is "Live View." Live view is an LED screen on the back of the camera which shows you an image looking through the lens. If you shoot pictures on your cell phone you know how this works. However, until I became involved in 52Frames, I had not used live view as I preferred the analog rangefinder experience of looking at the world through an optical viewfinder rather than through a tiny digital screen. The down side of that thinking was that a lot of potential images would be difficult to capture due to my insistence on NOT using live view. 

One example on this topic would become apparent early on as the Week 2 assignment was "blur the motion." The image I sought required low angle camera positioning and a slow shutter speed. In that position I couldn't get my eye to the viewfinder to frame the shot. As I was about to give up I (re)noticed the 3" LED screen that partially fills the back of the camera. A few minutes futzing around had me up and running in live view and I was able to get the shot I envisioned. In the weeks following there were other occasions where live view was the right answer to achieving creative vision. Now I am (more) comfortable and (a bit more) proficient in knowing when and how to utilize live view. And as a result of several of the follow-on challenges I've also become more proficient in using ND filters and shooting portraits. Thank you 52Frames.

Nine weeks into the year's worth of assignments I find myself looking ahead to upcoming assignments, thinking about how I will capture the essence of the challenge. And as I see how other participants addressed challenges each week I am continually amazed by the creativity and thought they put into their work. I am beginning to think less about the "letter of the law" describing the assignment and more about the "spirit" of the assignment. The upcoming Week 10 challenge is "complimentary colors" and I'm thinking about a product photography setup using a back-drop lit with multiple flashes. A year ago that never would have occurred to me. Again, thank you 52Frames.

It turns out I needed outside prompting and guidance to begin, and stick with (at least for the nine weeks so far) a journey of continuous improvement. Not sure where it is headed but I'm enjoying the ride.

More to follow.

  My wife's Pink Christmas Cactus in full March bloom. Captured with a Fuji X-E4 and an adapted Nikon 105mm f/2.8D AF Micro-Nikkor lens in natural, morning light. Developed with Capture One.