Friday's Photolife--to flash or not to flash

Wednesday's answer and winner: Erinn guessed a beach in South Carolina. That's as close as it got without being wrong. So congrats to Erinn. The full answer is Hilton Head Island, SC. The greens in the hint was for all the golf courses. The 2nd picture highlights the tidal wetland, and the 3rd picture is for the spanish moss that you see everywhere there. Savannah, GA, from Samantha Bennett, was actually a very good guess. It's not very far from Hilton Head and has some significant similarities.

While I was taking pictures there one night, I had a bit of a dilemma. It was almost dark and the building with the indoor pool was beautifully reflected in the small pond encircling it. To flash or not to flash? I tried both. You may be surprised to find out that the first picture is the one

with flash

and the 2nd is without. The light wasn't able to reach the building before the shutter closed so the only thing that caught the light from the flash is the grass. For the second I leaned against a pole to hold the camera steady. With a flash on you lose most of the natural light in your shot.

Sometimes that's what you really want to show. Here's an example from Disney World's Magic Kingdom.

With the flash you see all the details of the railing and the golds and grays of the stage, but there's no way that you would know that

the archway was lit up with blue light. Without the flash you see that but can't make out the same level of details. As a photographer you have to decide which one you prefer or take both (which is what I usually do) and use both later for something like this. You know I'm always thinking of you.

With--you show the bellhop directing people to the elevator in the Tower of Terror,

or--without--you create a ghostly vision of the same scene.

With--you show the exact material of the ball at Epcot,

or--without--you emphasize how the ball glows.

With--you show how the path at Epcot is made with some paving stones that seem to sparkle,

or--without--you show how they light the path in the darkness.

When we take pictures, we are always faced with this choice (whether we realize it or not).

Application to writing? When setting a scene, we should decide what we want our description to do: give specific details of the surroundings or set a mood.

Where in the world?

On Friday's post someone asked where I took those pictures. You know that's going to lead to--Where in the world was Lotusgirl?

So... See if you can figure it out with these picture clues.

Be as specific as you can.

Good luck!

Hint: There are lots of greens there.

Friday's Photolife--Fogging up

Wednesday's update and answer: Anette was the first to guess the Louvre on Wednesday's post, and Jenna was the first to reference the "big glass triangle." No one actually gave me the name though. It's part of Les Pyramides or The Pyramids. The glass pyramids at the Louvre that some think are an abomination and others love. I wonder if they ever have problems with the pyramids fogging up. How's that for a segue?

This summer a friend was annoyed that she couldn't get pictures at the beach because her camera always fogged up, so I thought I'd address this issue. It has a simple solution: plan ahead. Yeah, yeah, and patience doesn't hurt either.

For this picture, I walked directly out of the air conditioning into the steamy, humid air, pointed and shot. The temperature difference will fog the camera up every time. It'll happen going from hot to cold as well.

The trick is to leave your camera out in the atmosphere where you plan on taking pictures for a while before you start. For the 2nd shot I left the camera out on the balcony for about 10 minutes and everything defogged. The length of time needed is directly proportional to the difference in the temperatures. Sometimes it could take as long as 30 minutes but not usually.

Application to writing? When you sit down to write, plan ahead. Do whatever research you need before you write. It may help lift the fog of how a scene should go. It may even give you some ideas you hadn't thought of. In writing a scene about a catatonic person, it was nice for me to know that they can do more than just lie still in a bed. There was a lot more scope for the imagination.

What in the world?

Here you go.

What in the world is it? If you know where in the world it is, extra kudos to you. Hint: If you know the where, you're more likely to know the what. Is that vague enough for you? Have fun figuring it out!

Monday=Book Review Time--A little Thievery

Back by popular demand--Book Reviews. I was surprised to find that it's been almost a year since I did a book review. I'm going to be reviewing those y'all asked for before I move on to other things. The first request was for something by Elizabeth Scott from Terra of Terra Garden. So...

Up for today: STEALING HEAVEN by Elizabeth Scott

Why I bought it? At first, I read an Elizabeth Scott book because I was checking out what kind of things her agent represents. By the time I got to this book I was choosing them because I enjoyed reading what she writes. Her style reminds me of Sarah Dessen's (which I love). I downloaded this on my Kindle because it had a high rating, and I thought the premise sounded interesting.

Synopsis: Danielle, AKA Sydney (or whatever her mother chooses), and her mother are thieves who target the wealthy. They move from town to town stealing silver and keeping a low profile. That means no friends, no one who can turn them in. When they end up in the beach town of Heaven, Dani feels at home. She makes friends and even meets a guy (a cop). Complications ensue. Dani ends up having to chose between the life she's always known with her mother and the new one she's building.

What I thought? So far, this is my favorite Elizabeth Scott novel. I really enjoyed it. It's charming and Dani's plight is irresistible. The characters are fully developed--vulnerable and yet strong. The romance is very well done. Greg (the cute cop) is wonderful.

Star Rating: ****1/2 out of 5

A recap of how I rate books for anyone new:

* = Complete drivel. Not worth the paper it's printed on.

** = So, so. Has some redeeming qualities but is, essentially, a disappointment.

*** = An enjoyable read but nothing too terribly earth shattering

**** = Very enjoyable. This is where I'd recommend for others to read. I'd consider buying it.

***** = So much fun reading that I can't put it down or so compelling that I can't stop thinking about it. I HAVE to own this book.

*****+ = One of my all time favorite books. I know some people would think this is over the top, but then again sometimes I am that kind of person. I won't give many books this rating though.

Cleanness Score: 5 out of 10, There is a little language and a reference to a sexual encounter. (This is to the best of my memory. It's been a while since I read it.)

The cleanness score (CS) is because I have young family members that will read these reviews, and so I want them and their moms to know what they will get with the books I review, and I think that others of you out there picking books for your kids might like to know. (Is that enough ands?) That said--my scale is going to be from 0 to 10. 0 has absolutely nothing the least bit offensive in it and 10 is for those books that have very offensive material. (I think I can guarantee that there will be no 10s in any of my book reviews, but it will still be on the scale for gauging purposes.)

Friday's Photolife--Patience

In taking a picture, light is key. In a studio you can manufacture exactly the light you need when you want it, but outside it's not that easy. Nature has a way of doing whatever it wants, but it is often fickle. Most of the time all you have to do to get different lighting is wait. Patience. Ugh. Yep, that.

In this picture, the clouds had my subject completely in shadow,

partially in shadow,

and then the sun finally got through. Different times of day will give a whole array of color changes on a subject as well. Think of Monet's studies of the Rouen Cathedral. For this photo shoot, I didn't subject those with me to that kind of patience.

Application to writing? When describing something outside, remember how the lighting will change the colors or create patterns. e.g. The clouds wove lace shadows over the grass...

Winner and the new line up

The winner of the 200 post contest is Yat-Yee. Congrats! Just send me your info at lacmoss (at) gmail (dot) com and let me know how you want your prize, and I'll get that out to you.

Since so many of you like the book reviews, I'm going to bring those back. If you see anything in my books that I've read this year (in the right margin) that you would like reviewed, let me know, and I will do those first.

There were quite a few of you who liked the "Where in the world?" segment, so I'm going to try a Mini-Where in the world? or What in the world? as a regular feature on Wednesdays. For this one I won't be offering prizes other than announcing you and linking to your blog (if you have one). I will occasionally do the full week one with prizes.

The new schedule is:

Monday=Book Review Time

Wednesday's What/Where in the world?

Friday's Photolife

Does this work for, y'all?