Outdoor Photos

Of all the stuff taught in schools never used, it would seem there would be a photography course.. seeing endless photos of blurred faces, poor color saturation, blurred faces .. ugh

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School Event pics under the Gazebo 

Under a gazebo or any shelter that has a roof but open so light comes through

Overcast .. pics wont be too bad .. but

If it is bright out when people are under a roof, the light behind em can ruin your pics
Any time the light behind people is brighter than the light falling on their face they are back lit.

1  At Rising Park
I see Soooo many pics of couples taken here in bright sun and their features are obscured.
All dressed up an event that only takes place a few times in their lives.
All their friends n family rave how beautiful.. yeah because they are loved.

2  At Rising Park
Ah ha some one knew about the magic of fill in flash.
I don't know about new phone camera flash units but most are not powerful as a dedicated digital camera flash.
Fill in means it will flash every time regardless of how light or dark it is.
The closer to people the greater effect the flash will have so you might need to go for a waist up shot to move in close.
Afternoon the sun is toward the tennis court.
Glasses can cause a reflection but having people with glasses to shift their head around a bit changes the angle the flash hits and you will get some good shots with out a reflection

3  I don't know where these guys are, just a point about light
The kids in front are well lit, the roof is not putting their faces in the shade. In back the eyes can not be seen.. poor color saturation and detail

4  Don't know where this pic was taken but
Overcast and the kids came out from under the roof where the faces are well exposed.

On one sunny after noon I saw a big buunch of em getting pics and squinting in the hot sun.

In the afternoon there is a big shady area near Mt Pleasant, if you go there with your back to the fountain and use flash, you can get some great pics...
Also The big shelter at the top of the hill is often not used it is a great place to capture pics

I think they have most of their dressup events in spring and fall, but you could also reserve a shelter house for your events.

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Check the weather map
If you want to stand on top of Mt P with the city behind you, the best time is before 10 so you are not back lit or use fill in light

PHOTOS ON TOP ANY TIME OF THE DAY
If the sun is not shinning through.. cloudy, you can get good pics on Mt P with Lancaster in the background

SUNNY DAY PICS ON MT P
If you want to stand on Mt P with Lancaster in the background
*  Before 10 AM you are good
*  Midday the sun will cause harsh shadows, turn your back to the sun and have the photographer get close and use fill in flash

*  IF it is a bit warm out, the climb will make you a bit red and likely perspire. Walk up about an hour before and have a handkerchief to blot.

*  After noon back of peoples head toward the fairground, photograph on top with them, move in and use flash

*  After noon people facing the fairground, photographer with a powerful telephoto down on the fairgrounds shooting people on top.

STANDING UNDER TREES
*  Standing under trees, overcast is ok but if the sun is filtering through the trees there will be cobweb shadows on those you are taking pics of. Move em to solid shade.

When you take pics of groups in spotty shade some faces will be hard to see.

Maybe the photography club could create a short course of outdoor photography n students could do a short trip.
(Day selected by checking the weather forecast)

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Gazebo pics

How pics have I seen of people getting pics under the gazebo where their faces are hidden in the shadow.

The lights on your camera phones are not very powerful so you have to be close. Go after the waist to the top of the head.
The light will bring out their eyes and give the face good color saturation

Just try it on a sunny day, put some pals under the gazebo while they r n the shade, move in close and take one pic with and one pic with out fill n flash .. digital camera or phone  
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Sunsets

Almost any day of the year you can walk up n find couples, friends n families looking over our turf.
You can decrease the contrast a bit n make the sky orange but you must use flash
The effect that flash will have depends on distance. Move in and frame em from the waist up. Make sure the sun is peeking behind them.. they don't cover it. Move in and out a bit taking a couple shots. Pick the best n delete the rest :)  

Here I compared flash n no flash with these guys. When the light is brighter behind someone their face becomes kind of a silhouette.

These two pics were taken seconds apart. Flash makes the difference between muddy shots or great color saturation and sparkling eyes.
Think waist to the top of the head shot. You can adjust the effect of the flash by moving closer or further away.. with a new digital camera you can use your flash compensation.

Dealing with glare, sunglasses take em off, regular glasses have your person keep looking at the camera but moving their head up, down, right, left slightly n one of the pics should have no glare. 
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NIGHT PICS

You can get super nice shots from Mt P.

At fair time or after dark with the city lights, you can get great people pics, but you have to use your phone light or camera flash to make the magic work ...

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They painted numbers on the post, this spot is at post 32.
Standing at this location is a rock a little higher then the rest.
Having your people just on the other side of the rail you will have a downward view ... great shot

Google map n GPS

If it is overcast, tilt the camera down to avoid the sky and use flash
Remove hats.. hoods n if it is a bit windy place any long hair persons so their hair is not flying in the faces of their pals.

Get em to remove any sun glasses, if they have regular glasses have em move their heads n slightly different directions while looking at the camera
.. and USE FLASH

Some like to walk out toward the edge but just let em duck under the rail so they are just on the other side. Some of em r like chipmunks sitting on the edge.. keep em close to the rail.

Standing on my favorite spot it was afternoon n I turned their faces from the sun. Because the light behind them was brighter than the light falling on their faces their faces would have been in a bit of a shadow.
Having them move close I turned the flash all the way up n produced great color saturation n made their eyes sparkle.

Your phones use LEDs (I guess) so it is a constant light. The closer any light flash/led is the greater the effect.
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Light causes your eyes to close down a bit. If you are using a phone camera.. I guess it is not a flash.. so
But if you use a flash, it will do it's job before you have a chance to squint.
Glasses/reflective surfaces are a bit of a problem but you can get pretty good shots any way.

When people wear sun glasses ask em to put them on top of their head.
When you are at the park there will be other visitors near. Instead of trying to get a selfie with your pals, just ask someone to take.. 3 shots... one will be the best one :)

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Pics I have taken at RP

Sunset Video

Sunrise Video

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So close a cool place to get pets for my Pup n pics on my photo safari's. As soon as I get home I share my photos on facebook.

Sony a65, 600mm Tamon and tripod (Oct 9, 2018)

There are dozens of Rising Park websites and facebook groups just like mine. My Google Map with a few of my favorites.

`Area 32-34 

`Big groups 

`City Lights

`Cloud data 

` Eclipse

`Elevation `Flash 

`Fog 

`GPS 

`Hot 

`Moon

`Overcast 

`phone Glow 

`Picnic 

`Pics on the rock 

`Safari prep 

`Settings 

`Silhouette 

`Solstice

`Star burst 

`Sun from the west 

`Sunset 

`Sunrise

`Time lapse

`Time of day 

`Trees/Shade n Sun 

`Twilight 

`Weather source Lancaster daily, hourly, sky cover, month, radar

`Weather  John Glenn. national weather forcast

`Weather  national weather 3 day history, just replace 2025 for any year all history, 

A few Other rising park sites ... click on their photo links

https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/risingpark/

https://www.instagram.com/explore/locations/633649713493209/mt-pleasant-in-rising-park/

Rising Park on Google Maps


Rising Park offical facebook page

Mt Pleasant in Rising Park

Rising Park Paper Mill

Rising Park ...

etc.. hundreds of sites just like mine and thousands upon thousands of photos just like mine on social media.
Such a great place to photograph n get pets for your pups :)

Sunrise Photos

SUNRISE VIDEO @ MT. PLEASANT

Lancaster, Ohio

I have yet to capture "the perfect sunrise video"

One of the top goals of photographers is to capture the sun or moon with some special or famous landmark/building.
On one attempt I was close to the center of Mount Pleasant but the clouds took over.

Another observation is it usually comes up in a curve not straight up.

One of my attempts some ducks happened by, but I liked it and kept that clip.
In order to keep it under control someone with a self leveling gadget for tripods in a car/truck  with a driver moving at the right speed.

Photographers travel around the world and plan months ahead of time to capture special images that only happen at that place and that particular time.

Some times after great planning and expense the weather ruins it.

Seeing some of the great pics of FB pals, I am guessing they might be into capturing a sunrise coming up directly behind Mt. Pleasant.

*  What is the weather forcast for that morning

*  Where is a place with no obsticals in the view.

*  If taking a video, what cars or people will be passing in front of the camera.

*  One of our best spots are in the fairground parking lot by broad street (the county fair going on in that period) will it have cars and campers still there?

3rd attempt

2021 I got my wish no clouds but the sun flare wiped out detail. Next year maybe ...
Doing time lapse and video, I did capture geese flying over, that will be a good clip to add.

I capture a great full moon that night.

My first two attempts were over by the fence (marked 1). Taking time lapse and video people walking in front and cars driving around added unwanted content.

Time lapse, you can pshop the stills but it is a lot of work.

I am guessing setting a tripod on the race track (yellow 2) on the inside rail so joggers would not get in the capture would work out.

There are some poles and electric lines in the view from position 2, so check that out before u get up early .. that day

There are a couple weeks in the spring to capture the sun coming up directly behind Mt. P. 

Also there is an app called photopills that some of you might know how to use but I don't have an internet camera so I use the desktop version

You might have an accurate prediction of the days and places to setup.

In October the sunrise will follow this path.

An Intervalometer (for time lapse) can be bought for less than $50. Some cameras have them built in.

Places to set up a tripod where people n cars won't get in the view on the track inside next to the white rail.

There are sooooo many beautiful photos of sunsets but I have not seen any such sunrise images of the sun coming up behind Mt. P.
Maybe you live in a place where you can see the sunrise, you could hone your skills then if you get froggy take a shot of capturing a sunrise from the fairgrounds.

FB group for others who love Mt. Pleasant
https://www.facebook.com/groups/302659221096890/

Tripod

Share your sky pics. It is getting harder for me to make it in town and I can not see the sunset out of my window because of the trees. If you capture a beautiful sky you can post it here under "Write something" and include the date so I can include the weather stats in the spreadsheet.

In the years that I have been coming to Mount Pleasant. I have seen families, couples, groups of friends taking random pictures of the view, selfies, each other.

Guessing their response I often asked them if they would like pictures of them together.

Many more times than not, they were all for it.

A very few less than positive, some wanting to pay me .. gosh.

If you are out anywhere and observe others that might be happy to have photos, take a chance if you r froggy.

If you are here with others and you think a group/couple picture would be great, don't be afraid to just ask other chipmunks around you.

When it is hot and bright, there is no place to hide. Time it to start up the trail about 30 minutes before sunset.

You will likely be red and shiny. A blotter is an idea.

Looking toward the sun, if you have to squint, it is too early. Wait until you can look west and the sun will put a warm orange glow on your face.

Head and shoulder shots with the sun behind you, with your photographer about 5' away, the sun behind you and your camera's flash on.

Glasses reflections.. by turning your face at a bit of an angle the light will bounce off in a different direction

Taking pics at different times the sky will change

By moving the flash closer or further away, the intensity of the flash ... brighter/darker

Step forward-zoom out, Step backwards-zoom in

If it is a beautiful sky, sunset is not the time to go home. Photos at twilight are beautiful.

After dark, pictures with the city lights in the background are great.

When it gets dark, the ground below is lost. While it is light, one of my favorite photos is at post 32 where I stand higher and others stand on the other side of the rail, close .. pointing the camera down with the fairground buildings to include the 

height.

Day time taking pictures when it is cloudy, I tilt the camera down to avoid the sky. 

Time lapse : Start about 20 minutes before said sunset time, placing the sun in the upper left of your camera viewfinder and let it run :) 

Where the sun sets each day of the year.

People having pictures taken with their pups 😋

Several times I was here when couples got engaged and was able to capture photos for them.

Girls finding a bit of shade on a sunny day

Silhouttes r cool

Looking west when the sun starts down, sun glasses are needed.

I often search facebook for photos and reaction of visitors. I have heard people expressing these thoughts but saw this post of someone I have never seen FBshare.
Random .. thousands of such 

Stop here 

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Previous tripod attempts.. 

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Time Lapse

Using time lapse for a photo shoot.
Time lapse is known for capturing star trails, squeezing a long period of time into a short clip and such things
BUT
I thought of another great application

If your camera does not have a built in timer (intervalometer)
You can buy one to work with your brand of camera. 
Here they are on Amazon 
.

I wanted to go to town but goofed off too long, so I did a little demo in the yard.
Delay  Long Intvl N Sound (music note) on this model.

Each field has these times to set

Hr Min Sec

00    00    00

*  Delay is how long you want the timer to wait till it starts taking pics
.. I set it at 15 secs to allow myself time to get in the frame
00 00 15

*  Long is ONLY for time exposures
.. 00 00 00

*  Intvl is how long you want it to wait between shots.
.. 00 00 20 This allowed me to move around to get in a different pose and try to get Kookie in position.

* N  number of shots
.. 11, I set the gadget to take 11 pics

* Sound off

I plugged it into my camera (forgot to adjust the settings but wanted to get it done)

I turned my camera to a 2 second timer (because on timer you get an audio warning and know it is ready to take a pic )

Every 20 seconds the meter would click the shutter which started the 2 sec timer.. just wanted that so I could hear when it was about to take a photo

Had a movie camera on a tripod that took a video of the camera with the timer on a tripod.. so you could get the idea.

In an actual photo shoot you might have a list of poses ready to get into for the next shot.
Pics bad.. had the camera set for a unique lighting but you can get the idea.

Each of these photos were taken automatically while the model (ugh me n Kookie) squirmed around.. but if you wanna do a photo shoot of yourself or with pals.. this is a super cool method.

IF you were using a timer on your camera you would have to keep going back and forth but with this setup, you just have to be in the frame with your chosen background and your photographer (time lapse camera) will take as many as you chose.. just letting others see the ones you like.

When people wanna do pics, I tell em go search google images for poses. If they captured poses they wanted on their phones they could look at the phones for a pose, after it was taken, scroll to the next pose and be ready for the next shot.. a lot easier than figuring a pose in a matter of seconds.. 

I am not into phone cameras but they do make time lapse apps for phone cameras, you would just have to put your phone on a tripod :)
I hoped to get some hams make the demo.. :)

If I can find some local 'models' to do a well planned demo.. well :)