Contrast

Dog Blog Post #429: This has to be one of my favorite sorts of Daily Shoot assignments...

Create a photo with a single element, no distractions, & lots of contrast.

... at least when Mother Nature cooperates and throws a cheery sunbeam my way.

Today was just that sort of day.

In fact, today promised to have (and delivered on) way too many sunbeams. There it was, bright and early in the morning (emphasis on bright) when the first sunbeam made it through the trees and crept across the kitchen floor. Realizing I needed close up or risk having roast humans by the end of the day, I was just about to shut the curtains when I remembered today's assignment.

I bolted for the camera, the dogs came running (as they always do when the camera comes out, as camera = cookies) and I dropped Henry into a down in the slender beam.

It was less than the width of his head.

I grabbed his forearms and slid him a little this way and little that way on the hardwood floors (yes, good puppy, have a cookie) and managed to get just about all his face in the beam.

With the treat ramekin on the floor, to the right, just off camera, I banged off a few shots and then tossed some cookies to get him out of the way. Repeat process for Zachary, tossing cookies past Henry every few seconds to keep him away from the camera.

And then we were done. A few dozen shots in just a few minutes, then I slammed the curtains closed.

At one point, while I was taking pictures of Henry (who went first, if you recall) I just happened to look over and see Zachary close by, waiting patiently for his turn...

What a good boy!

Note that I doubt I've ever taken a picture of Henry waiting patiently for his turn, as the mild-mannered pup is a huge camera hog, always finding ways to get in the way. I haven't counted to see who is featured more often in Daily Shoot pictures, but it wouldn't surprise me to find out it's Henry, just because he makes sure he's always first and front!

Don't worry, cookie parity is always maintained, even it means that Henry gets paid one cookie per picture while Zachary is paid a dozen!

Editor's Note: I love the soft tones in that shot, perhaps because I was working in the bright light just two feet away. Amazing what a difference direct sunlight can do to how a camera reads a scene. All shots today were shot using the same camera setup (aperture priority) leaving the camera to determine ISO and exposure time. The three "contrasty" shots came in around f/5, 1/400s, ISO 100. The shot above was f/5, 1/60s, and ISO 1400. (I have the camera setup to not go below 1/60s, hence the relatively high ISO.)

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