Sunset is one of my favourite times of the day to take photos, and including a silhouette against the great sunset colours in the sky can make for an interesting photo.
This silhouette is of my wife holding our youngest daughter Samantha, at Fremantle, when my daughter was about 6 months old.

mother and daughter watching the sunset

Fremantle, Western Australia
Canon EOS 350D, 70-200mm f/4L @87mm, 1/800 sec, f/4, ISO400

Having recently upgraded to a Canon 50D several months ago, I was looking for a remote shutter release for the 50D, as it uses Canon's proprietary N3 Connector.

After some investigation, I searched for the cheapest suitable remote that I could find on eBay, intending to buy it just for the N3 connector. The cost of the Yongnuo remote I purchased was just AUD$4.90 plus AUD$4.50 postage.
(I've since found the same remote on dealextreme.com for USD$4.80 with free shipping.)

However, the quality of the remote, despite the very cheap cost, was significantly better than I was expecting, so I decided to use the complete remote, rather than butchering it just for the N3 connector.



The remote was listed on eBay as "RS-80N3 Remote Shutter for Canon EOS 5D 20D 30D 40D", and appeared to be a copy of Canon's RS-80N3 remote, which typically retails for USD$50 or AUD$90. The box that arrived was labelled as "Yongnuo Remote Switch RS-C3", and the remote itself has the words "Yongnuo Digital" on the front of it.

Here are some photos of the Yongnuo remote after it was unboxed.

Yongnuo remote shutter release

Until recently, my primary camera was a Canon 350D, which uses a 2.5mm stereo socket (E3) for connecting a shutter release. I built a homebrew shutter release for it, which worked very effectively.

Having recently upgraded to a Canon 50D, I can no longer use my homebrew shutter release, as the 50D has an N3 socket, rather than an E3 socket (2.5mm stereo socket). Rather than purchase a complete shutter release for the 50D, I did some research into the Canon N3 Connector Pinout and Wiring, to see if I could source an N3 connector, so I could modify my shutter release, and add an N3 connector to it.



As mentioned in my earlier post on the Canon N3 Connector Pinout and Wiring, there are a number of options for sourcing an N3 connector, including:

1. Buy a genuine Canon remote
2. Buy a genuine Canon or Pocket Wizard/etc cable
3. Buy a cheap remote from eBay
4. Make your own N3 connector

The genuine Canon remotes are not particularly cheap, and having previously made a homebrew shutter release for my 350D, I was not prepared to part with that much money for something that is just a double-action switch.

I wanted to be able to re-use my homebrew shutter release, and just modify it by adding an N3 connector, to allow it to be used with the 50D.

The cheapest option for obtaining an N3 connector was to buy a cheap remote on eBay, and cannibalise it, discarding the remote, and just using the N3 connector.

Here's another photo from the backyard yesterday, this time of a common yellow-flowering weed called Taraxacum. In case you don't recognise the name, it's more commonly known as the Dandelion.

As with the Grevillea flower photo posted recently, this was also shot with the 70-200mm f/4L wide open, providing a narrow DOF and interesting bokeh.

yellow Taraxacum flower

(more commonly known as Dandelion)

back yard, Western Australia
Canon EOS 50D, 70-200mm f/4L @145mm, 1/640 sec, f/4, ISO100

In the past, when I go out in the back yard to take some photos of plants and flowers in the back yard, I normally grab my macro lens. However, this afternoon, I used the 70-200mm f/4L lens in the back yard, and was pretty happy with the results.

Even though the minimum distance of the 70-200 lens is about 1.3m, with the magnification of the lens, I could still get close enough to fill the frame. Shooting wide open blurred the background and provides pleasing bokeh.

Here's a shot of a Grevillea flower from the back yard.

Grevillea

back yard, Western Australia
Canon EOS 50D, 70-200mm f/4L @131mm, 1/320 sec, f/4, ISO100

We recently spent a few days in Mandurah during the school holidays. This is the view we had from the 5th floor of the Atrium Resort Hotel in Mandurah, with a tilt-shift effect applied digitally.
The tilt-shfit effect causes the photo to look like a miniaturised model.

That's Peel Street coming from the bottom right, and then Mandurah Terrace runs from the bottom left to the top right of the photo, and the white building on the right hand side is the Mandurah Visitor Centre.

Mandurah - tilt-shifted

Mandurah, Western Australia
Canon EOS 50D, 10-22mm @10mm, 1/400 sec, f/10, ISO200

Having written recently about Getting Your Kids Started In Photography, here's a list of reasons why you should get your kids into photography.

Ashley (my 10 year old son)
Mandurah foreshore, Western Australia


1. Encourage Creativity
   
   Photography encourages a child's creativity by making them think about colours, composition, framing, light, depth-of-field, etc. The creativity is not just limited to the photography either, but also extends to how the child uses the photos they take. For example, photos can be used by the children for scrapbooking, making bookmarks, making cards, etc.
   
   
2. Keep Them Entertained
   
   Photography has the potential to keep children occupied for many hours. This includes the action of taking the photos, as well as post-processing, learning more about photography by reading, etc.
   
   
3. Get Them Outdoors
   
   Today's children often spend too much time indoors, behind the tv / computer / game console. Outdoor photography provides another reason for them to enjoy the outdoors, both close-to-home in your back yard, and the greater outdoors, in parks, forest, etc.
   
   
4. Share Your Passion
   
   As you're reading this photography blog, I assume you have at least a passing interest in photography yourself. Getting your kids into photography allows you to share your passion with them, as well as sharing your photography gear with them.
   
   
5. Photography is a Great Social Activity
   
   Photography can be a great social event, particularly if there are multiple photographers in the family. I regularly take my two older children (aged 8 and 10) on photography outings.
   I also have taken my children on a number of photowalks with other friends and colleagues.
   
   
6. Capture Memories
   
   Photography allows children to capture their own memories from their own viewpoint of significant events, such as birthdays, family outings, holidays, etc. These photos can mean a lot more to the children than just the photos taken by a parent, as the children will often see different things to photograph, and will see them in a different way.
   
   
7. Potential Source of Income
   
   In the longer term, photography can potentially provide some income to the child, either via micro-stock agencies, print-on-demand prints (such as redbubble.com), or by taking photos of events and people and selling prints. As the children's photography prowess improves, there may be opportunities for doing family/group photos of friends and family, and possibly also weddings of friends and family.
   
   
8. Photography Doesn't Have To Be Expensive
   
   You don't need to spend a lot of money to start your children in photography. A cheap new or second-hand point-n-shoot camera is all that's needed to get started. With digital cameras, the on-going costs are minimal, as there's no film-developing costs.
   
   
9. Photography Requires Less Manual Dexterity than Other Visual Arts
   
   Compared to other visual arts such, as painting and sculpture, photography depends least on manual dexterity, making it ideal for kids of all ages.
   
   
10. Photography Has No Age Boundaries
    
    There are no age limits for starting photography. Children of any age can enjoy it.

Nicholas (my 5 year old son), Mandurah foreshore, Western Australia

Taken during an early morning shoot in Matilda Bay, this 4 second exposure shows one of the jetties at Matilda Bay, with the Perth city skyline in the background on the right hand side.

peaceful waters

jetty at Matilda Bay before sunrise

Matilda Bay, Crawley, Western Australia
Canon EOS 50D, 10-22mm @16mm, 4 sec, f/7.1, ISO100

Here's another shot from our get-together at Cottesloe Beach on Saturday evening.

This concrete pylon, just off the Cottesloe beach, was originally built in the 1930s to anchor a shark net. However, after being battered by wind and waves for many years, it is looking rather worse for wear. Apparently the Cottesloe town council were intending to remove it, believing it was a dangerous to swimmers. However, after a public backlash, they are now intending to spend $172,000 to restore it.

This shot was taken just after sunset, with a strong sea-breeze blowing, and a very hazy sky.

windswept pylon

Cottesloe Beach, Western Australia
Canon EOS 50D, 70-200mm f/4L @200mm, 1/125 sec, f/4, ISO400

Last night, I met up with some friends at Cottesloe Beach, with the aim of getting some sunset photos. Despite the rather blustery sea breeze, it was a great evening, and the cloudless sky provided some interesting colours just after the sunset.

Here's a shot of the some people fishing on groyne, silhouetted against the sunset colours in the sky. This 1-second exposure was taken about 40 minutes after sunset.

sunset silhouettes at Cottesloe

Cottesloe Beach, Western Australia
Canon EOS 50D, 24-70mm f/2.8L @70mm, 1 sec, f/3.5, ISO100