Picture This

Sort By: Post DateTitle Publish Date
Picture This
Painterly Backgrounds
Staff  |  Jun 14, 2011  |  First Published: May 01, 2011  |  1 comments

This month’s Picture This! assignment was Painterly Backgrounds, the use of various photographic devices—namely depth of field—to create a field of color and design for a backdrop to the main theme. The technique not only removes what could be a distracting background but also brings the main subject more into the visual attention of the viewer. It also can be used to complement the color, shape, and design of the entire frame, adding to the emotional content of the image. Readers sometimes used their digital darkroom skills to enhance some of the effects (noted in captions), but, as with other assignments, we view image processing as something that can be used to emphasize the image from the camera, not obtain it entirely from software techniques.

Continue Reading »
Picture This
Panoramics
Shutterbug Staff  |  Dec 10, 2012  |  First Published: Nov 01, 2012  |  11 comments
Our Picture This! assignment this month was “Panoramics,” and we asked readers to send us a wide view unattainable by using a single lens, or to crop a wide shot so it had an aspect ratio that mimicked the format. The eye cannot possibly see all that a panoramic photo offers in one glimpse, whether it be in looking at the print or especially in the field.
Continue Reading »
Picture This
Patterns
Staff  |  May 07, 2013  |  First Published: Apr 01, 2013  |  6 comments
Our Picture This! assignment this month was Patterns, a subject near and dear to every photographer’s heart and eye. The challenge is to frame the scene so that the flow of the pattern is reinforced, or at times interrupted, in a visually surprising way. A pattern can be repetitive in terms of subject and rhythm, or it can be composed of diverse textures and forms that, through composition, become unified. Color, shadow and highlight, and creative use of depth of field all work together to create an effective image. Readers sent in images that covered nature, architecture, landscape, manufactured goods, and a wide variety of structures from all around the world. This was one of our most popular topics in terms of the number of submissions we received, so it was tough to narrow them down to the photos you see here.
Continue Reading »
Picture This
Patterns In Nature
Staff  |  Mar 06, 2012  |  First Published: Feb 01, 2012  |  1 comments
There is a school of thought that says that all good human design is derived from patterns in nature, and that we have a natural sympathy for objects that echo what we see around us in the natural world. Indeed, even the most abstract of human creations, be it painting, architecture, or simple tools, all seem to stem from what nature has taught and revealed. The subject of this month’s Picture This! assignment is Patterns in Nature, where we requested readers to go out and find those most pleasing, often intricate, and quite mysterious designs that we discover in the natural world and reveal through composition, lighting, and point of view with our cameras.
Continue Reading »
Picture This
Pen And Ink
Staff  |  Feb 07, 2012  |  First Published: Jan 01, 2012  |  0 comments
Our Picture This! assignment this month was Pen and Ink, in which we asked readers to send us images that emulated a pen and ink drawing, that is, reducing the image content to line, texture, and form. Software makes it easy to convert an image file to just about any type of illustrative format, from oil paint to pastels and more. There are many ways to achieve the effect, but as with all images it’s how the content matches the technique that counts. Readers sent in all types of subject matter and achieved the effect in various ways, all of which show how malleable images are these days and how working with software can open up new ways of seeing and sharing images.
Continue Reading »
Picture This
Picture This!
Panoramas
Shutterbug Staff  |  Aug 01, 2005  |  0 comments

Our Picture This! assignment this month was panoramas, and readers responded with a host of images made with panoramic cameras, cropped large format and a goodly number of stitched images, multiple shots made with film and digital cameras brought together with various software programs. It strikes us that the panoramic "genre" is back with more power and grace than...

Continue Reading »
Picture This
Picture This!
Artful Architecture
Shutterbug Staff  |  Oct 01, 2004  |  0 comments

This month's Picture This! assignment was "Artful Architecture," and we were thrilled with not only the scenes and places we got to visit but with the artful way in which Shutterbug readers made the images. Using a range of wide angle and tele lenses, with many fascinating points of view, the photos gave us renewed faith...

Continue Reading »
Picture This
Picture This!
Blue Moods
Shutterbug Staff  |  May 01, 2005  |  0 comments

Every color has an association, and each of us reacts to hues and their shadings in different ways. This month's Picture This! assignment was Blue Moods, and readers sent us in an amazing set of images that conveyed the range of emotions this most evocative color creates. While many relied on the cold side of this color in winter scenes, others found their blue mood in the...

Continue Reading »
Picture This
Picture This!
Color In Black And White
Shutterbug Staff  |  Nov 01, 2004  |  0 comments

Our Picture This! assignment for this month was "Color In Black And White," and readers responded with a wide variety of monochrome images, all made using color film or with color files from digital cameras. The key to this month's selections is that not every color image need be awash with red, green, and blue, but that light and atmosphere can conspire to...

Continue Reading »
Picture This
Picture This!
Directional Light
Shutterbug Staff  |  Mar 01, 2005  |  0 comments

There's an adage in photography that if you're not sure how to deal with the light just turn 90Þ from the source and shoot away, taking advantage of the way light shapes the subject as it streaks along a plane. Our assignment for Picture This! was directional light, and readers responded with images that played with light in many imaginative ways. As these...

Continue Reading »
Picture This
Picture This!
Historical Reenactments
Shutterbug Staff  |  Sep 01, 2004  |  0 comments

Picture This!

Picture This! - Our Next Assignment

Neon City
O f all the forms of artificial light neon is perhaps the most exciting and creative.

Continue Reading »
Picture This
Picture This!
Neon City
George Schaub  |  Jan 01, 2005  |  First Published: Jan 04, 2005  |  0 comments

Our Picture This! assignment for this month was Neon City, a nighttime endeavor where we asked you to send us images of perhaps the most artistic form of lighting. Neon is an art form that comes and goes, one that has undergone a revival in recent years. But readers sent us samples of neon from likely sources, such as Las Vegas and New York, as well as vintage neon from the past.

Continue Reading »
Picture This
Picture This!
Reflections
Shutterbug Staff  |  Dec 01, 2005  |  0 comments

Light is a dancer. Given an opportunity to bounce around, it will. Given a surface, it will play upon it. Given the right time of day, it will glance around corners and capture scenes that would otherwise be unseen. The subject of our Picture This! for this month was reflections, and readers responded with some of the most fascinating photographs we've seen for quite a...

Continue Reading »
Picture This
Picture This!
Sunrise/Sunset
Shutterbug Staff  |  Feb 01, 2005  |  0 comments

Our Picture This! assignment this month was Sunrise/Sunset and we received a year's worth of risings and settings from our very talented readers. The images showed a wide range of subjects and locations, from Alaska to the coast of Maine, with rainbows and the dazzling light as it moved in and around everything from peaceful harbors to the great cities of our land.

Continue Reading »
Picture This
Picture This!
Visual Perspective
Shutterbug Staff  |  Aug 01, 2004  |  0 comments

Picture This!

Picture This! - Our Next Assignment

Silhouettes
When your point of view puts the subject in front of a bright light source, and you...

Continue Reading »

Pages

X