Sometimes when people tell me they don’t have any interesting subjects of which to take photos, I suggest that they go out and see what they can find in their very own back yard. This photo, while not especially stellar or noteworthy, was the result of just such an experiment: I was out back playing with my kids who had brought a few of their toys along with them. When I saw the bus parked next to the monster truck I thought it might make an interesting picture, so I laid down on the ground and snapped a few pics. To be fair I did adjust things a big, moving the blue truck and repositioning the bus just a hair so I could get the look I wanted, but the idea itself was a result of simple serendipity. I was a couple feet away from the bus shooting wide open at f/1.8 at ISO 400, though given the resulting shutter speed (I shot this in Aperture Priority) of 1/3000 I suppose I could have easily lowered the ISO to 200 or 100 to get a cleaner shot. But as it is, I’m pleased with the result and enjoyed seeing, once again, that you don’t have to go far to find something interesting to photograph.
Catarina says
Your right, it would have sueded the photo that your kids was just a mit more visible :-D
Simon says
Thanks Catarina! If anything, the missed opportunity in this photo gives me a bit of a challenge to do it better next time around :)
Susan Ringsmuth says
This photo made me smile this morning – thank you! Such a simple subject matter made for a great photo.
Simon says
I’m glad you liked it! Next time I’ll try to include your grandkids in it too :)
Susan Ringsmuth says
That would be great!
Tom says
Ah, me thinks Simon is having way too much fun playing with trucks and short buses in his backyard. This reminds me of the scene I once shot in which the city of Troy was to burn, so I could use the analogy of the Trojan Horse comparing it to drugs entering the lives of troubled youth, to their eventual destruction. I used my old childhood castle, it’s walls decked with knights and vikings, and set a styrofoam cup inside of it, filled with gas. I dropped a match into the cup, and then shot several angles of what looked like the castle burning. Sadly, the fire melted my walls, my little men all together, but I did get a great picture of the city of Troy burning, which I used in my anti-drug slide presentation.
Simon says
Haha! Oh Tom, you can’t see me but I’m laughing as I read this. I can just imagine you setting fire to that castle, all in the name of helping some kids find their way in life. The things you do for youngsters, man :)
Tom says
The burning of the castle had a much greater outcome than the hay stack I once had four of my kids burn to re-anact the lyrics of 3542, my song. The farmer who I purchased the four bales of hay did not inform me that there was ditch weed inside each bale, and my kids went home smelling like a pot factory! I had a lot of explaining to do!!
Susan Ringsmuth says
It could only happen to you Tom!!!
Tom says
Yep, Sue, you know it!
William Matthey says
I like how you use a shallow depth of field to isolate the subject and simplify the overall composition. Very effective.
Simon says
Thank you! One of the advantages of using a prime lens (as I’m sure you already know) is it’s easier to get shallow depth of field in situations like this :)