Vampires, Zombies and Ghouls Oh my!

I had fun making my friends here in Korea look like zombies, ghouls and vampires using picnik.com which is a photo editing internet program. There are many free options.  I subscribe so that I have more options. As you can see, I had LOTS of fun ghouling up my friends.

New toys

The one on the left with the hood is the zoomy lens and the other is the wide angle lens.

This shot, taken hastily in the morning, which has a smudge, is to show you the bulb in the center of the lens.  This is what give is the wide angle.

for those camera people, this is a 28mm-105mm.  3.5f, In the camera world, amongst the pros and Koreans who must have everything top of the line or else they die, it isn't the best, but I think it will suit our purposes.

 We've been preparing for our travels.  Basically, everyday, Kyle and I wake up and say, "do we have to go to work, can't we just go on our travels today?" in the whiniest voice ever.  In the end, we decide to go to work, begrudgingly.

And in preparing for our travels, Kyle and I decided that if we were ever to invest in good lenses, now was the time.  So we made our way to Yongsan, where one goes to buy electronics, and made our planned purchase, a lens with a more enhanced zoom capacity. Its not really a ZOOM lens, but it has a more zoominess than did our previous.

Our camera came with two lenses, the kit lens and a mega zoom lens.  The mega zoom lens couldn't take clear photos without a tripod, and as we only carry a tiny tripod with us, it just didn't ever get any use. We sold both lenses even though the guy laughed at the "poor" quality of my kit lens.


We then however made an impulse buy, one that I so far have no regrets about, a wide angle lens.  I've wanted a wide angle lens for a LONG time. Wide angle lenses are responsible for those AMAZING sky shots that are often seen in magazines. But wide angle lenses are SUPER expensive.  Like $600 and higher sometimes.  But a new lens came out which is much cheaper, and not AS cool, but still pretty cool, and on impulse we bought it. We called a friend quickly to do a price check and a review check previous to making the decision, and in the end, we thought, we couldn't live without.  Or we could, but it would be REALLY fun to have.

So here are some examples of what are new lenses can do:

50 mm is a close up lens, this shot is just meant to give perspective.

Wide angle lens.  Do see how much of the background you can see?

Normal shot

wide angle lens

Normal shot

wide angle lens

I'm so excited to have these new toys!  Hopefully our pictures will reflect this, and everyone can ooohh and awwww over our AMAZING new photos.

Normal lens

zoomier lens

Snap Photography class 2

Our second photography lesson took place mid march. The weather had been warming up and and we had begun to shed layers. In order to get to our lesson in Seoul, Kyle and I had to wake up at 8am, catch a taxi by 8:35, get on the subway for hours and arrive to our lesson in Seoul by 11am. As you can imagine, we were generally running behind schedule and this day didn't think the weather would be turning down the dial so rapidly. It was near freezing all day long, and guess who didn't dress appropriately? That is right, neither of us did. The lesson was an outdoor shoot. We froze our tushes off. And let me tell you, I am not a fan of taking pictures when my hands turn blue in order to hold the camera. It just doesn't put me in the mood for shooting. So the results are a half-way attempt at candid shots of Koreans walking down one of the hip shopping districts in Seoul. The trick is to zoom your camera lens in all the way (if you have a normal kit lens), hold the camera length ways at your belly button and cut in front of them as they walk. Most people don't notice that you are taking their picture, some do though. I was shy at first and not all that skilled. Practice makes better but I am far from perfect yet at honing this technique. Here are some of the better shots, but really I'm not that impressed with any of them. Like I said, it will take lots and lots of practice :)

Snap, photography lessons

As an unexpected Christmas gift, my lovely mommy surprised Kyle and I with an SLR (single lens reflex. As many of you know, Kyle and I like to travel. I know, I know, it is a well kept secret, but we do. And while traveling, we have become quite the photographers. And by photographers, I don't mean to imply that we are extremely talented, but we do take a prolific amount of pictures. Maybe more pictures than any of you want to see.

One reason we love traveling abroad is that foreign countries always provide such inspiration. They have the ability to perform brain surgery, pulling everything out that you thought you knew and twisting it all around until nothing makes any sense either in your culture or in another. As unpleasant as that particular experience sounds, we always come away with new perspectives.

This SLR camera or what we lovingly refer to it as our fancy schmancy camera was nearly as foreign to us as the foreign countries we visit. So we decided to invest in some lessons. And, make no mistake, it is an investment, as photography lessons are not cheap. An American here in Seoul offers a month long course; four Saturdays a week. Basically what we really need now is practice. I wish that we could take these lessons and walk away capturing the most magical moments as well trained as a professional, but unfortunately, learning how to use the odds and ends of the camera is only just the first step and basically we are toddlers in the camera world. One in ten photos turn out well if we are lucky. And just because we now know what the different buttons mean, doesn't mean we remember at the spur of the moment when the bee happens to be entering it's hive at the perfect angle. Which setting should it be at now? Is it in shade or sunlight? Should I use a flash or natural light? ARGGGG!

So in part from constant nagging from the gift giver who wants to see the fruits of her gift, we will be sharing photos from different sessions in a small series on photography by Kyle and Vanessa.

This series I call "The Subway Series" because they were all taken on the subway. After our first lesson in Seoul, we promptly went to purchase a new lens. Not because we were told to, but because we learned about new toys which would enhance our ever-growing snapping addiction. The first thing we learned in our photography lesson was that despite what you might think, the expensive part of an SLR camera is not the camera itself, but it's accessories. The extra lens we purchased was a measly $100. Compare that with some lens which run as high as $2000, we considered this purchase conservative.

The lessons were on the other side of Seoul which meant long rides on the subway, at least two hours both ways. How did we entertain ourselves on our way home? Playing with our new toy or course!! We attempted to snap photos inconspicuously, but our camera can't also be disguised as a phone or a teddy bear and the Koreans eyed us suspiciously. After some time, we just gave up all pretenses and shot at will.

This kid was so cute. All Korean kids are cute though. Which of these photos captures his cuteness the best, do you think?

Which old man photo is your favorite?