Tuesday, September 04, 2012

eyes that tell stories

You look to the eyes for a story, right?  From time to time, we take in an animal for foster care through our local vet clinic.  This is Mona.  We were supposed to have her for two weeks, but it's stretching to almost three.  Not to worry.  We think we may have found a good home for her.  I think her eyes tell us that she is content.  She has a sweet disposition.  She's gentle and mild, plus, she does not bark much.  In fact, I think my dog taught her that she's supposed to bark when she hears someone at the door.

Her eyes tell another story, too.  The reflection from her eye is in sharp focus, so that if you look carefully, you will see the lighting that I used for this picture.  I took some non-functioning relics that used to be a wireless flash transmitter and receiver, stripped the guts, and hardwired it to make an extension cable from my camera's hot shoe to an external flash.  I mounted the flash on a tripod, and aimed it straight up to the ceiling, and one or two feet to my left.  Since I was blocking some of the light from the windows behind me, the result was that the front lights came from my left and right for a soft fill.  The key light was what the flash bounced off the ceiling.  Black fur absorbs so much light, that I usually find it impossible to see this much detail.  That, plus her eyes are almost always hiding in the shadows.

Oh, and guess what... I did not realize that I had my camera set to "continuous auto-focus."  Last week's zone focusing was a type of manual focusing; this was auto-focused.  So anyway, when I was focusing, then repositioning, a lot of my pics were coming out blurry.  Grrr...  I can't believe it took me so long to find out!!!  That only presented a problem in one of the focusing methods I used.  Maybe I'll talk more about those, later.

8 comments:

lime said...

aw, she does look sweet...and as if she has been through some rough times.

Craver Vii said...

Interesting that you should mention that, Lime. Mona was dropped off at the clinic when animal control threatened to take ALL the animals from that house. I saw the other animals that came with Mona. There was a mature cat and two male dogs. None of the animals had been "fixed." The older dog barked incessantly, and I think he is the reason animal control got involved in the first place. While at the clinic's open house, the little old dog wore on the nerves of a great big dog, until finally, the big guy picked up the little antagonist and shook him back and forth for a few seconds. It was scary, because we thought we were witnessing a killing, but amazingly, the little bully was only bruised. And quiet. The big dog didn't intend to harm him, but only teach him some manners. I hesitate to pass judgment on the former owners, but can't help but wonder how abusive the little old dog was in their former home.

imac said...

She seems content, has she had it a little rough time/.

Craver Vii said...

You're probably right, Imac. Eight months of badgering from the grouchy older dog, versus two weeks of pampering at the Craver house.

DeniseinVA said...

You're ingenious with those photography techniques Craver. I'm taking notes. Real cute picture of this sweet little dog. I am glad she was rescued and I wish her a very happy life from here on in.

George said...

I really like the way you've captured Mona's eyes. I'm impressed with the way you used old equipment to get this neat lighting. I'm glad to learn that I'm not the only one who can get tripped up with my camera settings.

Craver Vii said...

Nah. Honestly Denise, I retain so little, and most of the techniques are just recently acquired from the internet. But thank you.

Thanks George. I feel like the contraption has some redeeming factor for all the hoarded pieces that I probably should have discarded. I used to do the same thing when I was little. Saving cool knobs and switches and such.

Betty Manousos said...

i'm so sad to hear that she has been through some rough times, but i am glad she is ok now.

your photography techniques are very interesting, craver, i'm taking notes. thank you.

such a beautiful photo of this adorable little dog.