Most photographers eventually reach a point in their shooting referred to as a plateau: a time when they find it hard to develop new work, or take their photography to the next level. When this happens, it can be hard to describe why it’s happening, and even harder to break through and start creating great content again.
The past couple of years have been kind of rough for me (can’t imagine why…), and frankly, I haven’t been shooting. It’s time to change that, so here it goes.
The 50 Limits Project
There is a common exercise that photographers use to enhance their skills. Pick a thing, maybe aperture, maybe a shape, maybe a style, and go shoot within that limit. Giving yourself a constraint helps you focus on one thing, or requires you to see things you might not normally pick up.
It’s this exercise that is the inspiration for my new photo project: “50 Limits”. 50 Limits is a 52 photo project designed to take me back to basics and get all the kinks out from endless months of being out of the game. It’s 52 photos, because there will be a before and after shot, each intended to represent the idea of 50 limits.The before photo is the featured image for this post.
52 photo projects are often associated with a 52 week project. In my case, I hope to work faster than that, but the requirement will be that I can only capture one of the targets at a time.
I’ll be sharing my photos on Flickr in this album. I will also be updating this page with each photo as well as more details about the photo. Here are the 50 Limits for the project:
| # | Area | Objective / Limit | Purpose |
| 1 | Shapes | Square | Learn to see |
| 2 | Shapes | Circle | Learn to see |
| 3 | Shapes | Rectangle | Learn to see |
| 4 | Shapes | Triangle | Learn to see |
| 5 | Shapes | Oval | Learn to see |
| 6 | Rules | S Curve | Learn to see |
| 7 | Rules | Diagonal | Learn to see |
| 8 | Rules | Rule of 3rds | Learn to see |
| 9 | Rules | Golden Spiral | Learn to see |
| 10 | Rules | Golden Rectangle | Learn to see |
| 11 | Rules | Symmetry | Learn to compose |
| 12 | Rules | Frame in Frame | Learn to compose |
| 13 | Rules | Leading Lines | Learn to compose |
| 14 | Rules | Repetition | Learn to compose |
| 15 | Rules | Point | Learn to compose |
| 16 | Focus | Black & White | Learn to compose |
| 17 | Focus | ƒ2.8 | Think in time value |
| 18 | Focus | ƒ4.0 | Think in time value |
| 19 | Focus | ƒ8.0 | Think in time value |
| 20 | Focus | ƒ16.0 | Think in time value |
| 21 | Focus | ƒ32.0 | Think in time value |
| 22 | Focus | 1/1000 | Think in ƒ stop |
| 23 | Focus | 1/250 | Think in ƒ stop |
| 24 | Focus | 1/30 | Think in ƒ stop |
| 25 | Focus | 1/8 | Think in ƒ stop Deal with Camera shake |
| 26 | Focus | 1/2 | Think in ƒ stop Deal with Camera shake |
| 27 | Focus | 1 Sec | Think in ƒ stop Deal with Camera shake |
| 28 | Focus | 5 Sec | Think in ƒ stop Deal with Camera shake |
| 29 | Focus | ISO 100 | Deal with less light |
| 30 | Focus | ISO 800 | Think in tv & ƒ stop |
| 31 | Focus | ISO 6400 | Think in tv & ƒ stop |
| 32 | Focus | ISO 25600 | Handle noise |
| 33 | Colors | Red | Learn to see |
| 34 | Colors | Blue | Learn to see |
| 35 | Colors | Green | Learn to see |
| 36 | Colors | Yellow | Learn to see |
| 37 | Colors | Purple | Learn to see |
| 38 | Colors | Black | Learn to see |
| 39 | Colors | White | Learn to see |
| 40 | Elements | 1 Subject | Learn to see |
| 41 | Elements | 2 Subjects | Learn to see |
| 42 | Elements | 3 Subjects | Learn to see |
| 43 | Elements | 4 Subjects | Learn to see |
| 44 | Elements | 5 Subjects | Learn to see |
| 45 | Creativity | Foreground | Translate an idea |
| 46 | Creativity | Background | Translate an idea |
| 47 | Creativity | Nothing | Translate an idea |
| 48 | Creativity | Something | Translate an idea |
| 49 | Creativity | Too Much | Translate an idea |
| 50 | Creativity | Too Little | Translate an idea |
Canon 6D
Although I’m a firm believer that any camera can make good images in the hands of a good photographer, it has long been a desire of mine to have a full-frame camera. There’s something about working with the standard format that feels authentic. I have finally acquired a used Canon 6D from mbp.com. It shows a little wear, and already has a shutter count of over 50,000, but it’s really in excellent condition and it’s everything I’ve wanted for many years.
The biggest things I love are:
- Easier control of the settings with a wheel selector on the back of the camera.
- I can also choose the white balance by selecting a kelvin value (something that has really bothered me that I didn’t have before).
- The shutter is quieter than my T3i, which is helpful when I’m shooting in quiet environments and don’t want to be a huge distraction.
- I can push the ISO much further than I would ever be comfortable trying with the T3i.
Choosing a Lens
My bigger hardware problem was, I didn’t have good glass. I knew I was going to need a reasonable lens for my new camera. Selecting the right lens at a lower price point was a challenge for sure.
I settled on another used option: the Tamron SP AF 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di LD. It’s relatively sharp for a 3rd party lens, and it has flat ƒ stop of 2.8 regardless of zoom. Yes, it’s a zoom camera, but it’s going to serve multiple purposes. It will be a great walk around lens, and still give me the consistency to get some really good shots.
All of this, just in time for some beautiful weather and some prime opportunities to get out and shoot. I’m looking forward to kick starting my photography again and making some photographs to share with the world.