We can finally play outside!! The kids are loving it and I am enjoying shooting somewhere other than inside my house. And while the last day of March wasn't as warm as we would have hoped we still ventured outside in the evening. The kids played basketball, soccer and rode their bikes up and down the sidewalks. I love that Landon's outfit - pajamas with a hoodie thrown over the top, helmet and new tennis shoes. The ensemble perfectly demonstrates his personality and a perfect photo op.
My intention while photographing this evening was the weekly prompt of "layers". Kind of like the rule of thirds, layering breaks up a photo into three parts. But instead of splitting it into 3 flat sections, layering is more of a 3-D effect if you want to think of it like that. Being intentional about what is in the foreground, middleground and background will automatically add dimension to a photo. I could have very easily taken a photo of Landon riding his bike by just standing right in front of him or to the side. But instead I got down low, positioned myself so that the fire hydrant was in the foreground (anchoring the shot on the right) placed Landon in the middle of the image (breaking the rule of thirds) and the tree on the back left continues to draw the viewer's eye across the photo. And I made sure the our house was in the background. {It's often the case when taking photos of your kids that the neighbors' houses will be in the background more often than your own so I like to make sure our house is in the photo as much as possible - it will be a great thing for them to look back on when they are older.} The contrasting primary colors of yellow, red and blue further enhance the photo. The only thing I don't like about this photo is the neighbor's SUV in front of Landon because I feel like it throws off the balance but it still works to tell the story. Remember every photo doesn't have to be perfect - give yourself grace and remember your why!

A note about my settings and setup (shot in manual mode).
I chose the 35mm lens because I knew I would need to put something in the foreground and I wanted enough space to still have a lot of more in the frame.
I first set the ISO to 400 because while it was pretty sunny out (usually ideal to use 100 or 200) I knew I would need a fast shutter speed so I gave myself a bit of wiggle room. An ISO of 400 would still not have any noise so the photo would be "clean",
I set the aperture at f/3.2 so that I would have a nice blurry background to help add to the sense of layering.
My kids were very active so I knew I needed a fast shutter speed. I adjusted as I was shooting but didn't go below 1/800. On this shot the SS was 1/1250 and I was able to freeze his motion.
As soon as I took this photo I knew it was going to be the "one" for this week. It not only had great layers but it told a story. In editing, I didn't have to crop it very much as all and just brought out the colors to really make it pop.
If you would like to join me this year and complete your own Project 52, download my prompt guide and follow along.
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