Category Archives: Graphic Design

Light, Color & Abstract Pattern

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by Kerry Drager

“Discover the world around you” is great creativity advice for photographers. And sometimes that means going no further than your own front door. Literally! 🙂

The other day, our home’s entryway — with the textured glass — came alive with sunlight and color in late afternoon. I then moved in extremely close with a macro lens in order to catch the scene’s graphic-design elements: i.e., line, pattern, color and repetition. The colors, by the way, resulted from the outside welcome mat. :)))

Following are two different versions, and I like them both!

Textured-Glass-Design-2_KKD2858

Textured-Glass-Design-1_KKD2848

More Info: The details and settings are the same for both photos: Nikon D4. F/22 @ 1 second. 100 ISO. 105mm macro lens. Tripod.

Shooting Notes: The small aperture (f/22) helped achieve as much depth of field (front-to-back sharpness) as possible. With stationary macro scenes, a tripod is a must, along with a shutter-release cable and, if possible, mirror lockup (a feature found on many DSLRs, although a self-timer works too).

Here is a quick snapshot showing the overall (“before”) view of the entryway.

Textured-Glass-Design-BEFORE_KKD2881

Like what you see? Check out my website: kerrydrager.com … Also see a listing of classes, mentoring and workshops…

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Graphic Design and Recycled Junk Art

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By Kerry Drager

While looking for graphic-design scenes one day, I ran across something totally artsy and totally off-beat … a pattern of old light bulbs lined up in metal mesh 🙂 I captured this unique image at the wonderfully creative Junk Girls shop in Cambria, CA.

Junk_Art_Bulbs_KKD2109

A big “Thank You!” to owners Jenny and Melissa! As often happens after capturing an in-store shot, I then discovered some other very cool Junk Girls items to purchase for a future home macro project … so stay tuned… :)))

More Details: Nikon D4. I chose a small aperture of f/22 to capture as much depth of field (front-to-back sharpness) as possible. 1/10th second. 100 ISO. 105mm lens. Tripod.

Note: Here’s a bigger view of the scene.

Junk_Art_Bulbs_BEFORE_KKD2101

Liking what you see? Check out my kerrydrager.com website.  Also see my Learn Photography page — a listing of classes, mentoring and workshops.

Exploring Color, Line and Pattern

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by Kerry Drager

A lineup of rental ocean kayaks caught my attention the other day — for two very good reasons:

1) Color contrast: Check out the warm tones (mostly yellows) vs. the cool greens.

2) Graphic design: Lines and patterns were the attractions here. Also, I slanted the camera slightly to make the already strong lines even stronger — as diagonals.

With my telephoto zoom lens, I zeroed in tight on the best parts of the scene, while leaving out surrounding distractions (see the overall view below). A tripod, by the way, let me frame my composition precisely (no need for post-cropping!), while also letting me get a deep depth of field (via f/22 for maximum front-to-back sharpness) and use a low ISO (100) for the best in image quality.

Ocean_Kayak_Pattern_KKD2749

As always, lighting was just as important as subject. Here, the light was just right — soft and diffused from an overcast sky.

More Info: Photographed at San Simeon Cove, William Randolph Hearst Memorial State Beach, California Central Coast. Nikon D4. F/22 @ 1/6th second. 100 ISO. 70-300mm zoom lens set at 170mm. Tripod.

By the way, here’s a “before” image that shows the overall view:

Ocean_Kayak_Pattern_BEFORE_KKD2766

Like what you see? See my listing of exciting classes, mentoring and workshops…