The program we have now is Photos. We originally started with iPhoto when we got our MacBook Pro. I'm ok with Photos. Are you having a problem?

Ann

I just liked iphotos better. Among other things Photos does some corny stuff like making 'memories' which (a) I don't like and (b) are unrelated pictures that Apple must have a weird algorithm to make and (c) they pop up when I least expect it. I've got them turned off now. I know that's a minor gripe. Just the first that comes to mind.

I'd like to find out how much it would cost me to upgrade since I bought the 7 in July and paid cash money for it. I would have bought an 8 or 8+ but was worried that due to their bigger sizes Ms Clumsy here might have a problem. A few weeks ago I went into one of the stores but it's bad timing now. Between kids on vacation and Xmas shopping the stores are pretty crowded.

I googled trade in value for my 8 with Apple and it said about $300. I know the camera for 7 and 8 is the same. The X camera is better but it may have more AI behind it which is a coming trend I read for cell cameras. Not sure I want a lot more software deciding what's in my pic and prettifying it for me.

Ann

I think the 8+ is when the exta 'features' start to kick in. Apple has an online manual of sorts. For each feature that it deigns to describe there will be a footnote saying which models include the feature. 7 is usually at the bottom of the list. That's not a good sign.

The one feature I'd like to have is where you can blackout any misc. crapola. Yes, I know that's not the technical term.

Winter in Canada.

I just upgraded from the 6 Plus to the 8 Plus. I took the class on how to take photos with it so I will share what I learned. The "Plus" versions are just physically bigger with bigger screen. The camera and the programs are all exactly the same. When you move to the 8, now you get the TWO cameras, with a telephoto and a wide angle, so you can take a photo with either, or have the computer inside the phone meld them using the "portrait" feature, so the background and foreground become out of focus. It really works! The only difference between the 8 and the 10 (for photographers) is that the sensor size of the 10 is bigger. This means you can blow up the photos larger. Otherwise the camera and programs for the photos are the same.

Here you can see the difference using the telephoto lens in the iPhone 8. These photos were taken handheld from a car in the rain. I really like the new cell phone camera.

Thank you Pistil! Sorry I missed your post from a week ago. Very helpful information you shared!

Ann

A couple of pics from our trip to Mexico, at the end of the year. Sitting here in Washington with the rain and bitter wind, I am definitely longing for those warm, sunny days.

I took this yesterday of the Spousal Unit walking along the beach on South Padre Island. I "could" have cropped it, but I like the visual of mankind being so small in nature, showing the vastness of the water and sand. The fact that it was overcast and some misty fog just adds to it......at least in MY mind it does.

Edited to add I have an LG v20.

I agree, it's an amazing shot. Well done. 📷📷📷

P.S. I'm reading about negative space in a photo and how it's as important as the positive.

I am thinking of getting an enlargement of it.

Have it printed on canvas or aluminum, Anna. We've been doing that and they turn out really well.

Hi,
You could also get some cards made, blank inside. I had some made from a photo in Spain, on the back I highlighted, photographed by and the place and year. I use them for thank you cards but if you put 10 together with a ribbon, they make a wonderful hostess gift, or any kind of gift for that matter. Lots of ideas. ❄️

Thanks, Moran. Never thought of that.

I got mine from Vista print when there was a sale.

I get my business cards for my baking from Vista Print. I have been happy with them.

Can anyone recommend a tripod that is small and light enough to carry for long distances on a hike and whose height can be adjusted over a fairly wide range of heights? I use an iPhone SE to take pictures of plants ranging in height from about one to five feet.

Lovely, Anna! Makes me miss home

AnnaZ said:I took this yesterday of the Spousal Unit ....

If I may be a bit critical:

The overall photo has a lot of potential for conceptual building. It's a great pic, but I think it really misses the mark that it could be. In this kind of photo, the composition is very critical. For me, as is, it is very static compared to what I think it could be. I do like that the person takes up very little real estate in the pic. If you blow up the photo for a pic on the wall, I think you will be wishing he was even smaller!

If your real purpose is to convey mankind being so small in nature, then I suppose it's OK. But aesthetically, it is still jarring to me that the person is in the exact, exact center of the image. As is, he is still the focal point, and if you want the grandeur of nature to be the focus, he needs to be smaller yet. Then the motion of the waves would be forefront and the vastness accentuated.

Getting back to my static comment, I rarely follow the rule of two-thirds to the letter, but the approach is well founded, and its purpose should always be in the back of every photographer's mind. Think for a moment, how the picture story changes if the person was off-center to the front left: he would be entering the pic, providing your imagination to build from there. Placed in the upper right, he would be leaving the scene, providing a different scenario.

This is an unusual pic where shadows would mostly likely work against you. Unless you are shooting into the sun, the direction of a prominent shadow would be off-kilter, and likely ruin the composition. As your photo is, you found the correct light environment that would not show shadows.

Even better than that, what we are seeing as a "shadow" is actually a reflection. It will always orient between you and the subject, from whatever position you choose to snap the photo. The reflection accentuates movement and becomes part of the story telling. Be aware, however, that although this orientation usually works in your favor, sometimes it doesn't. That orientation caused a viewer's eye to move in said direction, and if that is the direction you want, than perfect! If, for instance, the man is in the upper right of the photo as you snap the shot, the reflection would be skewed toward the center of the photo (where you as the photographer are) rather than directly behind the man, If you want him walking away from you, the photographer, then perfect! If you want the reflection to be directly behind him, then you, the photographer must be directly behind him, and crop the photo afterwards.

Obviously, the farther away the subject is, the less prominent this reflection off-kilter will be. At the distance in your photo, I'm not sure it would make a difference. If you had take a photo of your husband with him already in the upper right, it would show the reflection pointing to you, as the photographer. If you did take that shot, why don't you post it so we can all see?

After all, Dave explicitly created this forum to learn photography, and NOT to just show pretty pictures.