Well I guess I'm about due to put some more family back in these Top Captures. I had mentioned that it would be a little heavy with family members and then go a while without showing more of them. That wouldn't be quite fair to save them all for last. Nor would it be very suspenseful. So what better way to introduce another family member to the list then to have a shot from the annual Arkansas Fleming Family Reunion?
I messed around and didn't go last year. Didn't budget quite well enough so had to stay home over Labor Day Weekend. Which wasn't smart thinking on my part considering how close I am to the Little Rock area now. It's just a four hour drive away from McKinney. The even better part is the four hours goes by rather quickly. It's not all farmland and wasteland like it is when you're driving from Des Moines to Kansas City. Plus, when it's the right time of day, there's some nice scenery when you're nearing the Ozarks.
I had taken photos at past family reunions as well. Actually, I probably have each year I went. But this was the first year that I did it having grasped a MUCH better knowledge of how to actually use a camera to take quality photos. I wasn't just pointing the camera in the direction of family, waiting for it to focus and snapping. I was properly measuring light, allowing for just the right amount of bokeh, adjusting the settings accordingly....basically, I was trying to be ninja with mine.
See, the thing was that I knew there would be a lot of family members there taking photos. There always is. Our family likes to record events as much as possible. Which paid off when it came to the final day where we watched a slideshow containing photos of years past. But anyway, I wanted to make sure to set mine apart so that we would have some professional quality photos available as well.
This photo almost didn't happen due to the setting in which it took place. Can you figure out where it is? For anyone that knows Uncle Johnny, it should be pretty obvious. It was at church. Yes...that's right...I took my camera up into a house of worship taking pictures. I was on the fence about whether I should do it. Would it be disrespectful? Well I figure if they have the show "Preachers of LA" where they have video cameras up in the sanctuary then what is my little ol' camera going to hurt?
Not everyone was exactly cool with it though. There was a guy sitting on our pew who kept giving me the side-eye whenever I snapped. I thought it was rather ironic considering that he was the spitting image of Frederick Douglass. I am SO not exaggerating either. Ask Uncle Johnny. Dude seriously looked like Frederick Douglass. I was so tempted to take a picture of him as proof. And whenever I switched from my 50mm to my 200 lens (aka, Kong) he seemed a little put off. I'm sure he got over it though. I'm still not sure if it was the fact I had a camera or the fact that he was amazed by how far cameras have come since his day. At least I wasn't using my flash so he could take solace in that fact.
I've gotten a few photos before of Uncle Johnny singing, but none like this one. He had mentioned to me before that it always seemed like I was catching him at unflattering moments whenever he was singing. Like maybe he was either looking in pain or scowling. Or both. So this time I made sure to ge more of an action shot of him. I knew it was just a matter of time before he would start feeling it and get one of these looks in there. That look where you feel like he's singing right to you to get some church in you. He may very well have been in my instance. Since this visit to church was the first time I've been in a while. I have no clue though since I wasn't listening to what he was singing. I was just trying to make sure to get a great shot.
good work...hope you got our own TD aka Rev. R. Brown
Posted by: Auntie | 17 December 2013 at 08:22 PM
Oh I got a good shot of him alright. Didn't make the list, but it's in the archives
Posted by: Stan | 17 December 2013 at 08:26 PM