I have said time and time again, and I continue to mean what I say, that I don’t make a habit of having posts on Weekly Fifty coincide with specific times of the year or other such milestones. That being said, I do still get a bit wistful near the end of December and maybe, just maybe, try to take a picture or two that hearkens to this particular season. Not always, mind you, but occasionally. Sometimes. Every now and then.
And this, as you can probably tell, is one of those such times. I don’t know that anything about this picture has to do with closing out the year 2022, but I do hope the subject matter, the colors, the contrast between light and dark…the whole composition, really…makes you think about chilly winter nights and maybe, just maybe, a cozy evening by the Christmas tree with family and friends.
Or maybe not. Maybe this doesn’t do anything for you at all, and if that’s the case, then that interpretation is completely valid and as good of a way of interpreting meaning from this image (if any is able to be gleaned at all) as any other. Anyway, what you’re looking at here is a close-up shot of a Christmas ornament hanging from our tree. The setup is pretty simple, as you can see here:
Just to be clear: this shot was no accident. I created the image using a specific combination of ornaments, lighting, and the position of my camera (as well as the usual exposure settings, of course) and also no small degree of patience. I don’t remember where we got this particular ornament but I enjoy its message, despite living in Oklahoma where we only rarely get snow and even more rarely have snow on Christmas. Perhaps it’s the Minnesotan in me still poking out every now and then :) In any case, the ornament by itself didn’t make for all that interesting of a picture. What I really tried to do here was craft a complete composition using other objects in the background—namely the red wire tree, but also a silver bell, of sorts, that is hanging just behind the red tree which you can’t really see in the shot. I positioned those background ornaments, as well as some of the lights on the tree, to create a scene that was full of multicolored points of light reflecting off the surface of the ornament and also creating something to look at besides just the main subject.
I shot this at f/11 on my 105mm macro lens, ISO 100, and a 2-second exposure which is where my patience really started to wear thin. The ornament had a habit of twisting back and forth at the smallest provocation, which meant that even my kids walking through the other room created enough vibration to sully the shot. However, it didn’t take long until I had the image I was going for and was able to put away my camera and get back to what really matters: my family.
And with that I hope you had a good Christmas and are looking forward to a 2023 full of new opportunities, surrounded by love from family and friends. May God bless you now and throughout the new year, whatever that may bring.
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