Photographing Your City or Community or Neighborhood- Be Sure To Join the ActiveRain Photo Blogger Group
A Local Neighborhod View
Since I started taking photos with a DSLR camera, I have been busily taking pictures of just about anything I see with a heavy emphasis on " All About San Diego" . The very first test photo I took with my DSLR was of a Bee in my back patio area. Never quite got it in focus but it was interesting trying all the buttons and dials on the camera to see what I could get. My "Hold Still" command to that Bee was just totally ignored of course. Holding the camera still with a fast shutter speed probably would have worked.
There are many good photos of San Diego out there. But with my newly learned perspective, I think I have a lot to offer in better capturing San Diego's image. And so do you for your respective communities.
Our lives are busy in our real estate careers but as I was looking through some of the things that I have already photographed, it occurred to me that there is so much more that can be done. Besides all the great landmarks and buildings, activities that take place in communities can also be very interesting and provide some great subject material. Photographing Housing Subdivisions can be excellent in helping the Internet Empowered Consumer learn more about your areas and preferences that they can express about what attracts them to one particular area over another. Recreational areas and parks also create a lot of interest especially if you can help the consumer visualize themselves there. Sports and activities add context to an community.
With all that said, we most often see life in a macro sense when some of the real beauty we can share is often a bit more micro. Trees and flowers, birds would come to mind as these represent some of the intrinsic values that also enhance areas where we want to live. Certainly though, there are other images that will attract a person to your blog. Learning how to capture (compose) an image is something that can be easily learned by example. What I personally want to accomplish, is to capture something different. Something special and something that will touch a consumer with the sheer beauty of what San Diego is and the other local communities that it make it up. These shots may be of schools, libraries or other notable buildings, the downtown, animals, vista and views, parks, recreation , people or events or even a plate of food from a local restaurant that is beautifully presented. The idea is to help other connect with your vision.
Just taking photos is clearly not enough for me. If I want my photos to be something that people want to take possession of or be a part of, they must be touched as much by the presentation of the photos that helps the subject to come alive for them. That's not to suggest that we have to become professional photographers or photo editors to make our point. We certainly don't. But we can learn from each other the tips and techniques that make the photos we do take even better. And the best ways to present them.
That brings me to my next point. We can all learn from our collective shared resources how much better it is to bring our photoblogs to life and in doing that, we also bring more light to shine on our cities and communities or other subjects we want to bring attention to. Learning how to take good photos is the easier part. Creating the story that sells that photo takes a bit of practice. Stories can drive home the point that the photos capture. A photo out of context is a lost opportunity.
I started a group that is "not" about the technical stuff of photography nor just putting pictures up on certain days of the week but with the goal of learning and sharing the known resources that the members of the group can use to make their photos stand out and be valued as a resource of the respective community. This can involve some minor tecki stuff now and then but it will be the easier things to learn that will make your photos standout as a photoblog. The nice thing about that is this works for community posts, listing posts, and just about any thing else you would want in a blog about.
By having a broader horizon, you will see that the subject of real estate, our communities and everything going on there is in much of everyone's world already. At least to the extent that people can identify with it and are also fascinated by it. As a photoblogger, that opens up the whole world for us to be able to connect with the public in enjoyable and creative new ways.
The group is called the "ActiveRainPhotoBlogger" group and I would like to extend an invitation to you. Come and join us, you will be glad you did !
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