Visions and Nature The ‘old box’
Posted on July 30, 2011
In the past everybody had these old shoe boxes with loads of paper images or even original negatives in them. Always fun to sit on the old attic floor and look through the entire stack of old photos. Nowadays you have a hard- disk (s) full of RAW images, less romantic but also fun to look at. Sometimes you find an image that, back then, you were not totally sure about. And now, after not seeing it for years, you think ‘hey this is not a bad image !’.
As for the image I published below, I remember the day when I took it. Then I had loved the different textures and the nice colour pallet. But back home I had been disappointed with the result and it never landed in my ‘to publish box’ till a couple of days ago.
Sometimes it is good to take some distance from your work and let time pass before you actually work on them and decide if this is a keeper or is ready for the trash bin.
Stag Beetles series
Posted on June 21, 2011
Stag Beetles Series
by Kristel Schneider
Stag Beetles (Lucanidae) are robust insects with black or reddish brown colouration.
The smaller ones even have a bluish sheen. The males have greatly enlarged, toothed mandibles; females are often smaller. The antennae are elbowed or bent in the middle.
More info about this wonderful insect click here.
For my Beetle photo shoot I wanted to get some soft focus images and some general detailed ones. The insects were wandering around on and in the tree trunk, the males didn’t really fight but where just getting in the defense ‘position’ what was nice for a background. The morning light provided me with some nice soft (background) light.
I tried some different angles and depth of fields and worked with my Canon 5DMark II and Canon 40D with different lenses (300mm + extension tube and the 150 macro lens).
Interview Kristel
Posted on May 28, 2011
Nature photographer Mike Moats has interviewed me about Macro Photography for his Blog: Tiny Landscapes.
You can read the interview here.
New: A series about Nature Photographers
Posted on February 10, 2011
Visions and Nature
Nature Photographers interviews
I can’t paint, but I can create artwork with my camera
Mike Moats
Mike Moats is an award winning professional Nature Photographer from Sterling Heights, Michigan, USA.
His articles and images have appeared in many magazines like for example Outdoor Photographer, Nature’s Best and Nature Photographer. My first introduction with Mike was via Nature Photographers Net a great nature forum where he is the Macro moderator. His way of looking at nature made me follow his work and I am sure after this little interview you will do the same.
‘I started in photography in 2001 as a hobby and by 2007 it became a full time business specializing in macro nature photography. I sell prints through art shows, teach three-day macro boot camps throughout the US, and have written many articles for magazines and have a soft cover book and five e-books. I run a forum just for macro nature photographers’, Mike Moats.
Who is your inspiration?
When I started in 2001 I didn’t know of any nature photographers, so I was not inspired by any photographers, I was inspired by the artwork that is created in nature, and decided I wanted to record this artwork with a camera.
What do you like about Nature Photography?
It gets me outdoors. I can’t paint, but I can create artwork with my camera in nature.
Are there things you don’t like about Nature Photography?
Only one thing that I don’t like about shooting in nature is dealing with the wind. Wind can keep a macro photographer from shooting, as it causes our subjects to move, making it impossible to shoot many days.
Do you have any tips for Visions and Nature readers who would like to become professional nature photographers?
You have to work harder then the next photographer if you want to get ahead. No one knows you’re alive and in business unless you tell them. So marketing properly is the key to making it in this business.
What are your specialties?
I only shoot macro, so when people think of me as a nature photographer ; there is no confusion on what I do.
Share with us one of your personal favorite photographs?
My favorite image is one of my most successful images, which is a green fern on a burned downed tree trunk that was shot in Yosemite. It has been published in magazines many times, won in photo contests, and has appeared in newspapers, TV, and advertisement in postcards for many art shows that I’ve participated in.
Describe how it was taken?
The new spring ferns were over taking the blackened tree trunks that had fallen in burned area. I was using my first digital camera which was a Fuji S2 Pro and my Sigma 180 mm macro lens. I used an f-stop of f/32 to get all the nice details and textures in focus.
You are now on Visions and Nature Blog, a Nature and Landscape Photography Blog from Kristel Schneider. Do you know her work?
Yes
When you look at her gallery which image(s) pops out for you and why?
I obviously am drawn to the macro, and she does a nice job with her flowers images.
See the images Mike likes from Kristel’s Gallery: Flora.
New beginnings
Posted on December 17, 2010
New beginnings
Today is the new beginning for my website and photography blog. I decided that it was time for a new design that fitted my needs in today’s ever changing on-line world. Less time behind the computer and more time for what I love doing; being out in the field taking pictures.
I’ve just completed a nearly -indescribable task – to put keywords and meta data to my nature and landscape photography collection so that I could finally relaunch Kristel Schneider Photography.
I am inviting you to take some time to browse through the entire brand new website. I’ll be adding more material weekly so please check back and thanks for taking the time to look!
Stop reading and jump right into the browsing if you are too curious and don’t worry if you don’t master all the functionalities. Just use one of the links at the top of the page, or keep reading to learn more.
So, what was wrong with the old website? Well, the design was not bad but just not very functional. Especially updating my galleries was tedious. Using a Dreamweaver plug in and FrontPage was also just not it. The new design is a mix from me and Photoshelter. I customized one of their templates to my own needs so that I can still use all Photoshelter’s great features.
What’s new
- The website is focusing now on one subject: Nature and Landscape Photography.
- Nearly every photograph has been reprocessed, captioned and key-worded – and then sorted out into convenient galleries.
- The different galleries can display enlarged views of my images and give a general overview via slide-shows.
- I can now offer prints, licensing, personal downloads and on-line collaboration from a single database of photos – all with powerful searching, collecting and purchasing features.
- New uploaded images are easier for people to find via the recently updated list on the homepage.
While working on my website I decided to create this new blog: Visions and Nature.
On this blog I will not only be blogging about my Nature and Landscape photography activities, visions and workshops news, but I will also publish new images with some details about the way it was captured. There will also be many other new items depending on the impulse and inspiration of the moment.
Just come back and follow me. You can do this by adding your email address by singing in on: blog subscriptions.
Feedback and comments are always welcome. I hope you will all participate. Thank you in advance for your time and contributions.
Kristel
Visit Kristels website: click on logo
Visions and Nature 