Weekly Photo Challenge: Dreaming

Photo courtesy of Kristin Luna

This week’s photo challenge is guest hosted by Kristin Luna of Camels & Chocolate. Read on for more about this week’s theme and her photography tips!

Dream. We chose this week’s photo challenge subject because it utilizes one technique we love to play around with: long exposures. Sometimes we use a neutral density filter; other times, we go organic and get the aperture, ISO and shutter speed to align perfectly in an effort to give our shots an otherworldly sense of escapism. (Using a long exposure is also a great way to blur people and other unwanted “noise” out of your photo.) We took this image and a series of long exposures at Waikiki Beach and all around Oahu last year. Hawaii already has an ethereal feel to it, and I think this photo captures that ambiance perfectly.

Share a photo that makes you DREAM!

Tip: When shooting long exposures, take into account your natural light. We like to shoot an hour before sunset with a tripod, our ISO set at 100 or 200 and our shutter speed anywhere from 2 to 15 seconds, depending on the amount of daylight remaining. If we use a dark ND filter, we put the camera on manual focus, bump up our ISO and use a slower shutter speed to allow more light to come in.

Kristin Luna is a Tennessee-based travel writer, author and blogger. She runs the site Camels & Chocolate: Tales from a Travel Addictwith her husband and fellow photographer Scott van Velsor. Follow their adventures via their blog, Twitter or Facebook.

—-

New to The Daily Post? Whether you’re a beginner or a professional, you’re invited to get involved in our Weekly Photo Challenge to help you meet your blogging goals and give you another way to take part in Post a Day / Post a Week. Everyone is welcome to participate, even if your blog isn’t about photography.

Here’s how the weekly photo challenge works:

1. Each week, we’ll provide a theme for creative inspiration. You take photographs based on your interpretation of the theme, and post them on your blog anytime before the following Friday when the next photo theme will be announced.

2. To make it easy for others to check out your photos, title your blog post “Weekly Photo Challenge: (theme of the week)” and be sure to use a “postaday2011″ or “postaweek2011″ tag.

3. Subscribe to The Daily Post so that you don’t miss out on weekly challenge announcements. Sign up via the email subscription link in the sidebar or RSS.